RUMFORD – Auditor Harold Blake brought his entire staff to the selectmen’s meeting Thursday night to explain the $1.8 million discrepancy in town books, and assured it was due to a new system and a sometimes lack of communication and reconciliation between financial offices in the town.

This discrepancy can also be attributed to a new software system that provided little training and the installation of that system during the end of one fiscal year and the beginning of another.

He recommended that reconciliations for revenues and expenditures be completed at least once a month, and that some overview be provided that would assure that the treasurer, tax collector and financial director were in agreement at that time.

Brenda Siefken, a member of Blake’s staff and the expert on the TRIO software installed in the town, said more training must be done so each financial staff member will know each of the components.

“The tax collector staff knows training must be done, the others know it must be done,” she said.

Blake was not concerned about the town’s overall accounting for fiscal year 2005-06.

“The town of Rumford’s audit has always gone smoothly and it’s usually done by the first of September,” he said.

The auditing firm, which has done Rumford’s books for many years, expects the job to be completed soon.

Justin Holmes, another member of Blake’s team, said he had seen many different problems in various towns.

“Everyone was very helpful here. It was their attempt to get accustomed to the system. It’s not anyone’s fault; they were just trying to become familiar with the system,” he said.

Blake emphasized the importance of each financial department working with each other.

“The system interconnects. Communication is very, very important,” he said.

In other matters on Thursday, the board:

• appointed Dan Garbarini to a position on the Land Use Ordinance Committee to replace Lem Cissel, who has left the area.

• increased building, plumbing and other fees. The code enforcement officer said the nearly doubling of rates was necessary because Rumford’s have been much lower than most surrounding towns.