Bear River Mental Health reports clean audit; county funds support $21 million in services

Rob Johnson of Bear River Mental Health presented the center's independent audit and a financial overview to the Cache County Council. The auditors issued a clean opinion for the fiscal year ending June 2024, stating the financial statements “present fairly in all material respects” in accordance with U.S. GAAP.

Johnson highlighted county support (just under $600,000) that is leveraged to match state funds and Medicaid to support roughly $21 million in total revenue for the center’s programs across three counties. He said personnel is the largest expenditure category (roughly 73 percent) and professional services (including hospitalizations for Medicaid clients) comprised another major portion. Johnson noted a year-over-year net increase of just over $3 million and an increase in cash and equivalents from about $16.3 million to $20 million; he said cash will decline as capital projects proceed, including a receiving center and a 20-unit apartment project.

Council members asked about the audit firm’s tenure (sixth year) and the status of asset sales; Johnson explained a sale of interest back to a health-department partner produced an approximately $500,000 sale of assets in the prior year. He also confirmed that the pending structural consolidation of substance-abuse services into Bear River Behavioral Health Services would occur July 1 and will not be reflected in the most recent audit.

Johnson concluded that auditors identified no material internal-control weaknesses but cautioned that undetected weaknesses may exist and that the organization will continue to invest in service capacity.