Purpose of Audit

The purpose of our audit was to determine if Town officials provided adequate oversight of the Town’s financial activities for the period January 1, 2010, through March 31, 2012.

Background

The Town of Dresden is located in Washington County and has a population of approximately 650 residents. The Town is governed by an elected five-member Town Board, which consists of the Town Supervisor and four councilpersons. Budgeted appropriations were $955,411 for 2011 and $954,272 for 2012.

Key Findings

• The Supervisor has not fulfilled even the most basic of financial responsibilities. Financial records are incomplete or missing and there is no way to accurately determine the Town’s financial condition. Given the lack of records and the Supervisor’s control over all aspects of the Town’s finances, there is no way to be sure that all funds have been accounted for and used solely for Town purposes.
• The Supervisor has ignored and not complied with State laws and requirements. For example, the Supervisor has not filed an AUD for 2008 or any of the subsequent years and did not file its 2012 property tax cap computation with OSC. Our calculation of the property tax cap limitation resulted in the Town property tax levy exceeding the cap limit by approximately $11,800.
• The Board did not audit the books and records of the Supervisor or Town Clerk.

Key Recommendations

• Confer with the Town’s attorney to determine what actions it can take to ensure the Supervisor performs his required financial duties. Maintain accounting records to ensure that all records are complete, accurate and up-to-date.
• File the previous years’ AUDs and ensure all future year AUDs are filed with OSC within 60 days of year end. Calculate the Town’s annual property tax cap limit in a timely manner and ensure the Town submits the property tax cap filing to OSC in a timely manner.
• Annually audit the records of the Supervisor, Town Clerk and Justices.