Town of Hempstead Local Development Corporation – Project Approval and Oversight (2021M-37)

Issued Date
September 10, 2021

[read complete report - pdf]

Audit Objective

Determine whether the Town of Hempstead Local Development Corporation (THLDC) Board of Directors (Board) properly approved and monitored projects.

Key Finding

While the Board properly approved and monitored projects in accordance with standard project procedures, it did not set clear and specific goals when approving projects.

The Board issued a total of $96.6 million of taxexempt bonds and $1.8 million of taxable bonds during the audit period. However, THLDC officials cannot determine whether projects are meeting the intended purpose because the goals of the projects are not clearly defined in the authorizing resolutions.

Key Recommendation

  • Authorizing resolutions should include clear and specific goals so the monitoring process can establish whether projects are meeting the intended purpose.

THLDC officials disagreed with the findings and recommendations in our report. Appendix B includes our comments on the issues raised in the LDC’s response letter.