Margaretville school district overestimated appropriations, says state comptroller

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ALBANY – An audit of the financial management of the Margaretville Central School District found the school board overestimated appropriations and appropriated approximately $1.4 million in fund balance from 2016-2017 through 2018-2019 that it did not use to fund operations because of generated operating surpluses.

The comptroller’s office audit said as of June 30, 2019, surplus fund balance totaled some $3.9 million or 32 percent of the next year’s budget, exceeding the statutory limit.

And it said when unused appropriated fund balance was added back to and overstated receivables were deducted from surplus fund balance, it totaled almost $3.2 million, exceeding the statutory limit by approximately $2.7 million, or 22 percent, as of June 30, 2019.

The state auditors recommended that the district adopt budgets that include reasonable estimates for appropriations and the amount of fund balance that will be used to fund operations and to reuse surplus fund balance to comply with the statutory limit and use excess funds in a manner beneficial to taxpayers.

The district serves the towns of Andes, Bovina, Middletown and Roxbury in Delaware County, the towns of Halcott and Lexington in Greene County, and the towns of Hardenburgh and Shandaken in Ulster County.




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