State Comptroller DiNapoli Releases Municipal & School Audits

September 23, 2024

New York State Comptroller Thomas P. DiNapoli today announced the following local government and school audits were issued.

Richford Fire District - Long-Term Planning and Board Oversight (Tioga County)

The board did not adequately plan for long-term capital and financial needs totaling $5.6 million which may impair the district's ability to continue to provide fire protection and emergency services. The board did not ensure the financial information it received was accurate, complete or timely. The board also did not receive accurate monthly cash balances for the audit period and did not identify the discrepancies or ensure the annual financial reports were filed. Additionally, the board did not perform adequate annual audits.

Village of Skaneateles - Claims Auditing (Onondaga County)

While the claims reviewed were for appropriate village expenditures, the board did not audit all claims before payment. Additionally, some claims were not adequately supported or were paid without approval. Of the 348 claims reviewed totaling approximately $2 million, 206 claims totaling about $1.3 million had one or more exceptions. The board did not audit 93 claims totaling approximately $618,000 and seven claims totaling approximately $356,000 were not competitively procured, as required by state law and the village's procurement policy. In addition, 36 claims totaling approximately $171,000 were approved by department heads after the claims were paid, five paid claims ($6,800) were not approved by department heads and 23 claims totaling approximately $112,000 lacked adequate supporting documentation.

Miller Place Fire District - Credit Cards (Suffolk County)

The board did not always ensure that credit card charges were properly approved, supported and for appropriate purposes. Of the 136 charges totaling $70,570 reviewed: 86 charges totaling $40,198 were accompanied by purchase orders that lacked a detailed description of the items or services, the quantity of items, or the dollar amount of items or services. Auditors found charges totaling $9,362 did not have sufficient supporting documentation attached to the claim but were approved for payment by the board. In addition, the commissioners approved and audited their own credit card charges totaling $14,544 and 25 charges totaling $10,005 had purchase orders that were approved by the district official making the purchase.

Town of Gilboa - Real Property Tax Exemptions Administration (Schoharie County)

The assessor did not properly administer forest land, religious and veteran's real property tax exemptions. Of the 408 tax exemptions in those categories granted in 2022 and 2023, auditors reviewed 154 totaling $667,938 that were granted to 23 property owners. Auditors determined that 85 of the exemptions totaling approximately $644,523 lacked one or more pieces of documentation the assessor and auditors needed to verify the property owners met the exemption criteria. As a result, they could not confirm the exemptions were properly granted or calculated. The assessor's unsupported exemptions represent 97% of the exemption values reviewed.

Village of Lake George - Records and Reports (Warren County)

Due to the treasurer and former secretary not properly fulfilling their responsibilities, along with the lack of adequate board oversight of the maintenance of the accounting records, the village's accounting records were incomplete, inaccurate and untimely during the audit period. In addition, the village's financial condition was not properly reported in the annual financial report. Without reliable accounting records and reports, the village's fiscal health cannot be measured, and the board's ability to manage the village's financial operations was limited. Of the 15 journal entries reviewed, three were not properly recorded and 10 were not recorded in a timely manner, and no one independently reviewed entries. In addition, the treasurer did not always complete bank reconciliations and half of the reconciliations prepared were not supported. As a result, adjusted bank balances did not agree with general ledger cash balances for 19 of the 28 bank reconciliations prepared. The board did not receive adequate monthly financial reports, annually audit the treasurer's records per state law or ensure the accuracy of the annual financial report filed with the Office of the State Comptroller.

Steuben County - Court and Trust Funds

Auditors found the commissioner generally established adequate procedures, maintained appropriate records, and generally properly reported court and trust funds. However, auditors identified $100 that improperly remained in the commissioner's custody that should have been turned over to the state comptroller as abandoned property.

Town of Shelby - Audit Follow-Up (Orleans County)

The purpose of the review was to assess the town's progress in implementing recommendations in a December 2021 audit. Town officials did not take meaningful actions to implement corrective action. Of the seven audit recommendations, six were not implemented and one was partially implemented.