Purpose of Audit

The purpose of our audit was to determine if Town officials effectively planned, monitored and controlled the Town’s budget for the period January 1, 2013 through December 12, 2014.

Background

The Town of North Norwich is located in Chenango County and has a population of approximately 1,800. The Town is governed by an elected five-member Town Board. Budgeted appropriations in the general fund and highway fund for 2014 totaled $572,650.

Key Findings

• The Board-adopted budgets for the highway fund were not structurally balanced.
• The Board planned to appropriate fund balance in the highway fund which was not available.
• The Board did not establish a goal for fund balance levels.
• The Board used non-recurring revenues to fund recurring expenditures.
• The Board did not fund its long-term plans, instead relying on unplanned revenues to implement them.

Key Recommendations

• Create realistic, structurally balanced budgets based on historical trends.
• Obtain projections of year-end fund balance during budget creation and determine whether fund balance will be available before it is appropriated.
• Set goals for fund balance levels.
• Use non-recurring revenues as a funding source for non-recurring expenditures.
• Create more formal and comprehensive long-term plans and provide funding for these plans in the budget.