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External auditors give Graham County a clean financial opinion but flag IT controls
Summary
Audit firm Fester and Chapman presented the 2024 county audit: a clean (unmodified) opinion on the financial statements, material numbers for assets and revenues, and two significant deficiencies in IT controls noted for correction.
An independent audit of Graham County's fiscal year that ended June 30, 2024, produced a clean opinion on the county's financial statements but identified significant deficiencies in information-technology controls, the accounting firm reported May 5.
Ben Hur of the accounting firm Fester and Chapman PLLC told the Graham County Board of Supervisors the Auditor General's Office contracted his firm to perform the audit and then reviewed the work. Hur said the firm issued an unmodified opinion on the county's financial statements and performed a single-audit for federal programs where required.
Hur summarized the county's financial position: total assets and deferred outflows around $133 million (including roughly $62 million in capital assets and $51 million in cash and investments); total liabilities of about $53 million (including roughly $19 million in pension liabilities); and net position of approximately $80 million. The county reported total revenue of about $58 million and total expenses of roughly $40 million, with public safety accounting for about $15 million (approximately 37% of expenses).
Hur said the auditors reported two significant deficiencies in internal controls over financial reporting related to IT controls and a modified opinion on two single-audit major programs selected for review. He identified the federal assistance numbers included in the single-audit testing as 10.665 (schools) and 21.032 (COVID-19-related local assistance). The firm reported no instances of noncompliance in those tested programs.
Supervisor comments acknowledged the IT findings as a high priority. One supervisor said the board expects to address cybersecurity and other IT control weaknesses and hoped to eliminate the findings in next year's audit.
The audit presentation was accepted for the record; auditors reported no disagreements with management and no difficulties encountered that prevented completion of the audit.
