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their transactions and certified that their purchases were supported and for proper Town purposes without the oversight of another official. We discussed the lack of oversight of the former Director’s credit card purchases with the Board members and the current Supervisor and Director. The Supervisor and Director told us they are working on drafting a credit card policy to address the deficiencies identified. Two Board members who were on the Board when the former Director made these credit card purchases told us that they were part-time and they did not have time nor were they in a position to review every credit card purchase or to audit every claim. These Board members told us that they relied on the former Supervisor and Director for day-to-day operations, and the individual Board members who were assigned liaison roles for selected departments and audited that department’s claims and reported the results to the Board. While the Board can assign certain duties to other Town officials, the Board as a whole remains responsible for the general oversight of the Town’s operations and finances, including the proper audit of claims. Because unsupervised credit card use increases the potential for unauthorized purchases, the Board should establish adequate written policies and monitor and enforce compliance. Without a comprehensive policy enforced by the Board, there is limited control over the use of credit cards and the Town could potentially pay for unauthorized or excessive purchases and officials could have difficulty recovering inappropriate or questionable charges. What Do We Recommend? The Board should: 1. Adopt a written credit card policy that establishes procedures for documenting credit card purchases, authorizing credit card use, and reviewing, reconciling and approving credit card transactions. 2. Perform a thorough audit and review of all claims, including credit card statements, and ensure credit card transactions are supported and for proper Town purposes prior to approving payment. 3. Require that department head credit card purchases are reviewed and approved by an appropriate official, such as the Supervisor. The Director should: 4. Ensure all credit card purchases are documented on the transaction logs prior to payment, supported by itemized invoices or receipts and authorized and approved. Of f ic e of t he New York State Comptroller 5