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City auditor issues clean opinion on Hurricane's 2025 financial statements
Summary
Hinton Burdick auditor Chad Atkinson told the Hurricane City Council the 2025 audit returned an unmodified (clean) opinion, found no state compliance or internal‑control findings, and reported the city's general fund holds roughly five months of reserves despite a $609,000 year‑over‑year decrease.
Hinton Burdick auditor Chad Atkinson told the Hurricane City Council the firm issued an unmodified opinion on the city's 2025 financial statements and found no reportable findings on state compliance or internal controls. "We issued an unmodified opinion or clean opinion on the financial statements," Atkinson said during the presentation.
Atkinson highlighted a modest $609,000 decline in the general fund during the year but said the fund remains healthy, with about $6.5 million in unrestricted fund balance — roughly five months of reserves. He also noted specific set‑asides, including $537,000 reserved for flag and cemetery perpetual care and $159,000 classified as non‑spendable prepaid items.
The auditor reviewed enterprise funds, reporting a net increase in the water fund driven by approximately $5.3 million in capital contributions from developers and strong unrestricted positions in the electric and golf funds. Council members asked several clarifying questions about rainy‑day funds and the timing of cash flows for capital projects; Atkinson and staff explained that some business‑type cash balances include unspent debt proceeds and project pass‑throughs.
The council thanked staff for conservative, pay‑as‑you‑go budgeting that has allowed many projects to be paid from cash rather than new borrowing. The auditor encouraged council members to review the letter of transmittal and management's discussion and analysis in the financial statements for additional details.
