INTRODUCTORY SECTION

- i - City of Clayton

10 North Bemiston • Clayton, Missouri 63105-3397 • (314) 727-8100 • FAX (314) 721-8116 • TDD: (314) 290-8435

June 16, 2025

To the Honorable Mayor, Board of Aldermen and Citizens of Clayton:

Pursuant to City policy and in accordance with state law, the Annual Comprehensive Financial Report of the City of Clayton, Missouri, for the fiscal year (FY) ended September 30, 2024, is herewith submitted for your review. This report was prepared in conformance with accounting principles generally accepted in the United States of America (GAAP) and audited in accordance with auditing standards generally accepted in the United States of America by an independent firm of licensed certified public accountants.

This report is the City management’s representations concerning the finances of the City. Consequently, management assumes full responsibility for the completeness and reliability of all information presented in this report. To provide a reasonable basis for making the representations contained within this report, management of the City has established a comprehensive internal control framework that is designed to protect the City’s assets from loss, theft, or misuse and to compile sufficient, reliable information for the preparation of the City’s financial statements in conformance with GAAP. As management, we assert that, to the best of our knowledge and belief, this financial report is complete and reliable in all material respects and that all necessary disclosures have been included to enable the reader to gain a reasonable understanding of the City’s financial affairs.

The City’s financial statements have been audited by Sikich CPA LLC, a firm of licensed certified public accountants. The goal of this independent audit was to provide reasonable assurance that the basic financial statements of the City for the year ended September 30, 2024, are free of material misstatement. The independent audit involved examining, on a test basis, evidence supporting the amounts and disclosures in the basic financial statements, assessing the accounting principles used and significant estimates made by management evaluating the overall basic financial statement presentation. The independent auditors concluded, based upon its audit, that there was a reasonable basis for rendering an unmodified opinion that the City’s financial statements for the year ended September 30, 2024, are fairly presented in conformity with GAAP. The independent auditor’s report is presented as the first component of the financial section of this report.

GAAP requires that management provide a narrative introduction, overview, and analysis to accompany the basic financial statements in the form of Management’s Discussion and Analysis (MD&A). This letter of transmittal is designed to complement the MD&A and should be read in conjunction with it. The City’s MD&A can be found immediately following the Independent Auditor’s Report.