[read complete report – pdf]

Audit Objective

Determine whether Coeymans Hollow Volunteer Fire Corporation (Company) Board of Directors (Board) provided adequate oversight of financial operations.

Key Findings

The Board did not provide adequate oversight of the Company’s financial operations. As a result, there is significant risk that Company money could be used inappropriately without detection.

The Board did not:

• Adopt or enforce adequate bylaws.
• Review claim documentation for appropriateness and did not sign vouchers to approve claims for payment.
• Establish adequate controls to ensure that all money received was properly recorded and deposited.
• Ensure that the Treasurer and Financial Secretary performed bank reconciliations for Company accounts.

Key Recommendations

• Amend the bylaws and/or adopt supplemental written financial policies and enforce compliance.
• Review claim vouchers and supporting documentation to ensure disbursements are for proper Company purposes.
• Ensure that the Financial Secretary maintains adequate cash receipts records and the Treasurer deposits funds in a timely manner.
• Perform bank reconciliations for all Company bank accounts.

Except as specified in Appendix A, Company officials generally agreed with our recommendations and indicated they planned to take corrective action. Appendix B includes our comments on issues raised in the Company’s response letter.