According to Section 112 (1) No. 1 GemO, the audit committee and the audit office are responsible for auditing the annual financial statements and the notes to the annual financial statements.

The annual financial statements are the most important basis for democratic control by the city council and for the decision on the discharge of the mayor, the deputy mayor, and the aldermen in accordance with § 114 GemO.

In the past, the focus was primarily on legal review. This ranged from compliance with budgetary principles and the obligation to balance the budget to the control of the administration as a legal control.

Since the introduction of double-entry accounting, the main focus of budget and financial management has been on obtaining a true and fair view of the municipality's assets, liabilities, income, and financial position in accordance with the principles of proper accounting.

The content and scope of the audit includes, among other things

• compliance with the legal provisions of the municipal code,
• the municipal budget ordinance, including the supplementary statutes and other local legal provisions, and the Commercial Code.

When auditing the annual financial statements, attention must also be paid to whether the procedures prescribed by the municipality's administrative instructions, such as authorizing authority, dual control principle, and payment processing, have been complied with.

The exact scope of the audit of the annual financial statements is set out in Section 113 (1) and (2) of the Municipal Code.