Representative LeBay presented second substitute House Bill 139, a measure that authorizes the Office of the State Auditor to adopt and update a financial‑certification form for local political subdivisions. Seth Ovison, manager of the local government division in the state auditor’s office, explained the bill responds to concerns from local finance directors that earlier statutory wording created a conflict with professional audit standards. He said the proposal preserves a certification requirement but gives the auditor authority to update the form through a process that includes a 30‑day comment period for stakeholders.

Committee members asked if the updated form would have an effective date tied to fiscal years; Ovison replied the change would apply to fiscal years after adoption, for example the 2025‑06‑30 fiscal year for many municipalities. No members of the public came forward to testify in person on the bill.

Representative Gwen moved to adopt the second substitute; the committee adopted the substitute and then voted to recommend the measure favorably out of committee. The chair announced the motion to recommend favorably carried unanimously.

Why it matters: sponsors and the State Auditor framed HB139 as a technical fix to align statutory financial‑certification language with audit profession standards and provide an adaptive process for future updates without returning to the legislature.

What’s next: the committee recommended the second substitute favorably and the bill was reported out of committee with unanimous support.