Brown Edwards presents AUP review urging tighter bank, receipts and credit-card controls

Travis Gilmore of Brown Edwards presented an Agreed-Upon Procedures (AUP) engagement to the Montgomery County Fire and Rescue Commission, saying the review targeted higher-risk areas rather than performing a full financial audit.

"AUP is basically where, an engaging organization says, hey," Travis said, explaining the firm tailored procedures to focus on areas most likely to benefit from review. He said the aim was to help strengthen internal controls so departments can focus on operations.

Travis told the commission the review found several positives: departments were generally organized, responsive and used correct account coding in their financial software, which gave the auditors confidence in oversight of receipts and disbursements. "Everyone was really good to work with, very responsive," he said.

On improvements, Brown Edwards issued a management-advisory letter with practical recommendations: prepare and document bank reconciliations monthly or quarterly (including CDs and money-market accounts), maintain organized supporting documentation for disbursements, issue or log receipts when cash is involved, collect and annotate credit-card receipts, and adopt written policies for purchases, receipts, credit-card use and financial reporting.

Travis emphasized the purpose was preventive: better documentation and segregation of duties reduce the risk of mistakes or fraud and make responses to questions easier. He noted timing of the engagement means some recommendations may not be fully implemented in the immediate fiscal year, and recommended departments use FY26 to clean up records and aim for higher standards in FY27.

The presenter encouraged chiefs to work with county finance staff and to contact Brown Edwards with questions; commissioners thanked the audit team and said they expect the next cycle to be quicker.