New York State Comptroller Thomas P. DiNapoli today announced his office completed audits of the Town of Dansville, North Queensbury Volunteer Fire Company, Town of Ripley and the Sauquoit Fire District No. 1.

“In today’s fiscal climate, budget transparency and accountability for our local communities is a top priority,” said DiNapoli. “By auditing municipal finances and operations, my office continues to provide taxpayers the assurance that their money is being spent appropriately and effectively.” 

Town of Dansville – Board Oversight (Steuben County)

Auditors found that the board has not adopted adequate policies to ensure town resources are protected. The board acted outside its authority when it provided the highway superintendent with bonuses totaling $1,200 for services already rendered. Further, the board inappropriately allowed the highway superintendent to use $6,000 in proceeds from the sale of town scrap metal to fund parties.

North Queensbury Volunteer Fire Company – Controls Over Financial Activities (Warren County)

Company officers generally provided adequate oversight over financial activities. Five of the company’s committees have just one member. As a result, these committees did not function as committees, but as one individual making decisions for the entire company without sufficient oversight.

Town of Ripley – Water District Financial Condition and Legal Services (Chautauqua County)

The board did not properly allocate operating costs between District 1 and District 2. If costs were allocated in accordance with regulations, District 1 would have had a $30,963 deficit. The adopted budgets for District 1 were unreasonable, resulting in annual operating deficits and declining surplus.

Sauquoit Fire District No. 1 – Controls Over Financial Activities (Oneida County)

The board needs to improve its oversight of the district’s financial activities. The board did not ensure that complete accounting records were maintained, that bank reconciliations were performed, that its annual financial report was prepared and filed in a timely manner and that an annual audit of the treasurer’s records was performed.

For access to state and local government spending and nearly 50,000 state contracts, visit http://www.openbooknewyork.com/. The easy-to-use website was created by Comptroller DiNapoli to promote openness in government and provide taxpayers with better access to the financial workings of government.