New York State Comptroller Thomas P. DiNapoli today announced the following local government and school audits were issued.
Newburgh Enlarged City School District – Financial Management (Orange County)
The board and district officials overestimated certain appropriations, underestimated certain revenues, and made unbudgeted year-end transfers totaling $67 million, which collectively reduced the effectiveness of managing the district’s financial condition. The board and district officials also made it appear they needed more funding to meet operational needs than was needed by appropriating fund balance to balance the budget when the appropriations weren’t needed. Because realistic budgets were not adopted, the board and district officials accumulated significant fund balance. The variances between the budgets district officials presented to taxpayers and the district’s actual operational results during the audit period were approximately $87 million. Of the $67 million in year-end transfers, $50.6 million went to the district’s reserves.
Caneadea Fire District – Treasurer’s Records and Reports (Allegany County)
The treasurer did not record and report all financial transactions in a timely and accurate manner, which increased the risk that improper or unauthorized activity could have occurred without detection or correction. Although auditors did not identify any improper or unauthorized activity, the board did not have sufficient information to effectively oversee the district’s financial operations and make informed decisions because financial records and reports were incomplete and inaccurate. If the board had performed an effective annual audit of the treasurer’s records, the errors and omissions identified by auditors might have been detected and corrected.
Town of Palermo – Transparency of Fiscal Activities (Oswego County)
The board did not conduct or provide for an annual audit of the supervisor’s financial records and reports for fiscal year 2024 in accordance with state law. In addition, the supervisor did not prepare and file the 2021 through 2024 Annual Financial Reports with DiNapoli’s office, as required. The supervisor also did not provide the board with complete, accurate and reliable monthly financial reports. Had the board received complete, accurate and reliable monthly reports and conducted an annual audit of the supervisor’s books, records and documents, it may have identified and potentially helped remedy these issues.
Beekmantown Fire District No. 1 – Investment Program (Clinton County)
Auditors determined that the district’s investments were legal, safe and liquid. However, officials did not develop and manage a comprehensive investment program. For example, officials did not prepare monthly cash flow forecasts to estimate funds available for investment or solicit interest rate quotes from financial institutions. During the 25-month audit period, the district earned $114 in investment earnings, even though it had an average of $530,000 available to invest each month. Had officials considered alternative legally permissible investment options, the district may have increased the investment earnings by more than $52,000.
Beekmantown Fire District No. 1 – Board Oversight (Clinton County)
The board did not adequately oversee the district’s financial operations related to maintaining accounting records, preparing bank reconciliations, submitting monthly and annual financial reports, auditing and approving claims and performing annual audits. The board did not provide oversight of the secretary-treasurer’s duties related to maintaining the accounting records. Auditors reviewed 257 disbursements for claims paid totaling $222,372 and identified several deficiencies in the records. The inadequately maintained accounting records also prevented the treasurer from being able to properly reconcile the district’s bank accounts during the audit period. The board also did not ensure that the treasurer submitted adequate monthly financial reports or that the treasurer prepared and filed an Annual Financial Report (AFR) each year. As a result, as of Jan. 31, 2025, the district’s AFRs for the 2019 through 2023 fiscal years were between 337 and 1,798 days late.
Village of Churchville – Financial Management (Monroe County)
The board did not effectively manage fund balance in accordance with its fund balance policy, which resulted in the general fund’s unrestricted fund balance exceeding the 30% maximum limit for the past three fiscal years. The board also inappropriately allocated board member and village attorney salaries and benefits totaling $117,709 to the sewer fund instead of the general fund in the 2022-23 through 2024-25 fiscal years. As a result, there is an inaccurate depiction of the actual financial condition of the general and sewer funds. The board also did not adopt or develop comprehensive, written, multiyear financial or capital plans, or a written reserve policy, or receive and review budget status reports, which could have assisted in developing and adopting more accurate budgets and planning for the village’s financial future.