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ELKINS -- The City of Elkins has once again received an "unmodified" audit opinion, as it has every year since 2013.
"I'm pleased to say that we have had another unmodified audit, which is good news for potential for loans, grants, etc.," Elkins City Treasurer Tracy Judy said at the most recent Elkins City Council meeting.
West Virginia cities must undergo yearly audits, per state law. The City of Elkins audit examined financial records from the fiscal year that ended June 30, 2023. The audit was performed by BHM CPA Group, an Ohio-based public accounting firm with offices in Huntington.
"I wanted to underline that audits seem murky and mysterious to people," City Clerk Sutton Stokes said during the council meeting. "It really matters that the city has now had an unbroken streak of unmodified opinions, meaning the good opinion, since 2013."
An unmodified opinion, also referred to as an "unqualified" or "clean" opinion, is "the best result an audit can return because it indicates that auditors have found no misrepresentations of fact or failures to follow appropriate accounting standards," a City of Elkins press release states.
"If you look at the letter in your packet, that wasn't the case before that year (2013)," Stokes told council members. "There were some other findings in previous years, so this is starting to just seem normal and expected, but it should not be taken for granted. It takes careful attention to detail every day, especially in Tracy's department, and in other departments as well."
The purpose of municipal audits is to verify the city's financial position, as described on its annual financial statements, and to evaluate its compliance with state law and government accounting standards. To accomplish this, auditors review the city's accounting procedures and examine financial records related to revenues and expenditures, grant administration, bank accounts, and more. Auditors also evaluate the city's internal controls, or fraud-prevention safeguards.
For more about city audits, go to www.cityofelkinswv.com/departments/finance/audits/.