Purpose of Audit

The purpose of our audit was to evaluate selected District financial activities for the period January 1, 2014 through December 31, 2014.

Background

The Town of Hempstead Sanitary District No. 1 is located in the Town of Hempstead, Nassau County. The District, which provides refuse and recycling pickup to over 50,000 residents and some commercial properties, is governed by an elected five-member Board of Commissioners. Expenditures for 2014 totaled approximately $19.4 million.

Key Findings

• District officials did not enforce certain collective bargaining agreement (CBA) provisions and Board resolutions or maintain accurate leave records and, as a result, paid nine employees for unused sick and vacation days without authorization and 16 employees for holiday bonus pay to which they were not entitled.
• District officials did not properly monitor life insurance benefits and provided certain benefits without authority to do so.
• The Treasurer did not prepare bank reconciliations in a timely manner.
• The Treasurer did not file 2012-14 annual financial reports with OSC, and 2012-13 financial records were not audited in a timely manner.

Key Recommendations

• Enforce the CBA’s provisions and Board resolutions to ensure that employees are paid only the salary and benefits to which they are entitled.
• Ensure that all insurance benefits are in compliance with legal requirements and ensure that any employee who receives additional group life insurance coverage pays the correct premium.
• Prepare timely and accurate bank reconciliations.
• Ensure that all required financial reports are filed in a timely manner, and annually audit or cause and audit of the District’s financial records.