S T A T E   O F   N E W   Y O R K
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                                  10363

                          I N  A S S E M B L Y

                              May 24, 2016
                               ___________

Introduced  by M. of A. GALEF -- read once and referred to the Committee
  on Education

AN ACT to amend the education law, in relation to making internal  audit
  functions  optional  by  school districts unless an audit by the comp-
  troller reveals deficiencies

  THE PEOPLE OF THE STATE OF NEW YORK, REPRESENTED IN SENATE AND  ASSEM-
BLY, DO ENACT AS FOLLOWS:

  Section  1. Subdivisions 1, 2 and 7 of section 2116-b of the education
law, subdivisions 1 and 7 as added by chapter 263 of the laws  of  2005,
and subdivision 2 as amended by section 4 of part A of chapter 57 of the
laws  of  2013,  are amended and a new subdivision 8 is added to read as
follows:
  1. No later than July first, two thousand six,  each  school  district
shall  establish  an internal audit function to be in operation no later
than the following December thirty-first. Such function  shall  include:
(a)  development  of a risk assessment of district operations, including
but not limited to, a review of financial policies  and  procedures  and
the  testing and evaluation of district internal controls; (b) [an annu-
al] A review and update of such risk assessment; and (c) preparation  of
reports[,  at least annually or more frequently as the trustees or board
of education may direct,]  which  analyze  significant  risk  assessment
findings,  recommend  changes  for  strengthening  controls and reducing
identified risks, and specify  timeframes  for  implementation  of  such
recommendations.
  2. School districts of less than eight teachers, school districts with
actual general fund expenditures totaling less than five million dollars
in  the previous school year, or school districts with actual enrollment
of less than one thousand five hundred students in the  previous  school
year shall be exempt from this requirement. Any school district claiming
such  exemption  shall  [annually] certify to the commissioner that such
school district meets the requirements set forth in this subdivision.
  7. Nothing in this section shall be construed as  requiring  a  school
district  in any city with a population of one hundred twenty-five thou-
sand or more to replace or modify an existing  internal  audit  function

 EXPLANATION--Matter in ITALICS (underscored) is new; matter in brackets
                      [ ] is old law to be omitted.
              

                                                           LBD02084-01-5

A. 10363                            2

where  such  function already exists by special or local law, so long as
the superintendent of the district [annually] certifies to  the  commis-
sioner  that  the  existing internal audit function meets or exceeds the
requirements of this section.
  8.    NOTWITHSTANDING  ANY OTHER PROVISION OF LAW TO THE CONTRARY, THE
INTERNAL AUDIT FUNCTION ESTABLISHED PURSUANT TO THIS  SECTION  SHALL  BE
OPTIONAL  BY ALL SCHOOL DISTRICTS UNLESS THE COMPTROLLER FINDS DEFICIEN-
CIES IN THE AUDIT PERFORMED PURSUANT  TO  SECTION  THIRTY-THREE  OF  THE
GENERAL  MUNICIPAL  LAW.  IF  DEFICIENCIES ARE FOUND BY THE COMPTROLLER,
SCHOOL DISTRICTS SHALL PERFORM BIENNIAL INTERNAL AUDITS UNTIL THE  COMP-
TROLLER CONDUCTS ANOTHER AUDIT OF SUCH SCHOOL DISTRICT.
  S  2.  This act shall take effect on the first of July next succeeding
the date on which it shall have become a law.