An audit of the Williston Park District in Williams County has revealed an area of “going concern.” This matter of “going concern” means that unless operations or processes change, there is considerable doubt that the Williston Park District will be able to pay its bills. This could impact the services that the Park District offers.

The concerns in revenue stem from three issues:

• The pandemic, which impacted the amount of people attending parks programs and resulting revenue.
• The price of oil dropping significantly impacted sales tax revenue.
• Sales tax rebate credits created a debt that needs to be repaid back to the State of North Dakota.

The Park District has taken several cost-cutting measures including negotiating a repayment plan with the State for the sales tax rebate credit.

“We appreciate the work the external audit team did on this audit,” said State Auditor Joshua Gallion. “Their work provides a roadmap for the Park District board and leadership to address these financial areas of concern.”

The content of this audit report is for the review period of calendar year 2020. The 2021 audit report will be released in late spring of 2022. To view the full report, visit: https://ndsao.link/Williston