An Open Letter To All Interested Copake Taxpayers

An Open Letter To All Interested Copake Taxpayers An individual who I consider to be a friend, and who is a Republican candidate for the Copake Town Board, has voiced criticism of the Democratic minority members of the Copake Town Board for not following the Town Manual regarding audits of Town spending. I must remind him that he must get his facts correct if he wants to be critical. The Town Policy Manual was passed by the Democratic majority in 2007, and included a requirement regarding CPA audits of Town records. The first two opportunities to perform such audits were after the end of the 2007 and 2008 tax years in early 2008 and 2009, when the Republicans had the Board majority. If he is being critical, and rightly so, of the Board's inaction, it is the inaction of the Republican controlled Board that he is criticizing, the Board that he aspires to join. The Town Supervisor is responsible for following the Policy Manual with the consent of the Board. It is not up to one particular member of the minority to assure that the Policy Manual is followed. The problem now seems to be that there is a deficit because of the economy, but no one knows at this time just what that deficit is because the numbers reported are inconsistent. It is now necessary to go back and perform the audits that were required by the Town Policy Manual before we can learn what the impact of the deficit will be on our taxes next year. Morris Ordover