Purpose of Audit

The purpose of our audit was to determine whether Town officials procured goods and services in accordance with Town policy and applicable laws and ensured the Town’s information technology (IT) systems were adequately secured and protected against unauthorized use, access and loss for the period January 1, 2016 through May 24, 2017.

Background

The Town of Union Vale is located in Dutchess County and has a population of approximately 4,900 residents. The Town is governed by an elected five-member Town Board and its 2017 budget totaled $4.1 million.

Key Findings

• Eight professional service providers were paid $178,027 and 25 vendors were paid $353,418 without seeking competition.
• The Town has no policies or restrictions for Internet use; we found numerous instances of personal Internet use.

Key Recommendations

• Revise the procurement policy to provide guidance on seeking competition for professional services.
• Adopt policies for Internet use, implement web filtering software and review web usage logs for unauthorized personal Internet use.