Bill Text: NY A05906 | 2019-2020 | General Assembly | Introduced

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Bill Title: Makes internal audit functions optional by school districts unless an audit by the comptroller reveals deficiencies; provides that where deficiencies are found, school districts shall perform bi-annual internal audits until the comptroller conducts another audit of such school district.

Spectrum: Partisan Bill (Democrat 1-0)

Status: (Introduced - Dead) 2020-01-08 - referred to education [A05906 Detail]

Download: New_York-2019-A05906-Introduced.html

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                STATE OF NEW YORK
        ________________________________________________________________________
                                          5906
                               2019-2020 Regular Sessions
                   IN ASSEMBLY
                                    February 20, 2019
                                       ___________
        Introduced  by M. of A. GALEF -- read once and referred to the Committee
          on Education
        AN ACT to amend the education law, in relation to making internal  audit
          functions  optional  by  school districts unless an audit by the comp-
          troller reveals deficiencies
          The People of the State of New York, represented in Senate and  Assem-
        bly, do enact as follows:
     1    Section  1. Subdivisions 1, 2 and 7 of section 2116-b of the education
     2  law, subdivisions 1 and 7 as added by chapter 263 of the laws  of  2005,
     3  and subdivision 2 as amended by section 4 of part A of chapter 57 of the
     4  laws  of  2013,  are amended and a new subdivision 8 is added to read as
     5  follows:
     6    1. No later than July first, two thousand six,  each  school  district
     7  shall  establish  an internal audit function to be in operation no later
     8  than the following December thirty-first. Such function  shall  include:
     9  (a)  development  of a risk assessment of district operations, including
    10  but not limited to, a review of financial policies  and  procedures  and
    11  the  testing and evaluation of district internal controls; (b) [an annu-
    12  al] a review and update of such risk assessment; and (c) preparation  of
    13  reports[,  at least annually or more frequently as the trustees or board
    14  of education may direct,]  which  analyze  significant  risk  assessment
    15  findings,  recommend  changes  for  strengthening  controls and reducing
    16  identified risks, and specify  timeframes  for  implementation  of  such
    17  recommendations.
    18    2. School districts of less than eight teachers, school districts with
    19  actual general fund expenditures totaling less than five million dollars
    20  in  the previous school year, or school districts with actual enrollment
    21  of less than one thousand five hundred students in the  previous  school
    22  year shall be exempt from this requirement. Any school district claiming
    23  such  exemption  shall  [annually] certify to the commissioner that such
    24  school district meets the requirements set forth in this subdivision.
         EXPLANATION--Matter in italics (underscored) is new; matter in brackets
                              [ ] is old law to be omitted.
                                                                   LBD01617-01-9
        A. 5906                             2
     1    7. Nothing in this section shall be construed as  requiring  a  school
     2  district  in any city with a population of one hundred twenty-five thou-
     3  sand or more to replace or modify an existing  internal  audit  function
     4  where  such  function already exists by special or local law, so long as
     5  the  superintendent  of the district [annually] certifies to the commis-
     6  sioner that the existing internal audit function meets  or  exceeds  the
     7  requirements of this section.
     8    8.    Notwithstanding  any other provision of law to the contrary, the
     9  internal audit function established pursuant to this  section  shall  be
    10  optional  by all school districts unless the comptroller finds deficien-
    11  cies in the audit performed pursuant  to  section  thirty-three  of  the
    12  general  municipal  law.  If  deficiencies are found by the comptroller,
    13  school districts shall perform biennial internal audits until the  comp-
    14  troller conducts another audit of such school district.
    15    §  2.  This act shall take effect on the first of July next succeeding
    16  the date on which it shall have become a law.