Society to Help Evaluate School Audits

Society to Help Evaluate School Audits
Joins State Comptroller’s Oversight Program

By Jay Dismukes

NEW YORK—Responding to school district financial scandals on Long Island, state Comptroller Alan G. Hevesi has created a multi-layered oversight initiative in which the New York State Society of CPAs will play a central role.

Announced last month, Hevesi’s program will look to strengthen school district fiscal practices, prevent fraud and restore taxpayer confidence through enhanced internal controls, more effective independent audits, increased state audits and additional investigations.

“The initiative…will help ensure there is a culture of accountability and integrity in all of our schools,” Hevesi stated in a press release. “School taxes are a major expense for New Yorkers. When they vote on their local school budget, they must have confidence that their school is well managed.”

The Long Island scandals that took place at the Roslyn and William Floyd school districts have shaken the residents and public officials of Nassau and Suffolk counties.

According to the office of Nassau County District Attorney Denis Dillon, the Roslyn scandal has resulted in two arrests so far. Former Superintendent Frank Tassone has been charged with grand larceny in the first degree for the alleged theft of more than $1 million from the Roslyn School District. Former Assistant Superintendent Pamela Gluckin faces the same charge, also accused of stealing more than $1 million from the district.

“This is an ongoing investigation. It’s continuing to determine what amounts were stolen and if other people are implicated,” said Rick Hinshaw, with the Nassau County District Attorney’s Office.

Former school district Treasurer James Wright has been charged with grand larceny in the continuing investigation into the William Floyd scandal, a spokeswoman from the Suffolk County District Attorney’s Office said.

The comptroller’s office will take advantage of a number of strategic partnerships to accomplish its four-part initiative. In cooperation with the State Education Department (SED), the Society will work with the comptroller’s office to help determine the efficacy of current audit regulations and standards for the state’s school districts.

Under the initiative, the comptroller’s office will randomly audit the school district audits performed by outside accounting firms to see if they have been conducted properly. The NYSSCPA and the SED will use the office’s findings to draw their conclusions about the current standards and regulations.

In similar partnership arrangements, the Nassau County Comptroller’s Office will work with the state comptroller’s office to develop an educational program for Nassau school officials on internal controls and fraud detection. The same program will be provided to school officials throughout the state.

Hevesi also plans to have his newly-created Investigations Division assist the Nassau County and Suffolk County district attorneys, as well as other state and federal agencies, in their investigations of school districts.

At the same time he announced his program, Hevesi also asked Gov. George Pataki and the state legislature for $5.4 million to hire 89 auditors to conduct 104 school district audits every year.