On March 7, State Auditor Rob Sand released the audit report on the city of Keota. In the report, Sand recommended that the city consult legal counsel due to a potential conflict of interest. Mayor Tony Cansler issued a public notice on Tuesday stating that after an investigation, no conflict of interest was found.

Between July 2019 and June 2020, payments were made to Andy Conrad, the brother of then-Mayor Pro-Tem, Keith Conrad, for various IT projects. Sand’s report said that the transactions, which totaled $8,962, may represent a conflict of interest since they exceeded $6,000 and were not competitively bid.

The notice released Tuesday stated that “Per legal council an investigation was conducted and the investigation report was submitted and presented at the Regular Meeting of the City Council of Keota, Iowa on April 3, 2023.” The findings and determination that no conflict of interest occurred was confirmed by the City Council.