Preparing your annual report package? Check out SAO’s updated school checklist today 

Aug 31, 2026

This blog article was originally published in August 2025. The Checklist for preparing and reviewing school district financial statements has since been updated for the 2025-26 school year, and the links in the original article below have been updated for your convenience.

Here’s what’s new in the Checklist:

  • New checklist step for reporting unusual or infrequent items, as required by GASB Statement No. 103 and adopted by the Schools Accounting Manual
  • New checklist item for final review of financial statements, reminding reviewers to double-check that all prior year audit issues were actually resolved in the current period’s statements and disclosures

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The long, hot summer days are waning, which means the end of another school district fiscal year is upon us. Yes, it is time again to close the books and prepare your annual financial reporting package. And, as we do every year to help you get ready, we have published an updated Checklist for Preparing and Reviewing School District Financial Statements. Among the new information:

Compensated absences. For 2024-25, the Accounting Manual for Public School Districts in the State of Washington now reflects changes resulting from GASB Statement No. 101, Compensated Absences. We’ve added a checklist question to help remind you to implement this change.

Other helpful checklist questions you'll also find include:

  • Declining financial condition checklist question. This question can help you identify what information needs to be communicated to users of your financial statements.
  • Interfund activity checklist question. Designed to help you ensure that interfund transfers and loans are properly recorded and reflected on your financial statements.

For help

Remember, we are here to help. If you have specific technical accounting questions, please submit them using our Help Desk in the client portal.

We also have financial management specialists at SAO’s Center for Government Innovation available to talk with you about best practices, resources or internal controls. For assistance, reach out to us at Center@sao.wa.gov.

The updated checklist is now available in SAO’s Resource Library.