Council committee recommends audit engagement with Boyer & Ritter; addendum sought for 2022 work

Accounting manager Bridal McCutcheon presented the proposed engagement letter from Boyer and Ritter LLC to perform the City of Harrisburg’s annual audit and financial report for the year ending Dec. 31, 2023 and an addendum to the professional services agreement related to the 2022 audit.

McCutcheon said the 2023 audit fee proposed in the engagement letter is $119,890. She also described an addendum to the 2022 audit that would increase compensation by $28,000 to reflect additional work caused by “stops and starts” in the finance office and the transition to the new Munis ERP system, changes in coding between the legacy mainframe and Munis, and vacancies in key finance positions in 2024.

McCutcheon introduced Robert Kennick, the city’s newly filled finance director, and Matthew Wilderson, CPA, the principal lead auditor from Boyer & Ritter. Council members asked clarifying questions about the length of Boyer & Ritter’s relationship with the city (the firm began services for the 2019 audit), the RFP and extension process, and whether the 2023 fee anticipates needing further modifications. McCutcheon said the lower proposed fee for 2023 reflects anticipated efficiencies and staff involvement to improve audit readiness.

Solicitor Grover noted the audit committee is a council committee and that the city ordinance recommends the committee evaluate the audit process every five years; he encouraged the budget chair to attend the next audit committee meeting. McCutcheon said the 2022 financial statements are in draft and that the city expects to schedule an audit committee meeting before the end of the month to finalize the audit.

Chair Green indicated no further questions and recommended adding the engagement letter and the 2022 addendum to the next legislative session for formal council review and vote.