(a) (1) The county auditor shall either make or contract with a certified public accountant or public accountant to make an annual audit of the accounts and records of every special district within the county for which an audit by a certified public accountant or public accountant is not otherwise provided. In each case, the minimum requirements of the audit shall be prescribed by the Controller and shall conform to generally accepted auditing standards.

(2) (A) If an audit of a special district’s accounts and records is made by a certified public accountant or public accountant, the minimum requirements of the audit shall be prescribed by the Controller and shall conform to generally accepted auditing standards.

Terms Used In California Government Code 26909 v2

  • Contract: A legal written agreement that becomes binding when signed.
  • County: includes city and county. See California Government Code 19
  • Ex officio: Literally, by virtue of one's office.
  • Fiscal year: The fiscal year is the accounting period for the government. For the federal government, this begins on October 1 and ends on September 30. The fiscal year is designated by the calendar year in which it ends; for example, fiscal year 2006 begins on October 1, 2005 and ends on September 30, 2006.
  • Subdivision: means a subdivision of the section in which the term occurs unless some other section is expressly mentioned. See California Government Code 10

(B) A report of the audit required pursuant to subparagraph (A) shall be filed within 12 months of the end of the fiscal year or years under examination as follows:

(i) For a special district defined in paragraph (2) of subdivision (d) of Section 12463, with the Controller.

(ii) For a special district defined in Section 56036, with the Controller, the county auditor, and the local agency formation commission of the county in which the special district is located, unless the special district is located in two or more counties, then with each local agency formation commission within each county in which the district is located.

(3) Any costs incurred by the county auditor, including contracts with, or employment of, certified public accountants or public accountants, in making an audit of every special district pursuant to this section shall be borne by the special district and shall be a charge against any unencumbered funds of the district available for the purpose.

(4) For a special district that is located in two or more counties, this subdivision shall apply to the auditor of the county in which the treasury is located.

(5) The county controller, or ex officio county controller, shall effect this section in those counties having a county controller or ex officio county controller.

(b) A special district may, by unanimous request of the governing board of the special district and with unanimous approval of the board of supervisors, replace the annual audit required by this section with one of the following, performed in accordance with professional standards, as determined by the county auditor:

(1) A biennial audit covering a two-year period.

(2) An audit covering a five-year period if the special district’s annual revenues do not exceed an amount specified by the board of supervisors.

(3) An audit conducted at specific intervals, as recommended by the county auditor, that shall be completed at least once every five years.

(c) (1) A special district may, by unanimous request of the governing board of the special district and with unanimous approval of the board of supervisors, replace the annual audit required by this section with a financial review, in accordance with the appropriate professional standards, as determined by the county auditor, if the following conditions are met:

(A) All of the special district’s revenues and expenditures are transacted through the county’s financial system.

(B) The special district’s annual revenues do not exceed one hundred fifty thousand dollars ($150,000).

(2) If the board of supervisors is the governing board of the special district, it may, upon unanimous approval, replace the annual audit of the special district required by this section with a financial review in accordance with the appropriate professional standards, as determined by the county auditor, if the special district satisfies the requirements of subparagraphs (A) and (B) of paragraph (1).

(d) Notwithstanding this section, a special district shall be exempt from the requirement of an annual audit if the financial statements are audited by the Controller to satisfy federal audit requirements.

(e) This section shall become operative on January 1, 2027.

(Amended (as amended by Stats. 2017, Ch. 334, Sec. 3) by Stats. 2019, Ch. 329, Sec. 10. (SB 780) Effective January 1, 2020. Section operative January 1, 2027, by its own provisions.)

  Previous section
Next section  
 Article 1 Contents