ROLLA – An audit prompted by citizen petitions identified multiple items for improvement in the financial processes of the City of Rolla, according to the State Auditor’s Office.

The office completed three separate two-year audits as a part of the petition audit process. Under North Dakota law, the State Auditor’s Office may be called on to audit a political subdivision if enough qualified voters of that entity request one. Signatures of 93 residents were needed for the State Auditor’s Office to audit the City of Rolla, and the Auditor’s Office received 116 signatures.

The current management of the City of Rolla was not involved with the issues identified in the audits.

The city was overdue for an audit, with the last one completed in 2016, the auditor’s office stated in a news release. The three petition audits were for the timeframe of 2017-2018, with four opportunities for improvement identified; 2019-2020, with five opportunities for improvement identified; and 2021-2022, with five opportunities for improvement identified.

In both the 2021-2022 audit, and the 2019-2020 audit, the same opportunities for improvement were identified which were:

– Bank reconciliations not performed correctly

The audit team found bank reconciliations were not correctly completed. After the audit team reviewed statements, it was found that $15,113 was unreconciled from September 2020 until December 2022. Bank reconciliations keep records accurate, prevent fraud and help manage cash by matching an entity’s records with bank records.

– Outdated accounting ledger

In addition to the city’s finances, other city entities fall under the “City of Rolla,” one of which is the Job Development Authority. The audit team found two separate ledgers in the accounting software, when there should have been just one primary ledger. The ledger for the years 2017-2019 was updated; however the ledger for the years 2020-2022 was not updated. It’s important to have these numbers accurate, because the management of the City uses that financial information to make decisions, the auditor’s office stated.

“We appreciate the public involvement with their state and local government,” said State Auditor Josh Gallion. “It’s important to note that the current leadership with the City of Rolla was not involved with the issues these audits identified, and we’re hopeful this road map will lead to positive changes for the benefit of the community.”