In my experience the reviewer writes a simple letter stating that the books were found to be in good order and that all income and expense is properly accounted for. If that is not the case, the reviewer would state what problems were found. (In CPA lingo an "audit" is a very specific type of review.)

If the letter indicates there are missing funds, I would next go to the prinicipal, and from there to the superintendent. The district's solicitor, or an attorney on your school board, might be willing to give you some free advice. In the end you may find you are left with the decision about calling the police. This was the case with our PTO - when the chips were down it was our problem. Good luck!

After an audit committee or auditor has reviewed the financial records of the PTO, is there a report, form, letter...anything that is then used to address the PTO members concerning any misappropriations or unaccountable money....or even to simply state that all financial records are correct and up to date and all expenditures have been verified with reciepts, etc...?

What happens next if an audior finds that the financial records aren't acceptable and money has been misappropriated or can't be found in the books?

Are school officials (principal, superintendent, school board members) responsible for enforcing the by-laws of the PTO since school board policies state that they will insure the ongoing operations of a parent-teacher organization?

When does one know that the next step is to go to law enforcement?

We're at a major cross roads here and going to law enforcement is a huge step. We want to know that we have tried every avenue before getting the law involved. It's a hard decision and your insight would be greatly appreciated.