The Office of the Comptroller of Puerto Rico issues a qualified opinion on the fiscal operations of the Municipality of Dorado. A qualified opinion is issued when the noncompliances individually or together are significant but not pervasive.
The Report reveals that 126 credit transfers between budgetary items were authorized for $4.3 million, without the surplus certifications. The director of Finance did not prepare the certifications on the available balances and surpluses. A similar deficiency had been commented on in Audit Report M-15-05 of September 4, 2014. In addition, contrary to Act 81-1991 on Autonomous Municipalities, the Mayor approved credit transfers without ensuring that they were remitted for the approval of the Municipal Legislature.
The six-finding audit notes that the Municipality was forced to pay $10,839 in surcharges for overdrafts of up to $1.4 million in the bank accounts and checks paid without funds. A similar situation had been identified in Report M-15-05 of 2014. The Municipality also had to pay a fine to the Environmental Quality Board for not remitting the Manifest for the disposal of non-hazardous solid waste.
Contrary to the law and regulations in effect, the Municipality of Dorado registered and remitted to the Office of the Comptroller of Puerto Rico only 266 of the 3,375 awarded contracts and 439 amendments of the 1,969 awarded, with delays of up to a year and a half. The total amount of the contracts formalized from 2013 to 2016 amounted to $191 million.
Our auditors detected deficiencies in the invoices and in the disbursement vouchers, such as the lack of information about the services and work carried out in accordance with what was contracted. In addition, the official collector did not sign 66 closing reports for $1.1 million and 90 collection receipts were canceled without recording the signature or indicating the reasons for the cancellation.
The Report comments that Dorado had to pay $47,150 in fees to the attorneys of a religious organization by order of the Court, for failing to comply with a judgment regarding that organization's access to the Municipality's residential developments. In addition, as of December 31, 2016, the Municipality had pending resolution in the Court 15 civil lawsuits for $8.2 million, 3 lawsuits for preliminary injunction, and five employee cases before the Public Service Appellate Commission (CASP).
The Report covers the period from January 1, 2013 to June 30, 2017
See Audit Report M-19-06.
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