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 cited California Health and Safety Code provisions governing cemetery endowment care funds.

Public speakers and questions from board members Mary Cepeda told the board she expects privacy for family consultations and said she observed delays in financial reporting (she noted August reports stamped in October). Anna Alamo requested a formal board resolution related to a worksheet used in plot selection and said an audit video shows groundsmen are supposed to verify burial plots. Alberto Aguilar told the board the district is not in compliance with Health and Safety Code sections he cited (transcript references: 9000–9083; specifically 9064, 9076 and 9078). Linda Malloy, a former audit committee member, questioned bank reconciliations and said her arithmetic showed a different ending balance than the report provided to the board.

Board discussion focused on specific line items Bernardo explained that $66,339.68 was listed as "other current assets: undeposited funds" and said those are checks received late that had not yet been taken to the bank. She explained inventory on the balance sheet represents sellable vault stock linked to COGS. Bernardo said an annual insurance total is split between a liability line and workers' compensation payroll because Golden State Risk Management Authority bills are amortized over the year. A board member asked about a series of repurchase checks (to Mary Rita Ribeiro, David Voigt and Robin Edwards) dated after the board placed a hold on plot purchases; Bernardo said those were payments tied to earlier agreements that were issued or cashed later and that no new plot purchases were made after the policy to stop purchases.

Formal action The board recorded two formal votes: a unanimous approval of the consent calendar (items 2 and 3) and a unanimous vote to accept the August 2025 financial report and internment count. The motion to accept the financial report was made by Supervisor McCarrie and seconded by Supervisor Shuckley; the clerk recorded the vote as unanimous.

What remains unresolved The public raised allegations about transfers involving the endowment care and unreserved endowment funds and referenced named resolutions (public comment cited a rescission of a 2023–24 resolution and a citizen-cited resolution labeled TPC2025-022). The board did not take separate action on those allegations during the meeting; public speakers asked the board to account for transfers and to provide supporting documentation. Bernardo acknowledged timing delays in reports and said she will continue to work on classification of line items and follow-up on outstanding questions.

Background and next steps The district will not receive its annual property tax distribution until December; Bernardo said that revenue timing contributes to projected deficits in the interim. Board members requested additional reconciliation details and underlying documentation for questioned transactions. The board adjourned the public portion of the meeting and went into closed session; no public action was announced from closed session during the meeting.

Sources: meeting transcript and on-the-record presentations to the Tulare Public Cemetery District.