Shelby County 2023 Audit Report – Auditor Gives Shout Out To County Treasurer…Twice

Shelby Co. (ECWd) –

The Shelby County Board held a special meeting Tuesday night for the acceptance of the 2023 draft audit.

Within the Auditor’s letter was a notable comment.  that the general public will never hear about unless they read the actual auditor letter, as we are confident local reporting will ignore it.

“We wish to express our gratitude to the County Board and staff (in particular the Finance Department) of the Shelby County, Illinois for their valuable cooperation throughout the audit engagement.” (Auditors Letter) (emphasis added) 

Another notable comment is found in the Management letter.

“We commend the finance department for the well-prepared audit package and we appreciate the courtesy and assistance given to us by the entire County staff.” (emphasis added) 

Those comments are notable becuase it once again indicate the Treasurer is in fact doing a commendable job, not just our opinion but documented by the auditors in the recently approved county audit. We believe it is important for the general public to see what the auditing firm had to say about that office, which is a huge contrast from those pushing their political wishes in attempts to remove her from office by spreading misleading and false information.

So while the auditors provide a notable expression of gratitude to the Treasurer (Finance Department), the County Chairman permitted political public comment to be directed to a person who is not and has never been a county board member, the Treasurer.  In the past, the Chairman has directed commenters to address the board, but not this time.  The person’s comments were political and directed at the County Treasurer, who attended the meeting and has exposed more financial malfeasance in the county than most could imagine.

Shelby County Management Letter –

OFF-BALANCE SHEET ACCOUNTS

“During our current year-end audit procedures, we noted that the County had certain funds and accounts that were not consistently recorded, monitored, or reconciled within the County’s ERP system. Historically, these accounts have been maintained or reconciled by the department heads for the necessary fund and accounts, rather than being recorded by the appropriate departments throughout the year. The decentralized approach of assigning reconciliation responsibilities to the appropriate department increases the risk of errors or omissions of the County’s financial records. It also limits the County’s ability to monitor financial activity and may delay the identification and correction of such discrepancies.” (emphasis added) 

The above auditor comment has been identified for years in Shelby County, by both the Treasurer and prior auditors, yet the practice of not running certain accounts through the Treasurer has continued.

“We recommend that the County establish internal control procedures to ensure that all accounts are regularly recorded, monitored, and reconciled by the County Treasurer’s office. This includes assigning responsibility for each account, implementing a reconciliation schedule, and maintaining adequate documentation to support account balances. Strengthening internal oversight will enhance the accuracy and reliability of the County’s financial reporting.” (emphasis added) 

So will the county ignore this finding as they have in the past, or will the appropriate steps be taken to ensure all the accounts are recorded, monitored, or reconciled within the County’s ERP system as the Treasurer has spoken to for years?

A copy of the Annual Financial Report(audit) can be downloaded at this link or viewed below the video below.

The video of the meeting can be viewed below.