Southtowns Record

Town of Brant – Transparency of Fiscal Activities (S9-25-23)

Government
Town of Brant
Posted by publisher
Mar 20, 2026
Kind
State audit
Topics
Audits and oversight, Budget and taxes

Publisher's summary

Did the Town of Brant (Town) Board (Board) conduct or provide for an annual audit of the Town Supervisor’s (Supervisor) financial records and reports, and did the Supervisor file the Annual Financial Report (AFR) with the Office of the State Comptroller (OSC) as required?

Original document

Text · page 9 of 17

Appendix A: Profile, Criteria and Resources

Profile

The Town is located in Erie County, and is governed by the elected Board, composed of the Supervisor
and four Board members.

The Board is responsible for overseeing the Town’s financial operations and safeguarding its resources.
As the Town’s Chief Fiscal Officer (CFO) since 2018, the Supervisor is assisted by a part-time
appointed bookkeeper who is responsible for recording cash receipts and disbursements, processing
disbursement checks, and assisting the Supervisor with the preparation of monthly financial reports.

Criteria – Transparency of Fiscal Activities

Towns are governed by an elected town board, composed of a fixed number of elected board members
and a town supervisor. With certain exceptions,4 a town board is required by Town Law Sections 62 and
123 to annually audit the town supervisor’s books and records.

A town supervisor is a town’s Chief Executive Officer (CEO). Generally, a supervisor is also the town’s
CFO and is responsible for maintaining the town’s financial records and reports. The accounting
records should be up-to-date and should document assets, liabilities, fund balance and results of
operations (revenues and expenditures) for each town fund. The town supervisor must maintain an
accurate and complete accounting of all funds received and disbursed, and deposit town funds within
10 days of receipt, as required by Town Law Section 29.

A town supervisor’s financial books and records, as per OSC guidance available in our LGMG
publication Fiscal Oversight Responsibilities of the Governing Board, can include:

  • Cash receipt and disbursement transactions,  • Deposit protections,

  • Cash reconciliations,  • Indebtedness and property records,

  • Receivables,  • Payrolls, and

  • Investment records,  • Financial reports.

Audits provide the town board with the opportunity to assess the effectiveness of financial operations
and help ensure that adequate board oversight is maintained over town operations. An annual audit
also provides an independent verification that transactions are properly recorded, that town funds

4 See Supra, footnote 1

  Of f ic e of t he New York State Comptroller  7