Get Full Government Meeting Transcripts, Videos, & Alerts Forever!
Get email alerts on the School Finance topic
No spam. Unsubscribe anytime.
Resident presses for outside audit; board describes budget limits and year-end process
Summary
A public commenter questioned the lack of a recent outside audit and asked whether the district could fund an $8,000 audit; board members said the proposed audit had been in a budget that did not pass, audit reports are public on SAU16 sites, and any outside audit would require reallocating funds from the default budget or other lines.
A Kensington resident, Alfred De, used the public-input period to press the board about whether the district could commission a more comprehensive outside audit (the resident said the last such audit dated to 2017) and asked how much remained in an 'unfunded balance.'
Board response and budget context: Board members and staff replied that the district performs annual cash-flow reporting and that audit reports are posted on the SAU16 website; the outside audit Mr. De described had been included in a proposed budget that failed and would require moving money from other budget lines—staff noted the default budget does not include the external-audit funding. The board indicated they will "take a look" at the request and that implementing an outside audit would require identifying funding or taking from other priorities.
Year-end finances and invoices: Business staff reported higher-than-anticipated expenses in special education and facilities (boiler, water pump and required water testing), growing legal invoices (legal line over budget, approaching about $10,000), and the need to hold a public hearing to draw down from a trust fund before closing the year and completing the DOE25 year-end report (final signatures due before Sept.1).
