Purpose

To determine whether the Department of Corrections and Community Supervision (Department) appropriately disposed of the assets associated with its closed farms, including equipment, livestock, and land. The audit covers the period January 1, 2010 through June 30, 2013.

Background

The Department oversees the State's prison system and monitors the activities of persons under community supervision (parole). Prior to the 2009-2010 fiscal year, the Department operated farms at 12 correctional facilities located throughout the State: Beacon, Clinton, Eastern, Elmira, Green Haven, Greene, Groveland, Mid-State, Sullivan, Wallkill, Washington, and Wyoming. These farms produced dairy, beef, and vegetable products to reduce the amount of food purchased. The Department employed an average of about 250 inmates and 50 State employees to operate its farming operations. As part of the 2009-2010 State budget process, the Department was directed to close these farm operations to generate cost savings. At the time of closure, the Department was responsible for the disposition of all farm assets, including equipment, livestock and land. At the time of our audit, the Department had already been disposed of records pertaining to farm assets consistent with its record retention policy. However, some records were available from other agencies that allowed us to trace the disposition of assets and assess the reasonableness of reported transactions.

Key Findings

• While we could not precisely determine the nature and extent of all the equipment and livestock on hand at the time of the farm closures in 2009, we did identify more than 3,300 farm equipment items and almost 300 head of cattle that had been publicly sold or transferred to other State agencies. These transactions generated almost $570,000 of one-time revenues for the State.
• The Department has also leased a significant portion of its former farm land via public bidding and is currently raising approximately $125,000 annually from this effort.

Key Recommendations

None

Other Related Audits/Reports of Interest

Department of Corrections and Community Supervision: Oversight of Revenue Contracts (2009-S-33)
Department of Transportation: Review of Real Property Holdings for Disposal (2010-S-48)