New Canaan Audit Committee Orders Final Report on Procurement Audit
Other Committee · Meeting of April 17, 2026
New Canaan audit panel orders final procurement audit report as chairman departs. The Audit Committee directed outside auditor CLA to reissue its town and school procurement audit reports as final, dropping the draft stamp, after subcommittee chairman Bill said "the reports as they stand ... are in good shape." Budget and Financial Systems Manager Ryan reported town General Fund revenue at $176.3 million, "100.6 percent of budget," with expenses at $125.2 million, 69.2 percent of budget. Board of Education finances showed year-to-date operating expenses of $67.9 million against a $113.8 million budget, with $1.9 million in awarded grants.
The committee also requested a future cybersecurity briefing and flagged concerns about thin Board of Education disclosure in the annual report, tied to Government Finance Officers Association award standards. It was the last meeting for the committee's outgoing chairman, term-limited after two terms; a successor will be picked June 17.
In the full story:
- The complete report — 941 words
Source: the Other Committee meeting of April 17, 2026, reported from the official video recording and transcript.
The Full Article
NEW CANAAN — April 17, 2026 — The New Canaan Audit Committee directed its outside auditor Friday to reissue a two-year procurement audit of town and school finances as a final report, dropping its "draft" stamp, in what its outgoing chairman said was likely his last meeting after two terms leading the panel.
The committee also heard year-to-date financial reports showing the town's General Fund revenue running at $176.3 million, or 100.6 percent of this year's budget, and the Board of Education's operating expenses at $67.9 million, or 59.7 percent of its $113.8 million budget through February. Members asked for a future briefing on cybersecurity and raised concerns about the level of Board of Education detail in the town's annual financial report.
The Full Story
The committee opened by approving the minutes of its February 11 meeting, which had started two hours late because of a snowstorm, then turned to an update from its internal audit subcommittee on a procurement audit conducted by the accounting firm CLA. The subcommittee, whose chairman was identified only as Bill, met separately with town finance staff on March 23 and Board of Education staff on March 20 to review CLA's findings and management's responses.
Bill told the full committee both meetings were constructive, with discussion centered on strengthening purchasing policies and procedures, credit card use and large purchase orders. He said committee members Janet and Tony, who also sat on the subcommittee, agreed the underlying CLA reports were essentially complete, with implementation of the recommendations treated as a separate, ongoing phase.
Anne, who leads the town's finance office, told the committee she is customizing a comprehensive policies-and-procedures manual, adapted from an outside audit firm's template, that will come before the committee and then the Board of Selectmen for approval. She estimated three to six months for full implementation but committed to sending the committee a recommendation-by-recommendation timeline within days. The town's finance department also has two vacancies: a staff accountant position currently posted internally, and a newly created purchasing agent role that will oversee all town contracts once the accountant position is filled.
Ryan, the town's budget and financial systems manager, walked the committee through the March financial report presented earlier to the Board of Finance. Current tax collections stood at $165.5 million, 100.9 percent of budget, while transfer station tipping fees lagged at just 50 percent of budget, which staff attributed to haulers choosing other facilities this year. Total town expenses through the period were $125.2 million, 69.2 percent of the year's budget.
Shawn and Pat Marinan, who leads the Board of Education's business office, then briefed the full committee on the schools' side of the procurement audit and walked through the district's finance organizational chart, including business office staff Nelson Chan, Janine, Eileen Patassi and Katie O'Neal. Marinan reported the district's February statement of accounts, including school lunch revenue of $1.688 million against a $3.2 million budget and a net fund balance of $772,000.
Members pressed for the audit reports to be finalized quickly rather than wait for the committee's next scheduled meeting, June 17. Auditors and staff agreed to have CLA reissue both the town and school reports without the draft designation within about a week.
"I think the sense of the committee is that the reports as they stand, including the responses by the town and the schools, are in good shape." — Bill, chairman of the audit committee's internal audit subcommittee.
"We are, with three months left in the year, over budget on revenue, which is great." — Ryan, the town's budget and financial systems manager.
In new business, a member asked that the town's annual comprehensive financial report include more explanation of what drives Board of Education spending changes. Anne responded that the Government Finance Officers Association had previously flagged the report's detailed Board of Education section as inconsistent with its award standards, prompting the town to pare it back to keep its GFOA certification. Members also asked for a future cybersecurity update, potentially in joint executive session with the Board of Finance, and raised questions about the town's bank account and signatory approval process amid Webster Bank's acquisition by Santander.
"We've learned over the past two years that while the committee needs CPAs, we don't need a committee of five CPAs. The sweet spot is three or four." — the committee's outgoing chairman.
Why It Matters
The procurement audit's close-out means updated purchasing, credit card and contracting policies for both the town and the Board of Education are expected within three to six months, subject to Board of Selectmen approval. The committee's push for a truly final CLA report, rather than a lingering draft, is meant to formally close out a process that has run since at least last year.
The meeting also marked a leadership change: the committee's chairman, term-limited after two terms, is stepping down, with a successor to be named at the June 17 meeting. Separately, members flagged that Board of Education spending, the town's largest expenditure category, gets less narrative explanation in the official annual report than some members want, a tension tied to national award standards the town has chosen to keep pursuing.
Key Motions & Votes
- Vote: Approval of the February 11, 2026 meeting minutes Tally: Approved unanimously - Vote: Motion to adjourn the meeting Tally: Approved unanimously
No other formal votes were taken. The committee's direction to finalize the CLA procurement audit reports, the cybersecurity briefing request and the banking-policy question were handled by consensus rather than roll-call vote.
Source
Town Of New Canaan: Audit Committee meeting, April 17, 2026