MILWAUKEE — The Milwaukee Public School District has been under fire from the public and the Wisconsin Department of Public Instruction since June for failing to submit its 2023 school year audit report on time. DPI threatened to seize more than $42.6 million from MPS for failing to submit a financial audit report.
This ultimately resulted in the resignation of former Superintendent Dr. Keith Posley, along with the leadership of the Department of Finance.
MPS hosted a virtual online press conference with DPI on Monday to provide an update on the district’s timely financial reporting status, financial office restructuring, and corrective action plan (CAP) progress.
MPS Interim Superintendent Eduardo Galván said staff shortages in the MPS Finance Office led to delays in filing the 2023 financial report. “There were a number of vacancies in senior and senior finance positions, and many staff were left without guidance or a way forward,” Galvan said. “We found that many of our remaining staff needed professional development.”
But even these positions could be in jeopardy as MPS awaits the General Assistance Certification for DPI, which will be announced on October 15th. MPS Chief Financial Officer Aicha Sawa said the company is reviewing the situation at the Department of Finance and is considering hiring a new auditor. “We will evaluate what will be done in the short term and make a decision,” Sawa said.
Regarding the unsubmitted 2023 MPS Financial Audit Report, Interim DPI State Superintendent Tricia Collins said there is still a lot of documentation that needs to be submitted. “You’ll need an auditor’s sub-certificate, annual reports and audited financial statements,” Collins said. “And there are also ongoing financial financial reports that need to be submitted to various programs and so on.”
MPS and DPI officials said they are working together to ensure all issues in the corrective action plan from June are implemented, but declined to say which parts of the plan are not yet complete. There wasn’t.
MPS said the district plans to submit its 2023 financial audit report by Thanksgiving of this year and is working on preparing its 2024 financial report for on-time submission in 2025.
