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CLA auditor gives Brown Deer an unmodified opinion, flags one material weakness in statement preparation
Summary
CliftonLarsonAllen signing director Shannon Small told the Brown Deer School District board the auditors issued an unmodified (clean) opinion on the 2024–25 financial statements but identified one material weakness related to the level of assistance provided to management in preparing the statements; the federal single-audit work remains pending due to a delayed compliance supplement.
Shannon Small, signing director at CliftonLarsonAllen (CLA), told the Brown Deer School District board the firm issued an unmodified, or "clean," opinion on the district’s 2024–25 financial statements and found no uncorrected misstatements, disagreements with management or unusual transactions.
"I am happy to let to bring to you that we issued an unmodified opinion or what's commonly referred to as a clean opinion in the industry," Small said, adding that the team performs a risk-based audit that focuses on the district’s most significant balances and classes of transactions.
Small also told the board CLA identified one material weakness tied to the assistance auditors provided in preparing the financial statements. She described that finding as related to the technical, year-end preparation work: "We do have 1 material weakness that we're bringing to you... related to the assistance we provide with the preparation of those financial statements." The auditor said the condition is similar to issues CLA has seen in comparable-sized districts and that management and auditors worked together to complete the reporting package.
Small explained the federal compliance supplement was delayed this year, which postponed completion of federal single-audit procedures; she said the district remains on track to meet the single-audit deadline of March 31. "That federal single audit is not due until March 31," she said.
The presentation noted the district adopted GASB Statement 101 this year related to compensated absences, which produced a restatement of beginning net position in the financial schedules; Small emphasized that adoption of the new standard, not an accounting error, caused that restatement.
Board members had no follow-up questions after the presentation, and Small provided contact information for follow-up. The auditor urged trustees to consult note disclosures (note 1) if they want more detail on accounting policies and flagged an upcoming GASB standard (GASB 103) that will affect the financial-statement format in future years.
What happens next: CLA will complete outstanding federal compliance testing and issue any related reports before the March 31 deadline; the board received the auditor’s recommendations and the communication of the material weakness at the meeting.
