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Select Board confronts audit delay, disputed TAN draw and questions about town bookkeeping
Summary
At its July 21 meeting the Limerick Select Board spent a large portion of the session on audit delays and disputed use of a tax anticipation note after the contracted auditor said he could not complete the FY2025 audit until mid next year; board members pressed staff on cash balances, land-sale revenues and rescue-billing postings.
The Limerick Select Board devoted an extended portion of its July 21 meeting to the town’s finances after the auditor sent a letter saying he could not complete the December 31, 2025 fiscal-year audit on the proposed timetable.
A select board member (speaker 11) read the auditor’s message, which the board described as an email stating that, “due to unforeseen personal and professional circumstances, I am unable to complete the December 31st 2025 fiscal year audit by the deadlines included in the above mentioned proposal and would not even be able to start the audit engagement until the middle of next year.” The board said that communication is public record.
Committee members pressed staff for details about recent cash management. One member (speaker 2) questioned whether the town had drawn on a tax anticipation note (TAN) and how much had been drawn; staff initially said a $450,000 draw had been planned but it was not clear whether the draw had actually been executed. Speaker 8 clarified that a draw of $450,000 had been contemplated but that she had not yet confirmed whether the treasurer had completed the draw.
Speaker 2 pressed the board on posted revenues, noting past references to more than $2.7 million in unassigned funds and roughly $1 million in land-sale proceeds that had not clearly been allocated. Finance-related figures cited in the meeting included $23,002.29 in revenues to date for a specific account, a pending check of $4,087.80 for light-iron shipments, and a rescue-billing figure cited as $846,301.09. Board staff reported a checking-account balance of $1,561,004.41 and total cash of $2,436,005.84 at the time of the meeting.
The exchange grew tense as speaker 2 accused the town of repeated borrowing on the TAN in prior years and questioned whether the board had sufficient contact with the treasurer about draws. The chair and other board members responded that the town had hired a forensic accountant and that the ongoing forensic and regular-audit work was aimed at sorting historical problems.
No formal policy change was adopted at the meeting on the TAN; members agreed to follow up with the treasurer and to seek additional clarity from the forensic accounting work and from counsel. The board also discussed whether additional bookkeeping help or a contracted bookkeeper should be considered, but noted complications arising from ongoing litigation and legal advice.
What happens next: Board members said they will follow up with the treasurer and counsel and that outstanding audit items remain open until the forensic and auditor work is complete.
