License Surrender Receipts?....what License Surrender Receipts?

We decided to match the license surrender receipts for the "unknown" vehicles with the current list of insured vehicles & property that we recently FOILed. If you remember in our blog a couple of days ago, there were several "unknown" vehicles that we thought must have either been sold prior to June 2002 or were sold as scrap because we couldn't find anything about them in our "searchable" town board minutes.

Sure enough, look at page 2 of the Schedule of Property dated 9/11/07. Now look at the two (2) License Surrender receipts...two of the John Deere Front End Loaders are still listed as being insured as of 9/11/07. Incredible...the license surrender receipts were issued 5 months earlier on March 12, 2007. So it would appear that either:

a. The town turned in the license surrender receipts to the insurance company and the insurance company failed to remove the vehicles from the Schedule of Property when they renewed the town insurance in June 2007...instead, they continued to list the Loaders as insured by the Town of New Hartford.

b. The town NEVER turned in the license surrender receipts to the insurance company on March 12, 2007, so the insurance company had no idea that the town no longer owns the vehicle. Therefore, when the insurance was renewed in June 2007, the insurance company continued to include these two vehicles in the town's insurance renewal policy.

c. It might just be possible that the Town still owns the two (2) Front End Loaders and they are being driven around with no license plates.

d. There is an explanation there somewhere...it is just not apparent right now...give the town some time though and they will think of it.

Sort of leaves wide open the possibility that the Town has in the past been insuring vehicles that they no longer own. Just how many license surrender receipts 'get crumpled up and thrown away' without ever getting sent to the insurance company? How many vehicles get taken off the insurance without the insurance company ever seeing the License Surrender Receipts...and how many other vehicles and property no longer owned by the Town of New Hartford (for one reason or another) are still being insured as of today?

No wonder there are so many shenanigans going on...there are absolutely no controls in place. It begs the question, how much town property is "walking" or being driven away and no one is the wiser?

Who is minding the store? According to Town Law 64[3], the Town Board ultimately has:

3. Management, custody and control of town property. Shall have the management, custody and control of all town lands, buildings and property of the town and keep them in good repair and may cause the same to be insured against loss or damage by fire or other hazard.

Looks like several people may have some explaining to do. Wait until you hear why the equipment is being sold for a 'song' and who is in the middle of this mess.