Auditor reports no federal findings; board schedules vote to accept audit

The Houston Public School District’s external auditor reviewed the district’s 2024 financial statements and presented the results to the board during the meeting.

Auditor Craig summarized federal compliance testing and said the district’s recently in‑house special education program was a focal point of the audit. “We audited the special education program this year… No findings,” Craig said. He told the board that because federal expenditures are increasing, the district should expect audit thresholds to change in coming years — noting a threshold increase discussed in the presentation from $750,000 toward $1,000,000 for a later fiscal year.

Craig reported an increase in unrestricted general fund balances to about $1.4 million and discussed two commonly used calculations the district watches: a 4.6% overall unrestricted figure and the district policy calculation the auditor quoted as 5.7%. He explained the difference is how certain assigned and restricted amounts are counted for policy versus total-statement calculations. The audit presentation also showed enrollment rose by 31 students year over year and that bringing special education services in‑house changed the distribution of instruction and support expenditures.

Board members asked questions about food service balances and how state meal legislation and reimbursement interact with the district’s accounting; Craig said the reimbursement rules and the per‑meal statutory reimbursement affect revenues but that equipment, bids and vendor arrangements also influence food-service results. Board members also discussed preschool programming and noted a grant decision expected January 15 that could affect that program’s funding.

After discussion, the board moved to accept the audit as presented. Motion by Mark, second by Nikki; the board voted in favor and the auditor was thanked for the presentation. The board indicated it will formally approve the audit next meeting as its agenda requires acceptance on record, after the review presented this evening.

The auditor’s slide materials remain part of the board packet and will be included in the minutes.