Gallup receives strongest audit opinion, finances deemed reliable

Gallup’s books came back with the strongest audit opinion available, a result that gives residents a sharper measure of whether city spending is being tracked responsibly. Pattillo, Brown & Hill, L.L.P. told the Gallup City Council on April 28 that the Fiscal Year 2025 annual financial audit received an unmodified opinion for both the financial statements and federal awards, meaning the city’s numbers were judged reliable and fairly stated.

The report was filed on time and approved for release by the Office of the State Auditor. The city’s audit pages say Gallup’s outside audits are conducted under New Mexico Department of Finance and Administration rules and regulations, a framework meant to keep public reporting consistent and accountable. For Gallup, that matters far beyond accounting language. A clean opinion is one of the clearest formal signs that the city’s internal controls, bookkeeping, and reporting systems are working well enough to support budgeting, purchasing, grant compliance, and day-to-day operations.

Still, the audit was not completely free of problems. The April 28 council agenda said one finding remained in the FY2025 report, so the result was strong without being spotless. That leaves one unresolved pressure point even as the city marks a better overall outcome than in years when auditors flagged more serious control issues.

The new audit also sits against a backdrop of cash-management strain. In April 2025, finance staff told council that several funds had ended the quarter with negative cash balances and needed temporary cash transfers. Those transfers involved the capital projects wastewater fund, airport improvement fund, police building debt service fund, airport fund, and rodeo fund. That history makes the favorable FY2025 opinion more important, because it suggests the city’s reporting remains credible even while managers continue juggling infrastructure, public safety, aviation, and special revenue obligations.

Gallup’s FY2024 audit also received unmodified opinions for both the financial statements and federal awards, with one finding for the city and none for the Gallup Housing Authority. Earlier council discussion described that report as a “clean opinion,” and said there had been two findings tied to internal control over financial reporting. By comparison, the FY2025 audit points to continued improvement, even if the single remaining finding shows the work is not finished.