White Springs Audit

The same year is reported twice in this document using two different methods, which is worth knowing before reading further. The government-wide statements count everything the Town owns and owes over its whole lifetime, including roads and pipes. The fund statements count only cash and near-cash moving in and out this year. Both are correct. They answer different questions, and the audit includes a page reconciling one to the other.

Total spending rose 41 percent, from $1,711,952 to $2,418,886. The two largest movements were economic environment, up from $40,461 to $250,661, and general government, up from $427,499 to $696,077. Management attributes the year's unusual costs to organizational transition, corrective actions on previously identified deficiencies, deferred maintenance, and grant-funded construction that began during the year.

Some services collect fees. Transportation, for example, spent $295,451 and brought in $101,886 in operating grants, leaving $193,565 to be covered by general taxes. After every function is accounted for, governmental activities needed $1,388,608 from general revenues. General revenues supplied $723,361. The shortfall is why net position fell.

Of the $853,485 it cost to operate the system, $273,046 was depreciation. Depreciation is not a bill that arrives in the mail. It is the accounting recognition that pipes, pumps and plants wear out and will eventually need replacing. Excluding it, the system roughly broke even on cash. Including it, the system is not currently setting aside enough to replace what it uses.

On the larger wastewater agreement, the Town received $3,519,258 in total funding, of which $2,815,407 was forgiven outright as a grant. Only $703,851 became a loan. It carries no interest, though the Town was assessed service fees of $64,520. A separate agreement forgave $292,160 of $347,189. Grant funding on this scale is a large part of why the Town's infrastructure is worth far more than the debt carried against it.

The Town's own explanation on page 40 is that construction projects to be reimbursed by grants were started without being included in the budget. Exceeding appropriations is finding 2025-003 in the next section.

It is the most serious of the three categories an auditor can use. The definition is that a deficiency, or combination of deficiencies, creates a reasonable possibility that a significant misstatement of the Town's finances would not be prevented, or caught and corrected, in time. It is a statement about risk in the process. It is not a finding of fraud, and none was reported.

The Town acknowledges the findings identified in this audit and recognizes that significant work remains to strengthen its financial management, internal controls, and compliance practices. During the audit period, the Town experienced substantial organizational transition, including changes in elected leadership and key administrative personnel, while simultaneously working to address prior audit findings and operational deficiencies.

The Town views this audit as an opportunity to continue strengthening its operations, improve compliance with applicable laws and accounting standards, and restore public confidence through transparency and measurable corrective action.