City of Bend audit committee hears Moss Adams: clean opinions, no findings on FY2024 audit

Moss Adams auditors presented the City of Bend audit committee with the fiscal year ended June 30, 2024 audit results, reporting unmodified (clean) opinions for both the City of Bend and the Bend Urban Renewal Agency and clean compliance opinions for the city's audited federal programs, the American Rescue Plan Act (ARPA) award and the Community Development Block Grant (CDBG) cluster.

The findings matter because the opinions and the absence of reported control or compliance issues affect how residents, bondholders and federal grantors assess the city's financial stewardship and compliance with state and federal requirements. Auditors also noted there were no audit adjustments and no disagreements with management during the engagement.

Amanda McCleary Moore of Moss Adams summarized the core result: "we issued clean or unmodified opinions." She told the audit committee the firm also issued no findings in its reports under the Oregon minimum audit standards and government auditing standards. Kevin of Moss Adams added that the engagement ran smoothly and that the auditors encountered "no difficulties" while working with city staff.

Moss Adams identified the audit's significant areas of focus, including cash and investments, pension and other postemployment benefits (OPEB), and federal awards testing. The firm noted the city participates in Oregon PERS and uses an actuary for OPEB valuations; auditors said they review the actuary inputs and allocation of those amounts to fund financial statements for consistency year to year. Because the city expended more than $750,000 in federal awards, the firm performed a single audit and treated ARPA as a higher-risk major program this year, requiring annual testing.

The auditors reported unmodified compliance opinions for both major federal programs tested and said they found no instances of noncompliance required to be reported under the Uniform Guidance. Regarding internal controls, Moss Adams said it made no findings that rose to the level of significant deficiency or material weakness for either financial reporting or internal controls over compliance.

Auditors said the financial statements included implementation of GASB Statement No. 100 (Accounting Changes and Error Corrections) and that the city's presentation of a fund that was a major capital projects fund in the prior year no longer met the threshold to be a major fund in FY2024; the change was presented in the financial statements. The firm listed no unusual transactions or estimates that required unusual scrutiny and reported that management provided a representation letter and that auditors were not aware of any consultations with other auditors.

Moss Adams also told the committee there were no audit adjustments to the city's or urban renewal agency's financial statements and no disagreements with management. Kevin noted the team issued the reports promptly and thanked city staff for timely responses to requests for documentation. The auditors closed by flagging upcoming accounting standards, including a new standard on compensated absences, and offered to consult with staff on implementation.

Mayor Melanie Keebler, City Manager Eric King, CFO Samantha Nelson and other city staff were present during the presentation; no committee questions were recorded that led to further direction or formal action. The auditors concluded the presentation and thanked city staff for cooperation.

Less critical details: Moss Adams identified team members who worked on the engagement (including a concurring reviewer and engagement manager), and emphasized that the city sought and obtained GFOA certificate-related disclosures in its annual comprehensive financial report (ACFR). The auditors recommended staff monitor upcoming GASB standards for next-year implementation planning.