Edited: The following abbreviated summary was not written by Weaver Tidwell and was not purported to be written by Weaver Tidwell. This abbreviated summary is a summarized version of the executive summary contained in the forensic audit, written by Weaver Tidwell. The complete Executive Summary and full Forensic Audit can be found at the bottom of this page.
Purpose of the Audit
In early 2025 the City of Granbury, Hood County and the City of Tolar passed formal resolutions encouraging the Hood Central Appraisal District (HCAD or the District) to perform a forensic audit. The Board of Directors of HCAD hired an independent accounting firm to perform a forensic review on how the Appraisal District handled money from 2016–2023.
The audit focused on:
- Planning and spending for potential new building
- Retirement contributions related to employees
- How unspent funds were saved and used
- Whether HCAD followed proper procedures
- How well HCAD communicated with the local governments which funds its operations
Why This Matters
The District is funded by taxpayer dollars through 11 local governments (cities, school districts, and the county).
These local entities rely on HCAD to:
- Follow Texas law
- Spend public money responsibly
- Communicate openly about financial decisions
The audit was funded by HCAD through a budget amendment in which no taxing unit were asked to contribute additional money. To date the district has spent $167,318.53 on the forensic audit. One more invoice is anticipated from the audit firm.
Key Findings
What the Audit Found
- Spending was traceable, documented, and used for legitimate HCAD purposes.
- Retirement contributions were properly handled and verified.
- No missing funds
- No personal misuse of money
- No evidence of fraud
Spending on New Facilities
Land Purchase (2019)
- HCAD bought land for a new facility in 2019.
- Required approval from most local governments was not obtained.
- The land was later sold back to the original seller; total cost to HCAD was about $5,000.
Other Facility-Related Costs
- HCAD spent $397,000 on planning for new buildings (2019–2023).
- All spending was supported by invoices and bank records.
Budgeting Issues
- $800,000 for planned new facilities was included in original budgets, approved by the HCAD board, and sent to local governments.
- Over several years, an additional $2 million was retained by HCAD’s Board in anticipation for new facilities.
Retirement Fund Contributions (TCDRS)
Budgeted vs. Actual
- $2.06 million in retirement contributions appeared in original budgets.
- Another $1.08 million was retained by the HCAD board using previously approved and unpent funds. Money retained was communicated through posted board agendas and public meetings.
Accuracy of Contributions
- Audit confirmed that retirement payments were properly sent to TCDRS.
- A minor $26 variance was found, over a period of eight years, not affecting results.
Retirement Plan Details
- HCAD does not control the required contribution rate; TCDRS sets it using actuarial calculations.
- HCAD’s retirement plan settings are in line with other appraisal districts and with Hood County.
Management of Unspent Funds
Unassigned Funds
- HCAD held around $1.4 million in unspent money for several years.
- This money was not labeled in HCAD’s internal records as being for any specific purpose. The board minutes reflect the board’s decision to use this money for future construction (pending approval).
Refunds to Local Governments
- In 2023, HCAD returned to the taxing units over $1,900,000 of unspent (retained) funds from 2020–2022.
- Refund amounts were distributed fairly, in proportion to what each entity originally paid.
Policies and Transparency
Policies
- HCAD has very few written policies on fund balance management.
- This is common among appraisal districts, though better documentation is encouraged.
Public Transparency
- HCAD presented annual audits at public board meetings.
- Only the 2023 audit report is posted on the District’s current website for public access. However, the District’s previous website had all audit reports posted during the time frame of this audit.
Overall Conclusions
- Spending was traceable, documented, and used for legitimate HCAD purposes.
- Retirement contributions were properly handled and verified.
- No missing funds
- No personal misuse of money
- No evidence of fraud
- Lack of required approval for the 2019 land purchase
- Mid-year line-item budget transfers not communicated to local governments outside of board agendas and public meetings (no formal correspondence)
- HCAD retained money from previous fiscal years for anticipation of new facilities without properly committing them for specific use
- Limited written policies
- Public posting of prior year audit reports needs to be posted on the new website
Full Billing Statements of Audit (received to date)