Resident urges segregation of duties; trustees direct separate escrow account for Shodine funds

A resident and former village official urged the board to tighten internal controls and provide more frequent financial reporting, and trustees later agreed to open a separate escrow account for developer funds tied to the Shodine project.

During public comment, Patsy Smith told trustees, "it's really important to make sure that anybody that has access to the cash books does not have access to the books," and she asked the board to publish a monthly treasurer's report with percentages so citizens can track budget variances. "If you publish it monthly with the percentages showing, then you can look at it and say, okay. What why is it like that?" Smith said.

Treasurer Tim said he can provide month‑by‑month profit and loss schedules and additional narrative if trustees want more granular reports. "If everyone wants to see those in a different format, year to date, month to date, quarter to date, I'm more than happy to do that," Tim said. He noted the village typically evaluates variances against the mid‑year benchmark (about 42%) and that some high percentages—such as building and zoning at about 81% for the period reviewed—reflect timing and reimbursements rather than overspending.

Later in the meeting trustees scrutinized accounting treatment for a developer escrow tied to the Shodine project. Treasurer Tim explained cash and liability entries were recorded but that prior practice had included presenting some reimbursable invoices on the village P&L rather than keeping them segregated. Trustee Hassenberger referenced the village code requiring trust and agency (escrow) accounting and recommended establishing a separate bank account for the developer funds. "It is not good accounting practice to ever mingle commingled escrow funds that are not yours with your general fund," Hassenberger said, adding that separate accounts make audits cleaner and reduce long‑term risk.

Trustees debated pros and cons—some cautioned that more bank accounts can increase administrative overhead and fraud risk if not properly controlled. Trustee Berson and others emphasized that correct bookkeeping is essential regardless of structure; Trustee Muir suggested using GL subaccounts if the board preferred not to open multiple bank accounts. After discussion, trustees reached consensus to have staff open a separate escrow bank account for the Shodine developer funds and to present mechanics and controls for that account to the board and legal counsel. The transcript records this as board direction rather than a formal roll‑call motion.

What trustees asked staff to deliver: more frequent month‑by‑month P&L detail on request, a clear schedule showing escrow cash in and out, and a proposed process (bank account vs. GL subaccounts) with controls to present to the board and auditors.