Get Full Government Meeting Transcripts, Videos, & Alerts Forever!
Get email alerts on the Checking Account Signers topic
No spam. Unsubscribe anytime.
Superintendent (Valerie Bruno) asks to be removed as co‑signer; board hears concerns about protocol and fraudulent checks
Summary
Valerie Bruno requested removal as a co‑signer on the general fund account, saying established cross‑signing protocols between town and school sides have not been followed with fidelity; she cited discovering fraudulent checks in the packet. The board agreed to review records and did not take a final vote.
At the Feb. 9 meeting Valerie Bruno asked the Board of Selectmen to add an agenda item to remove her name as a co‑signer on the town’s general fund accounts, saying she has been uncomfortable for months because a long‑standing protocol for cross‑signing between town and school officials has not been followed consistently.
Bruno told the board she learned about fraudulent checks only after reviewing the meeting packet and said that inconsistent adherence to the signing protocol erodes the checks‑and‑balances that auditors recommended when the town administrator position was created.
“I found out about the fraudulent checks last month at your Board of Selectmen meeting,” Bruno said. “That was concerning for me … because my name was on that check.”
Board members described the existing practice: checks are to be signed by the town administrator and the superintendent, with the chair or vice chair serving as backup on the school side and the first or second selectman serving as backup on the town side. Several members acknowledged the protocol had not always been followed, and they discussed obtaining documentation of checks that were removed from a run and the process by which individual checks are pulled for further review.
The board did not vote that night to approve or deny Bruno’s request. The chair said he would consult the treasurer and finance staff, provide Bruno the copies she requested, and schedule a follow‑up discussion. Bruno asked that her concern be noted in the minutes.
Next steps: Board staff will gather check registers and related documentation for the period in question and report back; no change to signer status was recorded at the Feb. 9 meeting.
