Clay County auditor issues clean opinion but flags recurring internal-account control failures
December 18, 2025 | Clay, School Districts, Florida
This article was created by AI summarizing key points discussed. AI makes mistakes, so for full details and context, please refer to the video of the full meeting. Please report any errors so we can fix them. Report an error »
Pervis Gray, presenting the internal accounts audit for the Clay County District School Board on Nov. 20, said "in our opinion, the financial statements in all material respects are fairly presented," describing the engagement as an unmodified (clean) opinion for year ending June 30, 2025.
Gray told the committee the audit shows $3,100,000 held as cash with financial institutions and roughly $1,700,000 invested in Florida Prime as cash equivalents. Internal-accounts revenue was about $11,000,000, up roughly 6 percent from the prior year; three high schools recorded revenue increases of more than $100,000, the auditor said.
Despite the clean opinion on the financial statements, Gray highlighted three recurring internal-account control issues that the district must address. First, multiple schools ran fundraisers before obtaining the required approvals or failed to file timely recaps; the auditor said fundraising-related issues appeared in 20 school findings across the sample and that five of those were repeats from the prior year. Second, nine schools had findings for delayed remittance or deposit of cash; the auditor cited the DOE "Red Book" requirement that cash received at schools be remitted to the office within 24 hours and deposited to the bank within five working days. Third, the review identified missing support documentation (for example, purchase orders or principal signatures) that limited the auditors' ability to substantiate some transactions.
Gray said the district's draft management responses accompany the report and that district staff are taking steps to strengthen controls: "They are currently trying to address this by updating the internal accounts manual as well as strengthening their training and controls," he said. The auditor added that the new report format'which lists findings by school'should make follow-up and retraining easier for principals and bookkeepers.
District staff told the committee that, effective July 1, internal accounts moved into the district's ERP (Business Plus), which now creates purchase-order and journal-entry workflows that district reviewers can see. A staff member said that workflow and district-level review should reduce the instances where required signatures or supporting documentation are missing.
During questions, board members asked about the dollar scale of fundraising-related revenue and whether the findings reflected large amounts. Gray responded he did not have districtwide breakdowns in the meeting materials and that many findings related to control processes rather than missing dollars: "It's not that the dollars are missing or not in there," he said; "it's the control behind that that are being reviewed to help substantiate that number."
What happens next: management responses are in the draft report and the auditors will continue to work with principals and district staff. The committee received the presentation and discussion; no formal policy change was adopted during the meeting.
Votes at the meeting: the committee voted to approve the April 17 minutes (motion/second recorded on the record and approved unanimously); the meeting later adjourned following a motion and unanimous "Aye" votes.
Provenance: The internal-accounts presentation begins in the transcript at SEG 067 (agenda item introduced as "presentation from Pervis Gray, our internal accounts audit") and the presentation discussion continues through SEG 683 (before the RSM update).
Gray told the committee the audit shows $3,100,000 held as cash with financial institutions and roughly $1,700,000 invested in Florida Prime as cash equivalents. Internal-accounts revenue was about $11,000,000, up roughly 6 percent from the prior year; three high schools recorded revenue increases of more than $100,000, the auditor said.
Despite the clean opinion on the financial statements, Gray highlighted three recurring internal-account control issues that the district must address. First, multiple schools ran fundraisers before obtaining the required approvals or failed to file timely recaps; the auditor said fundraising-related issues appeared in 20 school findings across the sample and that five of those were repeats from the prior year. Second, nine schools had findings for delayed remittance or deposit of cash; the auditor cited the DOE "Red Book" requirement that cash received at schools be remitted to the office within 24 hours and deposited to the bank within five working days. Third, the review identified missing support documentation (for example, purchase orders or principal signatures) that limited the auditors' ability to substantiate some transactions.
Gray said the district's draft management responses accompany the report and that district staff are taking steps to strengthen controls: "They are currently trying to address this by updating the internal accounts manual as well as strengthening their training and controls," he said. The auditor added that the new report format'which lists findings by school'should make follow-up and retraining easier for principals and bookkeepers.
District staff told the committee that, effective July 1, internal accounts moved into the district's ERP (Business Plus), which now creates purchase-order and journal-entry workflows that district reviewers can see. A staff member said that workflow and district-level review should reduce the instances where required signatures or supporting documentation are missing.
During questions, board members asked about the dollar scale of fundraising-related revenue and whether the findings reflected large amounts. Gray responded he did not have districtwide breakdowns in the meeting materials and that many findings related to control processes rather than missing dollars: "It's not that the dollars are missing or not in there," he said; "it's the control behind that that are being reviewed to help substantiate that number."
What happens next: management responses are in the draft report and the auditors will continue to work with principals and district staff. The committee received the presentation and discussion; no formal policy change was adopted during the meeting.
Votes at the meeting: the committee voted to approve the April 17 minutes (motion/second recorded on the record and approved unanimously); the meeting later adjourned following a motion and unanimous "Aye" votes.
Provenance: The internal-accounts presentation begins in the transcript at SEG 067 (agenda item introduced as "presentation from Pervis Gray, our internal accounts audit") and the presentation discussion continues through SEG 683 (before the RSM update).
Don't Miss a Word: See the Full Meeting!
Go beyond summaries. Unlock every video, transcript, and key insight with a Founder Membership.
✓
Get instant access to full meeting videos
✓
Search and clip any phrase from complete transcripts
✓
Receive AI-powered summaries & custom alerts
✓
Enjoy lifetime, unrestricted access to government data
30-day money-back guarantee
