Burleigh County auditor shows condensed finance flowchart for Missouri Valley Complex funds

Auditor Splunkowski presented a condensed flowchart summarizing county revenue and expenses related to the Missouri Valley Complex, describing the one‑page product as a high‑level view designed to make oversight easier for the committee.

Splunkowski said the flowchart compresses roughly 30 pages of transactional data into a single sheet to help the committee see major revenue streams (left side) and expenses (right side) at a glance. He credited assistant Thomas with much of the work and said the product was modeled on state examples. “This is 30 plus pages compiled into 1 sheet,” Splunkowski said.

Committee members asked why the county maintains accounts across many banks. Splunkowski said when he took office county funds were spread across 11–12 banks and that he has reduced those holdings to seven with a personal goal of consolidating to five and prioritizing North Dakota banks. He cited the county’s investment policy that calls for diversification among banks and asset types, and said some uses (for example, holding sales‑tax proceeds) may still leave funds at the Bank of North Dakota even though that bank does not compete on retail consumer products.

One committee member warned that holding many small accounts could create management challenges and “open the door for nefarious activities,” which Splunkowski said the consolidation program and application of policy are intended to reduce.

What happens next: Splunkowski offered to provide larger print copies of the flowchart for distribution and asked for follow‑up questions as the committee digests the material. The flowchart will accompany future budget and oversight conversations about the complex fund.

Sources: committee meeting transcript and auditor comments at the meeting.