Santa Fe posts clean FY24 audit; eight findings remain including two material weaknesses

The City of Santa Fe received an unmodified ("clean") opinion on its fiscal year 2024 financial statements and on federal compliance testing, City Finance Director Emily Oster told the governing body at its Feb. 12 meeting.

"This was an unmodified opinion for the financial statements and the federal compliance audit," Emily Oster, finance director, said, adding that the audit showed fewer findings than the prior year. Auditor A.J. Bowers of Carr, Riggs & Ingram explained details of program testing and control findings during the presentation.

The nut of the audit presentation was that external auditors were able to substantiate balances and transactions to the level required by generally accepted accounting principles, while also reporting eight findings in the FY24 report. Officials said the number of findings dropped from 13 the prior year; the city reported resolving nine FY23 findings during the FY24 audit process and a total of 37 prior findings across audits for FY21–FY24.

Bowers described the audit scope and timeline: planning began mid‑2024, fieldwork occurred in the October–December window, the independent auditor's…