Comptroller

The Comptroller’s Office provides accounting, auditing and financial reporting services in accordance with Massachusetts General Laws, the Town’s Home Rule Charter, Department of Revenue Division Local Services’ best practices and Generally Accepted Accounting Principles (GAAP) for State and Local Governments enforced and updated by the Governmental Accounting Standards Board (GASB).

Major Responsibilities

  • Provide oversight of the accounting activities of the Town for purposes of:
    • Assuring financial transactions are undertaken in accordance with federal, state, and local law, regulation, contract, and policy; and that Town assets are protected from misuse or misappropriation.
    • Assuring that financial transactions are properly documented and approved.
    • Assuring that financial transactions are properly recorded in the Town's accounting system.
  • Prepare and distribute accurate and timely financial reports from data maintained in the accounting system in order to meet reporting needs of many policy makers and stakeholders, including but not limited to the Select Board, Town departments, Board/Committees/Commissions, State & Federal grant and oversight agencies, independent financial statement auditors, taxpayers.
  • Maintain employee master and deduction files, process weekly payroll warrants and annual W-2 & 1095c tax filings.
  • Maintain vendor master file, process weekly vendor warrants and annual 1099 tax filings.
  • Process accounting journals as needed, including but not limited to budget projections and adjustments, general journal entries and reclassifications, encumbrance journal entries and liquidations, payroll journals and reclassifications.
  • Maintain the accounting software program and relative permissions/access, coordinate regular updates/upgrades, perform the annual fiscal year close process.
  • Administer the general liability and property insurance program as well as the unemployment self-insured program.
  • Assist the Town Manager's Office in the preparation of the annual budget.  Provide support for the Finance Committee during their budget review process.
  • Assist the Town Manager’s Office in relation to procurement processes, policies and training. 
  • Coordinate the completion of the annual independent financial audit and the Other Post-Employment Benefits (OPEB) actuarial valuations. 
  • Provide financial research and analysis assistance to Select Board, Town Management, Finance Committee and other Boards/Commissions as requested.

The Comptroller is appointed by the Select Board in accordance with MGL 41§ 55 and Section 5-5 of the Town’s Home Rule Charter.  The Comptroller serves on the following Boards/Committees/Commissions:

  • Winchester Contributory Retirement Board (ex-officio voting member)
  • Commissioner of Trust Funds (ex-officio non-voting member)
  • Retiree Health Insurance Advisory Committee (ex-officio non-voting member)