According to Fountain Hills Unified School District Assistant Superintendent of Business Operations, Dr. Robert Allen, a lot of housecleaning has been done concerning the district’s finances and reporting and, following the most recent annual audit, there’s still more work to do.

When Allen first came on-board with FHUSD, one of his main goals was to get the local school district’s finances back on track. Part of that process was discussed during the Aug. 24 School Board meeting, where Allen provided a report on the annual audit, this one focused on 2014-15.

Henry & Horne were the auditing group selected for this process by the Board last October. According to Allen, there are three main purposes for these annual audits: To determine that financial statements are free of material misstatements, to assess elements of internal control to prevent fraud, and to report district compliance with USFR requirements.

Full audit findings can be found on the District website at FHUSD.org. Under the “Departments” tab, select “Business, Faculty and Support Services.” The link is on the left side of the page.

As Allen has pointed out in the past, finances and reporting weren’t in the best shape from previous years, leaving him to balance the books and make sure everything is up to date and accurate both currently and from recent years.

Speaking to this most recent audit, Allen said that he was reconciling issues dating back as far as 2006.

A total of 16 findings were reported in regards to the audit, which are also available in full at fhusd.org.

Items include the fact that the district had not performed a physical inventory in the past three years, a lack of conflict of interest statements for employees with known conflict of interests in the area of expenditures and procurement, and that the district did not publish, electronically transmit or mail the notice of public hearing 10 days prior of the board meeting to adopt a budget.

Other findings of note for the 2014-15 audit were that the district did not perform due diligence on cooperatives for FY15 and that the district did not reconcile 40th and 100th day uploads to average daily membership.

According to Allen, many of the issues highlighted in the audit have already been addressed by current administration and staff.

“I expect some findings will repeat, but I’m pretty confident we won’t see this many returning next year,” Allen said. “We are making progress.

Allen also explained that part of this process included switching the district’s auditor last year. By sticking with Henry & Horne this year, the process is already “months ahead” of where it was for last year’s audit.

To demonstrate that progress Allen reference, he presented to the board another list, this time showing off the corrective actions that have already been taken to date.

For starters, the budget hearing adoption notice for FY17 was published on the district website back in June. Management has also already met with the CSS to resolve all treasurer report reconciliations dating back to 2006.

Conflict of interest files have been updated for FY17, with staff receiving additional training in the areas of receiving and recording quotes, due diligence as it pertains to cooperatives and more.

Allen reported that student attendance reporting procedures have been reviewed with specialists and school staff, and that 40th and 100th day uploads to ADE were corrected in FY16.