Green Mountain Outlook

Montpelier — In recent years, there's been a significant increase in embezzlements in Vermont. Last year Auditor Tom Salmon created a ten member Vermont Municipal Advisory Committee to address embezzlement. This committee included town treasurers, city finance directors, two admitted embezzlers and Don Keelan the CPA advisor for the committee.

Subsequently, the committee created a two-page internal control checklist which was sent to municipal officials who were responsible for cash resources in their community.

The committee recommended town and school board officials obtain continuing education of three to six hours on internal controls over money.

According to Keelan, the following list of embezzlements in recent years were presented to the Legislature.

The information that he presented included the position, amount stoen and town:

Child Services, $490,000, Newport

Office Manager, $1.5 million, Hardwick

Town Treasurer, $404,000, Ira

Sheriff, $65,000, Windsor

Town Clerk/Treasurer, $100,000, Isle Lamont

Town Clerk, $200,000, Bakersfield

Village Treasurer, $110,000, Old Bennington

Office Manager, $290,000, Burlington

Bookkeeper, $42,000, Addison

The above embezzled amounts total over $3 million.

According to Keelan the attitude toward embezzlement is as follows: We are sorry you need the money; maybe you can pay it back; we won't collect income taxes on your ill gotten gains; we will ask you to do community service; yours was not a crime of violence.

The legislation this year will call for a certified or public accountant to audit municipal accounts. In addition a legislative body of a municipality may contract with a public accountant, to provide an annual financial audit on petition of five percent of the legal voters.

Audits performed would have to be in accordance with generally accepted auditing standards including a report on internal control of financial reporting. If there were material weaknesses, or sufficient deficiencies found by the voters, the following would take place:

1. the auditor or public accountant would present the findings to the legislative body of the town and explain the weaknesses or deficiencies; when the letter or report is delivered, the notice of the next meeting of the legislative body should also notify the voters of the audit report.

2. The next annual report of the town would include a summary of the deficiencies found in the internal controls of the financial reporting;

3. The legislative body would be required to post an audit report and this report would have to he put on the municipal website if the municipality has a website"