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Independent auditors give St. Helena a clean opinion; single‑audit filing was late
Summary
New auditors Harshwal and Company issued an unmodified (clean) opinion with no material weaknesses, but the single‑audit submission to the Federal Audit Clearinghouse was late, producing a single significant deficiency related to federal awards reporting.
The city’s new auditing firm, Harshwal and Company, presented the annual comprehensive financial report and said auditors issued an unmodified (clean) opinion on the city’s financial statements and identified no material weaknesses in internal control over financial reporting.
Adi Harshwal, a partner at Harshwal and Company, told the council the firm found the city’s net position increased from about $96,000,000 to about $100,000,000 and that the audited financials separate net investment in capital assets, restricted funds and unrestricted funds for comparison. He noted the firm did identify one significant deficiency in the federal awards area because the single audit was not submitted within seven months of fiscal year close; the firm and staff attributed that delay to an auditor transition and staff shortages.
Harshwal said the firm received full cooperation from city staff, reported no material weaknesses, and recommended protocols to ensure timely future submissions. Council received and filed the audit report; council members asked clarifying questions about sales tax trends, expense growth and next steps for financial planning.
