Auditors give Siuslaw SD 97J an unmodified opinion on FY24 financials

Ben Kone, a director with KDP Certified Public Accountants, told the Siuslaw School District board the firm issued an unmodified opinion on the district’s FY24 financial statements and on compliance for major federal programs, a designation he described as “the best that you can do.”

Kone said first-year audits tend to require deeper testing and that auditors found a few operational matters but no material weaknesses: “There were no material weaknesses or significant deficiencies. There was no material noncompliance noted,” he said. He also noted the district did not qualify as a low-risk auditee this year, a status that, if achieved in coming years, could reduce future single-audit testing and fees.

The auditors recommended the district maintain complete employee hire-date records and reclassify pension-bond principal and interest from instruction/support to debt service. Management responded that two of the three identified items had already been corrected and that a new internal tracking form is being implemented to capture hire, change and termination dates.

Cece, the district’s business lead, summarized the financial highlights for the board, noting the district ended the year with a net position of about $9.4 million and a general-fund ending balance near $2.2 million — figures she said will inform the upcoming budget season.

The audit presentation included the communication-with-governance letter; Kone told directors no disagreements with management arose during the engagement. He invited board members to follow up with questions and offered to share marked copies of the communication letter and report.