Annual school audit committee made official

The Matanuska-Susitna Borough School Board voted earlier this school year to establish a yearly, standing audit/finance committee as recommended by the Financial Advisory Committee, a group of third-party local financial experts.

The committee would be set up much like the 2003-2004 Financial Advisory Committee, an idea by Chief School Administrator Bob Doyle to provide a non-bias view of the school's budget and spending habits. This year's committee first reviewed the district's financial state and then came up with a number of recommendations, including the establishment of a yearly group that would review the district's bottom line.

Each fall, the committee will begin work with the purpose of reading and discussing audited financial statements, reviewing projections and assumptions and then providing recommendations for effective disclosure of financial information to the public. The board voted unanimously to establish the committee; preparations and committee selection will begin later this year.