Report Summary
Financial-Related Audit
Department of Finance
Fiscal Year Ended June 30, 2001
Key Audit Conclusions
- We issued an unqualified audit opinion on the State of Minnesota's general purpose financial statements for the year ended June 30, 2001. We concluded the material programs administered by the Department of Finance were fairly presented in the financial statements.
- The State of Minnesota's Financial and Compliance Report on Federally Assisted Programs for the year ended June 30, 2001, (to be issued by the Department of Finance in March 2002) will contain our overall conclusions on the state's internal controls and compliance over financial reporting and federal awards. Both reports include comprehensive schedules of financial statement findings and internal control and compliance findings for the state as a whole.
- We reviewed administrative expenditures of the Department of Finance for the two fiscal years ended June 30, 2001. We concluded the department's internal controls provided reasonable assurance that expenditures were made in accordance with management's authorization, and expenditures were recorded accurately in the accounting system. We found that, for the items tested, the department complied with significant finance-related legal provisions.
Audit Scope
Our financial statement audit scope in the Department of Finance was limited to those activities administered by the department that are material to the State of Minnesota's general purpose financial statements. Our scope included cash management, debt management, various loan programs, and statewide indirect costs.
Our audit of the Department of Finance's administrative expenditures included payroll, computer system services, professional/technical services, among other areas. We also audited the department's non-operating activities, including tort claims and grants to the Mayo Clinic, the Minneapolis Employees' Retirement Fund (MERF), and the first class teachers retirement fund associations.
Agency Background
The Department of Finance maintains the state's accounting systems and manages its accounting, budgetary, and debt management activities. It establishes policies and procedures to ensure consistent and reliable financial data and compliance with financial-related statutory provisions. The department is responsible for preparing the state's annual financial statements.
