The Florida Senate

218.39  Annual financial audit reports.--

(1)  If, by the first day in any fiscal year, a local governmental entity, district school board, charter school, or charter technical career center has not been notified that a financial audit for that fiscal year will be performed by the Auditor General, each of the following entities shall have an annual financial audit of its accounts and records completed within 12 months after the end of its fiscal year by an independent certified public accountant retained by it and paid from its public funds:

(a)  Each county.

(b)  Any municipality with revenues or the total of expenditures and expenses in excess of $250,000.

(c)  Any special district with revenues or the total of expenditures and expenses in excess of $100,000.

(d)  Each district school board.

(e)  Each charter school established under s. 228.056.

(f)  Each charter technical center established under s. 228.505.

(g)  Each municipality with revenues or the total of expenditures and expenses between $100,000 and $250,000 that has not been subject to a financial audit pursuant to this subsection for the 2 preceding fiscal years.

(h)  Each special district with revenues or the total of expenditures and expenses between $50,000 and $100,000 that has not been subject to a financial audit pursuant to this subsection for the 2 preceding fiscal years.

(2)  The county audit report shall be a single document that includes a financial audit of the county as a whole and, for each county agency other than a board of county commissioners, an audit of its financial accounts and records, including reports on compliance and internal control, management letters, and financial statements as required by rules adopted by the Auditor General. In addition to such requirements, if a board of county commissioners elects to have a separate audit of its financial accounts and records in the manner required by rules adopted by the Auditor General for other county agencies, such separate audit shall be included in the county audit report.

(3)  A dependent special district may make provision for an annual financial audit by being included within the audit of another local governmental entity upon which it is dependent. An independent special district may not make provision for an annual financial audit by being included within the audit of another local governmental entity.

(4)  A management letter shall be prepared and included as a part of each financial audit report.

(5)  At the conclusion of the audit, the auditor shall discuss with the chair of each local governmental entity or the chair's designee, or with the elected official of each county agency or with the elected official's designee, or with the chair of the district school board or the chair's designee, or with the chair of the board of the charter school or the chair's designee, or with the chair of the charter technical career center or the chair's designee, as appropriate, all of the auditor's comments that will be included in the audit report. If the officer is not available to discuss the auditor's comments, their discussion is presumed when the comments are delivered in writing to his or her office. The auditor shall notify each member of the governing body of a local governmental entity or district school board for which deteriorating financial conditions exist that may cause a condition described in s. 218.503(1) to occur if actions are not taken to address such conditions.

(6)  The officer's written statement of explanation or rebuttal concerning the auditor's findings, including corrective action to be taken, must be filed with the governing body of the local governmental entity, district school board, charter school, or charter technical career center within 30 days after the delivery of the auditor's findings.

(7)  The predecessor auditor of a district school board shall provide the Auditor General access to the prior year's working papers in accordance with the Statements on Auditing Standards, including documentation of planning, internal control, audit results, and other matters of continuing accounting and auditing significance, such as the working paper analysis of balance sheet accounts and those relating to contingencies.

(8)  All audits conducted in accordance with this section must be conducted in accordance with the rules of the Auditor General promulgated pursuant to s. 11.45. All audit reports and the officer's written statement of explanation or rebuttal must be submitted to the Auditor General within 45 days after delivery of the audit report to the entity's governing body, but no later than 12 months after the end of the fiscal year.

(9)  Each charter school and charter technical career center must file a copy of its audit report with the sponsoring entity; the local district school board, if not the sponsoring entity; the Auditor General; and with the Department of Education.

(10)  This section does not apply to housing authorities created under chapter 421.

(11)  Notwithstanding the provisions of any local law, the provisions of this section shall govern.

History.--s. 65, ch. 2001-266.