There has been recent guidance issued in the industry that may affect the future way and source of your public records training affecting both treasurers and board members of community schools.
In Auditor of State Bulletin 2021-007, the interpretation of Ohio Revised Code Section 109.43 (B) is that public records and open meetings laws training must be certified by the Ohio Attorney General for it to count towards your annual requirement. We have seen this training offered in various ways, such as the community school’s board attorney or the school’s sponsor conducting annual training for treasurers and board members. But beware: not all of these types of training have been approved by the Ohio Attorney General.
As required by Ohio Revised Code Section 3314.037, treasurers and board members of community schools are required to obtain annual training on public records and open meetings laws in order for the community school to remain in compliance as tested annually in their financial statement audit. Auditors will not be required to test this updated requirement until the fiscal year 2023.
On a side note, for your community school to obtain an additional star level in the Star Rating System (StaRS) this training must be completed within the first four months of hire or of the new school year.
If you have any further questions or comments don’t hesitate to reach out to me at Morgan.Helmick@reacpa.com
By: Morgan Helmick, CPA, LSSGB (Medina office)