Lake Champlain-Lake George Regional Planning Board - Governance Over Loan Operations (2019M-25)

Issued Date

September 13, 2019

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Audit Objective

Determine whether the Board provided adequate oversight of the revolving loan program.

Key Findings

The Lake Champlain-Lake George Regional Planning Board (RPB) did not monitor its loan program.
Delinquent loans were not properly enforced.

Key Recommendations

Ensure that the Director and Loan Committee prepare loan status reports for the Board.
Ensure that loans are properly enforced.

Regional Planning Board officials generally agreed with our recommendations and have initiated, or indicated they planned to initiate corrective action.

Background

The Lake Champlain-Lake George Regional Planning Board (RPB) was created in 1967 by the five participating boards of Clinton, Essex, Hamilton, Warren and Washington Counties. The RPB is governed by a 15-member board (Board) composed of three members appointed by each of the participating counties. The Board-elected Chairman is the chief executive officer and, along with the Board-appointed Director, is responsible for the day-to-day activities of the RPB. The RPB has a 10-member Loan Administration Committee (Committee) to review and approve business loans from its revolving loan funds program.

The Board elected a new Chairman on June 12, 2018. The former Director resigned on June 30, 2018 and a new Director was subsequently appointed.

Quick Facts
Outstanding loans as of June 30, 2018	55
Loan balances as of June 30, 2018	$3.5 million

Audit Period

January 1, 2015 – July 31, 2018