Tulare Public Cemetery Board accepts August financial report amid public concerns over transfers and recordkeeping

The Tulare Public Cemetery District unanimously approved acceptance of the August 2025 financial report and internment count after an extended public comment period that raised questions about recordkeeping and fund transfers.

District Manager Clara Bernardo presented the financial package and said she reorganized the profit-and-loss statement by fund to make the general expense fund (772), endowment accounts and pre‑need accounts clearer. Bernardo said cost of goods sold (COGS) shown on the report reflects vault purchases (about $131,000 as reported in the presentation) and that property tax revenue will not arrive until December, likely leaving the district operating in the red until December or January.

Why it matters: multiple members of the public and one former audit committee member pressed the board for greater transparency and for clarification of several transactions, including checks listed as "undeposited funds" and transfers between funds. Public speakers alleged prior resolutions and transfers involving endowment-related funds and…