New York State Comptroller Thomas P. DiNapoli today announced his office completed audits of the Candor Fire Company, Village of Coxsackie, Town of Easton, Town of Hillsdale, City of Mount Vernon and the Roosevelt Public Library.

“In today’s fiscal climate, budget transparency and accountability for our local communities is a top priority,” said DiNapoli. “By auditing municipal finances and operations, my office continues to provide taxpayers the assurance that their money is being spent appropriately and effectively.”

Candor Fire Company – Controls Over Financial Activity (Tioga County)

The board established adequate procedures over receipts, such as having at least three members count and sign off on cash collected at fund-raising activities before turning over the cash to the treasurer for deposit. Further, at least two board members review bank statements for reasonableness of deposits and compare check images to supporting documentation.

Village of Coxsackie – Financial Condition and Water and Sewer Fund Accountability (Greene County)

The village has experienced unplanned operating deficits in its water and sewer funds for the last two years. These deficits were caused by inaccurate budget estimates and the lack of monitoring financial operations throughout the year. The budgets in both the water and sewer funds were not based on realistic revenues and water and sewer rates were not sufficient to cover anticipated expenditures.

Town of Easton – Sales Tax Allocation (Washington County)

Town officials did not allocate sales tax revenue to the town-outside-village funds to reduce the real property tax levies in these funds before allocating any remaining sales tax revenue to the town-wide funds, resulting in taxpayer inequities of approximately $188,000 from 2011 through 2014.

Town of Hillsdale – Justice Court Operations (Columbia County)

The town justices did not ensure that court funds were properly recorded, deposited and reported. The clerk performs incompatible duties related to cash receipts and the justices do not provide oversight of the clerk’s work.

City of Mount Vernon – Payroll (Westchester County)

City officials need to improve internal controls over employee time and attendance records and payroll processing. Because the city council has not adopted policies related to payroll and the city comptroller has not established standard procedures for all departments concerning the recording and reporting of payroll, employee accruals were not charged correctly for time taken.

Roosevelt Public Library – Board Oversight of Library Operations (Nassau County)

The board has not established appropriate controls over the authorization and payment of overtime. The board did not implement policies or procedures to help properly classify individuals as independent contractors or employees. In addition, the board spent $8,500 for travel that may not have been for official library business.