The town of Carmel once again received the highest possible audit opinion for its 2025 finances, with independent auditors praising the town’s fiscal management, conservative budgeting practices and long-standing commitment to financial transparency.
During the June 17 Town Board meeting, Alan Kassay, a partner with PKF O’Connor Davies, presented the results of the town’s annual audit and reported that Carmel received an “unmodified” or “clean” opinion — the best rating available from an independent auditor.
“We found them all deemed to be reasonable,” Kassay said of the town’s accounting practices and financial estimates. “The opinion that we issued was known as an unmodified opinion. It’s also the best opinion you could receive.”
The audit examined the town’s financial statements for the year ending Dec. 31, 2025. Kassay said auditors found no material misstatements and concluded the town’s financial records were presented fairly.
Among the report’s highlights, the town finished 2025 with a general fund balance of approximately $11.2 million. Actual revenues exceeded budget projections by about $1.8 million, while expenditures came in roughly $1.7 million under budget.
Kassay credited the town’s conservative budgeting approach, noting that many revenue sources — including state aid, federal aid, mortgage tax revenue and sales tax distributions — are outside the town’s direct control.
“By budgeting conservatively, you’re not going to be too aggressive and end up with a negative variance,” he said.
The town’s highway fund ended the year with a surplus of nearly $410,000, while special district funds collectively held about $19.7 million in fund balance.
Kassay also noted that Carmel has produced an annual comprehensive financial report for 34 consecutive years, a distinction achieved by only a small number of municipalities. The 2025 report is expected to qualify for a 35th consecutive award recognizing excellence in financial reporting.
He credited town comptroller Mary Ann Maxwell and her staff for the accomplishment.
“Mary Ann and her department are basically responsible for all of this,” Kassay said. “As always, the audit went very smoothly, very well prepared and timely.”
Deputy Supervisor Frank Lombardi praised Maxwell and her team, as well as the Town Board’s budgeting efforts.
“It goes to the diligent work that she’s done with us as the Town Board and making tough decisions,” Lombardi said. “We’ve always done very conservative numbers in our budgets with the hope that there’s a surplus at the end.”
Lombardi said the clean audit and the town’s continued Aa1 bond rating from Moody’s demonstrate Carmel’s strong financial management.
“It just goes to show the people of the town of Carmel that we are putting in the time, the effort, the hard work, making the decisions, the hard decisions, to do the budget in the right way,” he said.
The audit also reflected the first revenue received from Putnam County’s recently approved sales tax-sharing program. Carmel received $30,819 in December 2025 and approximately $190,000 during the first quarter of 2026, according to Maxwell.
The Town Board is expected to formally adopt the audit report at an upcoming meeting before it is published on the town’s website.
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