Audit 392464

Federal Program Information: U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (ALN: Various), U.S. Department of Agriculture (ALN: Various) Criteria or Specific Requirement (Including Statutory, Regulatory or Other Citation): L. Reporting - Per Uniform Guidance, §200.510(b), the auditees receiving federal funding are required to prepare a schedule of expenditures of Federal awards (the “Schedule”) for the period covered by the auditee's financial statements. While not required, the auditee may choose to provide information requested by Federal awarding agencies and pass-through entities to make the Schedule easier to use. At a minimum, the Schedule should list individual Federal programs by Federal agency and provide total Federal awards expended for each Federal program during the entity’s fiscal year. Condition: During our audit procedures, we noted that ESPH did not prepare a complete and accurate Schedule for the year ended June 30, 2025 in a timely manner. Cause: Insufficient internal controls and administrative oversight with respect to the timely preparation and review of the Schedule. Effect or Potential Effect: Lack of appropriate and timely preparation and review of the Schedule by management increases the risk that the amounts, contract or grant names, ALN information, and classification of the awards are presented incorrectly and that federal awards are not managed in accordance with Uniform Guidance. Questioned Costs: None. Context: ESPH did not prepare a complete and accurate Schedule for the year ended June 30, 2025 in a timely manner. Identification as a Repeat Finding: No similar findings noted in the prior year. Recommendation: We recommend that ESPH implement additional internal controls and enhance their current policies and procedures to effectively maintain a detailed Schedule that contains the correct amounts, contract or grants names, ALN information and classification of the awards, which can be more readily reconciled to the underlying general ledger detail prior to receipt by the auditors. We also recommend that frequent review of grant agreements is established to ensure that all federal expenditures incurred and federal awards received during the year are appropriately reflected within the Schedule as required. The implementation of these internal controls will ensure that the Schedule is accurate, complete and that federal awards are managed appropriately in accordance with Uniform Guidance. Views of Responsible Officials: Management concurs with the recommendation. Management has prepared the schedule of expenditures of Federal awards in the same audited format for years. The transition to a new audit firm this year allowed us to gain additional insight into the preparation of a complete and accurate schedule.