HomeMy Public PortalAboutBrewster 2005 Public Schools Audit TOWN OF BREWSTER, MASSACHUSETTS
BREWSTER PUBLIC SCHOOLS
INDEPENDENT ACCOUNTANTS ' REPORT
ON APPLYING AGREED-UPON PROCEDURES
YEAR ENDED JUNE 309 2005
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TOWN OF BREWSTER, MASSACHUSETTS
BREWSTER PUBLIC SCHOOLS
JUNE 30 , 2005
CONTENTS
PAGE
Independent Accountants ' Report on Applying Agreed -Upon Procedures I
Summary of Procedures 2 .5
Findings and Recommendations 6
R. E . BROWN & COMPANY
CERTIFIED PUBLIC ACCOUNTANTS
P . O. Box 230 - 25 CEMETERY STREET
Mendon , Massachusetts 01756
Phone : (508 ) 478 -3941 Fax : (508 ) 4784779
INDEPENDENT ACCOUNTANTS ' REPORT
ON APPLYING AGREED-UPON PROCEDURES
To the Honorable Board of Selectmen and
Members of the School Committee
Town of Brewster, Massachusetts
We have performed the procedures enumerated in the attached appendix, which were agreed to
by the management of the Town of Brewster, Massachusetts (the " Town " ) and Brewster Public
Schools, solely to assist you in evaluating the completeness and accuracy of the Town' s
Massachusetts Department of Education (the " Department ") End -of-Year Pupil and Financial
Report for the year ended June 30 , 2005 , and to demonstrate the Town' s compliance with the
requirements for preparing that report as specified by the Department . The Town of Brewster
and the Brewster Public School ' s management is responsible for the End- of--Year Pupil and
Financial Report for the year ended June 30 , 2005 . This agreed-upon procedures engagement
was performed in accordance with attestation standards established by the American Institute of
Certified Public Accountants . The sufficiency of these procedures is solely the responsibility of
the specified users of the report . Consequently , we make no representation regarding the
sufficiency of the procedures described in the accompanying appendix that follows either for the
purpose for which this report has been requested or for any other purpose .
We were not engaged to , and did not conduct an audit, the objective of which would be the
expression of an opinion on the completeness and accuracy of the End- of-Year Pupil and
Financial Report filed with the Department . Accordingly, we do not express such an opinion .
Had we performed additional procedures , other matters might have come to our attention that
would have been reported to you .
This report is intended solely for the information and use of the specified parties listed above and
is not intended to be and should not be used by anyone other than those specified parties .
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Certified Public Accountants
May 2 , 2006
SUMMARY OF PROCEDURES
Massachusetts School Districts must use the standard financial reporting schedules contained in
the End - of-Year Pupil and Financial Report . These schedules include financial and non-financial
data . The financial information must be traceable to the accounting ledgers of the district or of
the municipality or to a documented methodology . The non-financial information must be
traceable to records or to documented methodology that demonstrates the information was
compiled from existing records .
The Department of Education issued twenty specific compliance requirements which are to be
performed for the engagement of the School District ' s End- of-Year Pupil and Financial Report.
Listed below are the agreed upon procedures specified in the Department of Education
Compliance Supplement ;
Schedule 1
1 . Trace the amounts reported for general fund education expenditures from the Statement of
Revenues , Expenditures and Changes in Fund Balances (or the total Schedule 1
expenditures) to the municipal accounting ledgers and to the district accounting ledgers .
These amounts should agree . If a " crosswalk" exists between the municipal and district
ledgers , obtain an understanding of the crosswalk and determine if the crosswalk is
reasonable .
2 . Trace the amounts reported for a sample of DOE functions (i . e . teaching, principal) in
Schedule 1 to the detail in accounting ledgers . These amounts should agree .
3 . Trace the sum of professional and other salaries in Schedule 1 to the payroll expenditure total
in the accounting ledgers . These amounts should agree .
4 . Trace the sum of other expenditures in Schedule 1 to the non-payroll expenditure total in the
accounting ledgers . These amounts should agree .
5 . Trace the amounts reported on Schedule 3 to the following DOE functions reported on
Schedule 1 : 2100 Supervisory ; 2300 Teaching; 2400 Textbooks and Instructional Equipment;
2700 Guidance ; and 2800 Psychological . These amounts should agree . Ascertain the
methodology used to allocate , distribute or assign Supervisory, Teaching, Guidance and
Psychological costs and determine if that methodology was utilized .
6 . Review expenditures for Extraordinary Maintenance (4300) . Verify that this amount does not
include salaries . Verify that these expenditures include applicable principal portions of a loan
or the cost of a lease/purchase agreement . Verify that expenditures classified as a 4300
account must not exceed the per project dollar limit for extraordinary maintenance
($ 100 , 000) . Trace amounts to the detail in the accounting ledgers .
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SUMMARY OF PROCEDURES
Schedule 1 , continued
7 . Trace total education revenues reported from the Statement of Revenues , Expenditures and
Changes in Fund Balances (or from the municipal accounting ledgers and district accounting
ledgers) to total Schedule 1 revenues . These amounts should agree .
8 . Trace the total school district revenue reported from federal grants , state grants , and
revolving and special funds to the detail in district accounting ledgers . These amounts should
agree .
9 . Trace the amounts reported for a sample of State Objects (professional salaries (01 ) , other
salaries (02) and other expenditures (04 — 06) along with a sample of DOE Programs (regular
day , SPED , etc .) and a sample of DOE Functions (such as general administration 1100 , 1200)
to the detail in the accounting ledgers . These amounts should agree .
10 . Ascertain if the following DOE Functions are distributed , allocated or assigned to Programs
(regular day , SPED , etc . ) . Trace the amounts reported by DOE Function to Programs to the
accounting ledgers or to a documented methodology . These amounts should agree to the
ledgers or to the methodology .
• 2100 Supervisory
• 2300 Teaching
• 2400 Textbook & Instructional Equipment
• 2700 Guidance
• 2800 Psychological
• 3300 Pupil Transportation
• 6200 Civic Activities
• 6800 Health Non-Public Schools
• 6900 Transportation Non-Public
• 9000 Payments to other Districts
11 . Trace the amounts reported for a sample of grade level totals in Schedule 3 to the detail in
accounting ledgers and to the total in Schedule 1 . These amounts should agree . Obtain a
listing of teachers by grade level (salaries and FTEs) and compare to the total amount of
dollars reported on Schedule 1 and FTEs reported on Schedule 13 . These amounts should
also agree .
12 . Ascertain the methodology used for assigning or allocating expenditures for fringe benefits to
school district expenditures for Employee Benefits . Trace the reported cost to this
methodology and to the detail in the accounting ledgers . These amounts should agree .
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SUMMARY OF PROCEDURES
Schedule 1 , continued .
13 . Determine the expenditures reported as long-term School Construction debt for principal
( 8100) and interest (8200) . Verify that bond anticipation notes are not included . Verify the
reported totals to the Treasurer ' s debt schedule . Trace the reported amount to the detail in the
accounting ledgers . These amounts should agree .
14 . Trace the expenditures for tuition payments ; to other school districts in state (9100) , to out of
state schools (9200) , to non-public schools (9300) , to member collaboratives (9400), and
assessments to member regional school districts (9500) to the detail in the accounting
ledgers . These amounts should agree .
15 . For municipal expenditures that result in services directly related to the school committee,
determine the methodology used to allocate , distribute or assign municipal expenditures to
the district . Test the amounts reported using this methodology . These amounts should agree .
Schedule 4
16 . Ascertain the methodology used to allocate, distribute or assign SPED costs to the prototype
on Schedule 4 . Test the amounts reported on Schedule 4 using this methodology . These
amounts should agree .
17 . Trace the costs reported by prototype on Schedule 4 to the corresponding students
(headcount and FTE) reported on Schedule 11 . Check the consistency in reporting categories
of prototypes in Schedule 4 to Schedule 11 .
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SUMMARY OF PROCEDURES
Schedule 7
18 , For expenditures , trace the amounts reported for a sample of Programs (such as Regular Day,
Bilingual, Occupational Day) along with a sample of lines (such as Within The District and
Outside The District) to the detail in the accounting ledgers or determine the methodology
that allocates , distributes or assigns transportation expenditures and trace the amounts
reported to this methodology for :
• Pupils transported at Ieast 1 %2 miles by school transportation vehicles
• Pupils transported at least 1 '/2 miles by public utility
• Non-reimbursable and SPED expenditures
• Depreciation
The amounts should agree to the ledger or to the methodology .
19 . For pupils , trace the amounts reported for a sample of Programs (such as Bilingual ,
Occupational Day) along with a sample of lines (such as Within The District and Outside
The District) to the detail or to a methodology that allocates , distributes or assigns
transportation pupils or to the detail in the accounting ledgers for ,
• Pupils transported at least 1 %2 miles by school transportation vehicles
• Pupils transported at least 1 %2 miles by public utility
• Non-reimbursable and SPED expenditures
Schedule 19
20 . Determine whether the School District reports changes to the "A . 1 Appropriation By School
Committee section of Schedule 19 " to DOE . Compare the final School Committee
Appropriation to the Schedule 19 as filed/amended to determine if changes were reported .
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FINDINGS AND RECOMMENDATIONS
1 . Finding: Schedule 1 — requirement 15 — In our review of municipal expenditures that
resulted in services directly related to the school committee we noted that the amount
reported on line 2100 — (Purchase of Land & Buildings) was not in agreement with the
municipality ' s accounting ledgers . The municipality ' s accounting ledgers indicated that the
amount of expenditures that resulted in services directly related to the school committee and
reported on line 2100 was $ 617 , 897 and not $234, 059 as reported on Schedule 1 .
Criteria: The amounts reported for municipal expenditures that result in services directly
related to the school committee should agree to the municipality ' s accounting ledgers .
Recommendation : We recommend that the municipality report all municipal expenditures
that result in services directly related to the school committee as recorded in the
municipality ' s accounting ledgers .
Response: The $234 , 359 should have been the estimate for FY 06 and was put on the FY 05
Actual report . The Actual is $ 617 , 897 for FY 05 . The $234 , 059 should have been reported on
Schedule 19 .
2 . Finding: Schedule 19 — requirement 20 — The Brewster School Department did not report
changes to the "A . 1 Appropriation by School Committee section of Schedule 19 " to the
DOE . Additional Town Funds were appropriated at the Special Town Meeting in November
2005 , for the purpose of funding the cleric of the works .
Criteria. Changes to the "A . 1 Appropriation by School Committee section of Schedule 19"
should be reported to the DOE within 30 days .
Recommendation : We recommend that the Brewster School Department report all changes
to the "A . 1 Appropriation by School Committee section of Schedule 19 " to the DOE within a
timely manner in accordance with DOE guidelines .
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Response: In the future , changes in appropriations as the result of Special Town Meetings
will be reported to the Department of Education within thirty days .
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