From and after December 31, 1982, the office of elected auditors
in the Borough of Baldwin is hereby abolished. Any auditors presently
holding office for the term for which elected shall not, from and
after December 31, 1982, audit, settle or adjust any accounts audited
by such elected auditors, but such elected auditors shall perform
other duties of their office as specified in the Borough Code.
The office of Auditor shall henceforth be held by an independent auditor, who shall be a certified public accountant, registered in Pennsylvania; a firm of certified public accountants so registered; or a competent public accountant or a competent firm of public accountants. The office of independent auditor shall be appointed annually by a resolution of the Borough Council, which resolution shall be adopted before the close of the fiscal year of the Borough and shall authorize the independent auditor to make an independent examination of the accounting records of the Borough for such fiscal year, and such independent auditor shall also perform whatever other duties and shall exercise such powers as are conferred upon the Auditor by the annual resolution of the Borough Council or by the powers and duties created in §
4-3 hereof.
The general powers and duties of the independent auditors appointed
under this chapter shall be as follows:
A. The
independent auditor shall annually examine, audit and settle all accounts
whatsoever in which the Borough is concerned, and the audit shall
consist of an examination in accordance with generally accepted auditing
standards and shall include such tests of the accounting records and
such other auditing procedures as it considers necessary in the circumstances.
B. The
independent auditor shall audit the accounting records of the Borough
for the fiscal year and shall prepare a report on the examination,
which shall set forth:
(1) The scope of its examination.
(2) Its opinion of the fairness of the presentation of the financial
statement of the Borough which shall show a complete statement of
the financial condition of the Borough, giving in detail the actual
indebtedness, the amount of the funded debt, the amount of the floating
debt thereof, the valuation of taxable property therein, the assets
of the Borough with the character and value thereof and the date of
maturity of the respective forms of funded debt thereof.
(3) The amount of any balance or shortage or any expenditure of a kind
or made in a manner prohibited or not authorized by a statute which
came to its attention during the course of its examination and which,
in its opinion, causes a financial loss to the Borough, which loss
is material in relation to the receipts and disbursements of the Borough,
and such amount shall be a surcharge against any officer against whom
such balance or shortage shall appear.
C. It
shall be the duty of the independent auditor:
(1) To file a copy of the report with the Secretary of the Borough and
the Clerk of the Court of Quarter Sessions of the County and the Department
of Community Affairs not less than 90 days after the close of the fiscal year.
(2) To publish within 10 days thereafter, by advertisement in at least
one newspaper of general circulation in the Borough, a concise financial
statement setting forth the balance in the treasury at the beginning
of the fiscal year, all revenues received during the fiscal year by
major classifications, all expenditures made during the fiscal year
by major functions, the current resources and liabilities of the Borough
at the end of the fiscal year, the gross liability and net debt of
the Borough, the amount of the assessed valuation of the Borough,
the assets of the Borough with the character and value thereof, the
date of the last maturity of the respective forms of funded debt and
the assets in each sinking fund. The independent auditor shall make
his report on the uniform form prepared pursuant to Article XIII of
Title 53, 53 P.S. § 46301 et seq. Such publication shall
be deemed compliance with the provisions of the Act of June 25, 1941,
P.L. 159, known as the "Municipal Borrowing Law," 53 P.S. § 6101
et seq., which requires the corporate authorities of the boroughs
to publish an annual statement of indebtedness.