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City audit receives unmodified opinion; auditors note one significant deficiency in journal-entry review
Summary
Alden & Jenkins issued an unmodified (clean) opinion on Forest Park's FY2024 financial statements; auditors also reported a single significant deficiency related to segregation of duties for journal entry review and noted an approximately $3 million OPEB liability on the city's statement of net position.
Alden & Jenkins presented the City of Forest Park's annual comprehensive financial report for the fiscal year ending June 30, 2024, and issued an unmodified (clean) audit opinion at the Feb. 17 council meeting.
Ryan Jones, the audit lead, told the council the firm also issued an unmodified opinion on federal compliance testing (single-audit) and had no findings related to federal grant compliance (the audit included testing of ARPA Coronavirus State and Local Fiscal Recovery Funds). Jones said, "our opinion for the city's financial statements for the fiscal year ended 06/30/2024 wasn't a modified opinion," and commended the finance team for meeting the deadline.
Key figures and findings cited during the presentation: - The general fund revenues for FY24 were about $39.5 million, up from $34.5 million in FY23. - Total governmental and business-type net position rose to about $89.4 million at June 30, 2024, from $74.3 million a year earlier. - The auditors identified one significant deficiency in internal control related to journal entries: during testing, 31 of 60 sampled entries lacked evidence of review and approval by someone other than the preparer. The auditors recommended improved segregation of duties and documented review procedures; city staff said they have already instituted stronger review and approval processes. - A notable accounting estimate highlighted was other postemployment benefits (OPEB): the auditors reported the OPEB liability at about $3,000,000, driven by actuarial assumptions.
Council action and comments: The council voted to approve the FY2024 comprehensive financial report. Councilwoman Akins Wells recorded an abstention on the motion; other members voted in favor. Council members praised the finance team for issuing the audit on time and reducing outside consultant costs compared with prior years.
Next steps: Finance staff will continue implementing the auditor's recommendations on segregation of duties and refining grant accounting practices; staff also noted upcoming GASB standards will require additional changes in future financial statements.
Ending: The council approved the report and commended staff and auditors for completing the audit on schedule.
