Purpose of Review
The purpose of our review was to determine whether County officials established appropriate controls to safeguard and account for court and trust funds for the period January 1, 2024 through September 3, 2025.
Background
Pursuant to a court order, certain assets may be provided to the court and then delivered to a county’s chief fiscal officer (CFO) for safekeeping. Payments made pursuant to court orders commonly involve surplus money from foreclosures and contract disputes resulting in a mechanic’s lien. These actions are recorded in the county clerk’s office when payments are deposited as required by court order. Additionally, in certain circumstances, funds from estates are entrusted to the CFO for safekeeping by order of the surrogate’s court. Together, the CFO, county clerk and surrogate’s court must develop sound procedures and processes which, when implemented properly and consistently, provide a system of internal controls to account for and safeguard these funds.
Key Findings
- Although we discussed minor discrepancies noted during our review with the County CFO, we determined that the County CFO generally established adequate procedures, maintained appropriate records and properly reported court and trust funds as prescribed by statute.
- We also determined that the records maintained by the County Clerk and Surrogate’s Court were up to date and complete, and we noted no material discrepancies.