Audit Objective 

Determine whether Western Suffolk Board of Cooperative Educational Services (BOCES) officials appropriately monitored and approved overtime for clerical employees. 

Key Findings 

BOCES officials did not appropriately monitor and approve overtime for clerical employees. 

Although the audit period overlaps with the pandemic timeline, which BOCES officials indicated as the cause for overtime, the BOCES practice of verbally preapproving overtime, rather than in writing, does not provide support that the overtime we reviewed was preapproved and necessary. As a result, officials may have paid more overtime than necessary. Officials: 

• Paid 17 employees overtime totaling $123,276 without written preapproval. 
• Paid 13 employees overtime totaling $72,218, without any explanation as to why the overtime was worked. 
• Paid 13 employees for unsupported overtime totaling $19,932. 

Key Recommendations 

• Ensure all non-emergency overtime is approved in writing prior to work being performed and document why the overtime is necessary. 
• Monitor overtime to ensure overtime hours are supported by timekeeping records. 

BOCES officials disagreed with certain aspects of our findings in our report, but indicated they planned to implement our recommendations. Appendix B includes our comments on BOCES’ response.