GREELEY, CO – NOVEMBER 17:Greeley City Hall, located at 1000 10th St., is seen as the sun sets in downtown Greeley Nov. 17, 2021. (Greeley Tribune file)
Greeley city finance staff on Friday finalized the city’s 2022 audit and expect certain funds from taxes and grants to be released to the city next week.
The audit was finalized more than 100 days after the extended deadline for filing with the state, due to staffing turnover and issues with the city’s internal software system, according to Interim Finance Director Debbie Reid.
Reid on Tuesday night updated city council members on the status of the 2022 audit and the finance department operations. The staffing and software issues caused the city to be late in filing its audit with the state for the past two years.
City staff completed their side of the audit by the end of November, Reid said, and had been working with the external audit firm to finish the last reviews of the city’s annual comprehensive financial report. Once the city’s finalized report is filed with the state, the state will release funds that were withheld.
Among those funds were a $3.4 million state grant for the city’s Transformational Homelessness Response, about $565,000 per month of auto use taxes, a state emergency solutions grant of about $155,000 and about $86,000 of property tax revenue from October and November, according to Winna MacLaren, the city’s director of communication and engagement.
With sufficient cash flow reserves, she added, the city was able to cover any potential fiscal impacts — meaning no city operations or programs were impacted.
With the filing of the finalized audit, city staff expect the withheld funds will be released by Feb. 2.
City staff in the summer filed for an extension on filing the 2022 audit with the state, which originally had a deadline of July 31. The state granted an extension until Sept. 30, Reid explained, the latest extension that could be granted.
Fortunately, the audit appears to be clean, Reid said Tuesday before sharing highlights from the annual report before it was finalized. With a $122.7 million increase from the previous year, the city has $289.4 million of unrestricted money across its funds, she said. Capital assets, or investments in infrastructure and capital projects, increased by $51 million.
Due to water, sewer and stormwater bonds issued in 2022, the city’s debt increased by $80 million.
The city’s unrestricted money within the general fund sits at $64.3 million, “a very healthy” balance, Reid noted.
“Greeley is in very strong financial condition,” she said.
Moving forward, city staff are focused on completing future audits on time. The city must meet state filling requirements, and various agencies, including those that issue grants, look at the annual report to make determinations about the city’s financial condition, Reid explained.
To meet this goal, Reid has conducted one-on-one meetings with the finance team, and they’ve developed a plan including detailed checklists. She’s also been meeting with City Manager Raymond Lee on a weekly basis, with plans to mitigate any areas of potential risk as soon as possible.
Reid also said city staff are implementing staffing changes within the department, with new positions to support the financial operations of the growing city. So far, finance staff have operated at “just-enough-to-get-by capacity,” she said. Among the changes is the creation of the chief financial officer position, to have a finance expert sitting in at city manager’s meetings.
A new budget policy director will also take pressure off the finance director, who otherwise goes from auditing to budgeting without any time to develop the team or improve operations, Reid said.
In addition to filling vacancies on the new staff chart, staff will review finance policies and procedures, ensure there are checklists in all areas with regular accounting processes and establish a training plan for each position.
Asked by City Councilman Johnny Olson about completing the 2023 audit on time, Reid said the auditors are on track with the city and that she’s willing to stay on and help the city as it onboards a new finance director and deputy director to ensure the audit’s completion.
