Northern Adirondack Central School District – Financial Condition (2020M-51)

Issued Date
September 25, 2020

[read complete report - pdf]

Audit Objective

Determine whether the Board and District officials effectively manage the District’s financial condition.

Key Findings

  • Expenditures have exceeded appropriations by a total $626,000 in 2017-18 and 2018-19. Additionally, the budgets are not structurally balanced and have used $1.5 million in appropriated fund balance to fund operations.
  • Because of the District’s ongoing reliance on fund balance to finance expenditures, the total fund balance has declined from about $2.5 million at the beginning of 2017-18 to about $1 million at the end of 2018-19.
  • The Board has not adopted a multiyear financial plan or a plan to address the declining fund balance.

Key Recommendations

  • Adopt realistic and structurally balanced budgets.
  • Continue to monitor the budget and make modifications as needed.
  • Develop a comprehensive multiyear financial plan that addresses the declining fund balance.

District officials generally agreed with our recommendations and have initiated, or indicated they planned to initiate, corrective action.