Finding 51630 (2022-005)

Material Weakness Repeat Finding
Requirement
P
Questioned Costs
-
Year
2022
Accepted
2023-01-05
Audit: 43508
Organization: City of Plentywood (MT)

AI Summary

  • Core Issue: The government lacks the expertise to prepare and evaluate its financial statements according to GAAP.
  • Impacted Requirements: Reliance on the audit firm for financial statements does not meet internal control standards, classifying this as a material weakness.
  • Recommended Follow-Up: Consider hiring a qualified individual to assess the auditor-prepared financial statements, despite potential cost concerns.

Finding Text

AUDITOR PREPARED FINANCIAL STATEMENTS Criteria: As part of its internal control structure, it is the government?s responsibility to prepare its financial statements in accordance with generally accepted accounting principles (GAAP). Condition: The government does not have the expertise to prepare or evaluate the selection and application of accounting principles and resulting disclosures and presentations within the auditor prepared financial statements. Cause: The government is a small organization with limited resources. Effect: It is common for a small organization to rely on the audit firm to prepare the financial statements; however, an audit firm cannot be considered part of the government?s internal control by professional standards currently in effect. Since some presentations and disclosures may be material to the financial statements, this weakness in internal control would be classified as material. Recommendation: While it may not be cost effective to do so, we recommend the government consider hiring a qualified person to evaluate the auditor prepared financial statements. Views of responsible officials and planned corrective actions: The government agrees with this finding and will adhere to the attached corrective action plan.

Corrective Action Plan

AUDITOR PREPARED FINANCIAL STATEMENTS Name of contact person: Mayor and Clerk Corrective Action: We have considered the issue of Auditor-prepared financial statements. However, the City believes that the controls and practices in place adequately serve our needs and that the costs of hiring additional professionals to do this work would not justify the benefits to be gained. As long as we have confidence in the ability and experience of the accounting firm selected to do our audit, and as long as we actively participate in the preparation, preliminary review, and drafting of financial statements, we trust the reliability of the statements to effectively fulfill their purpose. Proposed Completion Date: The City will continue to monitor this concern and avoid problems that may raise questions concerning the reliability of the financial statements.

Categories

Internal Control / Segregation of Duties

Other Findings in this Audit

Programs in Audit

ALN Program Name Expenditures
21.027 Coronavirus State and Local Fiscal Recovery Funds $1.64M
66.458 Capitalization Grants for Clean Water State Revolving Funds $110,445