Multnomah County accepts comprehensive financial report, audit finds no material misstatements

The Multnomah County Board of Commissioners on Tuesday voted to acknowledge receipt of the county's Annual Comprehensive Financial Report and other audit materials for the fiscal year ended June 30, 2024, and approved a resolution directing county management to address remaining findings.

The county's external auditors, Moss Adams, issued an unmodified opinion — the highest level of assurance — finding that the county's financial statements were prepared in accordance with generally accepted accounting principles. Ashley Austin, partner with Moss Adams, told the board: "Based on all of our audit procedures ... we issued an unmodified opinion, meaning our financial statements are prepared in accordance with GAAP and they're fairly presented."

Why it matters: a clean audit supports the county's access to federal and state grant funding and helps maintain favorable bond ratings. Eric Arellano, the county chief financial officer, said the report helps residents and rating agencies assess Multnomah County's financial condition and compliance with external requirements.

Key findings and context

- Opinion: External auditors reported an unmodified (clean) opinion on the county's financial statements. - Oregon minimum audit standards: Moss Adams reported no control findings under Oregon's minimum audit standards but included a compliance finding for one fund that exceeded budgeted appropriations by $388,000; auditors said this must be disclosed in the financial statement notes. - Single Audit and federal awards: auditors reported no single-audit compliance findings for major federal programs but identified a significant deficiency in internal controls related to indirect cost allocations applied to some federal awards. Ashley Austin summarized that, in some cases, the county applied budgeted indirect-cost amounts and did not perform a year-end reconciliation to ensure those amounts matched actual costs. - Fraud review: auditors said their testing and inquiry disclosed no reportable instances of fraud, waste or abuse.

Audit committee oversight and process

Jerry Walker, vice chair of the Multnomah County Audit Committee, described the committee’s review process as thorough and transparent, saying members received audit materials in advance and used meetings to ask detailed questions of the audit team. Mary Annick Yagappen, an audit committee member, said the process allowed committee members to prepare and ask follow-up questions and described the auditors' communication as accommodating.

Board reaction and direction

Commissioners thanked staff, the audit committee and auditors for the work. Commissioner Rem Edwards noted the distinction between a financial audit and a performance audit conducted by the county auditor's office and said the resolution directs county management to implement auditor recommendations to resolve compliance and internal-control findings.

The board approved the resolution by roll call vote. Chair Vega Peterson recorded the aye votes and the resolution was adopted.

What happens next

The resolution accepts the audit, requires management to address the reported findings and preserves the county's reporting record for state and federal requirements. County finance staff said they will follow up with details on corrective steps for the internal-control matter tied to indirect-cost allocations and the budget compliance disclosure.

Ending

County officials said the annual audit and the clean opinion reflect a broad departmental effort to maintain timely, transparent financial reporting. Eric Arellano told the board the audit process involves many departments and begins in the spring, noting the public reporting helps maintain transparency and supports external funding relationships.