Tim Vanwar, the district's external auditor, told the Piper School District Board that the district's fiscal year 2024 financial statement — reported under the state's cash/budget basis KMAG format — received an unmodified opinion and that federal awards tested this year were in compliance.

Vanwar, of SS&C CPAs, told the board the audit covers receipts and expenditures by fund and reconciles cash balances. "After we did all of our testing, the receipts and disbursements by fund were materially correct," he said. He also reported that federal awards testing for ESSER funds produced a clean opinion: "we were in compliance in all material material respects, with the, with those federal funds."

The audit team reported fewer and less‑significant audit adjustments than in the prior year and said district reconciliations tied to fund balances were improved. Auditors identified carryover items, including adjustments to the schedule of expenditures of federal awards and recommended formal approval workflows for journal entries; district staff told the board those controls have since been implemented.

Why it matters: an unmodified opinion on the district's KMAG financial statements means the auditors found no material misstatement on the cash‑basis statements they examined; an unmodified federal‑awards opinion confirms the district met compliance requirements for the federal programs reviewed. The board voted to accept the district's financial reporting at the meeting (vote 7–0).

Details: Vanwar explained that under the KMAG (cash/budget) reporting format districts in Kansas often show an additional adverse paragraph relative to GAAP simply because they are not reporting under GAAP — a standard disclosure for districts that choose state reporting. He also warned the board of an upcoming change to federal single‑audit thresholds: if federal funding falls below $1,000,000 in fiscal year 2026, some districts may no longer require the uniform guidance audit; the auditor estimated the district had approximately $500,000 in federal funding for the year under review.

Board action and next steps: the board accepted the financial reporting and the supplemental building‑level bank reconciliations and activity reports (motion to accept financial reporting passed 7–0). District staff said they will continue implementing recommended reconciliations and journal‑entry approval workflows and expect the remaining schedule fixes to be clean for next year's audit.

Ending: The audit presentation is scheduled to be filed as part of the district record; staff said they will return with ongoing monthly bank reconciliation updates and with next year's audit as available.