2022 Financial Audit
Plodzik & Sanderson CPAs have completed the 2022 Town of Barrington financial audit. This was their third year auditing the Town’s financials.
The Office of Financial Administration has worked hard over the past three years to work though various audit findings and changes in reporting standards to make sure the town’s financials are in good standing. We are happy to report that the town has another “clean” audit report.
On page 2 of the Management Letter, you will read “Significant Risks Identified”. The auditors are required to identify any significant risks that could impact various audit areas (cash, receivables/revenue, AP/expenditures, payroll, etc.). Based on their assessment of those risks, it will determine what audit procedures they will perform. As part of the new auditing standards, it’s now required to communicate to those charged with governance (i.e., the Select Board) the significant risks that were identified as part of the audit process.
The auditor’s Management Letter lists audit findings on pages 4 and 5. I have summarized them below. You will notice they are all repeat comments. Some of which have an asterisk indicating a work in process or completion date.
- IT Policies and Procedures* (repeat comment)
- *At the time of the audit and ongoing, the auditors noted that the town has created a Technology Committee that will satisfy this audit recommendation. As noted on page 4 of the Management Letter “It was noted that as of the date of the audit, the Town has created a technology committee that will be involved with planning and strategically evaluating the Town’s current and future technology infrastructure needs, staying abreast with industry trends, providing guidance for data security, data backup, and data recovery, and advising on the Town’s long-term strategic goals.”
- Trustees of Trust Funds – Principal and Income Allocation (repeat comment)
- The auditor noted that the combination of principal and interest for Trustee accounts is inconsistent with the requirements of the State reporting. As a result of this finding and noted in the prior year memo, the Office of Administration will continue to work with Trustees of the Trust Funds to remedy this finding.
- Investment Policy (repeat comment)
- * At the time of the audit, the auditors noted that on January 23, 2023, at a monthly Select Board meeting, the Board voted to re-affirm the investment policy.
- Review and Reaffirmation of Town Policies (repeat comment)
- * At the time of the audit, the auditors noted that on January 23, 2023, at a monthly Select Board meeting, the Board voted to re-affirm all Town policies with no adjustments or changes
- Trustees of the Trust Funds-Access to Governmental Records and Meetings
- The auditors noted that the meeting for the Trustees of the Trust Funds were not documented. The Office of Financial Administration has informed them that their meetings need to be posted, held in a public place and the minutes be available within five days after the meeting.
- Grants (repeat comment)
- The auditors have applauded the Town on the tremendous strides they took in 2022 to remedy this finding. There are only a couple of outstanding grants that need to be looked into further for this finding to be resolved. The finance office will work diligently during the remaining months of 2023 to complete this.
In addition to the regular financial audit, a Single Audit was required due to our receipt of over $750,000 in federal funds in 2022. We are glad to report that the Single Audit was also ‘clean’ with no comments.
Please do not hesitate to contact the Office of Financial Administration with any questions or concerns about the 2022 financial audit.