Purpose of Audit

The purpose of our audit was to determine whether the County accurately distributed sales tax to municipalities and whether the County Treasurer and County Clerk properly performed bank reconciliations for the period January 1, 2016 through January 31, 2017.

Background

The County of Herkimer is located in central New York State and had a 2010 population of 64,519. The County is governed by a seventeen-member Legislature. General fund budgeted appropriations for 2017 totaled approximately $99 million.

Key Findings

• The County overpaid municipalities $1.4 million in sales tax distributions from 2010 to 2016.
• The Clerk did not properly reconcile a County bank account for the Department of Motor Vehicles (DMV), resulting in an unaccounted for balance of $162,875.
• The Treasurer did not properly reconcile the general fund bank account resulting in an unaccounted for balance $36,091.

Key Recommendations

• Ensure that sales tax payments are distributed in accordance with the agreement with the City of Little Falls.
• The County Legislature should determine whether it is appropriate to forgive or recover the remaining sales tax overpayments made to municipalities.
• The Clerk should review the DMV account and remit the balances due to the State and County.