Filing Annual Audit Reports - Procedures for Requesting an Extension of Time

Municipalities and regional school districts are required to submit their audited financial statements by the deadline stated in the general laws. However, if significant circumstances prevent compliance, the municipality or regional school district must follow the procedures described below to request an extension.

Rhode Island General Law Section 45-10-5 provides that the Auditor General may, in his discretion, grant extensions in the filing of the audit report only upon reasonable cause for such extension being demonstrated by the municipality or regional school district. The procedures for petitioning this office for extensions beyond the legal deadline are as follows:

1. For municipalities and regional school districts needing less than 30 additional days to submit their audited financial statements:
   
   At least 15 days prior to the legal deadline for submission of reports, the chief finance officer must notify the Auditor General of the need for an extension and submit a written application with the Auditor General to request an extension of time to file the annual audit. The request shall be prepared in conjunction with the auditor and shall be signed by the chief executive officer, the chief finance officer, and the auditor.
   
   To the extent known, the application should indicate the following:
   
   
1. The anticipated date the audit will be completed and submitted to the Auditor General’s Office.
2. A detailed description of the reasons why the audit will not be completed by the legal deadline and a listing of all items pending completion, the responsible party (i.e., City/Town, School Department, Auditors, Actuary), and an estimated completion date for each item.
   
   

Municipalities and regional school districts that comply with the above extension requirements will receive an automatic 30-day extension (acknowledged by email). No further extensions will be awarded beyond this initial 30-day extension.

Corrective actions will be requested by the Auditor General after submission of the audited financial statements when deemed appropriate due to the reasons for the late submission.

2. For municipalities and regional school districts anticipating needing more than 30 additional days to submit their audited financial statements:
   
   At least 45 days prior to the legal deadline for submission of reports, the chief finance officer must notify the Auditor General of the need for an extension and submit a written application with the Auditor General to request an extension of time to file the annual audit. The request shall be prepared in conjunction with the auditor and shall be signed by the chief executive officer, the chief finance officer, and the auditor.
   
   To the extent known, the application should indicate the following:
   
   
1. The anticipated date the audit will be completed and submitted to the Auditor General’s office.
2. A detailed description of the reasons why the audit will not be completed by the legal deadline and a listing of all items pending completion, the responsible party (i.e., city/town, school department, auditors, actuary) and an estimated completion date for each item.
3. A list of any other situations that are causing the delay shall also be described and a timetable for when each one will be resolved or completed in order to meet the above-stated completion date.
   
   

Municipalities and regional school districts that comply with the above extension requirements will immediately begin monthly meetings with the Auditor General’s office to ensure that the revised completion schedule is being adhered to. Once a completion date can be reasonably determined, the Auditor General will approve an extension to the completion date.

Corrective actions will be requested by the Auditor General after submission of the audited financial statements to ensure that the reasons for the late submission are addressed in a timely manner.

The General Laws require timely submission of municipal audit reports so that information on fiscal accountability will be available to users of financial statements soon enough to be meaningful and useful. In addition, municipal and school audit reports are used by various state agencies to extract information that is needed within a certain time frame. As part of the annual audit, municipalities and school districts are also required to report certain financial data, which is reconciled to the audited financial statements, to the Division of Municipal Finance. The audit reports and the additional reported financial data, as well as, various analyses and comparisons between municipalities and school districts are posted on the Municipal Transparency Portal website.