Sometimes no news is good news.
At the June 20 regular meeting, auditors Plante & Moran PLLC gave Independence Township a clean bill of health for the 2005 fiscal year.
Plante & Moran representative Joe Heffernan said the township’s accounting practices are fair and accurate. He also praised township officials on their ‘conservative budgeting.?
‘Revenue continues to be more than expenditures, and that’s a good thing,? said Heffernan. ‘Property taxes are the most significant and they are moving upwards with property values. You have a strong financial-taxable base.?
This year the township brought in $17,648,000 in revenue (up from $17,499,000 in 2004) and spent $16,924,000 in expenditures (down from $17,102,000 in 2004).
Plante & Moran also complemented township workers on the installation of a new accounting system.
‘Installation of the new accounting system was well done, quick with minimal disruption,? said Heffernan.
In addition to the financial audit, Plante & Moran made comments and recommendations to the board in regards to future budget planning and financial accounting.
For yet another year, Heffernan recommended for the board to continue with ‘caution? when budgeting state shared revenues. He warned trustees the state continues to run in a financial deficit, and that will trickle down to slowly diminish state shared funds.
Currently, state shared revenue accounts for 40 percent of the township’s general funding. Heffernan said he expects the state shared revenue controlled by the legislature to continue to reduce.
Plante & Moran also recommended for the township to improve the bank reconciliation process by having one individual prepare and another individual review the reconciliations.
After installing the new accounting software, several township departments began using an updated receipt system; however, other departments did not. Heffernan recommended for the township to bring all departments on line with the new system and eliminate all manual transactions.
The use of a cash register was recommended in the Department of Public Works and for Parks and Recreation when collecting money.
Finally, Plante & Moran recommended for township officials to stay abreast of GASB 34 requirements (the accounting of capital outlay and depreciation of such) by reviewing quarterly reports.
Currently, township officials and department heads are beginning the process of budgeting for the 2007 fiscal year.