Murfreesboro City Schools audit: independent firm issues clean opinion; district reports solid reserves
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Summary
An independent audit of Murfreesboro City Schools for fiscal year 2025 returned a clean opinion; auditors and district staff highlighted roughly $210 million in assets, about $52 million in liabilities, and roughly $44.2 million in fund balance, with unassigned reserves covering about 2½ months of operations.
Murfreesboro City Schools officials told the board Feb. 24 that an independent audit of the district'025 finances produced a "clean opinion." Jimmy Job of Job Hastings and Associates presented the FY25 audit and said, "the school system received a clean report" and that there were "no findings of any significance." He offered to answer board questions about methodology and compliance.
The auditor walked the board through headline figures: total assets (including buildings and equipment) reported at about $210,000,000 and liabilities near $52,000,000, yielding a net position of roughly $152,600,000 as of the fiscal year-end. In a shorter-term presentation, the auditor reported about $66,900,000 in assets available for next year—9s budget and a total fund balance of approximately $44,200,000, of which about $20,400,000 was unassigned and therefore available for the coming year—9s expenses. The auditor noted that the unassigned amount equates to roughly two and a half months of operating costs.
The presentation also reviewed operating results and grant activity: the general purpose school fund showed about $104,600,000 in revenues and about $113,000,000 in expenses for the year, with approximately $8,000,000 in transfers from the city covering the difference. Federal awards flowing through the district totaled about $13,500,000, and the audit team reported no instances of noncompliance with grant agreements.
Bradford praise for the finance team followed. "To have a budget this large two years in a row with zero audit findings really goes back to a tremendous accomplishment to Daniel, to Beth, to the entire finance team," Dr. Duke said, attributing the result to staff and principals who maintain reporting discipline. The board accepted the audit presentation and had no follow-up requests that altered the district—9s reported figures.
What happens next: the audit remains part of the public record; board members said they appreciated the transparency and stewardship demonstrated in the report.