Purpose of Audit

The purpose of our audit was to review the District’s financial condition and nonresident tuition for foster students for the period July 1, 2014 through December 31, 2015.

Background

The Oswego City School District is located in the City of Oswego, the Towns of Minetto, Oswego, Scriba and Volney in Oswego County and the Town of Sterling in Cayuga County. The District, which operates seven schools with approximately 3,800 students, is governed by an elected seven-member Board of Education. Budgeted appropriations for the 2015-16 fiscal year totaled approximately $82.8 million.

Key Findings

• The Board does not have a multiyear financial plan.
• The District does not have an effective process to identify all nonresident foster students receiving educational services and bill their school districts for those services.
• The District did not bill and collect about $237,000 in reimbursement for students.

Key Recommendations

• Develop and adopt a multiyear financial operating plan to provide a framework for future budgets and to facilitate the District’s management of financial operations.
• Develop and communicate procedures to ensure that nonresident foster students are properly identified and that accurate bills are prepared and submitted to school districts of origin in a timely manner.
• Bill or rebill the appropriate school districts for services provided in past years to nonresident foster students. District officials should contact the State Education Department to determine if there is any limitation on previous years that can be billed.