Auditor highlights 12 months of Walhalkla finances

Walhalla’s outside auditor has given the city a modified opinion of its financial accounting records for the year 2015-16.  Jason White told last night’s city council meeting that an unmodified opinion would have been the best the city could have attained, but that would have required the city to have gone to the expense and effort for a financial study which White concedes is not essential.  There were some bright spots in the Walhalla audit.  The city realized a gain of $660 thousand dollars in its water revenues—mostly due to the city’s decision last year to increase retail rates.  The loss of $17 thousand dollars in sewer expense is seen as small, compared with what the city’s sewer costs have been in past years.  At year’s end, White listed $346 thousand dollars of debt, accruing from the lease of capital equipment.