Report of Examination click on above link to view report.
Period Covered:
January 1, 2006 — March 31, 2007
2007M-259
Gordon Heights
Fire District
Internal Controls Over
Financial Operation
“The District has a tax rate of approximately $64 for every $100
of assessed value, the highest of any fire district in the Town of
Brookhaven. A major reason for the District’s high tax rate is that
the District comprises primarily residential properties, with few
commercial properties. Although our audit identified some areas
where the District could have reduced expenses, these potential cost
reductions would have little effect on the District’s tax rate”.
Gordon Heights Fire Dept. Gets Audited
By:Karen Forman
02/20/2008
A DISTRICT DIVIDED— An audit released from the state comptroller’s office examined the financial practices of the Gordon Heights Fire District. Residents in the GHFD have been speaking out about what they believe are unfairly high fire district taxes.
A number of residents within the Gordon Heights Fire District have been speaking out against what they believe are incredibly high fire district taxes. Now, locals are hoping that their concerns will be addressed, as New York State Comptroller Tom DiNapoli's office just released its audit report of the Gordon Heights Fire District.
The audit identified five main areas where the district could have reduced expenses: At their annual fire installation dinner; at their annual conference in Baltimore; in their procurement of professional services; in their use of the pool vehicle; and in their use of vehicle fuel.
However, Bill Reynolds, spokesperson for the comptroller's office, pointed out that "even though the district should reduce expenses in these areas, these potential cost reductions would have little effect on the district's tax rate," which, at $64 per $100 of assessed value, is the highest in the town of Brookhaven.
As previously reported in Suffolk Life, the problem is that Gordon Heights has almost no commercial properties to offset all the residential homes. And it's a Catch-22, according to activist Rosalie Hanson. "To bring down the taxes, the area needs to bring in more commercial properties," she said, "but with the high tax rate, commercial businesses are hesitant to come into the area."
Responding to the findings in the audit, Gordon Heights Fire Chief Erton Rudder said he thought "it was an excellent report. No misappropriation of funds. No mismanagement. No fraud. We need to improve some things. The treasurer needs some oversight just to make sure everything is being done properly, which it is. The reason our taxes are so high is because of the lack of commercial properties in our district. People shouldn't be blaming us for the way the lines were drawn 60 years ago, making us almost all residential. That's what we should be working on, trying to fix that."
The audit covers the period of January 1, 2006 through March 31, 2007, and included some criticisms of the fire district. The audit stated that the GHFD "did not establish guidelines to adequately control certain expenditures." With the installation dinner, for example, because they invited people other than the district's volunteer firefighters, they incurred additional costs of approximately $12,100 in 2006 and $11,300 in 2007.
Area resident Gina Previte believes that "the audit report does two things. It officially proves that the district has an insufficient tax base to sustain the demands of the current technology and mandates required to run a fire district properly and it confirms the commissioner's lack of regard and respect for the already overburdened taxpayer. Their extra and unnecessary spending, such as the overdone installation dinner, will not remedy our tax base problem and simply adds insult to injury."
"Our menu [for the installation dinner] is very reasonable, very standard," responded GHFD Commissioner James Kelly, who said all the issues in the audit report have been or are being addressed. "Should we be serving frankfurters instead of steaks? We invited more than just the firefighters because we want to honor our benefactors, such as [Assemblywoman] Pat Eddington (WF-Medford), who got us a $100,000 grant, and [Congressman] Tim Bishop (D-Coram) and [Brookhaven Fourth District Councilwoman] Connie Kepert. Cornerstone Church gives us $1,000 every year, so they are invited. The Coram Fire Department helps us out occasionally, so they get invited. Anyway, it shouldn't be about the dinner once a year. It should be about us saving lives 365 days a year."
But arguing that "99% of the calls they get are ambulance calls," Middle Island resident Willie Gadson said the fire district "should make the fire house an ambulance hub and let us merge with one of the other area fire districts. I can walk to the Coram and Middle Island fire houses from my house ... Fifty years ago they say that the other fire districts wouldn't come put out a fire at a black person's house. Maybe that's true. I wasn't around here 50 years ago. But now, as a black person in 2008, if I call 911, Middle Island and Coram will get to my house before Gordon Heights would. It's not about saving lives anymore. The public will still be served if we dissolve the GHFD ... People don't want to buy my house if they can buy the house across the street and pay $1,000 less in fire taxes."
The audit report also focused on the district's "pool vehicle," which was supposed to be used to transport district officials to and from three conferences, less than 1,500 total miles. But according to the odometer, the car was driven approximately 7,700 miles during the audit period. There were no records to account for the additional 6,200 miles - an average of about 100 miles each week - according to the audit.
In addition, the comptroller's office found that there are two fuel pumps on-site at the district's fire house, and that 5,013 gallons of unleaded gasoline were purchased from them, costing $11,285, but the fuel usage log book accounted for only 2,761 gallons for "authorized district purposes." The district also purchased 2,655 gallons of diesel fuel, costing $6,013, but recorded a total usage of only 1,784 gallons. Because of this, the report stated that "district officials and taxpayers do not have adequate assurance that the district's vehicle was used for valid and necessary district purposes, and that its fuel inventories were adequately protected from waste, theft, or misuse."
In response to these findings, Kelly said, "There's no mismanagement here ... We went further than they want [to make improvements]. We have responsible people here, professional people who do a wonderful job. We trust the individuals who work for us but now someone's always going to have to watch us, like Big Brother." He stated that they're also looking into getting that system that Brookhaven Town has to monitor the gasoline.
Still believing that the fire district is ripping off the people in Gordon Heights, Gadson said he is angry that no one seems to want to do anything to help. "I've been to town hall; no one has answers," he said. "Everyone's racially uptight nowadays. We're talking about a black fire department and an all-white town board. The fire district knows this and is playing that racial card, so no one on the board wants to touch this. They just nod their heads, give you your three minutes [to speak] and then say good-bye. None of the board lives in Gordon Heights; they don't pay these fire taxes. The fire commissioners know this ... Now this audit will get pushed under the carpet like everything else."
People in the community also are concerned because the fire district is buying new vehicles. "The commissioners go to the politicians with hat in hand crying about how we need this and that, and they are always given grants to help buy rescue equipment," Hanson commented. "But grants cannot be applied to the operating budget. Then they turn around and slap all of us in the face by seeking to purchase four other vehicles."
Defending the fire district, Kelly replied, "They say we're getting a new rig. What should we do? Fight fires on roller skates? Should we fight fires with broken-down equipment? We're trying to save lives. If we show up at your house, which is burning, with broken-down equipment, are you going to be happy?"
Rudder noted that the fire district has "an aging fleet. We have a 1989 pumper truck that's gotten two new motors in the past and has no air conditioning. It's not cost effective to keep fixing it. All the new vehicles have a five-year warranty and repairs are covered. We get a new pumper and it's good for another 20 years."
As for the audit, Kelly added, "The state told us to correct a few things and we did."
Those interested in viewing the audit can obtain the document online at www.osc.state.ny.us/localgov/audits/fired
ists/2008/gordonheights.pdf.
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Adv Gordon heights audit 2/14
Gordon Heights must tighten controls
Audit of fire district cites dinners, accounting, fuel costs and more
By SARAH HARTMANN
A recently released state audit revealed that Gordon Heights Fire District officials failed to exert basic internal controls over numerous financial operations. In its 17-page audit, the Office of the New York State Comptroller described installation dinners and conferences, practices of the treasurer, procurement of professional services, and vehicle and fuel usage as areas in need of clearer policies and stricter controls. The audit covered a 15-month period between Jan. 1, 2006 and March 31, 2007.
The audit comes at the request of numerous elected officials who have been struggling with the ongoing issue as to whether the fire district, which takes great pride in its black history, should or even can be dissolved. Currently, residents living within the fire district pay the highest special district fire taxes in the region.
James Kelly, the fire district’s chairman of the board, pledged to make the necessary adjustments outlined in the audit in order to strengthen internal controls.
According to the audit, the five-member board of commissioners, which is responsible for the district’s fiscal management, did not establish adequate guidelines for the annual installation dinner and for conferences. For both the 2006 and 2007 dinners, auditors found that the cost for the meals per person was reasonable but that the number of guests had not been limited. As a result, approximately 200 people attended each year, with only half being actual fire district volunteers and officials. The other half of attendees was comprised of neighboring fire district officers, community members, and vendors. In 2006, the district spent $28,760. The audit noted that the district could have saved $12,000 if officials had monitored the guest list.
The audit also concluded that the district overspent for conferences, specifically because there was no per diem policy in place for lodging. For instance, in 2006 the district paid a total of $15,500 in lodging for members to attend a convention in Baltimore. For each member, the per diem rate paid was $209 per night, instead of the maximum federal per diem rate (used by most municipalities and entities) of $141.
Furthermore, duties of the fire district’s treasurer were not segregated, thus making it more possible for mistakes to go unnoticed. In the worst case scenario, the fact that the duties are not segregated or at least reviewed leaves the district open for the misuse of funds that could easily be concealed. The treasurer performs duties that include collecting cash, making deposits, and performing bank reconciliations.
The district also ignored some of its own policies. For instance, district officials chose to waive a policy of putting accounting services out to RFP. In 2007, the district paid $11,880 to have its 2006 financial statements audited. Moreover, district officials ignored a policy that would have prohibited the personal use of pool vehicles. Specifically, the requirement that members document their pool vehicle use to show mileage, destination, and purpose of travel was not fulfilled.
Also keys to the district’s two fuel pumps had been missing and presumed stolen for over a year, while two of the four people authorized to use the pumps— the fire chief and the chairman of the board—did not document their fuel usage. Thus in 2006, $17,298 was spent on fuel with no assurances that it was spent for authorized district business.
In a letter of response, Kelly noted that the district would make the necessary adjustments to strengthen internal controls, including the adoption of installation dinner policies, following established polices for procuring professional services, and documenting vehicle and fuel usage. Kelly also noted that locks to the district’s fuel site had been changed and security cameras installed.
Rosalie Hanson, a longtime Gordon Heights resident who has been fighting to have the fire district dissolved, said the audit confirmed the fact that district officials have little respect for the overburdened taxpayers. “How despicable that the commissioners can decide to take limousines to their annual installation dinner, while many residents take the bus to work,” she wrote in a prepared statement.