CLEARLAKE, Calif. – City of Clearlake officials said they're pleased with the results of a state audit that looked at the city's handling of specific funds over the course of more than a decade.

During the month of May and June, the State Controller’s Office spent several weeks with city of Clearlake staff performing an audit of Special Gas Tax Street Improvement Fund, Traffic Congestion Relief Fund Allocations, and Proposition 1B Fund Allocations for the period of July 1, 2002 through June 30, 2015, a 13-year span, according to City Manager Greg Folsom.

The last time the State Controller’s Office audited these funds was in 2003, according to City Manager Greg Folsom.

According to the audit report, “Our audit found that the city accounted for and expended its Special Gas Tax Street Improvement Fund, Traffic Congestion Relief Fund allocations, and Proposition 1B Fund allocations in compliance with requirements, except that the city understated the fund balance in the Special Gas Tax Street Improvement Fund by $10,208 as of June 30, 2015, because it incurred ineligible expenses. The city agreed with the finding and reimbursed the Special Gas Tax Street Improvement Fund accordingly.”

“We were very pleased with the results of the audit report. The audit looked at 13 years of funding and millions of dollars of expenditures by our Public Works Department,” said Folsom.

“The only issue identified by the auditor was an annual cost for water that we have rectified,” Folsom said. “Public Works Director Doug Herren and his staff have done a tremendous job of spending the public’s money appropriately under the strict guidelines and limitations of the programs.”

“This is very encouraging,” said Mayor Russ Perdock. “The city received over $5 million in state road funds over this period and this report speaks volumes about the good management that staff has exercised in using these funds for road repair. Unfortunately, these funds can only be used for major arterials and collectors. Our bigger challenge is finding money to improve residential roads where the real need is in our city.”