A state audit of Neosho’s city court called for strengthened accounting practices.
The Neosho Municipal Division of the 40th Judicial Circuit audit performed by Missouri State Auditor Susan Montee’s office was released this week.
The audit called for greater control of signature stamps, requested bonds for the municipal judge, court clerk and deputy court clerk, asked that accounting duties be more segregated and reconciliations be more thoroughly documented.
Auditors sat down with Neosho Municipal Judge Patricia Brock Loveland to review the court’s books. The audit found no fraud or violations of law.
Deficiencies were minor, said Neosho interim manager Harlan Moore, noting that audits like this one improve safeguards at the city.
“An audit is how we improve the way we do business,” Moore said. “It’s not a bad thing. People get scared – I think because they associate the audit with the IRS and that’s not really the case when we get an audit like this. They help us in functionality to make sure we’re working within the law, the way the law says and they help us to do things right. It’s a good thing. It just helps us run the business of whatever they’re auditing better.”
Most everything noted in the audit process was fixed before its release.
Transactions that should have occurred, didn’t Moore said, leaving money stranded in the wrong accounts. Those funds will be more closely watched and procedures – like the recommended reconciliations – will be put in place.
The audit report asked the court to thoroughly document the judge’s review signature stamped documents.
Reconciliations, the audit said, were not timely enough. The audit documented one instance where November and December 2009 bank reconciliations not completed until March 2010.
The city agreed to stop using a signature stamp and that the judge will sign all documents and checks personally, and review monthly reconciliations for the two bank accounts by mid-month.
The court started taking credit cards in August of last year and auditors found adjustments to credit card receipts, but said receipts were not reconciled to deposits in the division’s bank account or computer system and that some checks were deposited to the city’s account instead of to the division.
The municipal division charges $4 for credit card transactions and disburses transaction fees to the city each month, but expenses are charged to the municipal division instead of to the city.
