Auditor gives City of West Columbia clean opinion on FY2023–24 financial statements

An independent audit of the City of West Columbia’s fiscal 2023–24 financial statements received a clean opinion from the city’s auditors, who reviewed internal controls, compliance and several note disclosures.

Bill Hancock, the presenting auditor, told the council the audit opinion indicates the financial statements “are correct in all material respects,” and that users of the statements can rely on them for decision-making. Hancock said the auditors also tested compliance with externally imposed rules and found no instances of noncompliance in the areas tested, such as payroll withholdings and hospitality- and accommodations-tax restrictions.

The nut graf: Hancock highlighted that the city ended the year with a general-fund surplus of a little more than $1 million on a spending budget of roughly $22.5 million and that the water-and-sewer fund increased net position by about $5 million on roughly $24 million in system revenue. Hancock said those reserves reduce future borrowing needs.

Hancock explained the auditors’ role in testing internal controls and said they found no areas where the cost of recommended changes would exceed the benefits. He also drew the council’s attention to note disclosures, including commitments such as the Joint Municipal Water Sewer Commission agreement and Riverwalk Park construction activity that appear in the financial-statement notes.

Council members asked about reserve guidelines for utility funds. Hancock described two rules of thumb used by capital markets: days-cash-on-hand (often 180–270 days recommended by the Government Finance Officers Association) and debt-service-coverage (a common target is 120 percent of upcoming principal and interest), and he said the city has maintained a favorable market rating when it issues debt.

Ending: Hancock closed by saying he had disclosed required communications to the council and invited questions; council members thanked him for the presentation.