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District auditor reports clean audit; board hears fund-balance declines tied to capital spending
Summary
The district's auditor told the Madison District Public Schools Board on Nov. 4 that auditors issued an unmodified opinion with no material weaknesses, while the district reported an overall governmental fund-balance decline driven by 2022 capital-project spending and a general-fund decrease of about $543,000.
The district's auditor presented the final single audit and financial audit to the Madison District Public Schools Board on Nov. 4, saying auditors issued an unmodified opinion and found no material weaknesses or significant deficiencies in internal control.
The auditor summarized the district's June 30, 2024 results: total governmental funds assets of about $6.2 million and liabilities of about $2.5 million, producing a total governmental fund balance of approximately $3.5 million. The auditor said the largest year-over-year change was a $5.3 million decrease in fund balance tied primarily to spending down 2022 capital-project bond funds; the general fund ended the year with an estimated $543,000 decrease.
Why it matters: an unmodified opinion (the highest level of assurance an auditor gives) signals that the financial statements are presented fairly in all material respects, but the declines in fund balances and the mechanics of capital-project spending can affect future budgets and cash-flow planning.
Board members pressed the auditor on technical points. Trustee Rebecca Chamblas asked how the board should interpret amounts that are "assigned" in the fund balance versus money actually set aside; the auditor explained that "assigned" amounts reflect the board's budgeted use and are not physically segregated in a separate bank account. The auditor also described state distress metrics: the district's unrestricted-fund-balance percentage was reported at about 23.85%, well above the state's 5% threshold used to flag financial distress.
The auditor reviewed budget-to-actual performance, noting the district's final budget showed a net decrease that the district managed to limit to a smaller decrease in actual results. The presentation touched on the single-audit compliance work tied to federal grants and said federal grant recognition and expenditure timing (for example, ESSER funds) affected year-over-year patterns.
Board members thanked the auditor for a timely, clean report. The board heard the audit presentation as part of the meeting's new-business agenda and had the final audit documents available in the packet distributed to trustees and posted with meeting materials.
The board did not take a formal vote on the audit presentation; trustees moved on to other agenda items after questions and clarifications.
