Shelby County Board approves fiscal 2023 audit after auditors issue unmodified opinion

The Shelby County Board on March 3, 2026 voted unanimously to approve the county’s fiscal year 2023 audit after auditors presented an unmodified opinion and a management letter with several recommendations.

Brad Porter, the auditor presenting the report, told the board the auditors issued an "unmodified opinion," which he described as "the cleanest form of opinion" and indicates the county’s financial statements are "presented fairly in all material respects." Porter also said the engagement required "material restatements to fund balance" to address cleanup items carried from the prior-year audit.

The audit presentation summarized financial highlights: the county reported an increase in general fund balance of about $1.45 million for fiscal 2023, ending the year with $5,626,000 in accumulated fund balance — about 7.5 months of operating expenses in unassigned or unrestricted fund balance, Porter said. He noted the FY2023 audit was issued later than typical and the firm included a recommendation about timeliness in the management letter.

Porter walked the board through eight recommendations in the management letter framed as best practices and internal‑control improvements. Among them: adopt a written policy and procedures manual for key finance functions; designate individuals to coordinate grant administration and prepare federal expenditure schedules; adopt or clarify policies on outstanding check writeoffs, capital assets, and fund balance; identify and record bank accounts that currently are not on the county’s general ledger; and monitor funds that exceeded their working budgets (the auditor named the social security fund, the state's attorney forfeited fund, a sale/air fund, and the drainage fund as examples). Porter emphasized none of those items affected the unmodified audit opinion.

Board members asked follow-up questions about American Rescue Plan Act (ARPA) reporting and grant testing. Porter said he did not recall ARPA‑specific audit concerns for the fiscal year under audit but offered to review the firm’s grant testing and follow up with staff. He also offered that the auditors could share sample policy templates where confidentiality permits, and recommended the county work with neighboring counties and internal staff to craft policies tailored to local operations.

The chair opened a motion "to approve the fiscal year 23 audit report as presented." The motion passed unanimously by voice/roll-call confirmation of those present; the board did not record any negative votes. The chair asked that the audit documents be uploaded to any required portals and that the board’s budget and audit committee begin work on implementing the recommended policies.

The board adjourned at approximately 6:30 p.m.