Fly Creek Fire District

AUDIT: OVERSIGHT WAS INSUFFICIENT:

A state audit of the Fly Creek fire district indicated that previous boards failed to follow their own policies and had a general lack of oversight of money that was being spent.

The New York State Comptroller's Office audit of the Fly Creek fire district was released to the public Monday afternoon and examined the records for the period of January 1, 2004 through September 29, 2005.

According to the audit report: "We found that in certain aspects, the board did not adhere to or establish appropriate internal controls. More specifically, the board did not follow its own policy regarding the audit and approval of claims; segregate or at least oversee the duties of treasurer; ensure that the treasurer maintained complete accounting records and routinely performed bank reconciliations; annually audit the records and reports of the treasurer; and did not adopt an investment policy to ensure district moneys were properly invested and safeguarded."

The audit cited 39 claims which were not itemized, totaling $8,076 and three claims where $39 in sales tax were approved for payment even though the district is exempt from paying sales tax. The audit also cited one claim with only one board member's signature.