A recent financial audit has confirmed that the town of Leyden is in a strong fiscal position, according to auditor Tony Roselli from Roselli, Clark and Associates. Presenting the findings to the Selectboard on November 3, 2024, Roselli highlighted that the town’s financial books were straightforward to balance, although he noted two specific deficits that require attention.
During the audit, Roselli identified a $4,000 deficit in the deputy collector fund, as well as an equivalent deficit for the police department details. He emphasized that there were no significant issues encountered throughout the auditing process, stating, “There were no difficulties encountered during the audit. Nothing material that we would say was a misstatement or a mistake made by the accountant or treasurer.”
The deputy collector account is used by the tax collector to manage collection expenses. Roselli indicated that unless the town can determine the cause of the deficit, it will need to be included in the tax recap, an annual financial report submitted to the state to set the tax rate. “It looks like it’s been there for at least a year, maybe longer,” Roselli stated. He advised that the most straightforward solution may be to address the deficit on the tax recap.
Accountant Angelica Desrosiers and Tax Collector Susan Bobe explained that they are already working to resolve the issues flagged by Roselli. They believe the deficit arose from a transition in collection systems. Desrosiers noted, “The previous collector used the deputy collector fund; the current collector uses the revenue fund, so it offsets the revenue. So it’s just two different systems and when we crossed over they just got lost in the wash a bit.”
In addition to the deputy collector deficit, Roselli reported an additional $4,000 deficit in the police detail account. Desrosiers clarified that this deficit stemmed from the Broadband Committee funding only half of what was required for police details during the installation of broadband infrastructure, necessitating additional funding this fiscal year.
The audit revealed that the town is actively addressing most of the issues noted. Roselli pointed out that several accounts contained small balances—such as $12 in a retiree health insurance account—that had not seen any activity in years. He suggested that if the town is no longer utilizing these accounts, they should be closed, and the funds returned to the general ledger.
Overall, the findings from the audit underscore Leyden’s robust financial health, with manageable deficits that the town is working to rectify as part of its fiscal responsibility.
