Saturday, March 2, 2019

How convenient . . .
 Posted on the Templeton Town web site under sewer collections report as:

As a matter of sound financial management practice, those responsible for determining payments due the town should not also be charged with collecting those payments. Therefore, we recommend that officials separate responsibility for creating the commitment that authorizes the collection of taxes, fees or other charges due the municipality from the collection function.”

It is stated that is from the financial review of 2009 by the Massachusetts Department of Revenue,

That is not the complete opinion from the DOR financial review:

19. Centralize the Collection of Taxes, Fees and Other Charges As a matter of sound financial management practice, those responsible for determining payments due the town should not also be charged with collecting those payments. Therefore, we recommend that officials separate responsibility for creating the commitment that authorizes the collection of taxes, fees or other charges due the municipality from the collection function. Presently, the light & water plant and sewer department create a commitment, and, at the same time, are responsible for receiving payments. This approach may require that personnel currently operating elsewhere be reallocated to the collector’s office in order to process the additional customer volume.

Portion in bold was left off of the posting, why is that?


The present Town Treasurer / Collector was not aware she was responsible for the tracking of the Town's cash!

The recommendations over the years has always been collections; not billing, not personnel. We have elected Sewer Commissioners for a reason!

Other town departments collect money after generating a bill and those are not addressed by the selectmen; why not? It really is about the money, selectmen Brooks "can we charge sewer and will that help the general fund." BOS meeting, April 2, 2018.