1. The school board of each seven-director district shall cause an audit examination to be made at least biennially of all financial, transportation and attendance records of the districts. Such examination shall be made in accordance with generally accepted auditing standards applicable in the circumstances, including such reviews and tests of the system of internal check and control and of the books, records and other underlying data as are necessary to enable the independent accountant performing the audit to come to an informed opinion as to the financial affairs (including attendance and transportation transactions) of the district. An independent auditor who is not regularly engaged as an employee of the school board shall perform the audit and make a written report of his findings.

2. The board shall supply each member thereof with a copy of the report and in addition shall furnish one copy each to the state department of elementary and secondary education and to the superintendent of schools of the county in which the district is located. The cost of the audit and report shall be paid for out of the incidental fund of the district.

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3. The report shall contain the following information:

(1) A statement of the scope of examination;

(2) The auditor’s opinion as to whether the audit was made in accordance with generally accepted auditing standards applicable in the circumstances;

(3) The auditor’s opinion as to whether the financial statements included in the audit report present fairly the results of the operations during the period audited;

(4) The auditor’s opinion as to whether the financial statements accompanying the audit report were prepared in accordance with generally accepted accounting principles applicable to school districts;

(5) The reason or reasons an opinion is not rendered with respect to items (3) and (4) in the event the auditor is unable to express an opinion with respect thereto;

(6) The auditor’s opinion as to whether the district’s budgetary and disbursement procedures conform to the requirements of chapter 67;

(7) The auditor’s opinion as to whether attendance and transportation records are so maintained by the district as to disclose accurately average daily attendance and average daily transportation of pupils during the period of the audit;

(8) Financial statements presented in such form as to disclose the operations of each fund of the school district and a statement of the operations of all funds.

4. The school board shall furnish the state department of elementary and secondary education with its copy of the audit report not later than October thirty-first following the close of the fiscal period covered by the audit unless, for good cause shown prior to such date, the commissioner of education or some officer of the department of elementary and secondary education designated by him for this purpose grants an extension of time, not to exceed sixty additional days, for the filing of the report. In the event the report in the approved form is not filed within the period or extension thereof, further state aid to the district shall thereafter be withheld until the audit report has been received by the department of elementary and secondary education.

5. Within thirty days of the receipt of the audit report the school board shall cause a summary of the report to be prepared which shall include, together with any other matter the board deems appropriate, the following:

(1) A summary statement of fund balances and receipts and disbursements by major classifications of each fund and all funds;

(2) A summary statement of the scope of the audit examination;

(3) The auditor’s opinion on the financial statements included in the audit report.

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Immediately upon the completion of the summary, the school board shall cause it to be published once in a newspaper within the county in which all or a part of the district is located which has general circulation within the district or, if there is none, then the board shall cause the summary to be posted in at least five public places within the district. The publication shall contain information as to where the audit report is available for inspection and examination. The report shall be kept available for such purposes thereafter.