Purpose of Audit

The purpose of our audit was to review the District’s financial condition for the period July 1, 2014 through February 29, 2016.

Background

The Hastings-on-Hudson Union Free School District is located in the Village of Hastings-on-Hudson in Westchester County. The District, which operates three schools with approximately 1,600 students, is governed by an elected seven-member Board of Education. Appropriations for the 2016-17 fiscal year total approximately $47 million.

Key Findings

• From 2010-11 through 2014-15, the District used only about 2 percent of the fund balance appropriated to fund operations.
• The Board overfunded reserves by $4.7 million (88 percent of total reserves) as of June 30, 2015.

Key Recommendations

• Discontinue the practice of adopting budgets that result in the appropriation of unrestricted fund balance that will not be used to fund District operations.
• Review reserves to determine if the amounts reserved are necessary and reasonable. To the extent that they are not, reserves should be properly reduced.