April 2008 Audit of the Carroll County Register of Wills
State of Maryland Office of Legislative Audits April 2008
audit report of the Carroll County Office of the Register of Wills, Carroll
County Maryland.
No surprise here: “Our audit did not disclose any findings
that warrant inclusion in this report.”
April 15, 2008
Senator Verna L. Jones, Co-Chair, Joint Audit Committee
Delegate Steven J. DeBoy, Sr., Co-Chair, Joint Audit Committee Members of Joint
Audit Committee
Annapolis, Maryland
Ladies and Gentlemen:
We have audited the Office of the Register of Wills for
Carroll County, Maryland for the period beginning August 23, 2005 and ending
January 21, 2008.
Our audit did not disclose any findings that warrant
inclusion in this report.
Respectfully submitted, Bruce A. Myers, CPA Legislative
Auditor
Background Information
Agency Responsibilities
The Office of the Register of Wills is a public office
established under the Constitution of Maryland.
An office is established in each of the 24 Maryland subdivisions. These offices oversee the administration of
decedents’ estates within their jurisdictions and provide assistance (such as
providing the proper forms) to individuals administering estates. The offices collect inheritance taxes and
other fees as provided by law. These
fees, as well as the commissions earned by an office on inheritance tax
collections, are generally used to finance that office’s operating
expenses. Inheritance tax collections
(less the applicable commissions) and any fees and commissions in excess of
operating expenses are remitted to the State’s General Fund. On a collective basis, the offices’ fees and
commissions that exceed their operating expenses are retained by the General
Fund. In the event that an individual office’s fees and commissions are not
sufficient to finance its operating expenses, the difference is paid from the General
Fund.
Financial Information
According to the Office’s records, the Office’s fiscal year
2007 gross receipts totaled $2,472,373.
These receipts were distributed in the following manner:
$1,642,874 in inheritance tax collections were remitted to
the General Fund;
$829,499 in fees and commissions were disbursed for
operating expenses and refunds, or remitted to the General Fund.
The Office’s fiscal year 2007 operating expenses totaled
$349,585.
Findings and Recommendations
Our audit did not disclose any significant deficiencies in
the design or operation of the Office’s internal control. Nor did our audit
disclose any significant instances of noncompliance with applicable laws, rules,
or regulations. A less significant
finding was communicated to the Office that did not warrant mention in this
report.
A draft copy of this report was provided to the Office. Since there are no recommendations in this
report, a written response was not necessary.
Audit Scope, Objectives, and Methodology
We have audited the Office of the Register of Wills for
Carroll County, Maryland for the period beginning August 23, 2005 and ending
January 21, 2008. The audit was
conducted in accordance with generally accepted government auditing standards.
As prescribed by the State Government Article, Section
2-1221 of the Annotated Code of Maryland, the objectives of this audit were to
examine the Office's financial transactions, records and internal control, and
to evaluate its compliance with applicable State laws, rules, and regulations.
In planning and conducting our audit, we focused on the
major financial-related areas of operations based on assessments of materiality
and risk. Our audit procedures included
inquiries of appropriate personnel, inspections of documents and records, and
observations of the Office’s operations.
We also tested transactions and performed other auditing procedures that
we considered necessary to achieve our objectives. Data provided in this report for background
or informational purposes were deemed reasonable, but were not independently
verified.
The Office’s management is responsible for establishing and
maintaining effective internal control.
Internal control is a process designed to provide reasonable assurance
that objectives pertaining to the reliability of financial records, effectiveness
and efficiency of operations including safeguarding of assets, and compliance
with applicable laws, rules, and regulations are achieved.
Because of inherent limitations in internal control, errors
or fraud may nevertheless occur and not be detected. Also, projections of any evaluation of
internal control to future periods are subject to the risk that conditions may
change or compliance with policies and procedures may deteriorate.
Our reports are designed to assist the Maryland General
Assembly in exercising its legislative oversight function and to provide
constructive recommendations for improving State operations. As a result, our reports generally do not
address activities we reviewed that are functioning properly.
AUDIT TEAM
Peter J. Klemans, CPA
Audit Manager
Elaine D. Kagan
Senior Auditor
Catherine M. Clarke
Staff Auditor
This report and any related follow-up correspondence are
available to the public through the Office of Legislative Audits at 301 West
Preston Street, Room 1202, Baltimore, Maryland 21201. The Office may be
contacted by telephone at 410-946-5900, 301-970-5900, or 1-877-486-9964.
Electronic copies of our audit reports can be viewed or
downloaded from our website at http://www.ola.state.md.us.
Alternate formats may be requested through the Maryland
Relay Service at 1-800-735-2258.
The Department of Legislative Services – Office of the
Executive Director, 90 State Circle, Annapolis, Maryland 21401 can also assist
you in obtaining copies of our reports and related correspondence. The Department may be contacted by telephone
at 410-946-5400 or 301-
970-5400.
+++++++++++++++++++++
