Audit Objective 

Determine whether Otsego County Soil and Water Conservation District (District) officials properly managed grants and authorized disbursements that were appropriate and supported. 

Key Findings 

The Board of Directors (Board) did not effectively manage grants or ensure that authorized disbursements were supported and for appropriate District purposes. As a result, District officials made overpayments, unsupported payments and unnecessary payments at taxpayers’ expense. Specifically, District officials: 

• Overpaid landowners totaling $174,950 for six grants resulting in an inappropriate use of local taxpayer money. 
• Made 49 disbursements totaling $145,876 without adequate support (out of 63 disbursements reviewed totaling $154,080). 
• Paid $11,630 in unnecessary payments, including excess tree purchases, late fees, interest, unused cell phone accounts, sales tax and lease payments for a copier that had been replaced. 
• Paid employees for unsupported leave payments totaling $8,860 and an unallowed payment totaling $1,192. 

Key Recommendations 

• Ensure grant disbursements are approved before payment to avoid overpayments to landowners. 
• Perform a thorough claims audit to ensure disbursements are supported and for appropriate and necessary District purposes. 
• Maintain accurate leave records and periodically review leave accrual balances.

District officials agreed with our recommendations and indicated they have initiated or plan to initiate corrective action.