Independent auditors issue clean opinion; board assigns $25.4 million in general fund balance

Members of the Board of Education of Cecil County on Sept. 24 heard from independent auditors and approved an accounting designation that assigns the district’s general fund balance of $25,394,091.

UHY principal Jason Ostrowski told the board the audit team expected to issue a "clean, unmodified opinion" on the FY2025 financial statements and that auditors had identified no material weaknesses or instances of noncompliance during the engagement. Ostrowski also said the district’s single-audit report on federal awards was pending completion of the federal compliance supplement but that auditors had completed their testing and expected no findings.

The audit’s conclusion matters because it affirms the district’s financial statements were prepared in conformity with U.S. generally accepted accounting principles, and it clears the way for the district’s financial reports to be finalized and published. "Overall, very, very clean report," Ostrowski said.

Denise Sopa, chief financial officer for Cecil County Public Schools, summarized highlights from the financial statements that followed the audit presentation. Sopa said the district’s government-wide statement showed a net position increase of about $15.8 million in FY2025, largely attributable to capital additions related to the new Northeast Middle/Northeast High project (an increase in capital assets of roughly $20.2 million). She said total fund balance at the end of FY2025 was $25,300,000, a reduction of about $1.4 million from the prior year.

Sopa reviewed the composition of the general fund balance: prepaid items (insurance and tuition), a $10,000,000 committed amount used to balance the FY2026 budget, a 2% budget contingency required by board policy, and a set of assigned balances for items such as per-pupil allotments (carryover amounts), prekindergarten, technology and cybersecurity (including a recently approved Proofpoint email filter), student activity funds, capital projects carryover and a health-care reserve tied to the district’s self-funded health plan. She said the board would be asked to approve the formal assignment of those amounts to the FY2026 operating budget.

Board member questions focused on the scope of the audit and internal controls. When Board member Hampton asked whether the auditors were independent and had found any discrepancies, Ostrowski replied, "Correct" — that an independent firm reviewed the district’s FY2025 financial data and found no instances requiring modification of the opinion. When other members asked about significant deficiencies, Ostrowski said that auditors would report significant deficiencies if identified and that none had been found during this audit.

The board then approved the presented assignment of the general fund balance, as moved and seconded at the meeting; the motion carried unanimously in the meeting record.

The district will finalize the audit documents for publication and the CFO said required federal reporting (the single-audit report) will be issued once the federal compliance supplement is finalized.