Corrective Actions Taken or Planned: MARTA recognizes the importance of ensuring all expenses are approved before they are incurred. To address this finding, MARTA is updating its internal procurement rules to clearly state that a purchase order must be signed prior to ordering any items or initiati...
Corrective Actions Taken or Planned: MARTA recognizes the importance of ensuring all expenses are approved before they are incurred. To address this finding, MARTA is updating its internal procurement rules to clearly state that a purchase order must be signed prior to ordering any items or initiating any services. This measure will prevent the receipt of invoices for costs that have not been officially authorized. Additionally, MARTA is creating a formal backup approval plan. Under this plan, if the General Manager is unavailable, another designated leader will have the documented authority to approve purchases immediately, eliminating the need to wait for the General Manager’s return to complete the necessary paperwork. Finally, MARTA’s finance team will implement a new check-and-balance step in the payment process. Moving forward, the team will verify that the date on the approved purchase order comes before the date on the vendor's invoice. If the dates are out of sequence, the payment will be flagged for review. In addition, MARTA will conduct a training session for all department heads to reinforce that verbal orders are not permitted and that written authorization must always be obtained first. This plan is designed to ensure full compliance with federal grant requirements and prevent any future delays in the approval process. Personnel responsible: Sandra Benson, General Manager Anticipated completion date: October 2026