Finding ref number:
2023-001
Finding caption:
The District did not have adequate internal controls for ensuring compliance with allowable activities and costs, and restricted purpose requirements.
Name, address, and telephone of District contact person:
Caryn Metsker, Director of Financial Services...
Finding ref number:
2023-001
Finding caption:
The District did not have adequate internal controls for ensuring compliance with allowable activities and costs, and restricted purpose requirements.
Name, address, and telephone of District contact person:
Caryn Metsker, Director of Financial Services
800 Eastmont Avenue
East Wenatchee, WA 98802-4443
509-888-4686
Corrective action the auditee plans to take in response to the finding:
The Eastmont School District respectfully does not concur with the finding regarding our internal controls for ensuring compliance with allowable activities, costs, and restricted purpose requirements in regard to the Emergency Connectivity Funds.
The District has completed the necessary corrective actions by revising our board policies and procedures to ensure compliance with allowable activities, costs, and restricted purpose requirements. However, these changes were not implemented by the end of the 2022-2023 school year because the audit for the 2021-2022 school year had not been completed until the 2023-2024 school year. Consequently, the District was unable to implement the new process until the audit status for 2021-2022 was confirmed, ensuring that the corrected steps were compliant
The District did not receive any specific guidance from the State Auditor's Office on how to properly document the unmet need identified in the audit. Despite our efforts to seek assistance and clarification, the lack of direction hindered our ability to address the finding promptly.
The necessary changes to our policies and procedures required approval from the Board of Directors. This approval, governed by a strict process, was not obtained until December 2023. We began working on the changes immediately following the previous audit but were constrained by the formal approval process.
The District is disappointed that despite our efforts to comply, the State Auditor's Office issued another finding for the 2022-2023 audit based on a differing opinion on the "unmet" need. This repetition of findings, despite our documented efforts and changes, suggests a misalignment in expectations and understanding.
The audit for the 2022-2023 school year consumed significant resources and taxpayer dollars, which we believe could have been better utilized. The time spent reviewing our information, which was largely unchanged except for the updated policy and procedure, appears redundant. We had asked for documentation and guidance from the State Auditor's Office but did not receive the necessary support or compliance assistance.
The District is committed to maintaining high standards of accountability and compliance. We regret that our efforts to address the audit findings were not deemed timely enough and that this has resulted in an additional finding. We will continue to enhance our processes and seek clearer communication and guidance from the State Auditor's Office to ensure that future audits are more aligned with our compliance efforts.
We hope this response provides a clear understanding of our position and the steps we have taken.
Anticipated date to complete the corrective action:
The corrective action has already been implemented within the school district.