What's happening
This bill changes the requirement for school district internal audits from annually to once every five years.
Why it matters
Reducing audit frequency from annually to every five years may lower administrative costs. for school districts, potentially freeing up more resources for classrooms or other needs, but it could also reduce regular financial oversight.
Less frequent internal audits may increase the risk of undetected financial mismanagement or inefficiencies. in school district operations, as issues could go unnoticed for longer periods.
The change would apply to all school districts, including those in large cities with existing internal audit processes, overriding any conflicting local or special laws. ; this aims for uniformity, but could disrupt local practices that currently provide more frequent oversight.
School superintendents would only need to certify compliance with audit requirements every five years instead of annually,. which could decrease administrative workload but also reduce the promptness of accountability reporting to the state.
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Who cares
Headline styles
School Audits Every Five Years
Plain English, a few words. Used as the page title.
Sponsors
Senator · Senate District 61
History
- Reported and committed to finance
- Referred to education
- Returned to senate
- Died in assembly
- Referred to education
- Delivered to assembly
- Passed senateVote 45–18
- Ordered to third reading cal.2010
- Committee discharged and committed to rules
- Reported and committed to finance
- Referred to education
Companion bill
The same bill in the other chamber. A bill becomes law when one version passes both houses and the governor signs it, so either number can carry it.
Reduce School Audit Frequency
In Assembly Committee · Education · Sponsor Robin Schimminger
Full text
2 pagesUnderlined is new[Struck] is removedOfficial text on nysenate.gov ↗
STATE OF NEW YORK
2597
2017-2018 Regular Sessions
IN SENATE
January 13, 2017
Introduced by Sens. RANZENHOFER, DeFRANCISCO, FUNKE, GALLIVAN, LARKIN, MARCHIONE, SEWARD -- read twice and ordered printed, and when printed to be committed to the Committee on Education
AN ACT to amend the education law, in relation to extending provisions for internal audits by school districts from annually to every five years
The People of the State of New York, represented in Senate and Assembly, do enact as follows:
Section 1. Subdivisions 1 and 7 of section 2116-b of the education law, as added by chapter 263 of the laws of 2005, are amended to read as follows:
1. No later than July first, two thousand six, each school district shall establish an internal audit function to be in operation no later than the following December thirty-first. Such function shall include: (a) development of a risk assessment of district operations, including but not limited to, a review of financial policies and procedures and the testing and evaluation of district internal controls; (b) [an annual] a review and update of such risk assessment; and (c) preparation of reports[, at least annually or more frequently as the trustees or board of education may direct,] which analyze significant risk assessment findings, recommend changes for strengthening controls and reducing identified risks, and specify timeframes for implementation of such recommendations. Audits performed pursuant to this section shall be completed every five years.
7. Nothing in this section shall be construed as requiring a school district in any city with a population of one hundred twenty-five thousand or more to replace or modify an existing internal audit function where such function already exists by special or local law, so long as the superintendent of the district [annually] certifies to the commissioner that the existing internal audit function meets or exceeds the requirements of this section; provided, however, notwithstanding any
EXPLANATION--Matter in italics (underscored) is new; matter in brackets
[ ] is old law to be omitted.
LBD06146-01-7
S. 2597 2
special or local law to the contrary, school districts shall perform such internal audits every five years.
§ 2. This act shall take effect on the first of July next succeeding the date on which it shall have become a law.
Reflowed for reading: line numbers and page breaks removed. Cite the official text.
Sponsor's memo
Title of bill
An act to amend the education law, in relation to extending provisions for internal audits by school districts from annually to every five years
Purpose or general idea of bill
To reduce the duplicative and onerous requirement of both internal and external annual audits.
Summary of specific provisions
Section 1 - amends subdivisions one and seven of section 2116-b of the Education Law, as added by Chapter 263 of the Laws of 2005 to change the requirement mandated by this section for school districts to perform internal audits annually to require such audit every five years.
Section 2 - provides that this act shall become effective take effect on the first day of July next succeeding the date on which it shall have become law.
Justification
School districts are required by Education Law 2116-a to obtain annual external audits. The requirement that they also perform an internal audit each year, essentially duplicating the same efforts put into the external audit, is wasteful and represents an unfunded mandate that puts yet one more financial burden on school districts that are facing challenging reductions in state aid. In addition to the annual external audits, school districts also must deal with regular audits by the Comptroller. One district has reported that within one twelve month span, they had to tear business office workers away from their usual duties to work with auditors for five separate audits - two internal audits, two external audits and one Comptroller audit. It is critical that the state begin to reduce wasteful and duplicative mandates on our schools to reduce costs, and by extension, real property taxes on our residents and businesses.
Prior legislative history
2011-12 - S.4486/A.8404 -- PASSED SEN/Education 2013-14 - S.2501/A.4166 - EDUCATION/Education 2015-16 - S.1051/A.4345 - PASSED SENATE/Education
Fiscal implications
Savings to school districts across the state.
Effective date
This act shall take effect on the first day of July next succeeding the date on which it shall have become law.
Summaries, headlines and scores are AI-generated from the official bill text. How we score bills. Source: NYS Open Legislation.