Audit Objective
Determine whether Broome-Delaware-Tioga Board of Cooperative Educational Services (BOCES) officials properly planned and budgeted for capital expenditures.
Key Findings
BOCES officials did not properly plan or budget for capital expenditures. Between 2018-19 and 2020-21, officials budgeted $916,304 for building repairs. However, building repairs and improvements totaled over $3.4 million for the same period. Without adequate capital planning, BOCES officials are limited in their ability to set long-term priorities.
As a result, BOCES officials did not transparently fund capital expenditures and instead utilized more than $2.5 million of the component (which are BOCES’ member school districts) and participating (which are other school districts that use BOCES’ services) school districts’ surplus funds over the last three school years. Although most of the repairs and improvements were proportionately funded by the school districts benefiting from the improvements, not properly budgeting for capital expenditures increases the risk that school districts could be disproportionately funding these expenditures.
Key Recommendations
- Transparently fund capital expenditures.
- Ensure that all surplus funds are apportioned back to component and participating school districts.
- Develop a comprehensive written multiyear capital plan.
BOCES officials agreed with our findings and recommendations and have initiated, or they plan to initiate, corrective action.