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Purpose of Review

The purpose of our review was to assess the Ridge Fire District’s (District) progress, as of September 2025, in implementing our recommendations in the audit report Ridge Fire District – Board Oversight of Treasurer’s Fiscal Duties (2021M-165), released in January 2022.

The audit determined that:

• The Board of Fire Commissioners (Board) did not provide adequate oversight of the Treasurer’s fiscal duties and could not explain why the bank balances presented on the Treasurer’s reports for three consecutive months contained discrepancies totaling $2.96 million.
• Adequate monthly reports were not prepared and shared with the Board.
• Bank reconciliations were not always accurate or timely, resulting in a $10,244 discrepancy between the District’s accounting records and bank statements
• The budget was not entered into the accounting software. Therefore, the Board did not properly monitor the budget which contributed to the District exceeding its 2020 appropriations by $77,968.

The audit included three recommendations to help the Board improve its oversight of the District’s financial activities.

Background

The District, located in the Town of Brookhaven in Suffolk County, is governed by a five-member Board. The Board is responsible for the overall financial management and safeguarding of its resources. The Board-appointed Treasurer acts as the chief fiscal officer and is responsible for receiving, disbursing and accounting for District funds and preparing financial reports. The Deputy Treasurer assists with these responsibilities. There were two Treasurers during the audit period. One Treasurer resigned in April 2019 and the Board appointed a successor at that time

Results of Review

The Board partially implemented one recommendation and did not implement two recommendations. As a result, the Board cannot ensure District assets are fully safeguarded.