Auditors have returned a clean bill of health on Liberty County’s operations.

Tray Scott of Mauldin and Jenkins said there were no material weaknesses in the fiscal year 2022 audit and only two findings, down from four, to report.

“We were able to issue the county a clean, or what we call an unmodified, opinion. That’s what you’re looking for is a clean opinion,” Scott told commissioners. “It is the highest level of assurance that we can provide to you as your external auditor.”

Scott also lauded the county for its cooperation and responsiveness with the firm.

The auditor’s two findings had to do with segregation of duties and the reporting of certain funds to be part of the county’s general ledge. Scott said the segregation of duties finding is common in counties of Liberty’s size.

“Sometimes it’s hard to mitigate that, especially in the elected official’s office, when we do have overlapping duties,” he said. “It’s hard to address sometimes at this level.”

Scott also praised the county’s finance department for “going above and beyond” what is required in a local government’s financial reporting. He pointed to the introductory and statistical sections of the annual comprehensive financial report as examples.

The county also is on track to receive the Government Finance Officers Association’s Certificate of Excellence in Financial Reporting for a 20th consecutive year.

“I am not aware of too many governments that have received that for 20 consecutive years,” he said.

While the audit is not designed to indicate the overall strength of a government’s financial position, Scott said there are indicators within the audit to see how well the county is doing. One, for instance, is if a county reinvests in its system, and Scott said Liberty County is doing so.

The county also has an unassigned fund balance that could last for eight months, around $11.3 million, without any property tax receipts coming in, and that the county’s assets are in a strong liquid position.

“That’s very healthy number for a June 30 year end,” he said.

The county’s fiscal year begins July 1, and most property taxes are paid beginning in December.

The county also has addressed the deficit in its largest enterprise fund, solid waste. Five years ago, the solid waste fund was running a $2 million deficit and it is now around $1 million.

“You’ve done a really good job of decreasing that deficit,” Scott said.