Board told to stop duplicating school entries after auditor flags reconciliation problem

Members of the Board of Finance spent substantial time on the reconciliation issue after the auditor highlighted it as the lone material weakness in the FY2025 audit. The auditor explained that the Board of Education maintains its own accounting system and that the town's practice of mirroring school entries "creates issues from an overall reconciliation perspective." He recommended that the town account only for appropriations, transfers, reimbursements or shared-service costs that directly affect the town.

Board members pressed for practical controls. The auditor recommended that the school continue to provide monthly financial reports to the town and that the treasurer periodically review school bank reconciliations. "If you're in a position where the board of ed can't pay a bill, then I think you're probably bumping up against statute," the auditor said, urging both clarity in responsibilities and an approved cash-management policy to set parameters.

Several board members asked for specific monthly deliverables (budget-to-actual reports, check registers and reconciliations) and discussed whether the treasurer should receive reconciliations or simply the reconciled bank statement. Town and school officials said improvements have been made since the migration to new accounting software, but the board asked for a documented, repeatable process to avoid future audit adjustments.