Town of Alexandria - Justice Court Time and Attendance and Court Operations (2017M-284)

Issued Date
October 23, 2018

[read complete report - pdf]

Audit Objective

Determine whether the Court Clerk (Clerk) reported hours on her Town of Alexandria (Town) time sheets that coincided with hours worked at other municipalities.

Determine if Justice Court (Court) money is properly recorded, deposited and reported.

Key Findings

  • Sixty-three of the 67 time sheets (approximately 94 percent) completed by the Clerk showed no evidence of supervisory review and approval.
  • The Clerk reported 405 hours on her Town time sheets totaling $5,868 that coincided with hours worked at other municipalities.
  • The Clerk did not allow for travel time between the Town and another municipal employer. As a result, we estimate she was paid an additional $1,800 for 123 hours not worked.
  • The Clerk claimed 112 hours of sick leave at a cost of $1,795 on her Town time sheets on days that she also reported working at another municipality.
  • Court moneys were properly recorded, deposited and reported.

Key Recommendations

  • Consult with legal counsel and take appropriate action to recover any wages paid for time not worked.
  • Adopt policies and procedures that clearly inform all employees, and those who directly oversee employees, of their responsibilities for the preparation and review of time sheets.

Town officials agreed with our recommendations and plan to initiate corrective action. Appendix B includes our comments on the Town’s response.