Financial Condition
The Town has experienced a deteriorating financial condition resulting from the Board’s decisions when developing and adopting annual operating budgets and their failure to appropriately monitor financial operations related to highway operations. From the 2005 through the 2010 fiscal years, the highway funds have experienced operating deficits of more than $456,000. The Board also included $77,000 in fund balance in the budgets that did not exist. As a result, the Town’s highway funds have experienced significant declines in fund balance over the past several years, which are now negatively impacting Town operations in the 2011 fiscal year. If the Board does not reduce spending levels in 2011, we determined, based on our cash flow projection, that the Town will experience a cash flow shortfall in October. Town of Amity[complete audit - pdf]

Justice Court
The Justices did not properly maintain complete, accurate, and timely records. Because the Justices did not prepare monthly cash accountability reports, they were unable to account for an unidentified balance of $825 in the Court's bank account. The Justices collected three cash receipts totaling $1,295 but did not record them in the Court's cash receipt records and collected another cash receipt for $235 that was recorded in the cash receipts records, but could not be traced to a specific bank deposit. Also, two deposits totaling $300 could not be accounted for in the Court's cash receipts records. In addition, one Justice performed monthly bank reconciliations, but the other Justice did not. Because the Justices did not prepare monthly cash accountability reports and bank reconciliations, the Board was unable to perform a complete and comprehensive annual audit. Town of Andes[complete audit - pdf]

Tax Collector
We found that, in general, the Tax Collector (Collector) properly received, deposited and recorded tax payments. However, we found that the Collector was not remitting taxes to the Supervisor in a timely manner and the Collector’s bank account has large unexplained balances of as much as $12,500. Town of Arcade[complete audit - pdf]

Leave Benefits
The Board did not establish written policies to provide for the review of leave benefits accrued and used by Town employees. We tested all five individuals who left service in 2009 and 2010, along with seven active employees, to determine whether they were provided with and used leave time in accordance with the CBA and/or personnel policy. Because a Town official did not review employees' use of leave time, the Town may have paid four employees $19,000 in excess of policy and CBA provisions for various types of leave. Town of Aurora[complete audit - pdf]

Water and Sewer District Financial Condition and Conflict of Interest
The Board approved budgets for the water and sewer funds that were not realistic. For the three-year period January 1, 2008 through December 31, 2010, the Board increased revenues projections make it appear that there were sufficient revenues to keep pace with increasing operating expenditures; however, the Board did not actually increase user rates to support the increase in projected revenues. This resulted in revenue shortfalls, annual operating deficits and accumulated fund balance deficits in the water and sewer districts. The financial stress of the water and sewer districts caused the Board to rely on inter-fund loans totaling approximately $2.5 million from the general fund and the community development fund to finance operations. As of December 31, 2010, the districts had accumulated fund deficits totaling $899,335 with approximately $1.7 million in inter-fund loans outstanding. The Board and Town officials do not have a plan for repaying this money to the appropriate funds. Finally, we found that the Town has been doing business with a company that is owned by a Board member and his wife. Town of Bolton[complete audit - pdf]

Long-Term Planning for Casino Compact Revenues
We found that the Board did not adopt a comprehensive multi-year financial and capital plan for casino compact revenues, and did not include estimates of the revenues or proposed uses in the annual budgets for the years 2007 through 2011. Instead, the Board relied on the plans submitted to the Economic Development Corporation and corresponding Board resolutions to provide a general summary of the intended use of casino compact revenues. Town of Bombay[complete audit - pdf]

Financial Operations
The Highway Superintendent did not always make purchases in compliance with the Town's procurement policy. Furthermore, because there is no documentation in the maintenance records to evidence that certain purchased items were installed on Town equipment, there is a significant risk that the Town paid for parts that were never received. In addition, the Board did not adopt budgets with realistic estimates for revenues and expenditures which has caused the Town to levy more real property taxes than needed and to accumulate excess fund balance. Town of Boston[complete audit - pdf]

Capital Planning
We found that the Board succeeded in implementing its financing plan to build new Town offices and new Highway Garage. We commend the Board for its discipline in saving for this project. By planning for the project and setting aside funds, the Town now has to obtain only $450,000 in financing at a 3.61 percent, which will cost approximately $50,000. Therefore, by budgeting for this project over time, the Board has saved approximately $66,000 in interest, and also earned interest of $2,600 from the monies that were set aside. However, we recommend that local officials who accumulate funds to finance capital projects establish a formal reserve for these funds to help ensure the money will be used for the intended purpose. Town of Broome[complete audit - pdf]

Financial Condition of Special Districts
The Board failed to repay loaned general fund monies used to pay for capital improvements in two drainage districts, then failed to raise sufficient revenues to address those capital improvements within one of the districts, resulting in a deficit of $73,153 in that district. In attempting to properly allocate debt service payments among the water districts, the bookkeeper incorrectly adjusted the accounting records for the districts. Because Town officials did not adequately monitor the bookkeeper's work or the districts' financial position, they were unaware that the individual district fund balances were incorrect. Town of Busti[complete audit - pdf]

Our review of the files of a sample of 52 dependents, selected randomly from the 1,149 dependents enrolled in the Plan, found no evidence of any documentation showing that these dependents met any of the eligibility criteria. Of the 52 dependents tested, 13 individuals (25 percent) could not provide evidence of dependent status, and are potentially ineligible for coverage by the Plan. Participants lacked such documentation because none of the Boards have adopted policies that require verifying dependents’ eligibility before enrolling them in the Plan and procedures for monitoring eligibility status. Based on a $2,000 to $5,000 annual savings per dependent and our 25 percent exception rate, the potential savings in Trust expenses could range from $574,500 to $1,436,250 annually. Wayne County Employee Health Care Plan Trust Participants[complete audit - pdf]

Budgeting Practices
The Board has not adopted a policy, and Town officials have not developed procedures to govern the level of unreserved, unappropriated fund balance to be maintained and/or to determine whether the amount maintained is reasonable. In addition, the Board has not realistically determined the amount of fund balance to appropriate for the ensuing year's budget and has used only 19 percent of total appropriated fund balance over the four years reviewed. Further, the Board has not developed a multi-year financial plan that sets the goals and objectives for funding long-term operating and capital needs. Town of Butler[complete audit - pdf]

Internal Controls Over Payroll
Because the Board did not establish written policies and procedures for authorizing, processing and reporting payroll, 12 Town officials and employees did not have approved pay rates, and two individuals whose pay rates were approved were paid a total of $7,150 more than the Board authorized. Further, the Town improperly paid a retirement incentive of $10,183 to the former Highway Superintendent, and paid $8,181 in salary and benefits to various employees without withholding payroll taxes or reporting these amounts to the Internal Revenue Service (IRS) or New York State Department of Taxation and Finance (Tax and Finance). As a result, the Town paid almost $27,000 in unauthorized or improper salary and benefits to Town officials and employees without disclosing these payments to the public. Lack of compliance with payroll tax withholding and reporting requirements could also result in substantial interest and penalties. Cameron, Town of[complete audit - pdf]

Financial Management and Town Supervisor's Duties
At December 31, 2010, the unreserved, unappropriated fund balance in the general fund – town-wide was reported as $254,761, or 84 percent of the ensuing year's appropriations. At the same time, the Town maintained an unreserved, unappropriated fund balance in the highway – town-wide, water district, and sewer district funds of $371,816, $183,760, and $214,197 respectively. These amounts represented 109 percent, 151 percent, and 79 percent, respectively, of the ensuing year's appropriations. As a result, the Town has accumulated excessive taxpayer funds that could be better used for the benefit of taxpayers. In addition, the Supervisor does not have adequate control of his financial records, nor does he appropriately monitor those performing some of his financial duties. Town of Castile[complete audit - pdf]

Board Oversight
The Supervisor's records did not reflect a $36,000 liability and improperly accounted for $6,902 in surplus moneys as a "contingency" reserve, for which no statutory authority exists. We also found that the Town's accounting records were not suitably available for review. Finally, there is no indication that the Board had audited, or provided for an audit of, the records of the Supervisor, Tax Collector or Clerk. Town of Centerville[complete audit - pdf]

Supervisor's Records and Reports
The Supervisor did not maintain complete, accurate and up-to-date accounting records, perform monthly bank-to-book reconciliations, or provide complete and accurate monthly financial reports to the Board. As a result, the Board could not properly monitor and manage Town operations. Furthermore, at the time of our audit, the Supervisor had not filed the AUD summarizing the Town's financial information for more than five years. The Board did not examine, or cause to be examined, the records and reports of officers and employees who received or disbursed moneys on behalf of the Town. Town of Charleston[complete audit - pdf]

Justice Court
We found that internal controls were not appropriately designed or operating effectively. Consequently, one out of every 22 cash receipt entries had errors, including eight receipts that were issued out of sequence, and numerous differences between the amounts recorded as received and the amounts that were actually deposited. In addition, three of the six monthly reports reviewed did not agree with the accounting records, and the court clerk did not prepare monthly accountabilities or maintain complete records of bails on deposit. Finally, although the Court’s records were audited twice during our audit period, the Board never requested that the Justice take corrective action for the discrepancies identified by the audit committee. As a result, the unidentified balance in the Justice’s account amounted to $10,165 as of December 31, 2009. Town of Chester[complete audit - pdf]

Unauthorized Payments and Lack of Board Oversight
The former Supervisor was able to improperly disburse $3,307 from Town funds without Board authorization. After the former Supervisor resigned on September 1, 2010, the Town's computerized financial records were inaccessible and the Town had still not filed the Town's 2009 annual financial report. This resulted in additional expenditures totaling $3,000 to reconstruct the accounting records and file the annual financial report. The former Supervisor also failed to file payroll tax forms, remit payroll taxes or collect health insurance reimbursements, which resulted penalties, interest and lost revenues. Town of Clare[complete audit - pdf]

Water Operations
The Town does not have a system in place to reconcile the total amount of water purchased to the amount of water billed to its customers and used for municipal purposes. The lack of an overall comparison increases the risk that the Town may be paying more than necessary for water or, that water may be lost within the system or misused without being detected by Town officials. Therefore, the Town cannot account for over 17.5 million gallons of water valued at over $43,000. Town of Colden[complete audit - pdf]

Internal Controls Over Selected Financial Operations
We found that the Board did not adequately monitor the financial status of water district #3 which resulted in a long-term interfund loan from water district #1 to water district #3, without a plan in place to repay these moneys. Currently, over $31,000 in loans remain unpaid. The Town also experienced an unaccounted for water loss in water district #3 totaling over 7 million gallons, or 44 percent, at a cost to produce of approximately $10,000 for a one year period. There has been no action taken to correct the problem. Town of Collins[complete audit - pdf]

Internal Controls Over Information Technology
Because the Town has not established IT policies and procedures, Town officials may not be prepared to effectively manage information breaches, and are at higher risk of unauthorized access to systems and data. In addition, the Town's electronic data is at risk of loss or damage because Town officials do not store backup tapes at a secure off-site location. Town of Crawford[complete audit - pdf]

Town Clerk's Office
The Board and the Clerk did not establish adequate internal controls to ensure that the money she collected was recorded, deposited and remitted in an accurate and timely manner. The Clerk did not collect Monitor Bay Campsite (Campsite) rents in accordance with Town policy or deposit all Clerk fees, licenses, and water and sewer collections within three business days after the total exceeded $250. In addition, she did not record or deposit real property taxes timely or remit them to the Supervisor in accordance with legal requirements. Finally, the Board did not audit the Clerk's records. Town of Crown Point[complete audit - pdf]

Gravel Pit Operations
Town officials are responsible for ensuring that they procure necessary quantities of highway materials in the most economical manner and in compliance with statutory requirements. However, the Town will pay $116,000 over 10 years to lease property for use as a gravel pit when it could have bought property for this purpose for as little as $22,800, or purchased gravel from a vendor. The Town's overall cost for operating the gravel pit will be even higher because it must reclaim the land after mining operations are finished. The Town made this uneconomical choice because Town officials did not properly analyze the cost benefit of the lease versus other options. As a result, the Town likely paid more than necessary to obtain gravel. Town of Cuba[complete audit - pdf]

Budget Review
Based on the results of our review, we found that the revenue and expenditure projections in the proposed budget are reasonable. Our review identified only minor discrepancies with budgeted revenues and expenditure appropriations which we verbally discussed with Town officials. Town of Deerpark[complete audit - pdf]

Budget Review
We found that the Town's proposed budget, while generally reasonable, could be improved to make it a better tool for prudently managing the Town's resources. For example, the Town's proposed budget includes an appropriation for contingencies of only $530,000; this amount is almost $180,000 less than the amount the Town has already used from its contingency fund in 2011. In addition, the proposed budget potentially overestimates revenues by at least $670,000. We also found that the Town did not implement the recommendations from our prior budget review to help eliminate the Town’s deficit. Finally, the proposed budget for 2012 does comply with the tax levy limits. Town of East Hampton[complete audit - pdf]

Financial Records and Reports
The Supervisor maintains cash receipt and disbursement journals and prepares monthly reports to the Board. However, he does not maintain a formal general ledger for each Town fund. Instead, the Town's accounting records combine all balance sheet accounts into one fund. The Supervisor's monthly financial reports to the Board also combined all balance sheet accounts into one fund. It is doubtful whether this information is of much use to the Town Board to manage Town finances. Fund balance levels of each Town fund could not be readily determined from the Town's records and reports. Finally, the Supervisor did not file the Town's AUDs on a timely basis. The AUD for the 2009 fiscal year was not filed until June 2011. Town of East Otto[complete audit - pdf]

Enforcement of Unpaid Water Rents
We found that the Board and Town officials are not complying with the procedures set forth in Town Law and their Water Ordinance regarding the enforcement of unpaid water rents through the re-levy process. The current process for collecting on delinquent accounts is not structured to ensure the payment of outstanding balances in a timely manner. For example, in November 2010, the Town's water accounts that were 90 days past due amounted to approximately $28,900; however, at that time the Town re-levied only $985 in outstanding water charges on the Town 2011 tax roll. Town of Elma[complete audit - pdf]

Supervisor's Records and Reports
The former Supervisor did not properly account for all moneys received and disbursed by the Town during 2009. He did not provide adequate oversight of the bookkeeper's work and was unaware that the bookkeeper failed to maintain an accurate and up-to-date set of accounting records, did not perform monthly bank reconciliations, and did not provide the Board with the information required to properly monitor and manage Town operations. The Supervisor and Board were made aware of these deficiencies in March 2009 when the external auditor was unable perform an audit of the 2008 financial records. Upon further review by Town officials, it became apparent that the same deficiencies existed in 2009. Although the Board took steps to remedy the situation, such as accepting the bookkeeper's resignation in August 2009, hiring an accounting firm to prepare bank reconciliations for the 2008 year at a cost of $16,000, and hiring a new bookkeeper in December 2009, the process has taken an inordinate amount of time to complete. Town of Elmira[complete audit - pdf]

Fiscal Oversight and Internal Controls Over Cash Receipts
The Board and Supervisor have not provided adequate oversight of the Town's financial operations to ensure that Town assets were adequately safeguarded. The lack of management oversight has contributed to the Town having incomplete and inaccurate accounting records and inadequate internal controls over cash receipts. Therefore, the Board could not rely on the accounting records to monitor the Town's financial operations. In addition, the Town did not receive $22,000 in payments for transfer station tickets that it sold to the Town of Willsboro. Finally, Town officials could not ensure that all customers were being billed and paying for water services or that all delinquent water accounts were re-levied. Town of Essex[complete audit - pdf]

Financial Management
The Board does not properly manage Town finances by ensuring that budgets are reasonable, realistic and monitored. Town officials have routinely appropriated more fund balance in the general fund and highway fund than was available at year end to finance the ensuing year's appropriations. Town of Farmersville[complete audit - pdf]

Supervisor's Records and Reports and Cash Receipts and Disbursements
We found that the Supervisor used questionable accounting methods that concealed the true financial condition of the Town. As a result, the Board was not aware that the Town's general fund balances totaled $2.15 million. Consequently, they did not use any of the accumulated fund balance to benefit the taxpayers. In addition, the Town's cash receipt and disbursement duties were not segregated, and the Board did not perform annual audits of the Supervisor's, Town Clerk's or Justice's records and reports, as required. Town of Frankfort[complete audit - pdf]

Justice Court
The Justice and Board do not have adequate internal controls over the Court's financial operations. As a result, the Justice had an unidentified balance of $2,885 in the Justice Court's bank account, and his record of pending bail was overstated by $700. The Justice collected $1,120 which he never deposited in the Justice Court bank account, and he did not deposit other Court moneys collected in July, August, and September 2010 in a timely manner. The Board did not audit or hire an IPA or CPA to conduct annual audits of the Court's records and did not act on a CPA's recommendation to take an active role in inspecting the Justice's records. Town of Fremont[complete audit - pdf]

Internal Controls Over Financial Activities
The Court's internal controls over cash receipts and disbursements were not appropriately designed and were not operating effectively. Neither Justice performed monthly accountability reconciliations, and both Justices underreported collections to the JCF. Court officials did not make timely deposits and Court officials did not make a good faith effort to return exonerated bail. Furthermore, the Justices have not reconciled their bail accounts, the Clerk's duties were not adequately segregated, and the former Clerk did not accurately record bail activity. The Board did not conduct the required annual audit of the Court's records. Town of Goshen Justice Court[complete audit - pdf]

Internal Controls Over Selected Town Operations
We found that the Board did not adequately monitor the Town's fiscal affairs. The Board does not monitor the budget versus actual results each month and its annual audit seems to be a cursory review of records. Town of Granby[complete audit - pdf]

Internal Controls Over the Justice Court
Internal controls over the financial operations of the Court were not appropriately designed or operating effectively. We found that the cash disbursements journal did not include all cash disbursements, controls over cash receipts and disbursements were inadequate, case files could not be located, traffic cases have not been scofflawed and bank reconciliations and monthly accountabilities were either not performed or were inadequate. Town of Greenfield[complete audit - pdf]

Internal Controls Over Selected Financial Operations
The Board needs to improve its oversight of Town operations. The Board has not developed written policies and procedures for the Town's financial operations and has not conducted an annual audit of the records and reports of Town officials and employees who receive and disburse cash. The Supervisor does not report the results of moneys received and disbursed by his office to the Board on a monthly basis. As a result of these weaknesses, the former bookkeeper circumvented the few controls the Town had in place and issued eight checks to herself and her spouse totaling $53,565 during the first seven months of 2010. An investigation found that the former bookkeeper also misappropriated $287,000 in Kinderhook town funds to pay for personal credit card purchases. In September 2010, the former bookkeeper for the Towns was indicted on 20 counts of fraudulent activity. She pled guilty to all charges related to her theft of public funds in March 2011. Town of Greenport[complete audit - pdf]

Internal Controls Over Purchasing
The Board has adopted a procurement policy that requires verbal or written quotes for purchases not subject to competitive bidding. However, 19 of the 27 purchases tested, totaling $28,933, did not meet the requirements of the policy. In some instances, this was because a Town official intentionally split bills to circumvent the policy. In addition, the policy has not been reviewed and updated since February 2009, and therefore does not address recent changes in the law, resulting in a lack of guidance for certain purchases that are no longer subject to competitive bidding. Town of Greenwich[complete audit - pdf]

Internal Controls Over Justice Court Operations
Internal controls are not adequately designed or operating effectively. Weaknesses in the internal control system exist and there is lack of oversight by the Justices and the Court Administrator. The Justices did not ensure that the Court Administrator and the court clerks prepared accurate monthly accountability reports that match Court assets to known liabilities. We performed accountabilities for the two Justices and found that the two Justices' bank balances exceeded known liabilities by $10,042, while the balance in the shared bail account was $4,809 less than Court's liabilities. Town of Hamburg[complete audit - pdf]

Water District Operations
The Board and Supervisor did not ensure that all money owed to the Town for water services was properly billed, collected, and accounted for. Debt service charges may not be equitably shared by all parcels located within the District and those charged for the debt service paid more than was needed to make the annual bond payment. There was also a lack of segregation of duties over the billing and collection of water service charges. Town of Hartwick[complete audit - pdf]

Internal Controls Over Selected Financial Operations
We found that the Board did not provide proper oversight over the Town’s operations. Consequently, numerous control deficiencies occurred, such as the failure to record deposits in excess of $333,000, and the failure to seek competition for tipping fees for garbage disposal and professional services in excess of $563,000. Furthermore, monthly and annual financial reports were not prepared and there was no annual accounting to the Board for any of the seven departments that received or disbursed moneys on behalf of the Town. Town of Highlands[complete audit - pdf]

Financial Condition
The Town has experienced significant signs of fiscal stress and a deteriorating financial condition since its 2006 fiscal year. In the 2007 and 2008 fiscal years, the Board and Town officials did not adequately control general fund expenditures within the adopted budget. As a result, the general fund balance decreased from $1.5 million in 2006 to $297,000 in 2009. In addition, due to the reduced fund balance and over-expenditures, the Town had to increase its use of cash advances from other funds to pay general fund expenditures. The Town’s reported interfund loan balances increased by nearly $2.5 million from December 31, 2006 to December 31, 2009. However, we found that the Town has taken positive steps in the past two budgets to reverse these negative trends and improve its financial condition. Town of Irondequoit[complete audit - pdf]

We found that Court personnel in the Town of Phelps managed their Court well. However, we identified deficiencies in depositing, reconciling, or reporting of Court moneys in the other three Courts. The Justice in one Court told us that he performed monthly bank reconciliations, but he had no records to document that he had performed reconciliations or accountability analyses. Court personnel in the other two Courts did not deposit approximately $31,345 in a timely manner, did not perform monthly reconciliations of bank to book balances, and did not maintain accurate bail listings. Justices in the same two Courts had not properly segregated incompatible duties or established adequate procedures for reviewing the Court clerks’ work. One of these Courts also was late in filing the monthly report to the JCF in 22 instances. Internal Controls Over Selected Justice Courts’ Financial Activities[complete audit - pdf]

Internal Controls Over Financial Operations
The Board and Supervisor have not provided effective oversight of the Town's financial operations. Poor management oversight has contributed to the Town having incomplete and inaccurate accounting records. Therefore, the Board could not rely on the accounting records to monitor the Town's financial operations. The Clerk to the Supervisor did not perform monthly bank-to-book reconciliations, and the Supervisor failed to provide complete and accurate monthly financial reports to the Board. Additionally, the Supervisor did not maintain control of all Town bank accounts, and the Clerk to the Supervisor performed online banking transactions without any oversight. Town of Keene[complete audit - pdf]

Internal Controls Over Selected Financial Activities
Internal controls over IT need to be improved. Although Town officials contracted with an IT consultant for IT services, they did not develop a disaster recovery plan, or establish controls to prevent employees from installing games on Town computers or visiting social networking sites. In addition, the Board adopted a procurement policy that did not require competition for the procurement of professional services. As a result, competitive proposals or quotations were not solicited for 11 of the 16 professional services providers tested, who were paid a total of $739,022. Finally, internal controls over Court operations are not appropriately designed or operating effectively. Town of Kent[complete audit - pdf]

Internal Controls Over the Town Clerk's Office and Information Technology
Internal controls in the Town Clerk's office need to be improved. Duties are not segregated and the Town Clerk performs all aspects of the transactions processed by her office. We identified weaknesses in the controls over key functions in the Town Clerk's office, including cash collection, deposit, and accountability. The Town Clerk does not maintain a pre-printed receipt book and does not issue a receipt for every transaction. In addition, bank deposits were not made intact and timely. As a result of these weaknesses, at the end of the 2010 fiscal year, the Town Clerk had a shortage of over $200. There are also weaknesses in the design of internal controls over the Town's IT assets. Town of Kinderhook[complete audit - pdf]

Financial Condition and Payroll
The Board and Town officials did not provide effective oversight and fulfill their responsibility to prepare realistic budgets, monitor the Town's financial condition, and establish effective controls over financial areas. These deficiencies resulted in cash flow shortfalls for the Town, questionable payments to employees, and the potential abuse of leave time. For example, there was no Board approval for wage increases, resulting in over $225,000 added to employees' pay rates in 2007 through 2010 as "title pay" without Board authorization. The former Supervisor did not document the purpose, amounts, or approval of these questionable payments, which Town officials should seek to recover. Additionally, two employees improperly received separation payments and benefits of over $12,000. Town of Lake George[complete audit - pdf]

Internal Controls Over Information Technology
Our audit disclosed areas in need of improvement concerning information technology controls. Because of the sensitivity of this information, certain vulnerabilities are not discussed in this report, but have been communicated confidentially to Town officials so they could take corrective action. Town of Lake Luzerne[complete audit - pdf]

Internal Controls Over Financial Operations
We found that the Town installed drainage improvements that were unnecessary or not the Town’s responsibility. We estimate that taxpayers paid at least $32,000 for questionable drainage projects identified in this report. The Town also failed to ensure that its fuel supplies were adequately safeguarded against the risk of loss or misuse. We also found that the Highway and Recreation Departments did not consistently follow the requirements of the Town’s procurement policy to ensure that they obtained goods and services at the lowest cost. Finally, the Recreation Department did not maintain appropriate records to ensure that all amounts due for travel baseball and the Town’s annual baseball tournaments were properly collected. As a result, the Recreation Department failed to collect over $18,000 for registration fees and uniform reimbursements. Town of Lewiston[complete audit - pdf]

Internal Controls Over Information Technology
We found that the Board's information technology (IT) governance practices are poorly executed and ineffective. For example, the Town implemented wireless technology without performing a formal risk assessment, and the a greement with the Town's IT vendor does not convey the Town's needs and expectations or establish measurable targets of performance. The Board also failed to adopt IT policies that address topics including remote access and wireless technology, and has failed to provide Town officers and employees with information security awareness training. Town of Malta[complete audit - pdf]

Internal Controls Over Procurement
The Board adopted a procurement policy to govern purchasing activities, but did not ensure that Town officials always followed the policy with respect to competitive bidding and obtaining price quotes for procurements below competitive bidding thresholds. In addition, the Board does not evaluate the policy annually. Finally, Town officials awarded professional service contracts without the benefit of competition, and the Board did not enter into written agreements with two of the four professional service providers we reviewed. Town of Mexico[complete audit - pdf]

Financial Condition and Receiver of Taxes
Excessive fund balances have accumulated in the consolidated sewer, general part-town and highway town-wide funds while the general town-wide fund balance steadily declined from $2.8 million in 2006, resulting in a general town-wide fund unreserved, unappropriated deficit of $356,000 in 2009. The decline was caused, in part, by planned operating deficits using fund balance to pay for operations and by overestimating sales tax revenues. Operating deficits within the Town's police fund also contributed to the decline in the general town-wide fund balance. We estimate that the police fund has a deficit fund balance of about $1 million as of December 31, 2009. We also found weak internal controls and inadequate oversight of the Receiver’s collection activities. As a result, a $1,000 bank error occurred and went undetected, and the Receiver failed to collect $2,564 in penalties, including $182 in penalties on her own late tax payments. New Hartford, Town of[complete audit - pdf]

Justice Court Operations
Internal controls over the Court's financial activities are significantly deficient. The lack of basic controls has placed Court moneys at significant risk of loss, misuse and fraud. In fact, our audit identified over $9,000 in unaccounted for funds and a questionable transaction of $2,190. The issues in this report have been referred to the New York State Commission on Judicial Conduct for further investigation. Town of New Lebanon[complete audit - pdf]

Internal Controls Over Selected Financial Activities
The Board did not establish written policies or procedures for wire transfers. Consequently, online access to the Town's bank accounts is not sufficiently limited. For example, the Supervisor, bookkeeper, and accountant (who is not a Town employee) all have online access to the Town's bank accounts via a shared user name and password. In addition, the Town does not require confirmations from the bank prior to wire transfers being completed. In addition, Town officials made purchases of highway materials totaling $84,570 without properly soliciting or awarding bids, and made procurements of goods and services such as for the rental of equipment totaling $36,356 without soliciting requests for proposals or written quotes, as required. Finally, internal controls over IT are not appropriately designed. Town of New Lebanon[complete audit - pdf]

Internal Controls Over the Town Clerk’s Office
We found that the Town Clerk’s Office did not have an adequate system of internal controls. The Deputy Town Clerk (Deputy) processes most of the transactions, receives cash, records receipts and prepares deposits with insufficient oversight by the Town Clerk. There are no controls or procedures in place to ensure that all moneys collected are properly recorded. The Town Clerk performs cursory reviews at the end of each month, which only ensures that gross amounts recorded in the daily cash report are deposited. These reviews do not ensure that all receipts were properly recorded and deposited intact, nor would they detect altered or deleted records. In fact, we found that the Deputy used Town funds to cash 10 of her personal checks totaling $1,136. Allowing personal checks to be substituted for cash changes the composition of deposited receipts and compromises internal controls. Town of Niagara[complete audit - pdf]

Internal Controls Over Selected Financial Operations
The Board is not properly overseeing the Town's financial operations. The Board did not receive or require interim financial reports from the Supervisor to monitor the Town's financial operations or for use in the preparation of the budget and annual audits were not conducted as required. Also, the Board adopted the same budget year after year, with no consideration of actual revenue and expenditure amounts, resulting in inaccurate budgets. We also found that the Board also did not formally approve salaries, pay rates, and benefits for Town officials and employees not covered by the Highway Department employees' collective bargaining agreement. Finally, the Supervisor did not open and respond to Internal Revenue Service (IRS) notifications. Therefore, the IRS levied the Town's bank accounts in the amount of $11,317, which included $4,338 in penalties, interest and charges for payroll taxes that had not been remitted. Town of Orange[complete audit - pdf]

Our review of the files of a sample of 52 dependents, selected randomly from the 1,149 dependents enrolled in the Plan, found no evidence of any documentation showing that these dependents met any of the eligibility criteria. Of the 52 dependents tested, 13 individuals (25 percent) could not provide evidence of dependent status, and are potentially ineligible for coverage by the Plan. Participants lacked such documentation because none of the Boards have adopted policies that require verifying dependents’ eligibility before enrolling them in the Plan and procedures for monitoring eligibility status. Based on a $2,000 to $5,000 annual savings per dependent and our 25 percent exception rate, the potential savings in Trust expenses could range from $574,500 to $1,436,250 annually. Wayne County Employee Health Care Plan Trust Participants[complete audit - pdf]

Internal Controls Over Selected Financial Activities
We found weaknesses in the Town's internal controls over IT. Town officials did not develop a comprehensive computer use policy or a disaster recovery plan, and did not ensure that all Town computers had a current antivirus program installed. In addition, Town officials have not appropriately allocated access rights to users and have not established an adequate data backup procedure. We also found that Town officials and employees did not solicit competitive proposals or quotations for eight of 13 professional services providers we tested who were paid approximately $624,000. Finally, the Town did not have written agreements with nine of these providers, who were paid approximately $600,000. Town of Patterson[complete audit - pdf]

Justice Court
We found significant weaknesses in the Court's internal controls and a lack of oversight of the Court's operations by the Justices and the Board. The Justices have not ensured that the Court Clerks performed accountability analyses to account for all Court funds. In addition, the Court Clerks performed all of the key aspects of the Court's cash accounting functions with limited oversight, and the Justices did not ensure that their duties were adequately segregated. Further, the Court Clerks did not reconcile bail bank account balances at any point during our audit period and did not always make bank deposits in a timely manner. In addition, the Board failed to ensure outstanding suspended tickets were collected and has not conducted the required annual audit of the Court's records since 1989. Town of Patterson[complete audit - pdf]

Parkland Acquisition
In January 2007, the Town purchased approximately 95 acres for the purpose of developing soccer fields and other recreational facilities. The Town paid $187,000 for the property, using parkland fees to fund the majority of this purchase. Since the acquisition nearly four years ago, the Town has not developed the land into soccer fields or used it for any other park, playground, or recreational purposes because it is designated as wetlands and unsuitable for development. Town officials did not fully evaluate the suitability of this property for future development before acquiring it, resulting in the expenditure of $187,000 which may not be recoverable. Town of Pendleton[complete audit - pdf]

We found that Court personnel in the Town of Phelps managed their Court well. However, we identified deficiencies in depositing, reconciling, or reporting of Court moneys in the other three Courts. The Justice in one Court told us that he performed monthly bank reconciliations, but he had no records to document that he had performed reconciliations or accountability analyses. Court personnel in the other two Courts did not deposit approximately $31,345 in a timely manner, did not perform monthly reconciliations of bank to book balances, and did not maintain accurate bail listings. Justices in the same two Courts had not properly segregated incompatible duties or established adequate procedures for reviewing the Court clerks’ work. One of these Courts also was late in filing the monthly report to the JCF in 22 instances. Internal Controls Over Selected Justice Courts’ Financial Activities[complete audit - pdf]

Justice Court
The former Justice did not prepare bank reconciliations and accountabilities reconciling Court assets to known liabilities. In addition, she did not file monthly reports on time, if at all. The Justice failed to finalize and turn over her records as required when she resigned. After the Justice left office, the succeeding Justice indicated that the County District Attorney had no alternative but to dismiss 51 tickets as too old to prosecute. Furthermore, as of the end of our field work, there were an additional 48 tickets pending dismissal. In addition, the former Justice did not present her records for audit to the Board. Town of Piercefield[complete audit - pdf]

Internal Controls, Records and Reports of Town Funds and Potential Conflict of Interest
We found that the former Supervisor disbursed $35,622 from Town funds that do not appear to have been made for valid Town purposes. We have communicated these audit findings to the St. Lawrence County District Attorney. Town of Pitcairn[complete audit - pdf]

Internal Controls Over Selected Financial Operations
We found that the Board's budgeting practices have resulted in the Highway Fund accumulating excessive taxpayer funds that could be better utilized for the benefit of taxpayers. In addition, the Board improperly approved the issuance of a statutory installment bond for $136,000, and improperly allowed a third party contractor access to the Town's cash to disburse payroll. Town of Potter[complete audit - pdf]

Financial Management
We found that Town officials did not properly budget or account for revenues and expenditures in the town-wide and town-outside-village funds, as required. As a result, for 2008 through 2010, town-outside-village resources were used for town-wide expenditures totaling $65,575, and during 2009, town-wide resources were used for town-outside-village expenditures totaling $88,998. Town officials continued to improperly budget town-outside-village resources to be used for town-wide expenditures totaling $25,172 in the 2011 budget. The continued errors in budgeting and accounting practices have resulted in taxpayer inequity. Town of Portville[complete audit - pdf]

We found that Court personnel in the Town of Phelps managed their Court well. However, we identified deficiencies in depositing, reconciling, or reporting of Court moneys in the other three Courts. The Justice in one Court told us that he performed monthly bank reconciliations, but he had no records to document that he had performed reconciliations or accountability analyses. Court personnel in the other two Courts did not deposit approximately $31,345 in a timely manner, did not perform monthly reconciliations of bank to book balances, and did not maintain accurate bail listings. Justices in the same two Courts had not properly segregated incompatible duties or established adequate procedures for reviewing the Court clerks’ work. One of these Courts also was late in filing the monthly report to the JCF in 22 instances. Internal Controls Over Selected Justice Courts’ Financial Activities[complete audit - pdf]

Our review of the files of a sample of 52 dependents, selected randomly from the 1,149 dependents enrolled in the Plan, found no evidence of any documentation showing that these dependents met any of the eligibility criteria. Of the 52 dependents tested, 13 individuals (25 percent) could not provide evidence of dependent status, and are potentially ineligible for coverage by the Plan. Participants lacked such documentation because none of the Boards have adopted policies that require verifying dependents’ eligibility before enrolling them in the Plan and procedures for monitoring eligibility status. Based on a $2,000 to $5,000 annual savings per dependent and our 25 percent exception rate, the potential savings in Trust expenses could range from $574,500 to $1,436,250 annually. Wayne County Employee Health Care Plan Trust Participants[complete audit - pdf]

Our review of the files of a sample of 52 dependents, selected randomly from the 1,149 dependents enrolled in the Plan, found no evidence of any documentation showing that these dependents met any of the eligibility criteria. Of the 52 dependents tested, 13 individuals (25 percent) could not provide evidence of dependent status, and are potentially ineligible for coverage by the Plan. Participants lacked such documentation because none of the Boards have adopted policies that require verifying dependents’ eligibility before enrolling them in the Plan and procedures for monitoring eligibility status. Based on a $2,000 to $5,000 annual savings per dependent and our 25 percent exception rate, the potential savings in Trust expenses could range from $574,500 to $1,436,250 annually. Wayne County Employee Health Care Plan Trust Participants[complete audit - pdf]

Financial Management
We found that the Board has not adopted budgets that were based on realistic estimates of revenues and expenditures. Consequently, fund balances that were appropriated as funding sources were neither needed nor used. As a result, the Town has accumulated general and highway unreserved, unappropriated fund balances totaling $2,372,577 and 1,291,390, respectively, which are excessive in comparison to the Town's expenditure levels. Therefore, a significant amount of the real property tax levied in the last three fiscal years was unnecessary. Town of Schuyler Falls[complete audit - pdf]

Justice Court
The Justices and Board do not have adequate internal controls over the Court’s financial operations. Specifically, we found the Justices do not maintain an accurate computerized listing of bail, and monthly bank reconciliations and accountabilities are not performed. We also found that the Board did not provide effective oversight of Court operations. Town of Seneca[complete audit - pdf]

Budget Review
Based on the results of our review, we found that the significant revenue and expenditure projections in the preliminary budget are reasonable. However, the 2012 preliminary budget includes $450,000 for rental revenue in the Hospital Fund; this amount is $115,000 (34 percent) more than the $335,000 budgeted in the 2011 adopted budget. The Town significantly increased the rental revenue in the 2012 preliminary budget based on rents the Town is now receiving from a business, displaced by flooding, that has moved into the former hospital building. The business is renting month-to-month until it can return to its permanent location. The Supervisor expects that this business will continue to rent space through the 2012 fiscal year. However, if the business finds another location, it could relocate at any time. This makes this budget estimate overly optimistic. We recommend that the Town contact the managers of the business to better ascertain the length of their tenancy and adjust this revenue estimate, as necessary. The Town’s preliminary budget complies with the tax levy limit. Town of Sidney[complete audit - pdf]

Financial Operations
The Board and Supervisor adequately addressed past deficiencies in the financial records of the Supervisor's office. However, the Board did not perform an annual audit of the Supervisor's records for 2010. The Town had a long-term bookkeeper that resigned at the beginning of 2010 at which time the Supervisor hired a professional bookkeeping services firm (Firm) to perform bookkeeping duties. The Firm acted as bookkeeper from January of 2010 until August of 2010. However, the Firm did not prepare any financial reports for the Supervisor or the Board. Because, they could not properly monitor Town operations, the Supervisor hired a new bookkeeper in August 2010 and Town officials terminated the Firm's contract. The new bookkeeper found that because the Firm also had no governmental accounting experience, the records contained many accounting errors, which were corrected. Town of Sidney[complete audit - pdf]

Financial Condition and Internal Controls Over Selected Financial Operations
The Town’s financial condition is generally positive; the total fund balance for all operating funds is over $17.7 million, more than 22 percent of the Town’s 2010 operating budget of $79.6 million. However, we also identified five operating funds that have a combined deficit of $8.1 million as of December 31, 2009, which is more than 10 percent of the 2010 operating budget. In addition, Town officials have been unable to maintain adequate cash flow in several Town funds, thereby requiring the use of interfund advances totaling over $25 million that have not been repaid. We examined two of the Town’s capital projects and found that Town officials made payments totaling $511,726 that were not related to the projects’ purposes, over-expended these projects by a total of $356,669, and did not maintain claim vouchers to support payments totaling $385,246. The Town did not solicit competitive proposals prior to awarding contracts to six of the eight providers tested. The Town paid these six providers a total of $1 million during our audit period. Finally, the Town gave users to certain computerized applications more access than their job duties required, and the Town has no formal disaster recovery plan or written security plan. Southampton, Town of[complete audit - pdf]

Budget Review
Based on the results of our review, we found that the significant revenue and expenditure projections in the preliminary budget are reasonable. However, we have a concern and a caution related to the Town’s preliminary budget. We are concerned that the 2012 preliminary budget eliminates $370,000 in personal service costs. These reductions have not yet been implemented, and if the $370,000 reduction in staff salary and benefits is not achieved, the Town’s budget will be out of balance. We raised the same concern last year when Town officials included a reduction in staff salary and benefits of approximately $1 million in the 2011 budget. The Town actually achieved only $441,000 in salary and benefit cost reductions in 2011. Finally, the Town's revised preliminary budget complies with the tax levy limit because it does not exceed the amount permitted by law. Town of Stony Point[complete audit - pdf]

Conflict of Interest and Internal Controls Over Community Education Program Cash Receipts
The Town Supervisor did not post a copy of the General Municipal Law conflict of interest provisions in each of the Town's buildings. As a result, Town officers and employees may not be aware of their responsibilities regarding conflicts of interest. In fact, we found that a Board member had a prohibited interest in contracts with the Town. This Board member is a 50 percent owner in a business that provides accounting/bookkeeping services to municipalities. During our audit period, the Town paid the Board member's business $4,600 for bookkeeping services. In addition, Town officials have not adopted formal procedures governing the Community Education Program's cash receipts. Town of Trenton[complete audit - pdf]

Financial Management
The Board did not develop reasonable financial plans. Three of the Town's operating funds have accumulated significant fund balances without any stated plans for using the money. The Board consistently underestimated revenues and overestimated expenditures in the general town-wide fund, highway town-wide fund and highway part-town fund, which resulted in operating surpluses. We found that actual revenues were consistently higher than what the Board budgeted. On average, actual revenues were 10 percent more than amounts budgeted for all funds from 2006 to 2010. In addition, budgeted expenditures were consistently higher than actual amounts spent. On average, actual expenditures were 5 percent less than amounts budgeted for all funds from 2006 to 2010. Town of Triangle[complete audit - pdf]

We found that Court personnel in the Town of Phelps managed their Court well. However, we identified deficiencies in depositing, reconciling, or reporting of Court moneys in the other three Courts. The Justice in one Court told us that he performed monthly bank reconciliations, but he had no records to document that he had performed reconciliations or accountability analyses. Court personnel in the other two Courts did not deposit approximately $31,345 in a timely manner, did not perform monthly reconciliations of bank to book balances, and did not maintain accurate bail listings. Justices in the same two Courts had not properly segregated incompatible duties or established adequate procedures for reviewing the Court clerks’ work. One of these Courts also was late in filing the monthly report to the JCF in 22 instances. Internal Controls Over Selected Justice Courts’ Financial Activities[complete audit - pdf]

Oversight of Financial Operations
The Board did not provide the necessary guidance to the Supervisor, appointed officials and employees, and did not establish internal controls that ensured the Town's financial activity was accurately recorded and reported on a timely basis. The Board did not ensure that the Supervisor assigned accounting duties to properly trained personnel or that those duties were adequately segregated. Further, the Board failed to ensure that the Supervisor maintained and filed all records and reports in a timely manner. As a result, significant accounting deficiencies occurred and the Board did not have reliable information on which to base management decisions. Town of Victor[complete audit - pdf]

Internal Controls Over Financial Operations
The Town did not provide the Budget Officers or Clerk with proper training to ensure that they properly performed their fiscal duties in an accurate and timely manner. Also, the Board and other Town officials did not provide adequate oversight over the work of the Budget Officers or Clerk; therefore, the Board and Supervisor were unaware of the mistakes and discrepancies in the Town's accounting records. Finally, the Board did not perform annual audits or provide for such audits of the records of the Clerk, Supervisor, Recreation Director, or two Town Justices for 2009 and 2010. Town of Whitehall[complete audit - pdf]

Justice Court
Internal controls over the financial operations of the Court were not appropriately designed or operating effectively. We found that the Justices had not established adequate controls over cash receipts or performed bank reconciliations and accountability analyses. Additionally, we found that upon Justice Bushy's resignation, she did not file a final report with the JCF, did not transfer pending bail to the other justice or the succeeding justice, and did not close her official bank account. The Board also did not conduct the required annual audit of the Court's records. Town of Wilmington[complete audit - pdf]

Ethics and Internal Controls Over Purchasing Practices and Computer Use
We identified actions of the Highway Superintendent in which we believe both his personal financial interests and public responsibilities conflict. We found that the Superintendent sold used equipment and materials totaling $28,670 to the Town, and the Town paid a company over $100,000 that was owned by his sister-in-law and for which his two brothers were vice-presidents, which created prohibited interests. In addition, we identified irregularities by the Superintendent in the bidding processes for various pieces of equipment. We also found that the Superintendent's computer was used to view and store pornographic and other inappropriate images, engage in a political campaign and to buy and sell auto parts - for personal use - on a public auction website. Finally, Town officials did not solicit competitive bids or properly bid for nine vendors totaling about $2 million and paid eight professional service providers over $3.9 million without seeking competitive proposals or quotations. Town of Yorktown[complete audit - pdf]