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Auditor gives district a clean audit; board reviews $4.8M net fund balance increase
Summary
The district received an unmodified audit opinion and no compliance findings in its single audit; board discussion noted one-time items (a $3.8M gymnasium grant, $650K IT transfer, and about $1M in interest) explain most of a $4.8M increase in the general fund balance.
The Morgan County School Board heard its external auditor deliver a clean audit and compliance report for the 2023–24 year, and reviewed financial highlights that the board’s business administrator said were driven largely by one-time items.
James, the external auditor, told the board the district received an "unmodified opinion" on its financial statements and the related compliance reports. Because the district received more than $750,000 in federal awards — approximately $1.3 million this year — the audit included a single-audit review; the auditors selected the economic stabilization (COVID) funds as the major program for additional testing and reported no reportable compliance deficiencies. "We issued the highest opinion we receive," James said, explaining the sampling and confirmation work auditors perform.
RBA Scott provided line-item context for the apparent fund balance growth. He explained that although the general fund balance rose by about $4.8 million during the year, that figure includes a $3.8 million grant received to rebuild the Oregon Middle School gymnasium and a $650,000 transfer reserved for IT projects. Scott also noted the district earned more than $1 million in interest in the current market, a one-time revenue boost compared with prior years. "Absent those one-time items, ongoing revenues and expenditures were roughly in line with budget and we intentionally planned to draw on fund balance," he said.
The board discussed the district’s capital and debt posture. Scott said the district has closed on a $5,000,000 loan to finance the shop construction and third‑floor projects and is evaluating investment options for idle funds to partially offset borrowing costs. He said staff are reviewing options such as five‑year treasuries to match the loan term. The board had no formal recommendations from the auditor and no audit findings to address.
Next steps: the board accepted the audit presentation and the business administrator said staff will continue to report detailed budget-to-actual data at upcoming finance committee meetings.
