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Auditor reports unmodified opinion on Cape Girardeau 2024 financial statements; no internal control or compliance findings
Summary
Auditor Jeff Stroder presented the fiscal 2024 audit to the council, reporting three unmodified opinions on financial statements, internal controls and federal programs tested, and noting no findings; council members praised transparency and finance staff.
Jeff Stroder of the firm B.C.K. Roe and Stroder presented the City of Cape Girardeau’s fiscal year 2024 audit, telling the City Council that the audit produced three unmodified (clean) opinions and that the auditors found no deficiencies in internal controls or instances of noncompliance in the areas tested.
Stroder said the financial statements ‘‘are fairly stated in all material respects in accordance with generally accepted accounting principles in the United States of America,’’ language that constitutes an unmodified audit opinion. He told the council the firm also tested internal controls and compliance and reported no deficiencies.
The audit included a federal single‑audit review because the city spent more than $750,000 in federal funds in the fiscal year. Stroder said the auditors tested two programs in detail: the Airport Improvement Program, which he said involved roughly $8.9 million in federal dollars, and coronavirus‑related expenditures of about $1.5 million. For both programs, he reported that the city complied with applicable federal requirements and that the internal controls tested were adequate.
Council members and staff praised the finance team. Councilman Preston thanked Lisa Mills and city staff for compiling the information that underpins the clean opinion. Stroder noted he had no significant recommendations for changes to the city’s financial reporting this year.
Council members said the audit and the published budget documents increase transparency and public confidence. The city clerk or finance department posts the annual budget and audit on the city website, council members said, and the report will be available online for public review.
