NEW ROCHELLE, NY (August 20, 2026) — Auditors from the New York State Office of the State Comptroller arrived at New Rochelle City Hall on Thursday to begin an on-site audit of the city’s finances, according to sources in the building; three auditors working out of the Youth Bureau conference room near the security desk. The visit comes the same week the Comptroller’s office confirmed the city has not filed a legally required compliance report with the state.
Rebecca Dangoor, deputy press secretary for Comptroller Thomas DiNapoli, told Talk of the Sound in an email that General Municipal Law § 35 requires local governments to file external audits and management letters with the Comptroller’s office.
“The City of New Rochelle has not filed a Report on Internal Control Over Financial Reporting and on Compliance and Other Matters with our office,” Dangoor wrote. She said the office could not comment further given the active audit and that the report would be publicly released once the audit is complete.
The city’s 2025 Annual Comprehensive Financial Report, filed June 30, states that EFPR Group, the city’s outside auditor, “issued our report dated June 30, 2026” on internal control and compliance — the same report Dangoor said has not been filed with the state.
General Municipal Law § 35 requires that a report of external audit, along with any management letter prepared in connection with it, be filed both with the state comptroller’s office and with the clerk of the municipality. Once filed, the report becomes a public record open to inspection, and the clerk must give public notice of its availability within 10 days of that filing.
The gap here follows a July 29 letter in which City Manager Wilfredo Melendez denied journalist Robert Cox’s appeal for a draft version of the audit document, telling him “the audit will be finalized and a copy of the final audit will be promptly provided upon completion.” The city’s own ACFR shows the audit was already finalized, it was complete a month earlier. Cox raised that discrepancy directly to Melendez in an open letter published August 15; Melendez has not responded.
A review of the city’s Year End Financial Reports webpage shows listings for 2014 through 2025, each containing only the annual financial report itself. No internal control or compliance report appears for any year. The city does publish standalone internal control reports for two of its component units, the New Rochelle Corporation for Local Development and the New Rochelle Industrial Development Agency.
Two longtime city officials said they do not recall the report ever being publicly posted; the report was presented at council meetings and “made available”. A current city official, who was not authorized to speak on the record, said they did not recall ever seeing public notice of the report.
The Comptroller’s office confirmed August 13 that it was conducting an audit of the city, following a formal complaint Cox filed June 10 alleging financial mismanagement. The office has not confirmed whether the audit was prompted by that complaint.
As Talk of the Sound reported last week, Deputy Finance Commissioner Adam Ross gave notice he was leaving his job. The City has posted a job listing for Deputy Finance Commissioner, Adam Ross’s position. Ross signed the ACFR as “Deputy Finance Commissioner, Risk Management”.
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This article was prepared with the assistance of AI tools under the direction and editing of Robert Cox.
Have information about this story? Email robertcox@talkofthesound (preferred) or contact via WhatsApp: +353 089 972 0669.