Get Full Government Meeting Transcripts, Videos, & Alerts Forever!
Get email alerts on the Audit topic
No spam. Unsubscribe anytime.
Audit: Ambridge Area School District posts $2 million increase in fund balance; auditors report no material weaknesses
Summary
External auditors reported that Ambridge Area School District’s 2023–24 financial statements were fairly presented, noted a $2 million increase in general fund balance and no material weaknesses in internal control over financial reporting or major federal programs.
External auditors told the Ambridge Area School District board that the district’s audited financial statements were presented fairly and that key fund balances remain within typical benchmarks.
Peter Van Cherry, the audit partner on the engagement, said the independent auditor’s opinion letter contained no modifications and that the general fund unassigned balance was about $4.4 million (roughly 8–10% of budgeted expenditures by his calculation). He said total general fund revenues were $54.7 million, expenditures $52 million, and the net change in fund balance was a positive $2 million for the year.
Van Cherry summarized capital and other funds: a capital project fund balance of about $1.9 million, food-service fund net position up $156,000 (down from $258,000 the prior year), and long-term liabilities including the district’s share of the net pension liability (about $44 million) and other post-employment benefit liabilities (approximately $800,000 projected for district plans). He also said total federal expenditures for the year were about $4.3 million, triggering a single-audit requirement; of that, COVID-era federal expenditures totaled about $1.3 million.
On internal controls and compliance, Van Cherry reported no material weaknesses in internal control over financial statements and no instances of noncompliance for the specific programs the auditors tested, which included the education stabilization fund and the child nutrition cluster.
Board members asked how Ambridge compared with other districts and were told fund-balance comparisons are challenging because district demographics and funding mixes differ; the auditor cautioned that federal stabilization funds (ESSER) that had been used in prior years may not remain available and that relying on them to cover recurring salaries poses future budgeting challenges.
The audit partner offered to answer follow-up questions and provided the full report to the board for more detailed review.
