Freeport City Council Receives FY2024 Auditor’s Report Without Questions or Details
FREEPORT, IL – July 8, 2025
At Monday night’s Freeport City Council meeting, the presentation of the City’s FY2024 Auditor’s Report stood in stark contrast to previous years. Don Shaw, Principal with Lauterbach & Amen, LLP, appeared before the council to deliver the annual audit findings, but unlike prior presentations, Shaw provided no numerical data, no PowerPoint slides, and no detailed breakdown of city financials. Instead, his brief verbal summary simply assured council members that “everything was good.”
The Council voted to approve receiving the report and place it on file without a single financial question or comment from Mayor Jodi Miller, City Manager Rob Boyer, or any of the alderpersons present.
What Did the Audit Actually Say?
According to the official report dated June 20, 2025, Lauterbach & Amen issued an unmodified opinion on Freeport’s financial statements for the year ending December 31, 2024. The audit concluded that the city’s finances “present fairly, in all material respects” the financial position of its governmental and business-type activities, in accordance with generally accepted accounting principles.
Key excerpts note that:
The audit was conducted in accordance with Government Auditing Standards.
Auditors did not express an opinion on the effectiveness of internal controls.
Required supplementary information (including pension, OPEB, and budget comparisons) was reviewed only through limited procedures and not fully audited.
Supplementary schedules were found to be fairly stated in relation to the basic financial statements.
The management letter and memo were listed on the meeting agenda but were neither summarized nor discussed in the public meeting.
A Presentation Without Transparency
Residents observing the meeting found the lack of detail troubling. In prior years, auditors have presented PowerPoints outlining revenue, expenses, debt obligations, and financial trends—vital information that helps the public, council, and press understand the true state of city finances.
This year, however, the presentation was limited to general assurances of financial compliance. No questions were raised about debt levels, pension liabilities, fund balances, or upcoming fiscal challenges, despite the Miller administration proposing the instatement of the controversial new Miller Food Tax, a desperate attempt to close budget gaps.
Forensic Audit Promise – Forgotten Already?
Adding to public concern is the silence surrounding City Manager Rob Boyer’s promise of an official forensic audit, made during the 2025 State of the City Address. At the time, Boyer stated the city would pursue a forensic audit as a means to build trust with Freeport taxpayers following years of controversial spending and financial shortfalls.
However, as critics noted then and continue to highlight today, such an audit would require formal City Council approval – authority the City Manager does not possess on his own. Months later, there has been no mention of any steps toward commissioning a forensic audit, leading many residents to believe the pledge was little more than political lip service by the Miller administration.
Looking Ahead
The approval of the FY2024 audit without public presentation of figures or council discussion raises questions about transparency and oversight within Freeport city government. As local taxes continue to rise and residents call for greater accountability, detailed financial reporting remains a fundamental expectation – one that was noticeably absent on Monday night.
For the full memo, audit report, and management letter, visit the City of Freeport’s public meeting archive or request copies from the City Clerk’s office.
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