Auditor issues clean opinion on Westchester’s 2025 draft financials; parking fund drives surplus

Christopher Frattinardo, the auditor who presented Westchester’s 2025 draft financial statements, told the council the audit was finalized with a report date of June 26, 2026, and issued a clean, unmodified opinion.

Frattinardo said the audit used a risk-based approach and identified three significant risks they routinely consider: management override of internal controls, revenue-recognition, and the recognition of grants. He said there were no new accounting standards affecting the statements this year and that audit adjustments were routine and posted by management. "We completed the audit... it was a non modified clean opinion," Frattinardo said.

Key numbers Frattinardo highlighted included about $2 million in increased cash in the borough’s proprietary funds driven by recurring surpluses in the parking fund, a modest decrease in net capital assets due to depreciation, and a shift of the net pension liability to a net pension asset because of favorable market conditions. He said governmental activities were roughly balanced for the year while business-type activities increased by about $1 million.

Council members asked whether a potential 116-acre acquisition should be disclosed as a footnote. Frattinardo said the matter was not finalized and therefore had not been included in the audit; he and staff said they could disclose it as a subsequent event if the transaction is completed. "If it was final, we were gonna do something as a subsequent event," Frattinardo said.

The presentation closed with council thanks and no formal audit exceptions reported. The council did not vote on the audit during the work session; members can raise follow-up questions at the next meeting.