District officials did not properly identify, report or implement needed remediation to reduce lead exposure in all potable water outlets as required by NYS Public Health Law and Department of Health (DOH) regulations. District officials were unable to determine which of the 176 water outlets we identified at select areas, that students, staff and the public may have access to and could consume water from, were sampled for testing. Therefore, we determined 132 of the 176 (75 percent) water outlets we identified were not properly secured against use for Cycle Two.

Determine whether the Town of Pound Ridge (Town) Board (Board) procured goods and services in accordance with Board policy and applicable statutory requirements and properly audited claims prior to payment.

District officials did not properly identify, report or implement needed remediation to reduce lead exposure in all potable water outlets as required by NYS Public Health Law and Department of Health (DOH) regulations. We determined 95 of the 264 (36 percent) water outlets we identified at select areas, that students, staff and the public may have access to and could consume water from, were not sampled or properly exempted by District officials for Cycle Two. Because there is no information on the lead levels of the 95 water outlets not sampled for testing, we were unable to determine whether officials identified and remediated all water outlets that would have required it. This occurred because District officials did not have a complete sampling plan to identify all water outlets for sampling or exemption

District officials did not properly identify, report or implement needed remediation to reduce lead exposure in all potable water outlets as required by NYS Public Health Law and Department of Health (DOH) regulations. We determined 156 of the 310 (50 percent) water outlets we identified at select areas, that students, staff and the public may have access to and could consume water from, were not sampled or properly exempted by District officials for Cycle Two. This occurred because District officials did not have a sampling plan to identify all water outlets for sampling or exemption.

We conducted an audit of the District’s financial management procedures and issued a report in February 2017 that identified certain conditions and opportunities for the Board’s review and consideration. We returned to the District in July 2024 to conduct an audit follow-up review. Our follow-up review was limited to interviews with Board members and the Treasurer and inspection of certain documents related to the issues identified in our report. Based on our limited procedures, the District made no progress in implementing corrective action. Of the three audit recommendations, two recommendations were not implemented, and one recommendation was not applicable for the period that we reviewed. During the course of our audit follow-up, we identified additional deficiencies in the District’s accounting records and procedures that resulted in a determination for a more comprehensive review. As such, we engaged the District in this separate audit.

District officials did not properly identify, report or implement needed remediation to reduce lead exposure in all potable water outlets as required by NYS Public Health Law and Department of Health (DOH) regulations. We determined 24 of the 197 (12 percent) water outlets we identified at select areas, that students, staff and the public may have access to and could consume water from, were not sampled or properly exempted by District officials for Cycle Two. This occurred because District officials did not have complete sampling and remedial action plans that identified all water outlets for sampling or which water outlets they specifically exempted from sampling.

District officials did not properly identify, report or implement needed remediation to reduce lead exposure in all potable water outlets as required by NYS Public Health Law and Department of Health (DOH) regulations. We determined 39 water outlets (including sinks and showers in bathrooms and a sink in a concession stand) of the 312 water outlets we identified at select areas, that students, staff and the public may have access to and could consume water from, were not sampled or properly exempted by District officials for Cycle Two. These 39 unsampled and unexempted water outlets represent 13 percent of the 312 water outlets we identified. This occurred because District officials did not have a complete sampling plan to identify all water outlets for sampling or exemption.

District officials did not properly identify all potable water outlets for sampling or exemption as required by NYS Public Health Law and Department of Health (DOH) regulations. We determined 173 of the 310 (56 percent) water outlets we identified at select areas, that students, staff and the public may have access to and could consume water from, were not sampled or properly exempted by District officials for Cycle Two. This occurred because District officials did not have a sampling plan to identify all water outlets for sampling or exemption.

The claims auditors did not properly audit all claims prior to payment. Of the 1,467 claims totaling $24.2 million, we reviewed 266 claims totaling $7.7 million (some claim packets contained multiple exceptions) and determined that: 230 claims (86 percent) totaling $6.5 million should not have been approved by the claims auditors for payment because the claim packets did not contain sufficient supporting documentation to allow the claims auditor to determine whether the claim was a valid legal obligation, a proper charge against the District, properly approved, mathematically correct, or in compliance with the District’s purchasing policies. 14 BOCES claims (5 percent) totaling $5.2 million were not properly audited as it was the Board’s responsibility to do so because the claims auditors were employees of BOCES. When the Board audits these claims, it avoids the appearance of a conflict of interest that would result from the appointed claims auditor reviewing their own or their employer’s claims for payment.

The purpose of our review was to assess the City of Poughkeepsie Industrial Development Agency’s (IDA’s) progress, as of September 2024, in implementing our recommendations in the audit report City of Poughkeepsie Industrial Development Agency – Project Approval and Monitoring (2021M-168), released in July 2022.

District officials did not properly identify, report or implement needed remediation to reduce lead exposure in all potable water outlets as required by NYS Public Health Law and Department of Health (DOH) regulations. We determined 36 of the 76 (47 percent) water outlets we identified at select areas, that students, staff and the public may have access to and could consume water from were not sampled or properly exempted by District officials during Cycle Two. This occurred because District officials did not have a sampling plan to identify all water outlets for sampling or exemption.

District officials did not properly identify, report or implement needed remediation to reduce lead exposure in all potable water outlets as required by NYS Public Health Law and Department of Health (DOH) regulations. We determined 207 of the 567 (37 percent) water outlets we identified at select areas, that students, staff and the public may have access to and could consume water from, were not sampled or properly exempted by District officials for Cycle Two. This occurred because District officials did not have a sampling plan to identify all water outlets for sampling or exemption.

Although the Superintendent knew that District policy prohibited District employees from using District-purchased assets for personal use, he directed the Manager to purchase food totaling approximately $1,300 for the Superintendent’s private personal event. Without the Superintendent’s involvement, the Manager also purchased food totaling $100 for a District teacher to serve at a different private non-District event. Both of these purchases were inappropriate and not for a proper District purpose.

District officials did not properly identify, report or implement needed remediation to reduce lead exposure in all potable water outlets as required by NYS Public Health Law and Department of Health (DOH) regulations. We determined 149 of the 313 (48 percent) water outlets we identified that students, staff and the public may have access to and could consume water from, were not sampled or properly exempted by District officials during Cycle Two. Although the District had sampling and remedial action plans that identified water outlets for sampling and which water outlets they exempted, District officials did not properly secure any of the water outlets they exempted against use.

Determine whether Village of Penn Yan (Village) officials properly approved, monitored and controlled overtime costs of water treatment plant (WTP) employees.

The Board did not receive complete and accurate financial records and reports or request additional financial information, which hindered its ability to monitor the Town’s financial condition.

Determine whether Center Moriches Union Free School District (District) officials made accurate, approved and supported payroll payments to employees for tutoring, covering classes, chaperoning and sports scorekeeping.

District officials did not properly identify, report or implement needed remediation to reduce lead exposure in all potable water outlets as required by NYS Public Health Law and Department of Health (DOH) regulations. We determined 12 of the 333 water outlets we identified at select areas, that students, staff and the public may have access to and could consume water from, were not sampled or properly exempted by District officials for Cycle Two. This occurred because District officials did not have a sampling plan to identify all water outlets for sampling or exemption.

The Board did not conduct a thorough and deliberate audit of all claims paid during the audit period. As a result, we identified claims being paid without the Board’s knowledge. We reviewed all 647 non-payroll disbursements made during the audit period totaling approximately $2.1 million.

The purpose of our review was to assess the Greenwood Lake Union Free School District’s (District’s) progress, as of February 2025, in implementing our recommendations in the audit report Greenwood Lake Union Free School District – Procurement and Claims Processing (2021M-147), released in December 2021.