Purpose of Audit

The purpose of our audit was to examine the operation of the water and sewer funds for the period June 1, 2012 through June 17, 2014.

Background

The Village of Westfield is located in the Town of Westfield in Chautauqua County and has approximately 3,200 residents. The Village is governed by an elected Board of Trustees which comprises four Trustees and a Mayor. Budgeted appropriations for the 2013–14 fiscal year totaled approximately $8.5 million.

Key Findings

• The Treasurer only relevied closed overdue water and sewer accounts instead of all unpaid accounts.
• The Village did not charge penalties for late payment of water and sewer rents and did not adopt an ordinance to encourage the timely collection of overdue accounts.

Key Recommendations

• Ensure that the Treasurer includes all overdue water and sewer accounts for relevy on the tax roll.
• Consider adopting an ordinance and imposing a penalty for late payment of water and sewer bills.