Auditing Hyrum: what the city's audit, budget and debt records show

The Utah Ledger is reviewing Hyrum City's public financial records in a series called Auditing Hyrum. The series reports what the city's audited financial statements, budget filings and council records state, and labels each figure with its year and basis.

Hyrum's fiscal year runs July 1 through June 30. The audit of the year ended June 30, 2025 was signed by HBME, LLC of Bountiful and dated Dec. 29, 2025. ^[1]

The audit opinion and findings

HBME's opinion says the financial statements present fairly, in all material respects, the city's financial position as of June 30, 2025. That is an unmodified, or clean, opinion. ^[1]

The firm also reported a material weakness, finding 2025-001, on account reconciliation and the financial close process. It labeled the finding a repeat from fiscal 2023 and 2024. A separate Ledger story covers that finding. ^[5]

In its state compliance report, HBME said the city complied in all material respects with the requirements it tested, which included budgetary compliance, fund balance, impact fees and a fraud risk assessment. The schedule reports no written state compliance findings for fiscal 2025 or 2024. ^[6][7]

Fund balance and net position

The General Fund, the city's main operating fund, ended fiscal 2025 with a fund balance of $2,678,387, up $352,862 for the year. Of that, $2,285,708 was unassigned. ^[2][3]

General Fund revenues were $8,426,564 and expenditures were $7,424,902. The fund transferred $700,000 to the city's capital projects fund. ^[3]

The audit notes say unrestricted General Fund balance was 30.6% of General Fund revenue, under the 35% limit the state sets. ^[8]

The city's total net position, an accounting measure of assets minus liabilities, was $73,796,541, up $5,530,455 from a year earlier. Of that, $51,489,836 was net investment in capital assets, which is not cash. ^[9]

Debt

The management discussion says the city has no general obligation debt. Its long-term debt is held by its business-type activities, such as utilities. ^[10]

At June 30, 2025, the city owed $2,222,517 on a USDA loan and $13,401,000 on a loan from Utah Associated Municipal Power Systems, or UAMPS, that financed a local power generator. A separate Ledger story covers the generator loan. ^[4]

The 2026-27 budget

The June 18, 2026 council agenda listed Resolution 26-21, adopting the city's fiscal 2026-27 operating budgets. ^[11]

The city's state budget report, generated Aug. 5, 2026, labels its 2026-27 column "Approved Budget." It shows $10,790,515 in General Fund revenue and the same amount in expenditures. ^[12]

The electric utility fund, the city's largest, is budgeted at $15,316,000 in revenue and $18,859,492 in expenditures, including $4,870,000 for new construction and special projects. A separate Ledger story covers the utility budgets. ^[13]

Redevelopment and incentives

The fiscal 2025 audit says the city did not offer any tax abatements as of June 30, 2025. The 2026-27 budget report lists no redevelopment agency fund. ^[8][12]