Winona schools receive clean audit but fund balance falls below policy; board reviews 2025 levy

Auditors presented an unmodified opinion on the district’s 2024 financial statements and told the Winona Area Public School District board that one significant internal-control deficiency requires attention: limited segregation of accounting duties in a small business office.

The auditor said the finding is not a material weakness but “a significant deficiency” tied to staffing levels, and recommended board oversight. “That lack of segregation of accounting duties…warrants some attention by the board,” the auditor said during the presentation.

The board also heard a multi-year financial review showing general-education aid increases and enrollment trends. Staff reported a modest rise in state aid in 2024 (about 4%) and projected a smaller increase for 2025, while the district’s total students served dipped slightly year over year because of open enrollment losses.

On dollars, staff said general-fund revenues are budgeted at $42.7 million for fiscal 2025 and expenditures at $42.2 million, producing a planned excess of $560,000. The auditors noted the district’s unassigned fund balance ended 2024 at about $1.5 million, roughly 3.4% of expenditures — below the district policy target of 8–10%.

“Based on 2024 spending levels, [unassigned fund balance] represents about 3.4% of your expenditures,” the auditor said. Directors asked for follow-up breakdowns and reconciliations; finance staff said detailed spreadsheets will be provided before the next work session.

Staff also conducted the legally required truth-in-taxation presentation. The total proposed levy is roughly $12.6 million, an increase of about $401,000 (3.28%) over the prior year. The general-fund portion was described as about $126,000 (1.6%) higher than last year; the debt-service levy was projected to rise about $233,000 (7.2%) because of principal and interest on geothermal bonds.

District staff stressed that levy increases do not automatically match changes on individual property statements because market values and equalization factors alter taxpayers’ bills. “The portion of the taxes levied related to the school district are going to increase by 3.28%,” a finance presenter said, “but what that means to each property owner depends on many factors.”

What’s next: the board will accept public comment on the levy at a listening session and must certify the final levy by Dec. 28. The board requested additional data on fund-balance calculations and budget components ahead of future votes.