August 5, 2021
Bowman and Miller, P.C. today released an audit report on the City of West Liberty, Iowa.
FINANCIAL HIGHLIGHTS:
The City’s receipts totaled $14,466,996 for the year ended June 30, 2020, a 6.8% increase from the prior year. Disbursements for the year ended June 30, 2020, totaled $12,871,176, a 3.3% decrease from the prior year. The increase in receipts is due primarily to bond proceeds received during the year.
AUDIT FINDINGS:
Bowman and Miller, P.C. reported nineteen findings related to receipt and disbursement of taxpayer funds, one finding pertaining to the West Liberty Fire and EMS Association, Inc., a blended component unit, and two findings pertaining to the Friends of the West Liberty Public Library, Inc., a blended component unit.
The findings address issues such as a lack of segregation of duties, improper bank reconciliations, material financial reporting deficiencies, material underbilling of utilities, disbursements exceeding budgeted amounts, incorrect tax increment financing rebate agreement payouts, and excessive debt service fund balance. Bowman and Miller, P.C provided the City with recommendations to address each of the findings.
Eleven of the nineteen findings discussed above are repeated from the prior year. The comments of the blended component units are repeated from the prior year. The City Council has a fiduciary responsibility to provide oversight of the City’s operations and financial transactions. Oversight is typically defined as the “watchful and responsible care” a governing body exercises in its fiduciary capacity.
A copy of the audit report is available for review on the Auditor of State’s web site at https://auditor.iowa.gov/audit-reports.