HARRISBURG – Auditor General Timothy L. DeFoor announced the release of audits for Emporium Borough in Cameron County.
There were no findings in the Emporium Borough Police audit, but there were for the non-uniformed pension plan.
Auditors noted the borough had only partially complied with a prior recommendation to pay the Minimum Municipal Obligation to the plan. While the $2,010 that was due was paid, plan officials failed to calculate and pay the required interest.
Officials also failed to deposit the full amount of state aid of $38,604 into the plan, leaving out $371. The auditors recommended the full amount be deposited, and that interest be calculated and deposited as well.
Municipal officials agreed with the findings.
“Our audits make sure state pension aid is used as required by law, which helps to reduce financial burdens on local taxpayers,” Auditor General DeFoor said. “Nearly a quarter of all the pension plans we support are in some state of distress. It is essential that our communities plan to make their pension payments on time to support our workers who take care of us.”
State aid for municipal pension plans is generated by a 2 percent tax on fire and casualty insurance policies sold in Pennsylvania by out-of-state companies. In 2024, the Department of the Auditor General distributed a total of $404.73 million in aid to 1,461 municipalities and regional departments to support pension plans covering police officers, paid firefighters and non-uniformed employees.
The department is required by law to audit municipal pension plans and volunteer fire relief associations that receive state aid from the department; liquid fuels tax usage by municipalities; various county offices and numerous other state government entities.
