New Hyde Park Village Board Meeting

By Margaret Whitely

At the last meeting of the New Hyde Park Village board, the board room was filled with village residents who wanted to know the findings of the special investigator, hired by the village, to investigate some of the signatures on the recent petition for a referendum to disband the village.

Village Attorney Steve Oborn explained to the not too friendly crowd that the reason he engaged investigators at all was the fact that some of the signatures were recognizably signed by the same person and in some cases some of the signatures on the petition were those of deceased persons in the village. Due to the irregularities of the signatures the village rejected the petitions as submitted.

The crowd was not happy with his explanation and, as has happened in the past, the audience hooted and howled as he tried to explain further. He ended his report by stating that as soon as the report was completed he would present it to the board and the board, in turn, would make it public.

Then Marty and Evelyn Cris presented an anonymous threatening letter they had received, to the board. They said they are very upset about the letter and the board agreed they should be. They said they have contacted the police and other proper authorities regarding the letter. Cris said the letter was received only after a letter to the editor she wrote was published in the Illustrated News. Apparently, somewhere in the letter a threat was made on Cris's life.

The board then released the following report from the village treasurer, Frank Valerio, regarding the financial report of the Village of New Hyde Park:

The Village of New Hyde Park is pleased to report that the audited financial statements for the year ended May 31 have been received and filed with the village clerk.

The fiscal data reports a net over-expenditure of $25,000, which includes a surplus of $111,000 in the general fund; $19,000 surplus in the library fund; $2,000 surplus in the trust fund and $157,000 overspent for road improvements and equipment purchases. This was after the prior year's net surplus of $172,000. The village has an overall surplus of $540,000 which includes amounts for unanticipated expenses and for restricted purposes such as future road construction and equipment purchases.

Each August an auditing firm starts its audit of the prior year's financial data. The work usually lasts through the month with a draft report sent to the village by the second week in September. After the draft is reviewed by the treasurer it is discussed with the mayor and the board of trustees and corrections, if necessary, are made. The auditors address any changes and the final report is then issued by the first week in October. The report is made available by the end of October after the public notice has been published.

The auditors' reports for the last several years have been unqualified reports which means that nothing out of the ordinary was noted in the financial data audited and that the accounting policies of the village are reasonable and in conformity with government guidelines which includes the budget process.

A budget is a plan of estimated expenses and revenues for a certain period of time. For the village this period is annually from June 1 through May 31. During the budget period, adjustments are made to correct changes which actually occur. The village treasurer reviews the financial data as necessary, no less than once monthly. The mayor and board of trustees also get a copy of the same information as the treasurer which is then discussed.

The next village board meeting will be held on Dec. 16 at 8 p.m. at village hall, corner of New Hyde Park Road and Jericho Turnpike.