Division 6-31 - Audits
(55 ILCS 5/Div. 6‑31 heading) Division 6‑31. Audits
(55 ILCS 5/6‑31001) (from Ch. 34, par. 6‑31001)
Sec. 6‑31001. Subtitle. This Division shall be subtitled the "County Auditing Law".
(Source: P.A. 86‑962.) |
(55 ILCS 5/6‑31002) (from Ch. 34, par. 6‑31002)
Sec. 6‑31002. Definitions. As used in this Division, unless the context otherwise requires:
1. "Comptroller" means the Comptroller of the State of Illinois;
2. "accountant" or "accountants" means and includes all persons authorized to practice public accounting under the laws of this State;
3. "funds and accounts" means all funds of a county derived from property taxes and all funds and accounts derived from sources other than property taxes, including the receipts and expenditures of the fee earnings of each county fee officer;
4. "audit report" means the written report of the accountant or accountants and all appended statements and schedules relating thereto, presenting or recording the findings of an examination or audit of the financial transactions, affairs and condition of a county;
5. "population" means the number of persons residing in a county according to the last preceding federal decennial census.
(Source: P.A. 86‑962.) |
(55 ILCS 5/6‑31003) (from Ch. 34, par. 6‑31003)
Sec. 6‑31003. Annual audits and reports. In counties having a population of over 10,000 but less than 500,000, the county board of each county shall cause an audit of all of the funds and accounts of the county to be made annually by an accountant or accountants chosen by the county board or by an accountant or accountants retained by the Comptroller, as hereinafter provided. In addition, each county having a population of less than 500,000 shall file with the Comptroller a financial report containing information required by the Comptroller. Such financial report shall be on a form so designed by the Comptroller as not to require professional accounting services for its preparation.
The audit shall commence as soon as possible after the close of each fiscal year and shall be completed within 6 months after the close of such fiscal year, unless an extension of time is granted by the Comptroller in writing. Such extension of time shall not exceed 60 days. When the accountant or accountants have completed the audit a full report thereof shall be made and not less than 2 copies of each audit report shall be submitted to the county board. Each audit report shall be signed by the accountant making the audit and shall include only financial information, findings and conclusions that are adequately supported by evidence in the auditor's working papers to demonstrate or prove, when called upon, the basis for the matters reported and their correctness and reasonableness. In connection with this, each county board shall retain the right of inspection of the auditor's working papers and shall make them available to the Comptroller, or his designee, upon request.
Within 60 days of receipt of an audit report, each county board shall file one copy of each audit report and each financial report with the Comptroller and any comment or explanation that the county board may desire to make concerning such audit report may be attached thereto. An audit report which fails to meet the requirements of this Division shall be rejected by the Comptroller and returned to the county board for corrective action. One copy of each such report shall be filed with the county clerk of the county so audited.
(Source: P.A. 86‑962.) |
(55 ILCS 5/6‑31004) (from Ch. 34, par. 6‑31004)
Sec. 6‑31004. Overdue reports.
(a) In the event the required reports for a county are not filed with the Comptroller in accordance with Section 6‑31003 within 6 months after the close of the fiscal year of the county, the Comptroller shall notify the county board in writing that the reports are due, and may also grant an extension of time of up to 60 days for the filing of the reports. In the event the required reports are not filed within the time specified in such written notice, the Comptroller shall cause the audit to be made and the audit report prepared by an accountant or accountants.
(b) The Comptroller may decline to order an audit and the preparation of an audit report if an initial examination of the books and records of the governmental unit indicates that the books and records of the governmental unit are inadequate or unavailable due to the passage of time or the occurrence of a natural disaster.
(Source: P.A. 90‑104, eff. 7‑11‑97.) |
(55 ILCS 5/6‑31005) (from Ch. 34, par. 6‑31005)
Sec. 6‑31005. Funds managed by county officials. In addition to any other audit required by this Division, the County Board shall cause an audit to be made of all funds and accounts under the management or control of a county official as soon as possible after such official leaves office for any reason. The audit shall be filed with the county board not later than 6 months after the official leaves office. The audit shall be conducted and the audit report shall be prepared and filed with the Chairman of the County Board by a person lawfully qualified to practice public accounting as regulated by "An Act to regulate the practice of public accounting and to repeal certain acts therein named", approved July 22, 1943 as amended.
As used in this Section, "county official" means any elected county officer or any officer appointed by the county board who is charged with the management or control of any county funds; and "audit" means a post facto examination of books, documents, records, and other evidence relating to the obligation, receipt, expenditure or use of public funds of the county, including governmental operations relating to such obligations, receipt, expenditure or use.
(Source: P.A. 86‑962.) |
(55 ILCS 5/6‑31006) (from Ch. 34, par. 6‑31006)
Sec. 6‑31006. Audit report. The audit report shall contain statements that are in conformity with generally accepted public accounting principles and shall set forth, insofar as possible, the financial position and the results of financial operations for each fund, account and office of the county government. The audit report shall also include the professional opinion of the accountant or accountants with respect to the financial status and operations or, if an opinion cannot be expressed, a declaration that such accountant is unable to express such opinion and an explanation of the reasons he cannot do so. Each audit report shall include the certification of the accountant or accountants making the audit that the audit has been performed in compliance with generally accepted auditing standards. Each audit report filed with the Comptroller shall be accompanied by a copy of each official statement or other offering of materials prepared in connection with the issuance of indebtedness of the county since the filing of the last audit report.
(Source: P.A. 86‑962; 87‑424.) |
(55 ILCS 5/6‑31008) (from Ch. 34, par. 6‑31008)
Sec. 6‑31008. Expenses of audit. The expenses of conducting the audit and making the required audit report or financial statement for each county, whether ordered by the county board or the Comptroller, shall be paid by the county and the county board shall make provisions for such payment. If the audit is made by an accountant or accountants retained by the Comptroller, the county, through the county board, shall pay to the Comptroller reasonable compensation and expenses to reimburse him for the cost of making such audit. Moneys paid to the Comptroller pursuant to the preceding sentence shall be deposited into the Comptroller's Audit Expense Revolving Fund.
Such expenses shall be paid from the general corporate fund of the county.
Contracts for the performance of audits required by this Division may be entered into without competitive bidding.
(Source: P.A. 88‑280.) |
(55 ILCS 5/6‑31009) (from Ch. 34, par. 6‑31009)
Sec. 6‑31009. Public records. All audit reports and financial statements are public records and shall be open to public inspection. The clerk of the county board shall furnish a copy of the audit report or financial statement to any person making a request and paying the fee therefor. The fee shall be set by the county board and shall not exceed $15.
(Source: P.A. 86‑962.) |
(55 ILCS 5/6‑31010) (from Ch. 34, par. 6‑31010)
Sec. 6‑31010. Construction. The provisions of this Division shall not be construed to relieve any officer of any duty otherwise required of him by law with relation to the auditing, management, collection or disbursement of public funds. Failure of the county board to comply with any of the provisions of this Division shall not affect the legality of any taxes levied by the county board.
(Source: P.A. 86‑962.) |
(55 ILCS 5/6‑31011) (from Ch. 34, par. 6‑31011)
Sec. 6‑31011. Audit committee. The corporate authorities of a county may establish an audit committee, and may appoint members of the corporate authority or other appropriate officers to the committee, to review audit reports prepared under this Division and any other financial reports and documents, including management letters prepared by or on behalf of the county.
(Source: P.A. 86‑962.) |