DEVILS LAKE, N.D. -- The North Dakota State Auditor’s Office has recognized the city of Devils Lake for the outstanding work of its finance office.
The state agency awarded the city’s finance office with the Stewardship Award at a Monday, Dec. 7, Devils Lake City Council meeting. It is the first time the state has given out the Stewardship Award.
The North Dakota Auditor’s Office staff had for some time discussed recognizing a North Dakota client for its work, and when the city of Devils Lake finance office had another clean audit, decided that the city should receive the inaugural Stewardship Award, said Brianna Ludwig, North Dakota deputy state auditor.
The criteria for the award includes no significant deficiencies that are identified, no ethical or financial concerns and a strong commitment to serving the taxpayers of North Dakota, the North Dakota State Auditor’s Office said.
The City of Devils Lake Finance Office has had several consecutive years of error-free audits, which demonstrates the staff’s dedication to public stewardship, Ludwig said.
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“What sticks out is that, year after year, the staff has dedicated themselves to understanding how to create a financial statement and the notes that go with that,” she said. ”It’s very rare for us to have an audit with no findings."
“When we conduct audits that come back with no areas of concern, and entities that have been managed in an exceptional manner, that is cause for recognition and celebration,” Joshua Gallion, North Dakota state auditor, said in a news release.
“This demonstrates accountability to citizens and shows that public officials are managing taxpayer dollars appropriately by making decisions that are in the best interest of their community,” Gallion said.
Devils Lake City Auditor Linda Lybeck credited her office’s clean accounting practices to veteran staff. Three of the four people who work in the office, including Lybeck, have been there at least 10 years.
“We have long-term employees doing the same jobs,” Lybeck said.
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