Auditor reports clean opinion for Jackson County schools; federal spending in 2025 about $6.1 million

An external auditor told the Jackson County School Board that the district received a clean (unmodified) financial statement opinion and that the audits produced no findings for internal controls or compliance with state regulations.

The auditor explained that the Kentucky Department of Education extended the audit deadline to Jan. 31 because of pandemic-related delays and described the three parts of the audit: the financial statement audit (opinion on whether statements are materially correct), the internal control/compliance review (where findings would appear), and the "single audit" for federal awards. The auditor said federal expenditures in 2025 were about $6,100,000 and noted the single-audit threshold has been changing from $750,000 to $1,000,000 per year.

On the district's finances the auditor said, "It was a clear opinion," and added there were "no findings for the internal controls or compliance under state laws and regulations." The auditor also noted prior concerns around ESSER funds were no longer an active issue.

Board members asked questions about how certain funds are being used. One board member asked whether a roughly $200,000 allocation was being used to pay school resource officers (SROs); a staff member responded that SRO salaries are about $40,000 and recommended waiting until full staffing was in place before determining contributions.

The auditor's presentation concluded with an explanation of management-letter items (less-than-material concerns) and next steps; no formal board action on the audit was recorded during the meeting.