Fire company questioned over audit

The absence of last year’s financial statement from the West Penn Township fire department came into question this week at the board of supervisors meeting.

Supervisor Tony Prudenti said that a board of director from the Mauch Chunk Trust Company has questioned if the township gets an audit from the fire company because the fire company went for a loan through the bank.

Chester Snyder, a director on the Mauch Chunk Trust Company board, told supervisors the bank has been fighting to get a financial statement from the fire company from 2016.

Snyder said that Kovatch called Mauch Chunk Trust Company last week regarding a piece of apparatus because the lack of the 2016 audit is holding up the loan.

The fire department recently took delivery of its 2018 KME Predator Panther Custom Engine.

Snyder said that as of right now, the company can’t do anything with the truck.

“We have no financial statement. We need the ’16 statement.”

Snyder then questioned how the fire company was able to take receipt of the $400,000 truck.

Township Treasurer Karen Wittig said she doesn’t believe the audit has been completed.

Supervisor-elect Timothy Houser questioned why it’s taking the fire company so long to supply the audit.

Township fire Chief Dennis Fritzinger Jr. said he wasn’t sure why the 2016 audit hasn’t been completed yet.

Prudenti then asked Fritzinger if the fire company had any problems with providing updated financial statements to the township from this point forward.

Fritzinger said they would be able to provide that.

The fire company took out a 10-year loan through Mauch Chunk Trust Company. It will use funding from the township, as well as hold fundraisers to pay back the loan.

Prudenti said the fire company has put $50,000 down for the truck, and is going for a loan for the other $350,000.

This year, West Penn received $13,958 from the state’s General Municipal Pension System State Aid Program.

The program helps local governments defray the cost of employee, police and firefighter pension plans maintained by municipalities, regional police forces and councils of government.

In addition, funds are allocated through the department and local municipalities to nearly 2,000 volunteer firefighter relief associations to enable the purchase of training, equipment and insurance, and pay for death benefits for volunteer firefighters.

Revenue for the state aid comes from a 2 percent tax on premiums paid for casualty and fire insurance sold in Pennsylvania by out-of-state insurance companies.

A routine audit conducted by the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania Department of the Auditor General showed the department to be in compliance for the period Jan. 1, 2014 to Dec. 31, 2016.