Purpose of Audit

The purpose of our audit was to examine the District’s purchasing procedures and to determine whether the District’s computer system was adequately safeguarded for the period January 1, 2013 through May 31, 2014.

Background

The Brookhaven Fire District is a district corporation of the State, distinct and separate from the Town of Brookhaven, Suffolk County, in which it is located. The District is governed by an elected five-member Board of Fire Commissioners. Budgeted appropriations for 2014 were approximately $2.5 million

Key Findings

• The Board did not ensure that District personnel used competitive methods when purchasing goods and services not subject to competitive bidding.
• The District did not enter into written agreements with all professional service providers.
• The Board has not established written policies or procedures for granting, changing and terminating access rights to the District’s financial system.
• The Board has not ensured that each financial system user is assigned only one username and password and has not designated someone independent of Business Office operations to be the financial software system administrator.
• The Board has not adopted a disaster recovery plan or breach notification policy.

Key Recommendations

• Ensure that District personnel comply with the District’s procurement policy.
• Enter into written agreements with all professional service providers.
• Develop policies and written procedures for granting, changing and terminating access rights to the financial system.
• Ensure that each financial system user is assigned only one username and password and designate someone independent of Business Office operations to be the financial software system administrator.
• Adopt a disaster recovery plan and a breach notification policy.