County auditor reports clean 2024 opinion; warns human services deficit and rising debt

An external auditor told the Manitowoc County Board on Oct. 23 that Manitowoc County's 2024 financial statements received an unmodified (clean) opinion and detailed fund balances, special revenue accounts and long‑term debt.

Brian Grunewald, the auditor who presented the annual report, said the opinion — the highest level of assurance in an audit — indicates the financial statements are complete and in accordance with professional standards. He also noted the county continues to earn the Government Finance Officers Association award for financial reporting.

Grunewald reviewed the county's general fund and reserve categories, saying the total general fund balance rose from about $5.3 million at the end of 2023 to about $5.6 million at the end of 2024. He said unassigned general fund balances — dollars not earmarked for a particular purpose — increased to roughly $3.2 million in 2024 from about $2.2 million the prior year.

The auditor summarized special revenue funds and highlighted the opioid settlement account. He described several figures disclosed in the audit documents, including prior‑year and current balances and restrictions on eligible uses. Grunewald also said the county's ARPA reporting shows $831,000 recorded as interest earnings available for county use, while additional ARPA cash (about $3.4 million at year‑end 2024) includes amounts set aside as liabilities owed to other municipalities pending project completion.

Grunewald flagged the human services fund as an area of concern. He said human services recorded about $31.3 million in revenues and about $34.2 million in expenses for 2024, so expenses exceeded revenues by about $2.9 million. He explained the deficit did not rise by the full $2.9 million because the county used other sources — including a $300,000 transfer from the opioid fund, about $1.0 million of ARPA funds and an accounting adjustment related to new standards — resulting in a net deficit increase of roughly $1.1 million.

The presentation also covered long‑term general obligation debt. Grunewald said the outstanding principal at the end of 2023 was about $23.0 million; during 2024 the county issued roughly $8.3 million in new debt and repaid about $2.1 million in principal, leaving about $29.0 million outstanding at the end of 2024. He showed benchmarking figures: the county's usage of the statutory debt limit (5% of equalized property value) rose from about 5.5% at the end of 2023 to about 6.3% at the end of 2024. He also said debt service (principal and interest) represented about 3.8% of the noncapital budget in 2023 and about 3.7% in 2024.

Grunewald closed by noting the county is implementing new Governmental Accounting Standards Board (GASB) pronouncements and that auditors will continue to work with county staff on those transitions.

The board did not take a formal vote on audit acceptance during the presentation; Grunewald invited supervisors to contact him with questions and pointed attendees to the comprehensive financial report for further detail.