Harford County auditor reports limited findings, unmodified financial opinion for FY25

County Auditor Crystal Brooks presented an update on the auditor’s office activities, summarizing completed audits, open recommendations and work in progress.

Brooks said the contract-management audit found one overspent contract of about $14,000 on a $2.1 million contract for meal service at the detention center, which management is addressing. An employee-benefits-administration audit found incorrect payroll-deduction rates for nine crossing guards; management corrected the rates and refunded the employees. An inmate-account-controls review found no substantive control failures but recommended improving the timeliness of reconciliations; the detention center assigned a backup to address the issue. Four hotel-tax audits identified recoverable amounts totaling just under $16,000 and those balances have been repaid to the county.

Brooks said the county’s external financial-statement audit for FY25 was completed with an unmodified opinion; the county also passed a required peer review of its audit office. Ongoing audits include water and sewer benefit assessments, payroll-control testing for the newly implemented county payroll system and environmental-services billing/collection controls; Brooks said she expects reports on some of these projects in the coming months. She invited councilors to the audit-advisory-board meeting scheduled for Feb. 24.

Council members thanked her for the work; several asked clarifying questions about audit scope and the interaction with human resources and vendors. Brooks said most open recommendations are tracked and management has plans to address them.