Purpose of Audit

The purpose of our audit was to evaluate the Town’s accounting records and review internal controls over the Court’s financial operations for the period January 1, 2010, through September 7, 2012.

Background

The Town of Shelby is located in Orleans County and has a population of approximately 5,300 residents. An elected five-member Town Board, presided by the Town Supervisor, is the legislative body responsible for overseeing the Town’s operations and finances. It is responsible for the general management and control of the Town’s financial affairs including the financial activity of the Justice Court. The 2012 Town budget totaled approximately $2.6 million.

Key Findings

• The Supervisor did not maintain accurate computerized accounting records. Because the bookkeeper did not always enter all transactions in the computerized accounting system, adjusted bank balances were approximately $997,800 less than cash balances in the Town’s computerized accounting records.
• The Justice did not properly oversee Court operations. Accountabilities were never performed and deposits were not always made timely. As a result, the Court’s liabilities exceeded assets by $1,442 at June 29, 2012. We identified the cause for $560 of the shortage; however, the cause of the remaining $882 has not been identified.

Key Recommendations

• Periodically review the work of the bookkeeper to ensure that financial activity is accounted for completely and accurately.
• Ensure that the Court prepares a monthly accountability analysis of Court assets to liabilities. Contact the Justice Court Fund for guidance to correct the errors totaling $560 identified in this report. Continue reviewing Court records in an effort to identify the remaining $882 shortage in the accounts.