PALM BEACH COUNTY, FLORIDA
TAX COLLECTOR
SCHEDULE OF REVENUES, EXPENDITURES AND CHANGES IN FUND BALANCE - BUDGET AND ACTUAL
GENERAL FUND
For the fiscal year ended September 30, 2008
Variance With
Final Budget
Original Final Actual Positive
Budget Budget Amounts (Negative)
Revenues:
Charges for services 62,959,200$ 61,339,200$ 65,133,926$ 3,794,726$
Less - excess fees paid out (43,276,478) (41,356,478) (46,539,258) (5,182,780)
Investment income 1,500,000 1,200,000 1,151,068 (48,932)
Total revenues 21,182,722 21,182,722 19,745,736 (1,436,986)
Expenditures:
Current:
General government 20,852,947$ 20,944,267$ 19,602,071 1,342,196
Capital outlay 329,775 238,455 143,665 94,790
Total expenditures 21,182,722 21,182,722 19,745,736 1,436,986
Excess of revenues (under) expenditures - - - -
Net change in fund balance - - - -

Fund balance, October 1, 2007 - - - -
Fund balance, September 30, 2008 -$ -$ -$ -$
Section 195.087, Florida Statutes, governs the preparation, adoption, and administration of the budget of the Tax
Collector. On or before a legally designated date each year, the Tax Collector shall submit to the Florida Department of
Revenue a budget for the ensuing fiscal year. A copy of such budget shall be furnished at the same time to the Board
of County Commissioners. Final approval of the budget is given by the Florida Department of Revenue. The budget is
adopted for the general fund on a basis consistent with GAAP. The level of budgetary control is at the fund level.
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PALM BEACH COUNTY, FLORIDA
TAX COLLECTOR
STATEMENT OF CHANGES IN ASSETS AND LIABILITIES
AGENCY FUND
For the fiscal year ended September 30, 2008
Balance Balance
10/1/2007 Additions Deductions 9/30/2008
ASSETS
Cash and cash equivalents 29,225,541$ 3,257,305,959$ 3,243,043,043$ 43,488,457$
Accounts receivable, net 183,658 7,143,933 7,211,339 116,252
Due from other governments - 156 156 -
Total assets 29,409,199$ 3,264,450,048$ 3,250,254,538$ 43,604,709$
LIABILITIES
Vouchers payable and accrued liabilities 131,752$ 1,139,142$ 887,028$ 383,866$
Due to other governments 26,292,260 2,328,585,443 2,320,497,577 34,380,126
Due to individuals 2,985,187 1,006,083,868 1,000,228,338 8,840,717
Total liabilities 29,409,199$ 3,335,808,453$ 3,321,612,943$ 43,604,709$
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McGladrey & Pullen, LLP is a member firm of RSM International,
an affiliation of separate and independent legal entities.
VI-19








Independent Auditor’s Report
on Internal Control Over Financial Reporting
and on Compliance and Other Matters Based
on an Audit of the Financial Statements Performed
in Accordance with Government Auditing Standards

The Honorable Anne M. Gannon
Tax Collector
Palm Beach County, Florida

We have audited the financial statements of the major fund and the aggregate remaining fund information of the Tax
Collector of Palm Beach County, Florida (the Tax Collector), as of and for the year ended September 30, 2008, and
have issued our report thereon dated June 15, 2009. These financial statements were prepared to comply with
Section 218.39(2), Florida Statutes and Section 10.557(3), Rules of the Auditor General for Local Government Entity
Audits. We conducted our audit in accordance with auditing standards generally accepted in the United States of
America and the standards applicable to financial audits contained in Government Auditing Standards, issued by the
Comptroller General of the United States.

Internal Control Over Financial Reporting

In planning and performing our audit, we considered the Tax Collector’s internal control over financial reporting as a
basis for designing our auditing procedures for the purpose of expressing our opinion on the financial statements, but
not for the purpose of expressing an opinion on the effectiveness of the Tax Collector’s internal control over financial
reporting. Accordingly, we do not express an opinion on the effectiveness of the Tax Collector’s internal control over
financial reporting.
Our consideration of the internal control over financial reporting was for the limited purpose described in the
preceding paragraph and would not necessarily identify all deficiencies in the internal control over financial reporting

that might be significant deficiencies or material weaknesses. However, as discussed below, we identified a certain
deficiency in internal control over reporting that we consider to be a significant deficiency.

A control deficiency exists when the design or operation of a control does not allow management or employees, in
the normal course of performing their assigned functions, to prevent or detect misstatements on a timely basis. A
significant deficiency is a control deficiency, or combination of control deficiencies, that adversely affects the entity's
ability to initiate, authorize, record, process, or report financial data reliably in accordance with generally accepted
accounting principles such that there is more than a remote likelihood that a misstatement of the entity's financial
statements that is more than inconsequential, will not be prevented or detected by the entity's internal control. We
consider the deficiency described in the accompanying schedule of findings and responses, 2008-01, to be a
significant deficiency in internal control over financial reporting.
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A material weakness is a significant deficiency, or combination of significant deficiencies, that results in more than a
remote likelihood that a material misstatement of the financial statements will not be prevented or detected by the
entity's internal control.
Our consideration of the internal control over financial reporting was for the limited purpose described in the first
paragraph of this section and would not necessarily identify all deficiencies in the internal control that might be
significant deficiencies and, accordingly, would not necessarily disclose all significant deficiencies that are also
considered to be material weaknesses. However, we do not believe that the significant deficiency in internal control
over financial reporting described above is a material weakness.

Compliance and Other Matters

As part of obtaining reasonable assurance about whether the Tax Collector’s financial statements are free of material
misstatement, we performed tests of its compliance with certain provisions of laws, regulations, contracts, and grant
agreements, noncompliance with which could have a direct and material effect on the determination of financial

statement amounts. However, providing an opinion on compliance with those provisions was not an objective of our
audit, and accordingly, we do not express such an opinion. The results of our tests disclosed no instances of
noncompliance or other matters that are required to be reported under Government Auditing Standards.



We noted certain matters that we reported to management of the Tax Collector’s office in a separate letter dated
June 15, 2009.

The Tax Collector’s response to the finding identified in our audit and is described in the accompanying schedule of
findings and responses. We did not audit the Tax Collector’s response and, accordingly, we express no opinion on it.

This report is intended solely for the information and use of the Tax Collector, management of the Palm Beach
County, Florida Tax Collector’s office, and the Auditor General, State of Florida and is not intended to be and should
not be used by anyone other than these specified parties.





West Palm Beach, Florida
June 15, 2009
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Tax Collector, Palm Beach County


Schedule of Findings and Responses

Year Ended September 30, 2008

VI-21

IC 2008-01 – Significant Issues Documentation

Criteria
: Internal control policies and procedures should provide reasonable assurance regarding the reliability of the
financial reporting process, including the accurate recording and accounting of routine transactions as well as
significant and unusual transactions.

Condition
: The Tax Collector’s Office purchased a tax software application license at the end of the fiscal year which
based on the terms of the contract benefited a future period. We noted that the Tax Collector’s Office recorded an
expenditure for the entire amount of the software purchase in the fiscal year ended September 30, 2008, instead of
recording the purchase as a prepaid item. The related timing of the expenditure recognition resulted in an audit
adjustment to the financial statements.

Context
: This condition is systemic in nature.

Effect
: Increase the risk of material misstatement of the financial statements.

Cause
: Lack of formalized policies and procedures to ensure adequate research and documentation is appropriate.

Recommendation
: The Tax Collector’s Office may periodically be faced with various complex transactions which
require a rigorous analysis of the facts and adequate accounting research. We recommend that management

establish an effective review procedure to ensure that all non-routine and significant transactions are properly
reported in the financial statements.

Views of responsible officials and planned corrective action
: We will review our existing procedures and make the
necessary changes, to these procedures, to ensure that all transactions are properly reported in the financial
statements.


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McGladrey & Pullen, LLP is a member firm of RSM International,
an affiliation of separate and independent legal entities.
VI-22






Management Letter in Accordance with the
Rules of the Auditor General of the State of Florida


The Honorable Anne M. Gannon
Tax Collector
Palm Beach County, Florida

We have audited the accompanying financial statements of the major fund and the aggregate remaining fund

information of the Tax Collector of Palm Beach County, Florida (the “Tax Collector”), as of and for the year ended
September 30, 2008, and have issued our report thereon dated June 15, 2009, which was prepared to comply with
State of Florida reporting requirements.

We conducted our audit in accordance with auditing standards generally accepted in the United States of America
and the standards applicable to financial audits contained in Government Auditing Standards, issued by the
Comptroller General of the United States. We have issued our Independent Auditor’s Report on Internal Control
Over Financial Reporting and on Compliance and Other Matters. Disclosures in that report, which is dated June 15,
2009, should be considered in conjunction with this management letter.

Additionally, our audit was conducted in accordance with the provisions of Chapter 10.550, Rules of the Auditor
General, which govern the conduct of local governmental entity audits performed in the State of Florida. This letter
includes the following information, which is not included in the aforementioned auditors’ reports:

Section 10.554(1)(i)1., Rules of the Auditor General, requires that we determine whether or not corrective
actions have been taken to address significant findings and recommendations made in the preceding annual
financial audit report. The recommendations made in the preceding annual financial report have been
addressed in Appendix B to this report.

Section 10.554(1)(i)2., Rules of the Auditor General, requires our audit to include a review of the provisions
of Section 218.415, Florida Statutes, regarding the investment of public funds. In connection with our audit,
we determined that the Tax Collector complied with Section 218.415, Florida Statutes.

Section 10.554(1)(i)3., Rules of the Auditor General, requires that we address in the management
letter any recommendations to improve the Tax Collector’s financial management, accounting
procedures and internal controls. The recommendations to improve the Tax Collector’s financial
management, accounting procedures and internal controls have been addressed in Appendix A to
this report.
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VI-23
Section 10.554(1)(i)4., Rules of the Auditor General, requires that we address violations of laws, regulations,
contracts or grant agreements, or abuse that have occurred, or are likely to have occurred, that have an
effect on the determination of financial statements amounts that is less than material but more than
inconsequential. In connection with our audit, we did not have any such findings.

Sections 10.554(1)(i)5., Rules of the Auditor General, provides that the auditor may, based on professional
judgment, report the following matters that are inconsequential to the determination of financial statement
amounts, considering both quantitative and qualitative factors: (1) violations of laws, regulations, contracts
or grant agreements, or abuse that have occurred, or are likely to have occurred and (2) control deficiencies
that are not significant deficiencies, including, but not limited to; (a) improper or inadequate accounting
procedures (e.g., the omission of required disclosures from the financial statements); (b) failures to properly
record financial transactions; and (c) other inaccuracies, shortages, defalcations, and instances of fraud
discovered by, or that come to the attention of, the auditor. In connection with our audit, we did not have any
such findings.

Section 10.554(1)(i)6., Rules of the Auditor General, requires that the name or official title and legal
authority for the primary government and each component unit of the reporting entity be disclosed in the
management letter, unless disclosed in the notes to the financial statements. This information is disclosed
in Note 1 of the Tax Collector’s financial statements.

Pursuant to Chapter 119, Florida Statutes, this management letter is a public record and its distribution is not limited.
Auditing standards generally accepted in the United States of America requires us to indicate that this letter is
intended solely for the information and use of the Tax Collector, management of Palm Beach County, Florida Tax
Collector’s Office and the State of Florida Office of the Auditor General, and is not intended to be and should not be
used by anyone other than the specified parties.






West Palm Beach, Florida
June 15, 2009
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Tax Collector of Palm Beach County, Florida


Appendix A
Current Year Recommendations to Improve Financial Management,
Accounting Procedures and Internal Controls

VI-24
No. Current Year’s Observations

ML 08-01 Application Access Security
ML 08-02 Time card Approval
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Tax Collector of Palm Beach County, Florida


Appendix A
Current Year Recommendations to Improve Financial Management,
Accounting Procedures and Internal Controls

VI-25

ML 08-1 – Application Access Security
Criteria
: Effective application access security relies on a security structure that includes the use of the following:
• Available access security features in the software;
• Security administration procedures developed and documented for the granting, revoking and reviewing of
data and resource access.

Condition
: There were aspects of security management that needed improvement. Specific details of these issues
are not disclosed in this report to avoid the possibility of compromising The Tax Collector’s Office (TCO)
information in accordance with Florida Statute 281.301. However, appropriate personnel have been notified
of these issues which included the following:
• Certain TCO staff had the capability to perform incompatible duties within the payroll function. We noted an
instance where employee access privileges should be made more restrictive by the TCO to enforce an
appropriate segregation of duties.

Cause
: Lack of enforcement of policies to support proper restriction of access.

Effect
:
• Unauthorized access to the application;
• Segregation of incompatible duties is fundamental to the reliability of an organization’s internal controls;
• Appropriate segregation of duties can assist in the detection of mistakes or errors and potential fraud;
• An appropriate division of roles and responsibilities prevents the possibility of a single individual subverting
a critical process.

Context
: The finding is considered systemic in nature.


Recommendation
: We recommend management implement the following corrective actions:
• Appropriate application security control features to enhance security over its data and programs;
• Review and enhance established procedures that periodically review the duties and access capabilities of
staff and implement, to the extent practicable, proper segregation of duties and access levels to ensure that
personnel are performing only those duties established for their respective jobs and positions.

Management Response
: We concur with the recommendation and implemented appropriate application security
controls. We also reviewed duties and access capabilities of staff and made the appropriate changes.

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Tax Collector of Palm Beach County, Florida


Appendix A
Current Year Recommendations to Improve Financial Management,
Accounting Procedures and Internal Controls

VI-26
ML 08-2 – Time Card Approval
Criteria
: The Tax Collector’s Office policies state that employee time cards are to be reviewed and approved by
department supervisors to ensure the accuracy of the time worked.

Condition
: During testing of payroll controls, it was noted that employee time cards are not being approved by
department supervisors on a consistent basis. Our testing procedures identified one instance where an employee

time card was not approved by a supervisor, based on further discussion with management it was determined that
this deficiency was pervasive throughout the entity.

Cause
: Lack of implementation of control.

Effect
: Potential errors on employee time cards not detected could lead to incorrect payroll amounts and the over or
under recording of payroll related expenditures in addition to the providing of opportunity for employees to overstate
hours worked.

Context
: The finding is considered systemic in nature.

Recommendation
: We recommend that management enforce the policies that are in place which require that each
employee time card be approved by a department supervisor.

Management Response
: We agree with the recommendation and have taken the necessary action to ensure that
each employee’s time card is approved by a supervisor.
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Tax Collector of Palm Beach County, Florida


Appendix B
Prior Year Recommendations to Improve Financial Management,
Accounting Procedures and Internal Controls

VI-27

Observation
Addressed
or
Observation No Longer
No. Prior Year's Observations is Still
Relevant
Relevant
ML 06-04 Formal Security Programs X
ML 06-05 System Upgrades/Modifications X
ML 06-07 Security Training X


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Section VII

PROPERTY APPRAISER

































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VII-2
In accordance with Government Auditing Standards, we have also issued a report dated June 15, 2009 on our
consideration of the Property Appraiser’s internal control over financial reporting and on our tests of its compliance
with certain provisions of laws, regulations, contracts, grant agreements and other matters. The purpose of that
report is to describe the scope of our testing of internal control over financial reporting and compliance and the
results of that testing, and not to provide an opinion on the internal control over financial reporting or on compliance.
That report is an integral part of an audit performed in accordance with Government Auditing Standards and should
be considered in assessing the results of our audit.

The budgetary comparison schedule and schedule of funding progress are not a required part of the financial
statements but are supplementary information required by accounting principles generally accepted in the United
States of America. We have applied certain limited procedures, which consisted principally of inquiries of
management regarding the methods of measurement and presentation of the required supplementary information.
However, we did not audit the information and express no opinion on it.

This report is intended solely for the information and use of the Property Appraiser, management of the Palm Beach
County, Florida Property Appraiser’s office and the Auditor General of the State of Florida, and is not intended to be
and should not be used by anyone other than the specified parties.





West Palm Beach, Florida
June 15, 2009

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PALM BEACH COUNTY, FLORIDA

PROPERTY APPRAISER
BALANCE SHEET - GENERAL FUND
September 30, 2008
ASSETS
Cash and cash equivalents 4,097,438$
Other assets 32,781
Total assets 4,130,219$
LIABILITIES AND FUND BALANCE
Vouchers payable and accrued liabilities 1,249,696$
Due to Board of County Commissioners 2,241,843
Due to other County agencies 301,205
Deferred revenue 337,475
Total liabilities 4,130,219
Fund balance -
Total liabilities and fund balance 4,130,219$
The notes to the financial statements are an integral part of this statement.
VII-3
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PALM BEACH COUNTY, FLORIDA
PROPERTY APPRAISER
STATEMENT OF REVENUES, EXPENDITURES, AND CHANGES IN FUND BALANCE
GENERAL FUND
For the fiscal year ended September 30, 2008
Revenues:
Charges for services 24,090,253$
Less - excess fees paid out (2,446,944)
Investment income 151,615
Total revenues 21,794,924
Expenditures:

Current:
General government 21,734,541
Capital outlay 55,799
Debt Service 4,584
Total expenditures 21,794,924
Excess of revenues over (under) expenditures -
Net change in fund balance -
Fund balance, October 1, 2007 -
Fund balance, September 30, 2008 -$
The notes to the financial statements are an integral part of this statement.
VII-4
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