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Auditors give Cottage Grove a clean 2025 opinion; general fund reserves rise to about 35%
Summary
Baker Tilly presented the village’s 2025 audited financial statements and issued an unmodified opinion, reporting no material weaknesses in internal control and a general fund balance increase of roughly $138,000 (about 35% of budgeted expenditures). Trustees probed debt service burdens and TIF dynamics.
Cottage Grove, Wis. — Independent auditors Baker Tilly delivered an unmodified (clean) opinion on the Village of Cottage Grove’s 2025 financial statements during the May 4 board meeting, noting improved internal controls and no material weaknesses or significant deficiencies.
Amanda Bloomberg, managing director at Baker Tilly, told trustees the general fund fund balance increased about $138,000 in 2025. After adjusting for some timing items, the village’s unassigned/available reserves equate to roughly 33–35% of budgeted annual general fund expenditures, a level the auditors described as healthy and above the village’s adopted target range of 20–30%.
Trustees questioned long‑term debt service and whether large TIF (TID) projects were pressuring operating budgets. Finance staff and auditors said that while debt spike years exist because of TID‑driven issuances, much TID debt is repaid from incremental tax revenues rather than the general levy; the village’s general obligation debt remains under common policy limits. The water and sewer utilities were reported separately as financially healthy, with utilities carrying several months of operating cash and healthy equity in capital assets.
What’s next: Staff and the board will continue reviewing debt management and proposed revisions to fund balance policy; auditors recommended continued attention to policies as the village grows.
Representative quote: “This is the first year that there have not been any material weaknesses or significant deficiencies reported in internal controls,” Amanda Bloomberg said, calling it “really good news.”
