The county Road Commission received a clean bill of financial health from its auditor Tuesday.

Governmental entities that receive road funds through the state Public Act 51 of 1951 are required to submit an annual financial report to the Michigan Department of Transportation showing how it spent its revenues. The Road Commission hired the Rehmann Group, a statewide accounting firm with offices in Traverse City, to prepare the Act 51 report.

At its meeting Tuesday, the commission unanimously approved the Act 51 report for 2007 prepared, which allowed clerk Joe Nedow to forward the report to the state agency. Steve Peacock and Mark Smith of Rehmann reviewed the audit of the commission’s books, and both reported no problems were found.

“We gave you a clean opinion, which is the highest rating you can receive for an audit like this,” Peacock said.

The financial report showed the commission took in $6,694,802 in revenues and had $6,223,135 in expenditures for 2007. A fund balance of $821,428 on Jan. 1, 2007 grew to $1,293,095 by year’s end.

Smith performed the review of the Road Commission’s books with assistance from Nedow. He said Nedow and the commission staff should be commended for how they track incoming and outgoing money.

Chairman Lee A. Bowen, attending his first Road Commission meeting since Jan. 22, has a background in financial analysis. He said the first thing he looks for in Act 51 reports is whether the commission received a clean report.

“Once I see that, I know that if there are any small problems we can handle it,” Bowen said.

In other business during its 2½-hour meeting, the commission:

• Unanimously approved a commercial driveway permit for West Side Community Church in Solon Township for a secondary access off Solon Road. Engineer James C. Johnson said the church’s main entrance is off M-72, just west of Tilton Road, but church members wanted a second access off Solon Road. Johnson said as part of approval for the driveway permit the church has to allow adjacent land owners to use the access road as a connector to their property.

• Heard a report from manager/superintendent Herb Cradduck about staffing levels, and repairs to a snowplow truck that received frame damage. Cradduck said by Friday, March 21, the overnight shift for snow plowing will be done for the season and two of three seasonal employees he hired for winter maintenance will be let go. He said both men who are leaving will stay in the area and can be called back if there are snowstorms this spring. Cradduck said he would be offering the third seasonal worker a full-time position due to his experience and quality of work.

The cost to repair a tandem-axle plow truck that received frame damage in January will be much less than expected. Cradduck said the truck, which was damaged when its plow dug into soft dirt on shoulder of County Road 633 on Jan. 30 and flipped on its side, was repaired at Dutler Ford in Lansing. The cost was less than $20,000 and the vehicle should be back on the road within the next three weeks. The original estimate for repair was around $40,000.

• Unanimously approved a motion by member Glen Noonan, supported by vice-chairman John Popa, to not oppose amending the plat of Cedar to allow a property owner to remove a “paper” street, Quincy Street, which runs through the parcel. The property is located to the east of the Cedar Rustic Inn. The property owner has petitioned the 13th Circuit Court to amend the plat.