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Newton County auditors issue clean opinion; general fund balance grows
Summary
External auditors Mauldin & Jenkins issued an unmodified opinion on Newton County's FY2024 financial statements and single audit, noting no material weaknesses. The county reported a $23.2 million increase in net position and an unassigned general fund balance equal to about eight months of operating expenditures.
Newton County's external auditors reported a clean, unmodified opinion on the county's fiscal 2024 financial statements and on its required single audit, the auditing firm said at the Feb. 4 Board of Commissioners meeting.
The audit presentation, delivered by David Irwin of Mauldin & Jenkins, said the auditors found the financial statements "fairly presented in all material respects in accordance with generally accepted accounting principles," and that the single audit required for federal expenditures also received an unmodified opinion.
The auditors told commissioners the county ended FY2024 with approximately $502 million in assets and deferred outflows, including about $272 million in capital assets and roughly $183 million in cash and investments. Liabilities totaled about $158 million, of which $136 million were long-term. Total revenues were about $223 million and expenses just under $200 million, producing an ending net position of roughly $344 million, an increase of about $23.2 million from the prior year.
In the fund-level statements, the general fund reported total revenues of about $95.8 million, an $8.2 million increase from FY2023; taxes made up roughly $76.8 million (about 80% of general fund revenue). General fund expenditures totaled about $85 million, with public safety accounting for about $48.6 million (roughly 57% of general fund spending). The general fund's ending fund balance was about $61.2 million, representing roughly eight months of operating expenditures, the auditors said.
Irwin told the board the audit produced no findings: "We noted no significant deficiencies or material weaknesses in the county's internal controls during our audit," and he thanked county finance staff for their cooperation in getting the report finalized on time.
Commissioners praised Finance Director Britney White and her staff for their work preparing the annual comprehensive financial report and for earning the Government Finance Officers Association's Certificate of Achievement for Excellence in Financial Reporting, which the auditors noted was included with the submission.
The presentation also highlighted enterprise fund activity: the Water Fund produced operating income of just over $2 million in FY2024, while the Solid Waste Fund ran an operating loss offset by transfers of about $1.7 million from other funds.
No formal board action was required on the audit beyond discussion and public presentation.
