State Comptroller Thomas DiNapoli announced on Wednesday, June 18, that the Island Trees School District had been audited and had failed to record and account for all capital assets reviewed by the state.
The June 6 audit also stated that officials had not conducted a physical inventory to properly monitor and account for all assets since 2011.
The audit found that 112 capital assets with an acquisition cost of $60,871 were not recorded on the district’s inventory list. Of the 7,229 capital assets on the district’s active and disposed inventory list, the state said it reviewed 254 and found 195 were not properly accounted for or monitored.
The state also said 21 assets with an acquisition cost of $16,931 and 48 information technology assets could not be located, and that the acquisition costs for the 48 IT assets were not recorded or available.
“Officials cannot assure taxpayers that all of the district’s capital assets are safe and accounted for,” the audit said. “As a result, the district had a significant risk for capital assets to be lost, stolen or misused.
The state defines capital assets as assets with a useful life of more than one year. These can include everything from buildings and land to building improvements to machinery, vehicles, equipment, and computers.
DiNapoli’s office said the audit period began on July 1, 2021, and went through Oct. 31, 2023.
The state comptroller’s office and the Island Trees School District released the full audit report on their websites, which included 10 recommendations for how the district can fix its problems.
The first three recommendations were directed towards the district’s board of education, while the rest were directed at district officials.
Recommendations include updating district policies, keeping items better organized and conducting frequent inventory checks.
The district posted a corrective action plan on its website that gives its response to all 10 recommendations made by the state.
A letter within the audit from Island Trees Superintendent Charles Murphy to the state comptroller’s office in April said that the district has looked at policy changes and has completed a full inventory check, and that it is taking steps to ensure that the information is accurate.
“We firmly believe that even strong systems benefit from ongoing evaluation and improvement, and we are committed to using this opportunity to enhance our operations for the benefit of the Island Trees school community,” the letter said.
The audit said the results cannot be used to conclude there is no fraud, theft or professional misconduct in the district’s operations due to the specific scope of the audit.
DiNapoli announced five other school districts across the state had also been audited. None of the other school districts were in the region.
