Budget and Finance Committee approves January minutes, hears FY25 financial update and audit delays

The Budget and Finance Committee approved its January meeting minutes by a 3-0 vote and heard updates on Fiscal Year 2025 finances and outstanding audits.

During the meeting, finance staff said property-tax receipts are beginning to arrive and sales-tax figures “are looking really good.” The committee was told the finance office will begin providing a separate budget-transfer report to the committee to comply with a state legal requirement to report internal budget transfers.

"Your financials got emailed out to you on Friday. Property tax is starting to come in. It's looking really good. Sales tax, I emailed out that report as well. We're doing pretty good there," said Ms. Holden, a finance staff member, describing the materials committee members received in advance.

Ms. Holden described the upcoming budget-transfer report and how transfers will be reported. "A budget transfer is . . . if I move money from office supplies to furniture, I can do that in house without coming to you all, but it needs to be reported to you all at the next, board meeting," she said. She said staff will produce a catch-up report covering transfers back to July 1 and then provide the report monthly; she said she hoped to complete the catch-up before the February BOMA meeting when financial reports go to BOMA.

Alderman Linville asked for confirmation that the catch-up would cover the entire fiscal year to date. "So we will see that for the entire fiscal year, up to date, correct?" he asked; Ms. Holden replied she intends to catch up from July 1 and have it ready before the February BOMA meeting and then provide monthly updates thereafter.

On audits, the committee received an update on the Fiscal Year 2024 audit: staff said the audit firm has not responded to repeated inquiries. "We reached out to them mid January . . . they said they would be reaching out within a week. We did not hear from them," Ms. Holden said. She said staff have asked whether additional documentation or questions are needed, but so far have not received a reply. The chair also has reached out to the audit firm, Ms. Holden said.

The committee also received a brief update on corrective actions related to the Fiscal Year 2023 audit; Ms. Holden said there were no new updates since the prior report and invited questions.

Votes at a glance

- Approval of January minutes — Motion to approve passed 3-0. (Mover/second and individual vote names not specified in the transcript.)

Committee members asked whether there was anything they could do to expedite the FY24 audit response; Ms. Holden said she would ask for assistance if needed, and a committee member offered to share a contact at Tyler Technologies and to pass along the audit firm's contact information to elected officials who might assist with outreach.

The meeting record shows the committee directed staff to begin producing the budget-transfer report (catching up from July 1 and then monthly) and to continue outreach to the FY24 audit firm; no formal motions on the audits or the transfer-report schedule were recorded in the transcript.