Purpose of Audit

The purpose of our audit was to assess the District’s financial condition for the period July 1, 2014 through September 30, 2015.

Background

The Lyncourt Union Free School District is located in the Town of Salina, Onondaga County. The District, which operates one school with approximately 377 students, is governed by an elected five-member Board of Education. Budgeted appropriations for the 2015-16 fiscal year totaled approximately $9.9 million.

Key Findings

• The Board adopted budgets for the three-year period that appropriated a total of $810,000 in fund balance to finance District operations, but none of the appropriated fund balance was used. As a result, the District’s year-end unrestricted fund balance as a percentage of the next year’s budgetary appropriations averaged about 14.1 percent over the last three years, which is approximately three and a half times the statutory limit.
• The Board has not adopted a multiyear financial plan to allow it to facilitate the development of future finances.

Key Recommendations

• Ensure that the amount of the District’s unrestricted fund balance is in compliance with the Real Property Tax Law statutory limits and reduce the amount of unrestricted fund balance in a manner that benefits District residents. Such uses could include, but are not limited to, paying off debt, financing one-time expenditures and reducing property taxes.
• Develop a comprehensive multiyear financial plan to establish objectives for the use of excess fund balance and the funding of long-term needs.