Federal Program(s) Information Cluster/Program: All federal programs Type of Finding Compliance Internal Control over Compliance – Significant Deficiency Criteria or Specific Requirement The County is required to prepare a SEFA in accordance with the prescribed guidelines of the Uniform Guidance. Condition and Context The County did not properly report a net impact of $580,474 in expenditures on the SEFA. As a result of the initial improper expenditure amounts included, the auditors’ assessment over major program determination was impacted. Cause The County did not have adequate controls in place in order to properly report federal expenditures. Effect or Potential Effect Due to the weakness in internal controls noted above, there is a risk that amounts reported on the SEFA are not complete and accurate. The lack of a complete and accurate SEFA may impact the determination of if a single audit is required, as well as major program determination. Misstating expenditures on the SEFA results in the County being out of compliance with the requirements set forth in the underlying grant agreements and the Uniform Guidance. Questioned Costs None reported. Recommendation The County should ensure that adequate procedures and controls are in place to ensure that the SEFA is complete and accurate. These controls should include controls requiring the reconciliation of federal expenditures to the appropriate supporting documentation (e.g., general ledger, grant reports, etc.). Views of Responsible Official and Planned Corrective Action Management’s corrective action plan is included at the end of this report after the Schedule of Prior Year Findings.
Federal Program Information Federal Agency: Department of the Treasury Award Name: COVID-19 Emergency Rental Assistance Program Assistance Listing Number: 21.023 Award Year: 2022 Compliance Requirement: Activities Allowed or Unallowed, Allowable Costs/Cost Principles, Eligibility Type of Finding Compliance Internal Control over Compliance – Significant Deficiency Criteria or Specific Requirement Per 2 CFR 200.303, the County is required to establish and maintain effective internal controls over federal programs to provide reasonable assurance of compliance with federal statutes, regulations, and the terms and conditions of the award. Additionally, 2 CFR 200.334 requires the retention of records and supporting documentation to demonstrate eligibility determinations and allowability of expenditures under the program. Condition and Context During our audit, we tested a sample of 40 selections for allowable costs, as well as a sample of 40 for individual eligibility determinations under the program in which 35 selections were leveraged between the two tests. For 1 of the items selected for testing under allowable cost compliance and eligibility requirements, the County was unable to provide some of the required supporting documentation to demonstrate that individuals met the program’s eligibility requirements. However, lease agreements supporting the amount ultimately paid to the individual were provided to support allowability. The documentation was retained in an online portal to which the County no longer had access at the time of our audit procedures. Cause The County did not establish sufficient procedures or controls to ensure ongoing access to required supporting documentation maintained in the external portal used for program administration. Effect or Potential Effect Due to the weakness in internal controls noted above, the County could not demonstrate compliance with eligibility requirements for the sampled transactions. This also constitutes noncompliance with record retention requirements and impairs the ability for sufficient procedures to be performed over the program. Questioned Costs None reported. Recommendation The County should implement policies and procedures to ensure required documentation for the program is retained in a manner that ensures continued access, even if administration platforms change or external portals are no longer accessible. The County should also periodically verify that it retains all necessary support for program transactions as required under federal regulations. Views of Responsible Official and Planned Corrective Action Management’s corrective action plan is included at the end of this report after the Schedule of Prior Year Findings.
Federal Program Information Federal Agency: Department of the Treasury Award Name: COVID-19 Emergency Rental Assistance Program Assistance Listing Number: 21.023 Award Year: 2022 Compliance Requirement: Reporting Type of Finding Compliance Internal Control over Compliance – Significant Deficiency Criteria or Specific Requirement Per 2 CFR 200.303, the County is required to establish and maintain effective internal controls over federal programs to provide reasonable assurance of compliance with federal statutes, regulations, and the terms and conditions of the award. Program guidance requires timely and accurate submission of quarterly financial and performance reports, as well as monthly performance reports, to the U.S. Department of the Treasury in accordance with established deadlines. Condition and Context During our testing of the reporting compliance requirement for ERA 1 and ERA 2 awards over the quarterly financial reports, quarterly performance reports and monthly performance reports, we noted the following exceptions: • Of the 2 quarterly financial reports (SF-425) tested, both the ERA 1 and ERA 2 reports for quarter end 9/30/2021 were submitted on 12/31/2021 after the required deadline of 10/29/2021. The County indicated the late submissions were due to the inability to retrieve the information required to compile the reports due to an ERAP system error. • Of the 4 monthly performance reports tested, the County was unable to provide documentation showing the date of submission for the ERA 1 and ERA 2 reports for the month of October 2021. The remaining 2 monthly performance reports for the month of April 2022 were submitted in July 2022, and no approved extension was on file. • Of the 2 quarterly performance reports tested, the ERA 1 report for quarter end 9/30/2021 was submitted on 12/31/2021 after the required deadline of 10/29/2021 due to the inability to retrieve the information required to compile the reports due to an ERA system error. The other quarterly performance report tested for ERA 2 for the quarter ending 6/30/2022 was not submitted on time as evidence by a notification email from Treasury after the due date had passed. Cause The County did not establish sufficient procedures or controls to ensure timely submission of all required reports or retention of sufficient evidence to support timeliness of filing. In addition, the County did not have a contingency process in place to address system errors affecting timely reporting. Effect or Potential Effect Due to the weakness in internal controls noted above, there is an increased risk that required program information may not be reported to the granting agency in a timely manner consistent with federal reporting requirements. Additionally, the lack of supporting documentation impedes the ability to verify compliance with reporting deadlines. No questioned costs are reported as the requirement is procedural in nature. Questioned Costs None reported. Recommendation The County should strengthen internal controls in place over the timely submission and documentation of required reports for the program. This should include maintaining sufficient evidence of the date and method of submission and considering the implementation of backup procedures in the event system issues affect timely reporting. The County should ensure any delays are documented and, if necessary, approved by the granting agency in writing. Views of Responsible Official and Planned Corrective Action Management’s corrective action plan is included at the end of this report after the Schedule of Prior Year Findings.