Auditors give Ontario SD 8C a clean opinion but flag material weaknesses and Oregon budget noncompliance

External auditors told the Ontario School District board that the district's 2024–25 financial statements receive an "unmodified opinion," but they also identified internal‑control deficiencies and some compliance problems that the board will need to address.

"Our opinion is an unmodified opinion, and that is essentially a clean bill of health for the district," said Kristen, the audit manager presenting the report. She said auditors found and corrected prior‑year errors tied to new GASB guidance and restatements, and that the firm issued the unmodified opinion after those adjustments.

Kristen told trustees the audit also identified three material weaknesses — conditions auditors judged could materially misstate the financial statements if not corrected — and one significant deficiency. She named specific findings: a lack of formal secondary review over journal entries, repeat material errors in balance‑sheet accounts (accounts receivable/payable and capital assets), student activity accounting recorded outside the district's primary system and then posted via single journal entries, and bank reconciliations that were not subject to supervisory review. "We recommend the finance department implement a process to have those journal entries reviewed and have some sort of segregation of duties," she said.

Kristen also reported two instances of noncompliance with Oregon budget law: the district did not publish a required notice of budget hearing and, as disclosed in the audit footnotes, the district overexpended budget appropriations in several funds and functional categories. She urged the board to review the schedule of findings and submit the district's required response to the Secretary of State.

District staff acknowledged the findings and said many issues were corrected during the audit. Devin (district staff) thanked the audit team for their work and said staff will implement recommended checks and supervisory reviews. The board subsequently voted to approve the 2024–25 financial audit by voice vote.

Next steps: trustees must consider the auditors' recommended corrective actions, produce formal responses where required, and monitor implementation as the district prepares its next budget.