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Ways & Means accepts 2024 audit; health department finding prompts separate-audit step
Summary
Auditors issued a clean opinion on Eaton County’s 2024 financial statements but reported two audit findings, including a procurement-related compliance issue in the health department. The committee accepted the audit and voted to require the health department obtain its own audit and to issue an RFP for the county audit contract.
The Eaton County Ways & Means Committee voted April 15 to accept the county’s 2024 audit after the auditor delivered a largely positive report but also identified control and compliance issues tied to federal awards. Nate Baldererman, principal auditor, told the committee the audit team issued an unmodified (clean) opinion on the county’s financial statements but reported a material‑weakness‑level internal control finding and a qualified compliance opinion on one health‑department federal program.
"We did issue an unmodified opinion," Baldererman said, adding that ‘‘we did have one finding related to internal controls . . . and a qualified report for the injury prevention and control research program where we had a finding related to procurement suspension and sole-source documentation.’’ The audit team said several year‑end adjustments were made and that those adjustments, by fund, rose to the level of a finding under professional standards.
Why it matters: a clean opinion means the county’s financial statements can be relied on overall, but the single‑audit findings increase oversight and testing for federal awards and point to specific internal‑control and documentation gaps, particularly in the health department’s grant procedures. Finance staff said the procurement documentation finding is similar in nature to prior issues and recommended steps to improve controls.
After discussion, the committee approved a motion to accept the audit and then voted to direct the county and the Barry‑Eaton health district to separate audits going forward so each entity’s weaknesses are reported on its own statements. The committee also approved issuing an RFP to solicit a county audit vendor next year; staff said the decision to seek bids reflects the change in audit scope created by the reallocation of the health‑department work.
What’s next: administration will publish an RFP for the county audit contract and work with the health district to transition that agency to its own audit vendor. Finance staff said the county will also strengthen year‑end procedures and improve procurement documentation and internal controls to reduce future findings.
The committee accepted the audit by voice vote. The motion to require a separate health‑department audit and to issue a county audit RFP was approved by the committee and will be reflected in next steps with the departments.
