Danbury City auditors say 2024 audit is nearing completion; no fraud found

Danbury City’s ad hoc audit committee was told Monday that the 2024 financial audit is nearing completion, with auditors and city staff saying most outstanding items have been reduced to a small, manageable list and that no fraud has been identified.

Scott Bassett, a partner with audit firm RSM, told the committee the engagement team had "made great progress" and that the audit team was "getting close to the finish line," while noting there remained a limited set of open items the firm and city finance staff were working through.

The auditors and city staff described the outstanding items primarily as reconciliations and footnote clarifications rather than adjustments that would change core budget figures. "We're not seeing anything right now that's gonna affect the bottom line," a finance staff member said during the meeting.

Lauren Turan, who identified herself as a senior director on the RSM engagement, told the committee the city and RSM were aiming to close the remaining open items by the end of the week or early next week; she and audit partners estimated it could be two to three weeks after that before final audited financial statements were issued.

Taylor from the mayor's office praised staff work, saying the administration has moved past recent state watch meetings and that departments and outside partners were improving controls and processes. Board of Education representatives also thanked city staff and singled out Angela Walsh for significant help on audit-related work.

Auditors said they will conduct a separate single-audit on-site review of the bilingual program at several schools and expected to schedule that on-site work within the coming week so the single-audit testing can be completed.

When asked directly whether auditors had identified any fraud or material misstatements, Bassett said, "None that have come to our attention, through our typical audit work under generally accepted auditing standards." He added that some prior-year conditions may repeat because of timing but that the firm has noted improvements during the summer.

Council members pressed for timing: RSM estimated a preliminary draft could be available in mid-October under the current pace, and staff said they expect to provide requested materials by the end of the week to help meet that schedule.

Procedurally, Chair Frank Salvatore moved that the committee "continue at the call of the chair." The motion was seconded and approved by voice vote, and the committee did not take further business at the meeting.

Next steps: city finance staff will continue to push remaining open items to auditors, the RSM team will complete its internal review, and an on-site single-audit visit for the bilingual program will be scheduled; auditors expect final audited statements within a few weeks if the current timeline holds.