Purpose of Audit

The purpose of our audit was to evaluate the Town’s financial operations for the period January 1, 2011, through December 31, 2012.

Background

The Town of Rossie is located in St. Lawrence County and has a population of 877. The Town Board comprises four elected members and a Town Supervisor. The Town’s 2012 budgeted operating expenditures totaled $200,296 for the general fund and $288,160 for the highway fund.

Key Findings

• The Supervisor did not maintain accurate computerized accounting records and reports. Balance sheet amounts did not agree with general ledger amounts and the balance sheet included unsubstantiated liability accounts. For example, the balance sheet account and general ledger accounts for the general fund checking account balance at December 31, 2012 differed by $4,654. Because of these deficiencies, the Board did not have accurate information on which to base its financial decisions.
• The Supervisor filed the Town’s AUD 116 days late for 2008, 112 days late for 2009 and 374 days (more than a year) late for 2010. As of December 2012, the Supervisor had not filed the AUD for 2011.
• The Board has not ensured that the records of all Town officials and employees who handle cash are properly audited on an annual basis.
• The Board has not established a system to ensure that all claims are presented for audit prior to payment. We reviewed 110 randomly selected disbursements totaling $142,058 and 121 high-risk disbursements totaling $47,698. We identified 80 exceptions, totaling $38,603.

Key Recommendations

• Maintain accurate accounting records and reports. Ensure that bank reconciliations agree with accounting records, and that all discrepancies are investigated and corrected immediately.
• File the Town’s annual financial reports within the prescribed statutory period.
• Perform annual audits of the records and reports of the Supervisor, Town Justice, Town Clerk, Tax Collector and Code Enforcement Officer, or have an independent public accountant do so.
• Establish policies and procedures to ensure that all disbursements made by the Supervisor are properly authorized and supported with documentation on file.