By Mike Kruzman / news@whmi.com


Hartland Township has received a glowing review on its fiscal year 2021 audit report.

The Board of Trustees was given an “unmodified opinion” from auditors Pfeffer, Hanniford & Palka at their most recent meeting. An “unmodified opinion” is the highest opinion a township can receive following a review of its financials. John Pfeffer complimented Hartland Township Manager Bob West for a seamless transition into the job, along with Finance Director Susan Dryden-Hogan and Treasurer Kathy Horning.

At just under $3.2-million, Pfeffer called the township’s general fund “very healthy,” and noted the several projects that were able to be completed while still growing it. He pointed to purchasing additional land for Settler’s Park, improvements at Spranger Field, new playground projects for families, and the completion of the M-59 Safety Path.

A significant portion of any Michigan municipality’s revenue comes from state shared revenue, which itself comes from income and sales taxes. Hartland Township Trustee Matt Germane asked what these numbers might look like in the future. Pfeffer noted how in a period of time where COVID has hit businesses and has closed many restaurants, that state shared revenue can be affected by this. He said that that hasn’t been the case yet with the numbers, but it still could be and it should be monitored. Pfeffer said it might be more appropriate to reduce projected state shared revenue numbers instead of increasing it, but haven’t heard anything for certain yet.

Gains made toward paying off water and sewer debt were also recognized by Pfeffer, who said that overall the township was in a good position. He said their firm tries to nitpick where they can, but were unable to do so with Hartland this year.