Portola Valley accepts FY22–23 audit with clean opinion; auditors flag signer-maintenance weakness

The Portola Valley Town Council on July 8 accepted the fiscal year 2022–23 audited financial statements, receiving what finance staff described as an unmodified — or "clean" — audit opinion.

Tony, the town finance presenter, told the council "we did receive an unmodified or a clean opinion," and summarized several balance-sheet movements: total net position decreased by approximately $1,600,000 and the general fund balance fell by about $1,260,000. He said the changes were driven in part by standard GASB adjustments for compensated absences, the town's pension liability and its OPEB liability.

The auditors raised one new internal-control comment for the 2022–23 audit: staff turnover resulted in delays updating the list of authorized signers on town bank accounts. Tony said the finding reflected "untimely renewal/removal of authorized signers" but emphasized that "at no time was there a situation where we did not have an authorized signer on staff." The finance committee reviewed the audit on June 30 and recommended council acceptance.

Council members spent time clarifying the presentation and the accounting entries. One councilmember asked about a prior-period restatement that reduced the beginning fund balance by $368,000; staff explained that liabilities had been overstated in the prior year accounting, which required a correction even though the overall accounting equation remained balanced after adjustments. The council also asked about a receivable tied to road maintenance districts (about $13,000 per year over 10 years, roughly $131,000 total) and differences between the statement of net position and the fund financial statements due to GASB adjustments.

A member of the public urged caution before placing ballot measures, saying auditors' outstanding items should be cleared so voters have a full picture. Councilmembers thanked staff and the auditors for extensive cleanup work and asked for periodic updates on remaining audit items; staff committed to an update at the next council meeting.

A motion to accept the audited financial statements passed unanimously. The council approved the audit acceptance and will use the auditor's recommendations as part of the town's continued fiscal oversight.

The council also noted that subsequent fiscal-year audits (2023–24 and beyond) should proceed more quickly as staff continue to implement corrections and strengthen procedures.