FINDING REFERENCE NUMBER 2023-046 (See Finding Reference Number 2023-018) FEDERAL PROGRAM ALL FEDERAL PROGRAMS ON THE SCHEDULE OF EXPENDITURES OF FEDERAL AWARDS AWARD NUMBER ALL AWARDS COMPLIANCE REQUIREMENT REPORTING – FINANCIAL STATEMENT ACCOUNTING RECORDS TYPE OF FINDING MATERIAL NONCOMPLIANCE AND MATERIAL WEAKNESS CRITERIA 2 CFR Part 200, Section 302 and 45 CFR Part 75, Section 302- Financial management and standards for financial management systems state that: (a) Each State must expend and account for the Federal award in accordance with State laws and procedures for expending and accounting for the State's funds. All recipient and subrecipient financial management systems, including records documenting compliance with Federal statutes, regulations, and the terms and conditions of the Federal award, must be sufficient to permit the preparation of reports required by the terms and conditions; and tracking expenditures to establish that funds have been used in accordance with Federal statutes, regulations, and the terms and conditions of the Federal award. (b) The recipient's and subrecipient's financial management system must provide for the following: (1) Identification of all Federal awards received and expended and the Federal programs under which they were received. Federal program and Federal award identification must include, as applicable, the Assistance Listings title and number, Federal award identification number, year the Federal award was issued, and name of the Federal agency or pass-through entity. (2) Accurate, current, and complete disclosure of the financial results of each Federal award or program in accordance with the reporting requirements in §§ 200.328 and 200.329. When a Federal agency or pass-through entity requires reporting on an accrual basis from a recipient or subrecipient that maintains its records other than on an accrual basis, the recipient or subrecipient must not be required to establish an accrual accounting system. This recipient or subrecipient may develop accrual data for its reports based on an analysis of the documentation on hand. (3) Maintaining records that sufficiently identify the amount, source, and expenditure of Federal funds for Federal awards. These records must contain information necessary to identify Federal awards, authorizations, financial obligations, unobligated balances, as well as assets, expenditures, income, and interest. All records must be supported by source documentation. (4) Effective control over and accountability for all funds, property, and assets. The recipient or subrecipient must safeguard all assets and ensure they are used solely for authorized purposes. (5) Comparison of expenditures with budget amounts for each Federal award. (6) Written procedures to implement the requirements of § 200.305. (7) Written procedures for determining the allowability of costs in accordance with subpart E and the terms and conditions of the Federal award. STATEMENT OF CONDITION Internal controls for creating financial reports about state and Federal funds received and spent through the Puerto Rico Integrated Financial System (PRIFAS) have not been put in place by the PRDF. The PRDF lacks an adequate system of internal controls to stop, identify, and fix errors. There was no supervision or review procedure in place to identify and allow for the correction of errors before submission and before the financial data was entered into PRIFAS. There was a delay in getting timely and correct financial information for the year under audit, and the PRDF staff had difficulties preparing and presenting the cash receipt and disbursement report, which included the schedule of federal spending for the audit. The following weaknesses were discovered when the PRDF's initial Financial Statement was reviewed: • Transactions that weren't related to the fiscal year being reported were included in the initial financial data. • The Office of the Secretariat and the four Programmatic Administrations lack uniform policies and procedures to guarantee that the amounts and disclosures in the PRDF's financial reports, financial statement notes, and necessary supplemental information are correctly recognized and reported. • Reports for several significant programs were prepared informally and, in some instances, only by one person, which resulted in significant mistakes in some of the programs. As a result, errors in the reports across the programs were not investigated or fixed. Additionally, we saw that for various financial reports, the PRIFAS data was not considered in the reconciliation process. • Several significant transactions were not entered into the PRIFAS by the Administration for Families and Children (ADFAN, by its Spanish Acronym) Finance Department, they were recorded as encumbrances, and not actual expenditures. This led to an understatement of expenditures in the PRDF's general fund of about $52,300,494. Additionally, Federal spending in one of the major programs was understated by $6,886,156. PERSPECTIVE INFORMATION The PRDF failed to properly registered in its accounting system all transactions needed to prepared the financial statement and to produce accurate financial reports for Federal grants that they received and expended during the fiscal year. No reconciliation procedures are performed regularly to identified errors in recording transactions in PRIFAS. This cause that when the PRDF prepared cash received and disbursement financial statement and the SEFA for audit purposes was incomplete and misstated (see Finding Reference Number 2023-017). STATEMENT OF CAUSE To make sure that all the PRDF's transactions had been accurately documented and reported, the PRDF did not thoroughly examine the financial data that was created and submitted in PRIFAS and used to prepare the financial statement and supplementary information. Due to lack of supervision or a review procedure to identify errors prior to submission, the ADFAN Finance Director recorded transactions as encumbrances, instead of actual expenditures. POSSIBLE ASSERTED EFFECT The PRDF is unable to provide accurate, up-to-date, and comprehensive disclosure of state and Federal funds activities in compliance with the agreement's requirements due to inadequate and inconsistent financial accounting reporting methods. IDENTIFICATION OF REPEAT FINDING No reported as prior audit finding. RECOMMENDATIONS To comply with the requirements of state and local agreements and enable the PRDF to monitor trustworthy financial data for use within the agency and for upcoming audits, we recommend the PRDF update its accounting practices and policies to provide for an accurate, comprehensive, and timely financial reporting system. Implementing an accounting and financial management system that enables the creation of financial data and reports needed by the various oversight organizations. The process should involve defining precise procedures for the creation and evaluation of financial reports, with different roles allocated to various people.
FINDING REFERENCE NUMBER 2023-046 (See Finding Reference Number 2023-018) FEDERAL PROGRAM ALL FEDERAL PROGRAMS ON THE SCHEDULE OF EXPENDITURES OF FEDERAL AWARDS AWARD NUMBER ALL AWARDS COMPLIANCE REQUIREMENT REPORTING – FINANCIAL STATEMENT ACCOUNTING RECORDS TYPE OF FINDING MATERIAL NONCOMPLIANCE AND MATERIAL WEAKNESS CRITERIA 2 CFR Part 200, Section 302 and 45 CFR Part 75, Section 302- Financial management and standards for financial management systems state that: (a) Each State must expend and account for the Federal award in accordance with State laws and procedures for expending and accounting for the State's funds. All recipient and subrecipient financial management systems, including records documenting compliance with Federal statutes, regulations, and the terms and conditions of the Federal award, must be sufficient to permit the preparation of reports required by the terms and conditions; and tracking expenditures to establish that funds have been used in accordance with Federal statutes, regulations, and the terms and conditions of the Federal award. (b) The recipient's and subrecipient's financial management system must provide for the following: (1) Identification of all Federal awards received and expended and the Federal programs under which they were received. Federal program and Federal award identification must include, as applicable, the Assistance Listings title and number, Federal award identification number, year the Federal award was issued, and name of the Federal agency or pass-through entity. (2) Accurate, current, and complete disclosure of the financial results of each Federal award or program in accordance with the reporting requirements in §§ 200.328 and 200.329. When a Federal agency or pass-through entity requires reporting on an accrual basis from a recipient or subrecipient that maintains its records other than on an accrual basis, the recipient or subrecipient must not be required to establish an accrual accounting system. This recipient or subrecipient may develop accrual data for its reports based on an analysis of the documentation on hand. (3) Maintaining records that sufficiently identify the amount, source, and expenditure of Federal funds for Federal awards. These records must contain information necessary to identify Federal awards, authorizations, financial obligations, unobligated balances, as well as assets, expenditures, income, and interest. All records must be supported by source documentation. (4) Effective control over and accountability for all funds, property, and assets. The recipient or subrecipient must safeguard all assets and ensure they are used solely for authorized purposes. (5) Comparison of expenditures with budget amounts for each Federal award. (6) Written procedures to implement the requirements of § 200.305. (7) Written procedures for determining the allowability of costs in accordance with subpart E and the terms and conditions of the Federal award. STATEMENT OF CONDITION Internal controls for creating financial reports about state and Federal funds received and spent through the Puerto Rico Integrated Financial System (PRIFAS) have not been put in place by the PRDF. The PRDF lacks an adequate system of internal controls to stop, identify, and fix errors. There was no supervision or review procedure in place to identify and allow for the correction of errors before submission and before the financial data was entered into PRIFAS. There was a delay in getting timely and correct financial information for the year under audit, and the PRDF staff had difficulties preparing and presenting the cash receipt and disbursement report, which included the schedule of federal spending for the audit. The following weaknesses were discovered when the PRDF's initial Financial Statement was reviewed: • Transactions that weren't related to the fiscal year being reported were included in the initial financial data. • The Office of the Secretariat and the four Programmatic Administrations lack uniform policies and procedures to guarantee that the amounts and disclosures in the PRDF's financial reports, financial statement notes, and necessary supplemental information are correctly recognized and reported. • Reports for several significant programs were prepared informally and, in some instances, only by one person, which resulted in significant mistakes in some of the programs. As a result, errors in the reports across the programs were not investigated or fixed. Additionally, we saw that for various financial reports, the PRIFAS data was not considered in the reconciliation process. • Several significant transactions were not entered into the PRIFAS by the Administration for Families and Children (ADFAN, by its Spanish Acronym) Finance Department, they were recorded as encumbrances, and not actual expenditures. This led to an understatement of expenditures in the PRDF's general fund of about $52,300,494. Additionally, Federal spending in one of the major programs was understated by $6,886,156. PERSPECTIVE INFORMATION The PRDF failed to properly registered in its accounting system all transactions needed to prepared the financial statement and to produce accurate financial reports for Federal grants that they received and expended during the fiscal year. No reconciliation procedures are performed regularly to identified errors in recording transactions in PRIFAS. This cause that when the PRDF prepared cash received and disbursement financial statement and the SEFA for audit purposes was incomplete and misstated (see Finding Reference Number 2023-017). STATEMENT OF CAUSE To make sure that all the PRDF's transactions had been accurately documented and reported, the PRDF did not thoroughly examine the financial data that was created and submitted in PRIFAS and used to prepare the financial statement and supplementary information. Due to lack of supervision or a review procedure to identify errors prior to submission, the ADFAN Finance Director recorded transactions as encumbrances, instead of actual expenditures. POSSIBLE ASSERTED EFFECT The PRDF is unable to provide accurate, up-to-date, and comprehensive disclosure of state and Federal funds activities in compliance with the agreement's requirements due to inadequate and inconsistent financial accounting reporting methods. IDENTIFICATION OF REPEAT FINDING No reported as prior audit finding. RECOMMENDATIONS To comply with the requirements of state and local agreements and enable the PRDF to monitor trustworthy financial data for use within the agency and for upcoming audits, we recommend the PRDF update its accounting practices and policies to provide for an accurate, comprehensive, and timely financial reporting system. Implementing an accounting and financial management system that enables the creation of financial data and reports needed by the various oversight organizations. The process should involve defining precise procedures for the creation and evaluation of financial reports, with different roles allocated to various people.
FINDING REFERENCE NUMBER 2023-046 (See Finding Reference Number 2023-018) FEDERAL PROGRAM ALL FEDERAL PROGRAMS ON THE SCHEDULE OF EXPENDITURES OF FEDERAL AWARDS AWARD NUMBER ALL AWARDS COMPLIANCE REQUIREMENT REPORTING – FINANCIAL STATEMENT ACCOUNTING RECORDS TYPE OF FINDING MATERIAL NONCOMPLIANCE AND MATERIAL WEAKNESS CRITERIA 2 CFR Part 200, Section 302 and 45 CFR Part 75, Section 302- Financial management and standards for financial management systems state that: (a) Each State must expend and account for the Federal award in accordance with State laws and procedures for expending and accounting for the State's funds. All recipient and subrecipient financial management systems, including records documenting compliance with Federal statutes, regulations, and the terms and conditions of the Federal award, must be sufficient to permit the preparation of reports required by the terms and conditions; and tracking expenditures to establish that funds have been used in accordance with Federal statutes, regulations, and the terms and conditions of the Federal award. (b) The recipient's and subrecipient's financial management system must provide for the following: (1) Identification of all Federal awards received and expended and the Federal programs under which they were received. Federal program and Federal award identification must include, as applicable, the Assistance Listings title and number, Federal award identification number, year the Federal award was issued, and name of the Federal agency or pass-through entity. (2) Accurate, current, and complete disclosure of the financial results of each Federal award or program in accordance with the reporting requirements in §§ 200.328 and 200.329. When a Federal agency or pass-through entity requires reporting on an accrual basis from a recipient or subrecipient that maintains its records other than on an accrual basis, the recipient or subrecipient must not be required to establish an accrual accounting system. This recipient or subrecipient may develop accrual data for its reports based on an analysis of the documentation on hand. (3) Maintaining records that sufficiently identify the amount, source, and expenditure of Federal funds for Federal awards. These records must contain information necessary to identify Federal awards, authorizations, financial obligations, unobligated balances, as well as assets, expenditures, income, and interest. All records must be supported by source documentation. (4) Effective control over and accountability for all funds, property, and assets. The recipient or subrecipient must safeguard all assets and ensure they are used solely for authorized purposes. (5) Comparison of expenditures with budget amounts for each Federal award. (6) Written procedures to implement the requirements of § 200.305. (7) Written procedures for determining the allowability of costs in accordance with subpart E and the terms and conditions of the Federal award. STATEMENT OF CONDITION Internal controls for creating financial reports about state and Federal funds received and spent through the Puerto Rico Integrated Financial System (PRIFAS) have not been put in place by the PRDF. The PRDF lacks an adequate system of internal controls to stop, identify, and fix errors. There was no supervision or review procedure in place to identify and allow for the correction of errors before submission and before the financial data was entered into PRIFAS. There was a delay in getting timely and correct financial information for the year under audit, and the PRDF staff had difficulties preparing and presenting the cash receipt and disbursement report, which included the schedule of federal spending for the audit. The following weaknesses were discovered when the PRDF's initial Financial Statement was reviewed: • Transactions that weren't related to the fiscal year being reported were included in the initial financial data. • The Office of the Secretariat and the four Programmatic Administrations lack uniform policies and procedures to guarantee that the amounts and disclosures in the PRDF's financial reports, financial statement notes, and necessary supplemental information are correctly recognized and reported. • Reports for several significant programs were prepared informally and, in some instances, only by one person, which resulted in significant mistakes in some of the programs. As a result, errors in the reports across the programs were not investigated or fixed. Additionally, we saw that for various financial reports, the PRIFAS data was not considered in the reconciliation process. • Several significant transactions were not entered into the PRIFAS by the Administration for Families and Children (ADFAN, by its Spanish Acronym) Finance Department, they were recorded as encumbrances, and not actual expenditures. This led to an understatement of expenditures in the PRDF's general fund of about $52,300,494. Additionally, Federal spending in one of the major programs was understated by $6,886,156. PERSPECTIVE INFORMATION The PRDF failed to properly registered in its accounting system all transactions needed to prepared the financial statement and to produce accurate financial reports for Federal grants that they received and expended during the fiscal year. No reconciliation procedures are performed regularly to identified errors in recording transactions in PRIFAS. This cause that when the PRDF prepared cash received and disbursement financial statement and the SEFA for audit purposes was incomplete and misstated (see Finding Reference Number 2023-017). STATEMENT OF CAUSE To make sure that all the PRDF's transactions had been accurately documented and reported, the PRDF did not thoroughly examine the financial data that was created and submitted in PRIFAS and used to prepare the financial statement and supplementary information. Due to lack of supervision or a review procedure to identify errors prior to submission, the ADFAN Finance Director recorded transactions as encumbrances, instead of actual expenditures. POSSIBLE ASSERTED EFFECT The PRDF is unable to provide accurate, up-to-date, and comprehensive disclosure of state and Federal funds activities in compliance with the agreement's requirements due to inadequate and inconsistent financial accounting reporting methods. IDENTIFICATION OF REPEAT FINDING No reported as prior audit finding. RECOMMENDATIONS To comply with the requirements of state and local agreements and enable the PRDF to monitor trustworthy financial data for use within the agency and for upcoming audits, we recommend the PRDF update its accounting practices and policies to provide for an accurate, comprehensive, and timely financial reporting system. Implementing an accounting and financial management system that enables the creation of financial data and reports needed by the various oversight organizations. The process should involve defining precise procedures for the creation and evaluation of financial reports, with different roles allocated to various people.
FINDING REFERENCE NUMBER 2023-046 (See Finding Reference Number 2023-018) FEDERAL PROGRAM ALL FEDERAL PROGRAMS ON THE SCHEDULE OF EXPENDITURES OF FEDERAL AWARDS AWARD NUMBER ALL AWARDS COMPLIANCE REQUIREMENT REPORTING – FINANCIAL STATEMENT ACCOUNTING RECORDS TYPE OF FINDING MATERIAL NONCOMPLIANCE AND MATERIAL WEAKNESS CRITERIA 2 CFR Part 200, Section 302 and 45 CFR Part 75, Section 302- Financial management and standards for financial management systems state that: (a) Each State must expend and account for the Federal award in accordance with State laws and procedures for expending and accounting for the State's funds. All recipient and subrecipient financial management systems, including records documenting compliance with Federal statutes, regulations, and the terms and conditions of the Federal award, must be sufficient to permit the preparation of reports required by the terms and conditions; and tracking expenditures to establish that funds have been used in accordance with Federal statutes, regulations, and the terms and conditions of the Federal award. (b) The recipient's and subrecipient's financial management system must provide for the following: (1) Identification of all Federal awards received and expended and the Federal programs under which they were received. Federal program and Federal award identification must include, as applicable, the Assistance Listings title and number, Federal award identification number, year the Federal award was issued, and name of the Federal agency or pass-through entity. (2) Accurate, current, and complete disclosure of the financial results of each Federal award or program in accordance with the reporting requirements in §§ 200.328 and 200.329. When a Federal agency or pass-through entity requires reporting on an accrual basis from a recipient or subrecipient that maintains its records other than on an accrual basis, the recipient or subrecipient must not be required to establish an accrual accounting system. This recipient or subrecipient may develop accrual data for its reports based on an analysis of the documentation on hand. (3) Maintaining records that sufficiently identify the amount, source, and expenditure of Federal funds for Federal awards. These records must contain information necessary to identify Federal awards, authorizations, financial obligations, unobligated balances, as well as assets, expenditures, income, and interest. All records must be supported by source documentation. (4) Effective control over and accountability for all funds, property, and assets. The recipient or subrecipient must safeguard all assets and ensure they are used solely for authorized purposes. (5) Comparison of expenditures with budget amounts for each Federal award. (6) Written procedures to implement the requirements of § 200.305. (7) Written procedures for determining the allowability of costs in accordance with subpart E and the terms and conditions of the Federal award. STATEMENT OF CONDITION Internal controls for creating financial reports about state and Federal funds received and spent through the Puerto Rico Integrated Financial System (PRIFAS) have not been put in place by the PRDF. The PRDF lacks an adequate system of internal controls to stop, identify, and fix errors. There was no supervision or review procedure in place to identify and allow for the correction of errors before submission and before the financial data was entered into PRIFAS. There was a delay in getting timely and correct financial information for the year under audit, and the PRDF staff had difficulties preparing and presenting the cash receipt and disbursement report, which included the schedule of federal spending for the audit. The following weaknesses were discovered when the PRDF's initial Financial Statement was reviewed: • Transactions that weren't related to the fiscal year being reported were included in the initial financial data. • The Office of the Secretariat and the four Programmatic Administrations lack uniform policies and procedures to guarantee that the amounts and disclosures in the PRDF's financial reports, financial statement notes, and necessary supplemental information are correctly recognized and reported. • Reports for several significant programs were prepared informally and, in some instances, only by one person, which resulted in significant mistakes in some of the programs. As a result, errors in the reports across the programs were not investigated or fixed. Additionally, we saw that for various financial reports, the PRIFAS data was not considered in the reconciliation process. • Several significant transactions were not entered into the PRIFAS by the Administration for Families and Children (ADFAN, by its Spanish Acronym) Finance Department, they were recorded as encumbrances, and not actual expenditures. This led to an understatement of expenditures in the PRDF's general fund of about $52,300,494. Additionally, Federal spending in one of the major programs was understated by $6,886,156. PERSPECTIVE INFORMATION The PRDF failed to properly registered in its accounting system all transactions needed to prepared the financial statement and to produce accurate financial reports for Federal grants that they received and expended during the fiscal year. No reconciliation procedures are performed regularly to identified errors in recording transactions in PRIFAS. This cause that when the PRDF prepared cash received and disbursement financial statement and the SEFA for audit purposes was incomplete and misstated (see Finding Reference Number 2023-017). STATEMENT OF CAUSE To make sure that all the PRDF's transactions had been accurately documented and reported, the PRDF did not thoroughly examine the financial data that was created and submitted in PRIFAS and used to prepare the financial statement and supplementary information. Due to lack of supervision or a review procedure to identify errors prior to submission, the ADFAN Finance Director recorded transactions as encumbrances, instead of actual expenditures. POSSIBLE ASSERTED EFFECT The PRDF is unable to provide accurate, up-to-date, and comprehensive disclosure of state and Federal funds activities in compliance with the agreement's requirements due to inadequate and inconsistent financial accounting reporting methods. IDENTIFICATION OF REPEAT FINDING No reported as prior audit finding. RECOMMENDATIONS To comply with the requirements of state and local agreements and enable the PRDF to monitor trustworthy financial data for use within the agency and for upcoming audits, we recommend the PRDF update its accounting practices and policies to provide for an accurate, comprehensive, and timely financial reporting system. Implementing an accounting and financial management system that enables the creation of financial data and reports needed by the various oversight organizations. The process should involve defining precise procedures for the creation and evaluation of financial reports, with different roles allocated to various people.
FINDING REFERENCE NUMBER 2023-046 (See Finding Reference Number 2023-018) FEDERAL PROGRAM ALL FEDERAL PROGRAMS ON THE SCHEDULE OF EXPENDITURES OF FEDERAL AWARDS AWARD NUMBER ALL AWARDS COMPLIANCE REQUIREMENT REPORTING – FINANCIAL STATEMENT ACCOUNTING RECORDS TYPE OF FINDING MATERIAL NONCOMPLIANCE AND MATERIAL WEAKNESS CRITERIA 2 CFR Part 200, Section 302 and 45 CFR Part 75, Section 302- Financial management and standards for financial management systems state that: (a) Each State must expend and account for the Federal award in accordance with State laws and procedures for expending and accounting for the State's funds. All recipient and subrecipient financial management systems, including records documenting compliance with Federal statutes, regulations, and the terms and conditions of the Federal award, must be sufficient to permit the preparation of reports required by the terms and conditions; and tracking expenditures to establish that funds have been used in accordance with Federal statutes, regulations, and the terms and conditions of the Federal award. (b) The recipient's and subrecipient's financial management system must provide for the following: (1) Identification of all Federal awards received and expended and the Federal programs under which they were received. Federal program and Federal award identification must include, as applicable, the Assistance Listings title and number, Federal award identification number, year the Federal award was issued, and name of the Federal agency or pass-through entity. (2) Accurate, current, and complete disclosure of the financial results of each Federal award or program in accordance with the reporting requirements in §§ 200.328 and 200.329. When a Federal agency or pass-through entity requires reporting on an accrual basis from a recipient or subrecipient that maintains its records other than on an accrual basis, the recipient or subrecipient must not be required to establish an accrual accounting system. This recipient or subrecipient may develop accrual data for its reports based on an analysis of the documentation on hand. (3) Maintaining records that sufficiently identify the amount, source, and expenditure of Federal funds for Federal awards. These records must contain information necessary to identify Federal awards, authorizations, financial obligations, unobligated balances, as well as assets, expenditures, income, and interest. All records must be supported by source documentation. (4) Effective control over and accountability for all funds, property, and assets. The recipient or subrecipient must safeguard all assets and ensure they are used solely for authorized purposes. (5) Comparison of expenditures with budget amounts for each Federal award. (6) Written procedures to implement the requirements of § 200.305. (7) Written procedures for determining the allowability of costs in accordance with subpart E and the terms and conditions of the Federal award. STATEMENT OF CONDITION Internal controls for creating financial reports about state and Federal funds received and spent through the Puerto Rico Integrated Financial System (PRIFAS) have not been put in place by the PRDF. The PRDF lacks an adequate system of internal controls to stop, identify, and fix errors. There was no supervision or review procedure in place to identify and allow for the correction of errors before submission and before the financial data was entered into PRIFAS. There was a delay in getting timely and correct financial information for the year under audit, and the PRDF staff had difficulties preparing and presenting the cash receipt and disbursement report, which included the schedule of federal spending for the audit. The following weaknesses were discovered when the PRDF's initial Financial Statement was reviewed: • Transactions that weren't related to the fiscal year being reported were included in the initial financial data. • The Office of the Secretariat and the four Programmatic Administrations lack uniform policies and procedures to guarantee that the amounts and disclosures in the PRDF's financial reports, financial statement notes, and necessary supplemental information are correctly recognized and reported. • Reports for several significant programs were prepared informally and, in some instances, only by one person, which resulted in significant mistakes in some of the programs. As a result, errors in the reports across the programs were not investigated or fixed. Additionally, we saw that for various financial reports, the PRIFAS data was not considered in the reconciliation process. • Several significant transactions were not entered into the PRIFAS by the Administration for Families and Children (ADFAN, by its Spanish Acronym) Finance Department, they were recorded as encumbrances, and not actual expenditures. This led to an understatement of expenditures in the PRDF's general fund of about $52,300,494. Additionally, Federal spending in one of the major programs was understated by $6,886,156. PERSPECTIVE INFORMATION The PRDF failed to properly registered in its accounting system all transactions needed to prepared the financial statement and to produce accurate financial reports for Federal grants that they received and expended during the fiscal year. No reconciliation procedures are performed regularly to identified errors in recording transactions in PRIFAS. This cause that when the PRDF prepared cash received and disbursement financial statement and the SEFA for audit purposes was incomplete and misstated (see Finding Reference Number 2023-017). STATEMENT OF CAUSE To make sure that all the PRDF's transactions had been accurately documented and reported, the PRDF did not thoroughly examine the financial data that was created and submitted in PRIFAS and used to prepare the financial statement and supplementary information. Due to lack of supervision or a review procedure to identify errors prior to submission, the ADFAN Finance Director recorded transactions as encumbrances, instead of actual expenditures. POSSIBLE ASSERTED EFFECT The PRDF is unable to provide accurate, up-to-date, and comprehensive disclosure of state and Federal funds activities in compliance with the agreement's requirements due to inadequate and inconsistent financial accounting reporting methods. IDENTIFICATION OF REPEAT FINDING No reported as prior audit finding. RECOMMENDATIONS To comply with the requirements of state and local agreements and enable the PRDF to monitor trustworthy financial data for use within the agency and for upcoming audits, we recommend the PRDF update its accounting practices and policies to provide for an accurate, comprehensive, and timely financial reporting system. Implementing an accounting and financial management system that enables the creation of financial data and reports needed by the various oversight organizations. The process should involve defining precise procedures for the creation and evaluation of financial reports, with different roles allocated to various people.
FINDING REFERENCE NUMBER 2023-046 (See Finding Reference Number 2023-018) FEDERAL PROGRAM ALL FEDERAL PROGRAMS ON THE SCHEDULE OF EXPENDITURES OF FEDERAL AWARDS AWARD NUMBER ALL AWARDS COMPLIANCE REQUIREMENT REPORTING – FINANCIAL STATEMENT ACCOUNTING RECORDS TYPE OF FINDING MATERIAL NONCOMPLIANCE AND MATERIAL WEAKNESS CRITERIA 2 CFR Part 200, Section 302 and 45 CFR Part 75, Section 302- Financial management and standards for financial management systems state that: (a) Each State must expend and account for the Federal award in accordance with State laws and procedures for expending and accounting for the State's funds. All recipient and subrecipient financial management systems, including records documenting compliance with Federal statutes, regulations, and the terms and conditions of the Federal award, must be sufficient to permit the preparation of reports required by the terms and conditions; and tracking expenditures to establish that funds have been used in accordance with Federal statutes, regulations, and the terms and conditions of the Federal award. (b) The recipient's and subrecipient's financial management system must provide for the following: (1) Identification of all Federal awards received and expended and the Federal programs under which they were received. Federal program and Federal award identification must include, as applicable, the Assistance Listings title and number, Federal award identification number, year the Federal award was issued, and name of the Federal agency or pass-through entity. (2) Accurate, current, and complete disclosure of the financial results of each Federal award or program in accordance with the reporting requirements in §§ 200.328 and 200.329. When a Federal agency or pass-through entity requires reporting on an accrual basis from a recipient or subrecipient that maintains its records other than on an accrual basis, the recipient or subrecipient must not be required to establish an accrual accounting system. This recipient or subrecipient may develop accrual data for its reports based on an analysis of the documentation on hand. (3) Maintaining records that sufficiently identify the amount, source, and expenditure of Federal funds for Federal awards. These records must contain information necessary to identify Federal awards, authorizations, financial obligations, unobligated balances, as well as assets, expenditures, income, and interest. All records must be supported by source documentation. (4) Effective control over and accountability for all funds, property, and assets. The recipient or subrecipient must safeguard all assets and ensure they are used solely for authorized purposes. (5) Comparison of expenditures with budget amounts for each Federal award. (6) Written procedures to implement the requirements of § 200.305. (7) Written procedures for determining the allowability of costs in accordance with subpart E and the terms and conditions of the Federal award. STATEMENT OF CONDITION Internal controls for creating financial reports about state and Federal funds received and spent through the Puerto Rico Integrated Financial System (PRIFAS) have not been put in place by the PRDF. The PRDF lacks an adequate system of internal controls to stop, identify, and fix errors. There was no supervision or review procedure in place to identify and allow for the correction of errors before submission and before the financial data was entered into PRIFAS. There was a delay in getting timely and correct financial information for the year under audit, and the PRDF staff had difficulties preparing and presenting the cash receipt and disbursement report, which included the schedule of federal spending for the audit. The following weaknesses were discovered when the PRDF's initial Financial Statement was reviewed: • Transactions that weren't related to the fiscal year being reported were included in the initial financial data. • The Office of the Secretariat and the four Programmatic Administrations lack uniform policies and procedures to guarantee that the amounts and disclosures in the PRDF's financial reports, financial statement notes, and necessary supplemental information are correctly recognized and reported. • Reports for several significant programs were prepared informally and, in some instances, only by one person, which resulted in significant mistakes in some of the programs. As a result, errors in the reports across the programs were not investigated or fixed. Additionally, we saw that for various financial reports, the PRIFAS data was not considered in the reconciliation process. • Several significant transactions were not entered into the PRIFAS by the Administration for Families and Children (ADFAN, by its Spanish Acronym) Finance Department, they were recorded as encumbrances, and not actual expenditures. This led to an understatement of expenditures in the PRDF's general fund of about $52,300,494. Additionally, Federal spending in one of the major programs was understated by $6,886,156. PERSPECTIVE INFORMATION The PRDF failed to properly registered in its accounting system all transactions needed to prepared the financial statement and to produce accurate financial reports for Federal grants that they received and expended during the fiscal year. No reconciliation procedures are performed regularly to identified errors in recording transactions in PRIFAS. This cause that when the PRDF prepared cash received and disbursement financial statement and the SEFA for audit purposes was incomplete and misstated (see Finding Reference Number 2023-017). STATEMENT OF CAUSE To make sure that all the PRDF's transactions had been accurately documented and reported, the PRDF did not thoroughly examine the financial data that was created and submitted in PRIFAS and used to prepare the financial statement and supplementary information. Due to lack of supervision or a review procedure to identify errors prior to submission, the ADFAN Finance Director recorded transactions as encumbrances, instead of actual expenditures. POSSIBLE ASSERTED EFFECT The PRDF is unable to provide accurate, up-to-date, and comprehensive disclosure of state and Federal funds activities in compliance with the agreement's requirements due to inadequate and inconsistent financial accounting reporting methods. IDENTIFICATION OF REPEAT FINDING No reported as prior audit finding. RECOMMENDATIONS To comply with the requirements of state and local agreements and enable the PRDF to monitor trustworthy financial data for use within the agency and for upcoming audits, we recommend the PRDF update its accounting practices and policies to provide for an accurate, comprehensive, and timely financial reporting system. Implementing an accounting and financial management system that enables the creation of financial data and reports needed by the various oversight organizations. The process should involve defining precise procedures for the creation and evaluation of financial reports, with different roles allocated to various people.
FINDING REFERENCE NUMBER 2023-046 (See Finding Reference Number 2023-018) FEDERAL PROGRAM ALL FEDERAL PROGRAMS ON THE SCHEDULE OF EXPENDITURES OF FEDERAL AWARDS AWARD NUMBER ALL AWARDS COMPLIANCE REQUIREMENT REPORTING – FINANCIAL STATEMENT ACCOUNTING RECORDS TYPE OF FINDING MATERIAL NONCOMPLIANCE AND MATERIAL WEAKNESS CRITERIA 2 CFR Part 200, Section 302 and 45 CFR Part 75, Section 302- Financial management and standards for financial management systems state that: (a) Each State must expend and account for the Federal award in accordance with State laws and procedures for expending and accounting for the State's funds. All recipient and subrecipient financial management systems, including records documenting compliance with Federal statutes, regulations, and the terms and conditions of the Federal award, must be sufficient to permit the preparation of reports required by the terms and conditions; and tracking expenditures to establish that funds have been used in accordance with Federal statutes, regulations, and the terms and conditions of the Federal award. (b) The recipient's and subrecipient's financial management system must provide for the following: (1) Identification of all Federal awards received and expended and the Federal programs under which they were received. Federal program and Federal award identification must include, as applicable, the Assistance Listings title and number, Federal award identification number, year the Federal award was issued, and name of the Federal agency or pass-through entity. (2) Accurate, current, and complete disclosure of the financial results of each Federal award or program in accordance with the reporting requirements in §§ 200.328 and 200.329. When a Federal agency or pass-through entity requires reporting on an accrual basis from a recipient or subrecipient that maintains its records other than on an accrual basis, the recipient or subrecipient must not be required to establish an accrual accounting system. This recipient or subrecipient may develop accrual data for its reports based on an analysis of the documentation on hand. (3) Maintaining records that sufficiently identify the amount, source, and expenditure of Federal funds for Federal awards. These records must contain information necessary to identify Federal awards, authorizations, financial obligations, unobligated balances, as well as assets, expenditures, income, and interest. All records must be supported by source documentation. (4) Effective control over and accountability for all funds, property, and assets. The recipient or subrecipient must safeguard all assets and ensure they are used solely for authorized purposes. (5) Comparison of expenditures with budget amounts for each Federal award. (6) Written procedures to implement the requirements of § 200.305. (7) Written procedures for determining the allowability of costs in accordance with subpart E and the terms and conditions of the Federal award. STATEMENT OF CONDITION Internal controls for creating financial reports about state and Federal funds received and spent through the Puerto Rico Integrated Financial System (PRIFAS) have not been put in place by the PRDF. The PRDF lacks an adequate system of internal controls to stop, identify, and fix errors. There was no supervision or review procedure in place to identify and allow for the correction of errors before submission and before the financial data was entered into PRIFAS. There was a delay in getting timely and correct financial information for the year under audit, and the PRDF staff had difficulties preparing and presenting the cash receipt and disbursement report, which included the schedule of federal spending for the audit. The following weaknesses were discovered when the PRDF's initial Financial Statement was reviewed: • Transactions that weren't related to the fiscal year being reported were included in the initial financial data. • The Office of the Secretariat and the four Programmatic Administrations lack uniform policies and procedures to guarantee that the amounts and disclosures in the PRDF's financial reports, financial statement notes, and necessary supplemental information are correctly recognized and reported. • Reports for several significant programs were prepared informally and, in some instances, only by one person, which resulted in significant mistakes in some of the programs. As a result, errors in the reports across the programs were not investigated or fixed. Additionally, we saw that for various financial reports, the PRIFAS data was not considered in the reconciliation process. • Several significant transactions were not entered into the PRIFAS by the Administration for Families and Children (ADFAN, by its Spanish Acronym) Finance Department, they were recorded as encumbrances, and not actual expenditures. This led to an understatement of expenditures in the PRDF's general fund of about $52,300,494. Additionally, Federal spending in one of the major programs was understated by $6,886,156. PERSPECTIVE INFORMATION The PRDF failed to properly registered in its accounting system all transactions needed to prepared the financial statement and to produce accurate financial reports for Federal grants that they received and expended during the fiscal year. No reconciliation procedures are performed regularly to identified errors in recording transactions in PRIFAS. This cause that when the PRDF prepared cash received and disbursement financial statement and the SEFA for audit purposes was incomplete and misstated (see Finding Reference Number 2023-017). STATEMENT OF CAUSE To make sure that all the PRDF's transactions had been accurately documented and reported, the PRDF did not thoroughly examine the financial data that was created and submitted in PRIFAS and used to prepare the financial statement and supplementary information. Due to lack of supervision or a review procedure to identify errors prior to submission, the ADFAN Finance Director recorded transactions as encumbrances, instead of actual expenditures. POSSIBLE ASSERTED EFFECT The PRDF is unable to provide accurate, up-to-date, and comprehensive disclosure of state and Federal funds activities in compliance with the agreement's requirements due to inadequate and inconsistent financial accounting reporting methods. IDENTIFICATION OF REPEAT FINDING No reported as prior audit finding. RECOMMENDATIONS To comply with the requirements of state and local agreements and enable the PRDF to monitor trustworthy financial data for use within the agency and for upcoming audits, we recommend the PRDF update its accounting practices and policies to provide for an accurate, comprehensive, and timely financial reporting system. Implementing an accounting and financial management system that enables the creation of financial data and reports needed by the various oversight organizations. The process should involve defining precise procedures for the creation and evaluation of financial reports, with different roles allocated to various people.
FINDING REFERENCE NUMBER 2023-046 (See Finding Reference Number 2023-018) FEDERAL PROGRAM ALL FEDERAL PROGRAMS ON THE SCHEDULE OF EXPENDITURES OF FEDERAL AWARDS AWARD NUMBER ALL AWARDS COMPLIANCE REQUIREMENT REPORTING – FINANCIAL STATEMENT ACCOUNTING RECORDS TYPE OF FINDING MATERIAL NONCOMPLIANCE AND MATERIAL WEAKNESS CRITERIA 2 CFR Part 200, Section 302 and 45 CFR Part 75, Section 302- Financial management and standards for financial management systems state that: (a) Each State must expend and account for the Federal award in accordance with State laws and procedures for expending and accounting for the State's funds. All recipient and subrecipient financial management systems, including records documenting compliance with Federal statutes, regulations, and the terms and conditions of the Federal award, must be sufficient to permit the preparation of reports required by the terms and conditions; and tracking expenditures to establish that funds have been used in accordance with Federal statutes, regulations, and the terms and conditions of the Federal award. (b) The recipient's and subrecipient's financial management system must provide for the following: (1) Identification of all Federal awards received and expended and the Federal programs under which they were received. Federal program and Federal award identification must include, as applicable, the Assistance Listings title and number, Federal award identification number, year the Federal award was issued, and name of the Federal agency or pass-through entity. (2) Accurate, current, and complete disclosure of the financial results of each Federal award or program in accordance with the reporting requirements in §§ 200.328 and 200.329. When a Federal agency or pass-through entity requires reporting on an accrual basis from a recipient or subrecipient that maintains its records other than on an accrual basis, the recipient or subrecipient must not be required to establish an accrual accounting system. This recipient or subrecipient may develop accrual data for its reports based on an analysis of the documentation on hand. (3) Maintaining records that sufficiently identify the amount, source, and expenditure of Federal funds for Federal awards. These records must contain information necessary to identify Federal awards, authorizations, financial obligations, unobligated balances, as well as assets, expenditures, income, and interest. All records must be supported by source documentation. (4) Effective control over and accountability for all funds, property, and assets. The recipient or subrecipient must safeguard all assets and ensure they are used solely for authorized purposes. (5) Comparison of expenditures with budget amounts for each Federal award. (6) Written procedures to implement the requirements of § 200.305. (7) Written procedures for determining the allowability of costs in accordance with subpart E and the terms and conditions of the Federal award. STATEMENT OF CONDITION Internal controls for creating financial reports about state and Federal funds received and spent through the Puerto Rico Integrated Financial System (PRIFAS) have not been put in place by the PRDF. The PRDF lacks an adequate system of internal controls to stop, identify, and fix errors. There was no supervision or review procedure in place to identify and allow for the correction of errors before submission and before the financial data was entered into PRIFAS. There was a delay in getting timely and correct financial information for the year under audit, and the PRDF staff had difficulties preparing and presenting the cash receipt and disbursement report, which included the schedule of federal spending for the audit. The following weaknesses were discovered when the PRDF's initial Financial Statement was reviewed: • Transactions that weren't related to the fiscal year being reported were included in the initial financial data. • The Office of the Secretariat and the four Programmatic Administrations lack uniform policies and procedures to guarantee that the amounts and disclosures in the PRDF's financial reports, financial statement notes, and necessary supplemental information are correctly recognized and reported. • Reports for several significant programs were prepared informally and, in some instances, only by one person, which resulted in significant mistakes in some of the programs. As a result, errors in the reports across the programs were not investigated or fixed. Additionally, we saw that for various financial reports, the PRIFAS data was not considered in the reconciliation process. • Several significant transactions were not entered into the PRIFAS by the Administration for Families and Children (ADFAN, by its Spanish Acronym) Finance Department, they were recorded as encumbrances, and not actual expenditures. This led to an understatement of expenditures in the PRDF's general fund of about $52,300,494. Additionally, Federal spending in one of the major programs was understated by $6,886,156. PERSPECTIVE INFORMATION The PRDF failed to properly registered in its accounting system all transactions needed to prepared the financial statement and to produce accurate financial reports for Federal grants that they received and expended during the fiscal year. No reconciliation procedures are performed regularly to identified errors in recording transactions in PRIFAS. This cause that when the PRDF prepared cash received and disbursement financial statement and the SEFA for audit purposes was incomplete and misstated (see Finding Reference Number 2023-017). STATEMENT OF CAUSE To make sure that all the PRDF's transactions had been accurately documented and reported, the PRDF did not thoroughly examine the financial data that was created and submitted in PRIFAS and used to prepare the financial statement and supplementary information. Due to lack of supervision or a review procedure to identify errors prior to submission, the ADFAN Finance Director recorded transactions as encumbrances, instead of actual expenditures. POSSIBLE ASSERTED EFFECT The PRDF is unable to provide accurate, up-to-date, and comprehensive disclosure of state and Federal funds activities in compliance with the agreement's requirements due to inadequate and inconsistent financial accounting reporting methods. IDENTIFICATION OF REPEAT FINDING No reported as prior audit finding. RECOMMENDATIONS To comply with the requirements of state and local agreements and enable the PRDF to monitor trustworthy financial data for use within the agency and for upcoming audits, we recommend the PRDF update its accounting practices and policies to provide for an accurate, comprehensive, and timely financial reporting system. Implementing an accounting and financial management system that enables the creation of financial data and reports needed by the various oversight organizations. The process should involve defining precise procedures for the creation and evaluation of financial reports, with different roles allocated to various people.
FINDING REFERENCE NUMBER 2023-046 (See Finding Reference Number 2023-018) FEDERAL PROGRAM ALL FEDERAL PROGRAMS ON THE SCHEDULE OF EXPENDITURES OF FEDERAL AWARDS AWARD NUMBER ALL AWARDS COMPLIANCE REQUIREMENT REPORTING – FINANCIAL STATEMENT ACCOUNTING RECORDS TYPE OF FINDING MATERIAL NONCOMPLIANCE AND MATERIAL WEAKNESS CRITERIA 2 CFR Part 200, Section 302 and 45 CFR Part 75, Section 302- Financial management and standards for financial management systems state that: (a) Each State must expend and account for the Federal award in accordance with State laws and procedures for expending and accounting for the State's funds. All recipient and subrecipient financial management systems, including records documenting compliance with Federal statutes, regulations, and the terms and conditions of the Federal award, must be sufficient to permit the preparation of reports required by the terms and conditions; and tracking expenditures to establish that funds have been used in accordance with Federal statutes, regulations, and the terms and conditions of the Federal award. (b) The recipient's and subrecipient's financial management system must provide for the following: (1) Identification of all Federal awards received and expended and the Federal programs under which they were received. Federal program and Federal award identification must include, as applicable, the Assistance Listings title and number, Federal award identification number, year the Federal award was issued, and name of the Federal agency or pass-through entity. (2) Accurate, current, and complete disclosure of the financial results of each Federal award or program in accordance with the reporting requirements in §§ 200.328 and 200.329. When a Federal agency or pass-through entity requires reporting on an accrual basis from a recipient or subrecipient that maintains its records other than on an accrual basis, the recipient or subrecipient must not be required to establish an accrual accounting system. This recipient or subrecipient may develop accrual data for its reports based on an analysis of the documentation on hand. (3) Maintaining records that sufficiently identify the amount, source, and expenditure of Federal funds for Federal awards. These records must contain information necessary to identify Federal awards, authorizations, financial obligations, unobligated balances, as well as assets, expenditures, income, and interest. All records must be supported by source documentation. (4) Effective control over and accountability for all funds, property, and assets. The recipient or subrecipient must safeguard all assets and ensure they are used solely for authorized purposes. (5) Comparison of expenditures with budget amounts for each Federal award. (6) Written procedures to implement the requirements of § 200.305. (7) Written procedures for determining the allowability of costs in accordance with subpart E and the terms and conditions of the Federal award. STATEMENT OF CONDITION Internal controls for creating financial reports about state and Federal funds received and spent through the Puerto Rico Integrated Financial System (PRIFAS) have not been put in place by the PRDF. The PRDF lacks an adequate system of internal controls to stop, identify, and fix errors. There was no supervision or review procedure in place to identify and allow for the correction of errors before submission and before the financial data was entered into PRIFAS. There was a delay in getting timely and correct financial information for the year under audit, and the PRDF staff had difficulties preparing and presenting the cash receipt and disbursement report, which included the schedule of federal spending for the audit. The following weaknesses were discovered when the PRDF's initial Financial Statement was reviewed: • Transactions that weren't related to the fiscal year being reported were included in the initial financial data. • The Office of the Secretariat and the four Programmatic Administrations lack uniform policies and procedures to guarantee that the amounts and disclosures in the PRDF's financial reports, financial statement notes, and necessary supplemental information are correctly recognized and reported. • Reports for several significant programs were prepared informally and, in some instances, only by one person, which resulted in significant mistakes in some of the programs. As a result, errors in the reports across the programs were not investigated or fixed. Additionally, we saw that for various financial reports, the PRIFAS data was not considered in the reconciliation process. • Several significant transactions were not entered into the PRIFAS by the Administration for Families and Children (ADFAN, by its Spanish Acronym) Finance Department, they were recorded as encumbrances, and not actual expenditures. This led to an understatement of expenditures in the PRDF's general fund of about $52,300,494. Additionally, Federal spending in one of the major programs was understated by $6,886,156. PERSPECTIVE INFORMATION The PRDF failed to properly registered in its accounting system all transactions needed to prepared the financial statement and to produce accurate financial reports for Federal grants that they received and expended during the fiscal year. No reconciliation procedures are performed regularly to identified errors in recording transactions in PRIFAS. This cause that when the PRDF prepared cash received and disbursement financial statement and the SEFA for audit purposes was incomplete and misstated (see Finding Reference Number 2023-017). STATEMENT OF CAUSE To make sure that all the PRDF's transactions had been accurately documented and reported, the PRDF did not thoroughly examine the financial data that was created and submitted in PRIFAS and used to prepare the financial statement and supplementary information. Due to lack of supervision or a review procedure to identify errors prior to submission, the ADFAN Finance Director recorded transactions as encumbrances, instead of actual expenditures. POSSIBLE ASSERTED EFFECT The PRDF is unable to provide accurate, up-to-date, and comprehensive disclosure of state and Federal funds activities in compliance with the agreement's requirements due to inadequate and inconsistent financial accounting reporting methods. IDENTIFICATION OF REPEAT FINDING No reported as prior audit finding. RECOMMENDATIONS To comply with the requirements of state and local agreements and enable the PRDF to monitor trustworthy financial data for use within the agency and for upcoming audits, we recommend the PRDF update its accounting practices and policies to provide for an accurate, comprehensive, and timely financial reporting system. Implementing an accounting and financial management system that enables the creation of financial data and reports needed by the various oversight organizations. The process should involve defining precise procedures for the creation and evaluation of financial reports, with different roles allocated to various people.
FINDING REFERENCE NUMBER 2023-046 (See Finding Reference Number 2023-018) FEDERAL PROGRAM ALL FEDERAL PROGRAMS ON THE SCHEDULE OF EXPENDITURES OF FEDERAL AWARDS AWARD NUMBER ALL AWARDS COMPLIANCE REQUIREMENT REPORTING – FINANCIAL STATEMENT ACCOUNTING RECORDS TYPE OF FINDING MATERIAL NONCOMPLIANCE AND MATERIAL WEAKNESS CRITERIA 2 CFR Part 200, Section 302 and 45 CFR Part 75, Section 302- Financial management and standards for financial management systems state that: (a) Each State must expend and account for the Federal award in accordance with State laws and procedures for expending and accounting for the State's funds. All recipient and subrecipient financial management systems, including records documenting compliance with Federal statutes, regulations, and the terms and conditions of the Federal award, must be sufficient to permit the preparation of reports required by the terms and conditions; and tracking expenditures to establish that funds have been used in accordance with Federal statutes, regulations, and the terms and conditions of the Federal award. (b) The recipient's and subrecipient's financial management system must provide for the following: (1) Identification of all Federal awards received and expended and the Federal programs under which they were received. Federal program and Federal award identification must include, as applicable, the Assistance Listings title and number, Federal award identification number, year the Federal award was issued, and name of the Federal agency or pass-through entity. (2) Accurate, current, and complete disclosure of the financial results of each Federal award or program in accordance with the reporting requirements in §§ 200.328 and 200.329. When a Federal agency or pass-through entity requires reporting on an accrual basis from a recipient or subrecipient that maintains its records other than on an accrual basis, the recipient or subrecipient must not be required to establish an accrual accounting system. This recipient or subrecipient may develop accrual data for its reports based on an analysis of the documentation on hand. (3) Maintaining records that sufficiently identify the amount, source, and expenditure of Federal funds for Federal awards. These records must contain information necessary to identify Federal awards, authorizations, financial obligations, unobligated balances, as well as assets, expenditures, income, and interest. All records must be supported by source documentation. (4) Effective control over and accountability for all funds, property, and assets. The recipient or subrecipient must safeguard all assets and ensure they are used solely for authorized purposes. (5) Comparison of expenditures with budget amounts for each Federal award. (6) Written procedures to implement the requirements of § 200.305. (7) Written procedures for determining the allowability of costs in accordance with subpart E and the terms and conditions of the Federal award. STATEMENT OF CONDITION Internal controls for creating financial reports about state and Federal funds received and spent through the Puerto Rico Integrated Financial System (PRIFAS) have not been put in place by the PRDF. The PRDF lacks an adequate system of internal controls to stop, identify, and fix errors. There was no supervision or review procedure in place to identify and allow for the correction of errors before submission and before the financial data was entered into PRIFAS. There was a delay in getting timely and correct financial information for the year under audit, and the PRDF staff had difficulties preparing and presenting the cash receipt and disbursement report, which included the schedule of federal spending for the audit. The following weaknesses were discovered when the PRDF's initial Financial Statement was reviewed: • Transactions that weren't related to the fiscal year being reported were included in the initial financial data. • The Office of the Secretariat and the four Programmatic Administrations lack uniform policies and procedures to guarantee that the amounts and disclosures in the PRDF's financial reports, financial statement notes, and necessary supplemental information are correctly recognized and reported. • Reports for several significant programs were prepared informally and, in some instances, only by one person, which resulted in significant mistakes in some of the programs. As a result, errors in the reports across the programs were not investigated or fixed. Additionally, we saw that for various financial reports, the PRIFAS data was not considered in the reconciliation process. • Several significant transactions were not entered into the PRIFAS by the Administration for Families and Children (ADFAN, by its Spanish Acronym) Finance Department, they were recorded as encumbrances, and not actual expenditures. This led to an understatement of expenditures in the PRDF's general fund of about $52,300,494. Additionally, Federal spending in one of the major programs was understated by $6,886,156. PERSPECTIVE INFORMATION The PRDF failed to properly registered in its accounting system all transactions needed to prepared the financial statement and to produce accurate financial reports for Federal grants that they received and expended during the fiscal year. No reconciliation procedures are performed regularly to identified errors in recording transactions in PRIFAS. This cause that when the PRDF prepared cash received and disbursement financial statement and the SEFA for audit purposes was incomplete and misstated (see Finding Reference Number 2023-017). STATEMENT OF CAUSE To make sure that all the PRDF's transactions had been accurately documented and reported, the PRDF did not thoroughly examine the financial data that was created and submitted in PRIFAS and used to prepare the financial statement and supplementary information. Due to lack of supervision or a review procedure to identify errors prior to submission, the ADFAN Finance Director recorded transactions as encumbrances, instead of actual expenditures. POSSIBLE ASSERTED EFFECT The PRDF is unable to provide accurate, up-to-date, and comprehensive disclosure of state and Federal funds activities in compliance with the agreement's requirements due to inadequate and inconsistent financial accounting reporting methods. IDENTIFICATION OF REPEAT FINDING No reported as prior audit finding. RECOMMENDATIONS To comply with the requirements of state and local agreements and enable the PRDF to monitor trustworthy financial data for use within the agency and for upcoming audits, we recommend the PRDF update its accounting practices and policies to provide for an accurate, comprehensive, and timely financial reporting system. Implementing an accounting and financial management system that enables the creation of financial data and reports needed by the various oversight organizations. The process should involve defining precise procedures for the creation and evaluation of financial reports, with different roles allocated to various people.
FINDING REFERENCE NUMBER 2023-046 (See Finding Reference Number 2023-018) FEDERAL PROGRAM ALL FEDERAL PROGRAMS ON THE SCHEDULE OF EXPENDITURES OF FEDERAL AWARDS AWARD NUMBER ALL AWARDS COMPLIANCE REQUIREMENT REPORTING – FINANCIAL STATEMENT ACCOUNTING RECORDS TYPE OF FINDING MATERIAL NONCOMPLIANCE AND MATERIAL WEAKNESS CRITERIA 2 CFR Part 200, Section 302 and 45 CFR Part 75, Section 302- Financial management and standards for financial management systems state that: (a) Each State must expend and account for the Federal award in accordance with State laws and procedures for expending and accounting for the State's funds. All recipient and subrecipient financial management systems, including records documenting compliance with Federal statutes, regulations, and the terms and conditions of the Federal award, must be sufficient to permit the preparation of reports required by the terms and conditions; and tracking expenditures to establish that funds have been used in accordance with Federal statutes, regulations, and the terms and conditions of the Federal award. (b) The recipient's and subrecipient's financial management system must provide for the following: (1) Identification of all Federal awards received and expended and the Federal programs under which they were received. Federal program and Federal award identification must include, as applicable, the Assistance Listings title and number, Federal award identification number, year the Federal award was issued, and name of the Federal agency or pass-through entity. (2) Accurate, current, and complete disclosure of the financial results of each Federal award or program in accordance with the reporting requirements in §§ 200.328 and 200.329. When a Federal agency or pass-through entity requires reporting on an accrual basis from a recipient or subrecipient that maintains its records other than on an accrual basis, the recipient or subrecipient must not be required to establish an accrual accounting system. This recipient or subrecipient may develop accrual data for its reports based on an analysis of the documentation on hand. (3) Maintaining records that sufficiently identify the amount, source, and expenditure of Federal funds for Federal awards. These records must contain information necessary to identify Federal awards, authorizations, financial obligations, unobligated balances, as well as assets, expenditures, income, and interest. All records must be supported by source documentation. (4) Effective control over and accountability for all funds, property, and assets. The recipient or subrecipient must safeguard all assets and ensure they are used solely for authorized purposes. (5) Comparison of expenditures with budget amounts for each Federal award. (6) Written procedures to implement the requirements of § 200.305. (7) Written procedures for determining the allowability of costs in accordance with subpart E and the terms and conditions of the Federal award. STATEMENT OF CONDITION Internal controls for creating financial reports about state and Federal funds received and spent through the Puerto Rico Integrated Financial System (PRIFAS) have not been put in place by the PRDF. The PRDF lacks an adequate system of internal controls to stop, identify, and fix errors. There was no supervision or review procedure in place to identify and allow for the correction of errors before submission and before the financial data was entered into PRIFAS. There was a delay in getting timely and correct financial information for the year under audit, and the PRDF staff had difficulties preparing and presenting the cash receipt and disbursement report, which included the schedule of federal spending for the audit. The following weaknesses were discovered when the PRDF's initial Financial Statement was reviewed: • Transactions that weren't related to the fiscal year being reported were included in the initial financial data. • The Office of the Secretariat and the four Programmatic Administrations lack uniform policies and procedures to guarantee that the amounts and disclosures in the PRDF's financial reports, financial statement notes, and necessary supplemental information are correctly recognized and reported. • Reports for several significant programs were prepared informally and, in some instances, only by one person, which resulted in significant mistakes in some of the programs. As a result, errors in the reports across the programs were not investigated or fixed. Additionally, we saw that for various financial reports, the PRIFAS data was not considered in the reconciliation process. • Several significant transactions were not entered into the PRIFAS by the Administration for Families and Children (ADFAN, by its Spanish Acronym) Finance Department, they were recorded as encumbrances, and not actual expenditures. This led to an understatement of expenditures in the PRDF's general fund of about $52,300,494. Additionally, Federal spending in one of the major programs was understated by $6,886,156. PERSPECTIVE INFORMATION The PRDF failed to properly registered in its accounting system all transactions needed to prepared the financial statement and to produce accurate financial reports for Federal grants that they received and expended during the fiscal year. No reconciliation procedures are performed regularly to identified errors in recording transactions in PRIFAS. This cause that when the PRDF prepared cash received and disbursement financial statement and the SEFA for audit purposes was incomplete and misstated (see Finding Reference Number 2023-017). STATEMENT OF CAUSE To make sure that all the PRDF's transactions had been accurately documented and reported, the PRDF did not thoroughly examine the financial data that was created and submitted in PRIFAS and used to prepare the financial statement and supplementary information. Due to lack of supervision or a review procedure to identify errors prior to submission, the ADFAN Finance Director recorded transactions as encumbrances, instead of actual expenditures. POSSIBLE ASSERTED EFFECT The PRDF is unable to provide accurate, up-to-date, and comprehensive disclosure of state and Federal funds activities in compliance with the agreement's requirements due to inadequate and inconsistent financial accounting reporting methods. IDENTIFICATION OF REPEAT FINDING No reported as prior audit finding. RECOMMENDATIONS To comply with the requirements of state and local agreements and enable the PRDF to monitor trustworthy financial data for use within the agency and for upcoming audits, we recommend the PRDF update its accounting practices and policies to provide for an accurate, comprehensive, and timely financial reporting system. Implementing an accounting and financial management system that enables the creation of financial data and reports needed by the various oversight organizations. The process should involve defining precise procedures for the creation and evaluation of financial reports, with different roles allocated to various people.
FINDING REFERENCE NUMBER 2023-051 (See Finding Reference Number 2023-021) FEDERAL PROGRAM (ALN – 93.568) LOW-INCOME HOME ENERGY ASSISTANCE U.S. DEPARTMENT OF HEALTH AND HUMAN SERVICES AWARD NUMBERS 2101PRLIEA (Federal Award Years: 2021 through 2023) ADMINISTRATION ADMINISTRATION FOR SOCIOECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT OF THE FAMILY (ADSEF, BY ITS SPANISH ACRONYM) COMPLIANCE REQUIREMENT REPORTING TYPE OF FINDING MATERIAL NONCOMPLIANCE AND MATERIAL WEAKNESS CRITERIA Uniform Guidance at 2 CFR § 200.302, Financial Management, establishes that: (a) Each State must expend and account for the Federal award in accordance with State laws and procedures for expending and accounting for the State's funds. All recipient and subrecipient financial management systems, including records documenting compliance with Federal statutes, regulations, and the terms and conditions of the Federal award, must be sufficient to permit the preparation of reports required by the terms and conditions; and tracking expenditures to establish that funds have been used in accordance with Federal statutes, regulations, and the terms and conditions of the Federal award. (See § 200.450.) (b) The recipient's and subrecipient's financial management system must provide for the following (see §§ 200.334, 200.335, 200.336, and 200.337): (1) Identification of all Federal awards received and expended and the Federal programs under which they were received. Federal program and Federal award identification must include, as applicable, the Assistance Listings title and number, Federal award identification number, year the Federal award was issued, and name of the Federal agency or pass-through entity. (2) Accurate, current, and complete disclosure of the financial results of each Federal award or program in accordance with the reporting requirements in §§ 200.328 and 200.329. When a Federal agency or pass-through entity requires reporting on an accrual basis from a recipient or subrecipient that maintains its records other than on an accrual basis, the recipient or subrecipient must not be required to establish an accrual accounting system. This recipient or subrecipient may develop accrual data for its reports based on an analysis of the documentation on hand. (3) Maintaining records that sufficiently identify the amount, source, and expenditure of Federal funds for Federal awards. These records must contain information necessary to identify Federal awards, authorizations, financial obligations, unobligated balances, as well as assets, expenditures, income, and interest. All records must be supported by source documentation. (4) Effective control over and accountability for all funds, property, and assets. The recipient or subrecipient must safeguard all assets and ensure they are used solely for authorized purposes. See § 200.303. … (6) Written procedures to implement the requirements of § 200.305 and (7) Written procedures for determining the allowability of costs in accordance with subpart E and the terms and conditions of the Federal award. STATEMENT OF CONDITION As part of our audit procedures over the reporting requirement for LIHEAP program, we selected two reports submitted during our fiscal year. We noted that the administrative expenditures do not reconcile with the accounting information from PRIFAS. In addition, for the amount of encumbrances of $11,032,784.51, the amount of $9,943,769.52 was not supported by a detail. QUESTIONED COSTS No questioned costs identified. PERSPECTIVE INFORMATION This is a systematic deficiency. Procedures and internal controls manuals should provide for and ensure the segregation of duties, and the reconciliation of financial information reported to federal agencies against the accounting records used to prepare financial statements and SEFA. ADSEF failure to support reported amounts with verifiable documentation and the absence of independent review increases the risk of inaccurate or misstated financial data being reported to the Federal awarding agency. STATEMENT OF CAUSE During our interviews and understanding of the internal controls over financial reporting, we noted that only one person prepares, submits and certifies the SF– 425 reports. No proper segregation of duties exists, that allows for validation of all accounting data before submitting the reports. In addition, the procedures manual for preparing reports does not establish a clear process for obtaining information, validating it, recording it, preparing it, and reporting it, as well as the responsibilities and segregation of duties to ensure that the reported information is consistent with ADSEF's accounting records. ADSEF lacks internal controls that allow for the timely validation and reconciliation of financial information. Furthermore, they lack a written procedures manual detailing the processes to follow in obtaining accounting data and reporting it to the Federal government, ensuring that the responsibility does not fall on a single individual. POSSIBLE ASSERTED EFFECT ADSEF does not ensure that the reports are accurate and traceable to the accounting database used to prepare their financial reports to the Federal Agencies and their financial statement. IDENTIFICATION OF REPEAT FINDING No reported as prior audit finding. RECOMMENDATIONS We recommend ADSEF to establish written procedures and internal controls manuals to provide and document the segregation of duties related to the reporting compliance requirement.
FINDING REFERENCE NUMBER 2023-054 (See Finding Reference Number 2023-023) FEDERAL PROGRAMS (ALN – 93.556) MARYLEE ALLEN PROMOTING SAFE AND STABLE FAMILIES (ALN – 93.667) SOCIAL SERVICES BLOCK GRANT U.S. DEPARTMENT OF HEALTH AND HUMAN SERVICES AWARD NUMBERS 2101PRFPSS (Federal Award Years: 2021 through 2022) 2211PRSOSR (Federal Award Years: 2021 through 2022) ADMINISTRATION ADMINISTRATION FOR FAMILIES AND CHILDREN (ADFAN, BY ITS SPANISH ACRONYM) COMPLIANCE REQUIREMENT REPORTING TYPE OF FINDING MATERIAL NONCOMPLIANCE AND MATERIAL WEAKNESS CRITERIA Uniform Guidance at 2 CFR § 200.302 (a) establishes that each State must expend and account for the Federal award in accordance with State laws and procedures for expending and accounting for the State's funds. All recipient and subrecipient financial management systems, including records documenting compliance with Federal statutes, regulations, and the terms and conditions of the Federal award, must be sufficient to permit the preparation of reports required by the terms and conditions; and tracking expenditures to establish that funds have been used in accordance with Federal statutes, regulations, and the terms and conditions of the Federal award. See § 200.450. In addition, the SF-425 Federal Financial Report requires the reporting of financial activities related to Federal awards. The accounting basis used for reporting expenditures (whether cash or accrual) must align with the accounting system employed by the recipient organization. The 2 CFR § 200.302 (b), establish that the recipient's and subrecipient's financial management system must provide for the following (see §§ 200.334, 200.335, 200.336, and 200.337): (6) written procedures to implement the requirements of § 200.305 and (7) written procedures for determining the allowability of costs in accordance with subpart E and the terms and conditions of the Federal award. The 2 CFR section 200.328(c) establishes that the recipient or subrecipient must submit financial reports as required by the Federal award. Reports submitted annually by the recipient or subrecipient must be due no later than 90 calendar days after the reporting period. Reports submitted quarterly or semiannually must be due no later than 30 calendar days after the reporting period. The 2 CFR §200.303 (a) establishes that the recipient and subrecipient must: establish, document, and maintain effective internal control over the Federal award that provides reasonable assurance that the recipient or subrecipient is managing the Federal award in compliance with Federal statutes, regulations, and the terms and conditions of the Federal award. These internal controls should align with the guidance in “Standards for Internal Control in the Federal Government” issued by the Comptroller General of the United States or the “Internal Control-Integrated Framework” issued by the Committee of Sponsoring Organizations of the Treadway Commission (COSO). STATEMENT OF CONDITION As part of our audit procedures over internal controls and compliance for reporting requirements, we selected the Grants Awards 2101PRFPSS and 2111PRSOSR, which closes in the audit period from July 2022 to June 2023, to validate the recorded amounts. Upon evaluating the report for the Grant Award 2101PRFPSS, we found the following deficiencies: (1) The total Federal expenditure reported on line (e) does not match the database provided by the PRDF. (2) The matching expenditure on line (j) does not match the database provided by the PRDF, and (3) The report was not submitted within the established deadline, and an extension was granted to settle and report the funds until March 31, 2023, and they submitted on August 10, 2023. For both Grants Awards we found the following deficiencies: (4) The accounting basis should be Cash Basis instead of Accrual Basis, according to the accounting system used. Additionally, they provided a Procedures Manual for the Finance and Budget Divisions, approved in 2009 and delivered in Word format, which states that the accounting basis is “accrual”, even though their current system operates on a cash basis. (5) During the internal control’s interviews, we found that there is no designated person responsible for reviewing the information entered by the preparer. QUESTIONED COSTS No questioned costs identified. PERSPECTIVE INFORMATION This deficiency is a systemic problem. Procedures and internal controls manuals should provide for and ensure the segregation of duties, training, and the reconciliation of financial information reported to Federal agencies against the accounting records used to prepare financial statement and SEFA. STATEMENT OF CAUSE ADFAN does not have internal controls to effectively review the process and comply with the reporting requirements. The absence of effective internal controls at ADFAN to review processes and ensure compliance with reporting requirements can be attributed to inadequate organizational structure and insufficiently defined roles and responsibilities. There is no designated individual or team responsible for overseeing the accuracy and completeness of financial data entered reports. As mentioned above in the statement of condition, this responsibility falls under one person and does not have segregation of duties. This gap in accountability stems from a lack of internal review and insufficient oversight mechanisms, which restrains the organization's ability to ensure that reports are fully aligned with the required compliance standards. Additionally, there is a lack of training or resources dedicated to maintaining and monitoring compliance which contributes to the failure in reporting requirements. POSSIBLE ASSERTED EFFECT ADFAN does not ensure that the reports are accurate and traceable to the accounting database used to prepare their financial reports for the Federal Agencies and their financial statement. IDENTIFICATION OF REPEAT FINDING No reported as prior audit finding. RECOMMENDATIONS We recommend that ADFAN ensures the SF– 425 is completed using the appropriate accounting basis consistent with the organization’s financial system. Additionally, ADFAN should establish and implement internal control procedures that include formal review process to verify the accuracy and completeness of the reported information and designate responsible personnel for the review and approval of reports prior to submission to ensure compliance with Federal reporting requirements.
FINDING REFERENCE NUMBER 2023-054 (See Finding Reference Number 2023-023) FEDERAL PROGRAMS (ALN – 93.556) MARYLEE ALLEN PROMOTING SAFE AND STABLE FAMILIES (ALN – 93.667) SOCIAL SERVICES BLOCK GRANT U.S. DEPARTMENT OF HEALTH AND HUMAN SERVICES AWARD NUMBERS 2101PRFPSS (Federal Award Years: 2021 through 2022) 2211PRSOSR (Federal Award Years: 2021 through 2022) ADMINISTRATION ADMINISTRATION FOR FAMILIES AND CHILDREN (ADFAN, BY ITS SPANISH ACRONYM) COMPLIANCE REQUIREMENT REPORTING TYPE OF FINDING MATERIAL NONCOMPLIANCE AND MATERIAL WEAKNESS CRITERIA Uniform Guidance at 2 CFR § 200.302 (a) establishes that each State must expend and account for the Federal award in accordance with State laws and procedures for expending and accounting for the State's funds. All recipient and subrecipient financial management systems, including records documenting compliance with Federal statutes, regulations, and the terms and conditions of the Federal award, must be sufficient to permit the preparation of reports required by the terms and conditions; and tracking expenditures to establish that funds have been used in accordance with Federal statutes, regulations, and the terms and conditions of the Federal award. See § 200.450. In addition, the SF-425 Federal Financial Report requires the reporting of financial activities related to Federal awards. The accounting basis used for reporting expenditures (whether cash or accrual) must align with the accounting system employed by the recipient organization. The 2 CFR § 200.302 (b), establish that the recipient's and subrecipient's financial management system must provide for the following (see §§ 200.334, 200.335, 200.336, and 200.337): (6) written procedures to implement the requirements of § 200.305 and (7) written procedures for determining the allowability of costs in accordance with subpart E and the terms and conditions of the Federal award. The 2 CFR section 200.328(c) establishes that the recipient or subrecipient must submit financial reports as required by the Federal award. Reports submitted annually by the recipient or subrecipient must be due no later than 90 calendar days after the reporting period. Reports submitted quarterly or semiannually must be due no later than 30 calendar days after the reporting period. The 2 CFR §200.303 (a) establishes that the recipient and subrecipient must: establish, document, and maintain effective internal control over the Federal award that provides reasonable assurance that the recipient or subrecipient is managing the Federal award in compliance with Federal statutes, regulations, and the terms and conditions of the Federal award. These internal controls should align with the guidance in “Standards for Internal Control in the Federal Government” issued by the Comptroller General of the United States or the “Internal Control-Integrated Framework” issued by the Committee of Sponsoring Organizations of the Treadway Commission (COSO). STATEMENT OF CONDITION As part of our audit procedures over internal controls and compliance for reporting requirements, we selected the Grants Awards 2101PRFPSS and 2111PRSOSR, which closes in the audit period from July 2022 to June 2023, to validate the recorded amounts. Upon evaluating the report for the Grant Award 2101PRFPSS, we found the following deficiencies: (1) The total Federal expenditure reported on line (e) does not match the database provided by the PRDF. (2) The matching expenditure on line (j) does not match the database provided by the PRDF, and (3) The report was not submitted within the established deadline, and an extension was granted to settle and report the funds until March 31, 2023, and they submitted on August 10, 2023. For both Grants Awards we found the following deficiencies: (4) The accounting basis should be Cash Basis instead of Accrual Basis, according to the accounting system used. Additionally, they provided a Procedures Manual for the Finance and Budget Divisions, approved in 2009 and delivered in Word format, which states that the accounting basis is “accrual”, even though their current system operates on a cash basis. (5) During the internal control’s interviews, we found that there is no designated person responsible for reviewing the information entered by the preparer. QUESTIONED COSTS No questioned costs identified. PERSPECTIVE INFORMATION This deficiency is a systemic problem. Procedures and internal controls manuals should provide for and ensure the segregation of duties, training, and the reconciliation of financial information reported to Federal agencies against the accounting records used to prepare financial statement and SEFA. STATEMENT OF CAUSE ADFAN does not have internal controls to effectively review the process and comply with the reporting requirements. The absence of effective internal controls at ADFAN to review processes and ensure compliance with reporting requirements can be attributed to inadequate organizational structure and insufficiently defined roles and responsibilities. There is no designated individual or team responsible for overseeing the accuracy and completeness of financial data entered reports. As mentioned above in the statement of condition, this responsibility falls under one person and does not have segregation of duties. This gap in accountability stems from a lack of internal review and insufficient oversight mechanisms, which restrains the organization's ability to ensure that reports are fully aligned with the required compliance standards. Additionally, there is a lack of training or resources dedicated to maintaining and monitoring compliance which contributes to the failure in reporting requirements. POSSIBLE ASSERTED EFFECT ADFAN does not ensure that the reports are accurate and traceable to the accounting database used to prepare their financial reports for the Federal Agencies and their financial statement. IDENTIFICATION OF REPEAT FINDING No reported as prior audit finding. RECOMMENDATIONS We recommend that ADFAN ensures the SF– 425 is completed using the appropriate accounting basis consistent with the organization’s financial system. Additionally, ADFAN should establish and implement internal control procedures that include formal review process to verify the accuracy and completeness of the reported information and designate responsible personnel for the review and approval of reports prior to submission to ensure compliance with Federal reporting requirements.
FINDING REFERENCE NUMBER 2023-056 (See Finding Reference Number 2023-025) FEDERAL PROGRAMS (ALN – 93.558) TEMPORARY ASSISTANCE FOR NEEDY FAMILIES (TANF) (ALN – 93.560) PAYMENT TO TERRITORIES – ADULT U.S. DEPARTMENT OF HEALTH AND HUMAN SERVICES AWARD NUMBERS 2021G996117; 2022G996117; 2023996117 (Federal Award Years: 2021 through 2023) 2022G9922PT; 2301PRTABD (Federal Award Years: 2022 through 2023) ADMINISTRATION ADMINISTRATION FOR SOCIOECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT OF THE FAMILY (ADSEF, BY ITS SPANISH ACRONYM) COMPLIANCE REQUIREMENT REPORTING – FINANCIAL TYPE OF FINDING MATERIAL NONCOMPLIANCE AND MATERIAL WEAKNESS CRITERIA The 2 CFR 200 §200.302, Financial Management, establishes that: “(a) Each State must expend and account for the Federal award in accordance with State laws and procedures for expending and accounting for the State's funds. All recipient and subrecipient financial management systems, including records documenting compliance with Federal statutes, regulations, and the terms and conditions of the Federal award, must be sufficient to permit the preparation of reports required by the terms and conditions; and tracking expenditures to establish that funds have been used in accordance with Federal statutes, regulations, and the terms and conditions of the Federal award. See § 200.450. (b) The recipient's and subrecipient's financial management system must provide for the following (see §§ 200.334, 200.335, 200.336, and 200.337): (1) Identification of all Federal awards received and expended and the Federal programs under which they were received. Federal program and Federal award identification must include, as applicable, the Assistance Listings title and number, Federal award identification number, year the Federal award was issued, and name of the Federal agency or pass-through entity. (2) Accurate, current, and complete disclosure of the financial results of each Federal award or program in accordance with the reporting requirements in §§ 200.328 and 200.329. When a Federal agency or pass-through entity requires reporting on an accrual basis from a recipient or subrecipient that maintains its records other than on an accrual basis, the recipient or subrecipient must not be required to establish an accrual accounting system. This recipient or subrecipient may develop accrual data for its reports based on an analysis of the documentation on hand. (3) Maintaining records that sufficiently identify the amount, source, and expenditure of Federal funds for Federal awards. These records must contain information necessary to identify Federal awards, authorizations, financial obligations, unobligated balances, as well as assets, expenditures, income, and interest. All records must be supported by source documentation. (4) Effective control over and accountability for all funds, property, and assets. The recipient or subrecipient must safeguard all assets and ensure they are used solely for authorized purposes. See § 200.303. … (6) Written procedures to implement the requirements of § 200.305 and (7) Written procedures for determining the allowability of costs in accordance with subpart E and the terms and conditions of the Federal award. STATEMENT OF CONDITION As part of our audit procedures over the reporting requirement for TANF and Payment to Territories – Adult programs, we selected two reports submitted during our fiscal year. We found the following deficiencies: i. Administrative expenditures related to both programs are recorded under the same accounting account number, and the assistance listing number of TANF. That is, in PRIFAS, the administrative expenditures of both programs are not segregated by grant award and assistance listing number. ii. The ACF-196TR reports report expenditures under both programs that are not reconciled with the PRIFAS accounting system, specifically in administrative expenditures. We requested evidence of the expenditures incurred or details that were used to prepare the reports; this information was not available, and it was generated upon our request. iii. In both reports evaluated, the amounts reported on lines 2 and 3, related to the amounts that the TANF program transfers to two other federal programs, are recorded inconsistently. During the quarters from October to June, these lines report the amount of the budget that is allowed to be transferred, without validating whether the Federal programs incurred any expenditures. In the quarterly report of September, the expenditure for these lines is reported based on the amount of drawdowns incurred. This practice is inconsistent and does not reflect the actual expenditure incurred. iv. In the quarterly report of June 2023, an expenditure of $3,733,668 was reported on line 5(a). According to PRIFAS, the reported expenditure was $1,988,000. QUESTIONED COSTS Undetermined. PERSPECTIVE INFORMATION This is a systematic deficiency. Procedures and internal controls manuals should provide for and ensure the segregation of duties, and the reconciliation of financial information reported to federal agencies against the accounting records used to prepare financial statements and SEFA. In addition, the financial management system should provide to account separately the administrative expenditures incurred among all Federal programs administered. ADSEF failure to support reported amounts with verifiable documentation and the absence of independent review increases the risk of inaccurate or misstated financial data being reported to the federal awarding agency. STATEMENT OF CAUSE During our interviews and understanding of the internal controls over financial reporting, we noted that only one person prepares, submits and certifies the ACF-196TR reports. No proper segregation of duties exists, that allows for validation of all accounting data before submitting the reports. In addition, the procedures manual for preparing reports does not establish a clear process for obtaining information, validating it, recording it, preparing it, and reporting it, as well as the responsibilities and segregation of duties to ensure that the reported information is consistent with ADSEF's accounting records. PRIFAS accounting data base as configured, does not provide for the administrative expenditures incurred from the TANF and Payment to Territories – Adult program to be segregated. ADSEF lacks internal controls that allow for the timely validation and reconciliation of financial information. Furthermore, they lack a written procedures manual detailing the processes to follow in obtaining accounting data and reporting it to the federal government, ensuring that the responsibility does not fall on a single individual. POSSIBLE ASSERTED EFFECT ADSEF does not ensure that the reports are accurate and traceable to the accounting database used to prepare their financial reports to the Federal Agencies and their financial statement. IDENTIFICATION OF REPEAT FINDING No reported as prior audit finding. RECOMMENDATIONS We recommend ADSEF to establish written procedures and internal controls manuals to provide and document the segregation of duties related to the reporting compliance requirement. Additionally, work with the Puerto Rico Department of the Treasury to provide accounting records to segregate the administrative expenditures of both programs.
FINDING REFERENCE NUMBER 2023-056 (See Finding Reference Number 2023-025) FEDERAL PROGRAMS (ALN – 93.558) TEMPORARY ASSISTANCE FOR NEEDY FAMILIES (TANF) (ALN – 93.560) PAYMENT TO TERRITORIES – ADULT U.S. DEPARTMENT OF HEALTH AND HUMAN SERVICES AWARD NUMBERS 2021G996117; 2022G996117; 2023996117 (Federal Award Years: 2021 through 2023) 2022G9922PT; 2301PRTABD (Federal Award Years: 2022 through 2023) ADMINISTRATION ADMINISTRATION FOR SOCIOECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT OF THE FAMILY (ADSEF, BY ITS SPANISH ACRONYM) COMPLIANCE REQUIREMENT REPORTING – FINANCIAL TYPE OF FINDING MATERIAL NONCOMPLIANCE AND MATERIAL WEAKNESS CRITERIA The 2 CFR 200 §200.302, Financial Management, establishes that: “(a) Each State must expend and account for the Federal award in accordance with State laws and procedures for expending and accounting for the State's funds. All recipient and subrecipient financial management systems, including records documenting compliance with Federal statutes, regulations, and the terms and conditions of the Federal award, must be sufficient to permit the preparation of reports required by the terms and conditions; and tracking expenditures to establish that funds have been used in accordance with Federal statutes, regulations, and the terms and conditions of the Federal award. See § 200.450. (b) The recipient's and subrecipient's financial management system must provide for the following (see §§ 200.334, 200.335, 200.336, and 200.337): (1) Identification of all Federal awards received and expended and the Federal programs under which they were received. Federal program and Federal award identification must include, as applicable, the Assistance Listings title and number, Federal award identification number, year the Federal award was issued, and name of the Federal agency or pass-through entity. (2) Accurate, current, and complete disclosure of the financial results of each Federal award or program in accordance with the reporting requirements in §§ 200.328 and 200.329. When a Federal agency or pass-through entity requires reporting on an accrual basis from a recipient or subrecipient that maintains its records other than on an accrual basis, the recipient or subrecipient must not be required to establish an accrual accounting system. This recipient or subrecipient may develop accrual data for its reports based on an analysis of the documentation on hand. (3) Maintaining records that sufficiently identify the amount, source, and expenditure of Federal funds for Federal awards. These records must contain information necessary to identify Federal awards, authorizations, financial obligations, unobligated balances, as well as assets, expenditures, income, and interest. All records must be supported by source documentation. (4) Effective control over and accountability for all funds, property, and assets. The recipient or subrecipient must safeguard all assets and ensure they are used solely for authorized purposes. See § 200.303. … (6) Written procedures to implement the requirements of § 200.305 and (7) Written procedures for determining the allowability of costs in accordance with subpart E and the terms and conditions of the Federal award. STATEMENT OF CONDITION As part of our audit procedures over the reporting requirement for TANF and Payment to Territories – Adult programs, we selected two reports submitted during our fiscal year. We found the following deficiencies: i. Administrative expenditures related to both programs are recorded under the same accounting account number, and the assistance listing number of TANF. That is, in PRIFAS, the administrative expenditures of both programs are not segregated by grant award and assistance listing number. ii. The ACF-196TR reports report expenditures under both programs that are not reconciled with the PRIFAS accounting system, specifically in administrative expenditures. We requested evidence of the expenditures incurred or details that were used to prepare the reports; this information was not available, and it was generated upon our request. iii. In both reports evaluated, the amounts reported on lines 2 and 3, related to the amounts that the TANF program transfers to two other federal programs, are recorded inconsistently. During the quarters from October to June, these lines report the amount of the budget that is allowed to be transferred, without validating whether the Federal programs incurred any expenditures. In the quarterly report of September, the expenditure for these lines is reported based on the amount of drawdowns incurred. This practice is inconsistent and does not reflect the actual expenditure incurred. iv. In the quarterly report of June 2023, an expenditure of $3,733,668 was reported on line 5(a). According to PRIFAS, the reported expenditure was $1,988,000. QUESTIONED COSTS Undetermined. PERSPECTIVE INFORMATION This is a systematic deficiency. Procedures and internal controls manuals should provide for and ensure the segregation of duties, and the reconciliation of financial information reported to federal agencies against the accounting records used to prepare financial statements and SEFA. In addition, the financial management system should provide to account separately the administrative expenditures incurred among all Federal programs administered. ADSEF failure to support reported amounts with verifiable documentation and the absence of independent review increases the risk of inaccurate or misstated financial data being reported to the federal awarding agency. STATEMENT OF CAUSE During our interviews and understanding of the internal controls over financial reporting, we noted that only one person prepares, submits and certifies the ACF-196TR reports. No proper segregation of duties exists, that allows for validation of all accounting data before submitting the reports. In addition, the procedures manual for preparing reports does not establish a clear process for obtaining information, validating it, recording it, preparing it, and reporting it, as well as the responsibilities and segregation of duties to ensure that the reported information is consistent with ADSEF's accounting records. PRIFAS accounting data base as configured, does not provide for the administrative expenditures incurred from the TANF and Payment to Territories – Adult program to be segregated. ADSEF lacks internal controls that allow for the timely validation and reconciliation of financial information. Furthermore, they lack a written procedures manual detailing the processes to follow in obtaining accounting data and reporting it to the federal government, ensuring that the responsibility does not fall on a single individual. POSSIBLE ASSERTED EFFECT ADSEF does not ensure that the reports are accurate and traceable to the accounting database used to prepare their financial reports to the Federal Agencies and their financial statement. IDENTIFICATION OF REPEAT FINDING No reported as prior audit finding. RECOMMENDATIONS We recommend ADSEF to establish written procedures and internal controls manuals to provide and document the segregation of duties related to the reporting compliance requirement. Additionally, work with the Puerto Rico Department of the Treasury to provide accounting records to segregate the administrative expenditures of both programs.
Federal Program Information: Federal Assistance Listing Number: 21.027 Federal Program Name: Coronavirus State and Local Fiscal Recovery Funds (CSLFRF) Federal Agency: U.S. Department of Treasury Federal Award Number: None Federal Award Year: March 3, 2021 to December 31, 2024 Criteria: 2 CFR 200.328, Financial Reporting, emphasizes the importance of submitting performance and financial reports that are complete, accurate, and consistent with the accounting records. Specifically: Financial data must be derived from and consistent with the recipient's accounting records. Reports must include all financial information in accordance with federal requirements. Additionally, 2 CFR 200.303, Internal Controls, mandates the implementation of effective internal controls, including proper segregation of duties, to maintain financial integrity and ensure compliance with federal regulations. Condition: The City's Annual Project and Expenditure Report (P&E) did not properly report federal expenditures for fiscal year 2023, as it does not align with the City's accounting records. Specifically, $98,428 in eligible fiscal year 2024 expenditures were incorrectly reported as fiscal year 2023 expenditures. While this amount is considered an eligible cost under the program, it was not reported properly in the correct accounting and reporting period. Additionally, the lack of segregation of duties, where the same personnel handled both preparation and review, raises concerns about internal control deficiencies and the risk of reporting errors. Questioned Cost: None. Cause and Effect: The City Council authorized federal expenditures for the CSLFRF project as a lump sum, resulting in the reporting of all eligible expenditures in a single reporting period, rather than aligning them with the appropriate fiscal year. Additionally, since CSLFRF was newly established in response to COVID-19 in 2021, the City had limited experience with managing and reporting such grants. The lack of prior exposure, coupled with an insufficient number of qualified staff, contributed to inaccuracies in financial reporting and deficiencies in internal controls. Recommendation: To ensure compliance with federal reporting requirements and strengthen internal controls, the City should: 1. Establish a reconciliation procedure to ensure all reported expenditures in the Annual Project and Expenditure Report (P&E) align with the City's accounting records. 2. Implement a structured review process that requires independent verification of financial reports. Assign separate personnel for the preparation and review of reports to address concerns regarding segregation of duties. 3. Conduct regular training sessions for finance and grant management staff to improve understanding of federal grant reporting requirements and best practices, ensuring the accuracy of future submissions. Views of Responsible Personnel and Corrective Action Plan: Management has instructed the department managers involved with grants to work with the Finance Director and Senior Accountant for all future grant accounting and reporting to ensure that grant expenditures are properly recorded and reported in the correct period. The Senior Accountant will complete GFOA’s Generally Accepted Accounting Principles for Grants in August 2026. As of the date of this letter, Management is working to identify other grants-related training appropriate for the Senior Accountant, the Utility Manager, and the Director of Development Services and Capital Projects, all of whom are involved in grant proposals, management, expenditures, accounting and required reporting. Meetings with all three department managers will be scheduled to coordinate administration and deadlines for the City’s new and existing grants as grant reporting deadlines occur. Responsible Personnel Name and Position: Jill Taura, Interim Finance Director Expected Implementation Date of Corrective Action Plan: Fiscal year 2026
Condition The required Annual Project and Expenditure (P & E) Report was submitted late. The report required for the year ended March 31, 2023, was due on April 30, 2023. Criteria 2 CFR 200.328 and 31 CFR section 35.4(c) required financial and performance reporting information. The information must be collected with the frequency required by the terms and conditions of the Federal award, but no less frequently than annually nor more frequently than quarterly except in unusual circumstances, for example where more frequent reporting is necessary for the effective monitoring of the Federal award or could significantly affect program outcomes, and preferably in coordination with performance reporting. Context We request the report submitted during the fiscal year to be audited and observed the report was submitted after the due date. Cause The Municipality failed in submission of the required report on time due to lack of knowledge of requisites and instructions about the completion of the report. Effect The Municipality cannot comply with federal regulations; the evaluation of the federal funds use cannot be observed and monitored by the Agency. The situation could affect the program outcomes. Questioned Costs Not determined Recommendation We recommend the Municipality maintain the schedule of the due date of required reports.
Condition The required Annual Project and Expenditure (P & E) Report was submitted late. The report required for the year ended March 31, 2023, was due on April 30, 2023. Criteria 2 CFR 200.328 and 31 CFR section 35.4(c) required financial and performance reporting information. The information must be collected with the frequency required by the terms and conditions of the Federal award, but no less frequently than annually nor more frequently than quarterly except in unusual circumstances, for example where more frequent reporting is necessary for the effective monitoring of the Federal award or could significantly affect program outcomes, and preferably in coordination with performance reporting. Context We request the report submitted during the fiscal year to be audited and observed the report was submitted after the due date. Cause The Municipality failed in submission of the required report on time due to lack of knowledge of requisites and instructions about the completion of the report. Effect The Municipality cannot comply with federal regulations; the evaluation of the federal funds use cannot be observed and monitored by the Agency. The situation could affect the program outcomes. Questioned Costs Not determined Recommendation We recommend the Municipality maintain the schedule of the due date of required reports.
2023-003 Department of Justice and State of South Dakota Department of Public Safety FFAL #16.575, 2022-COMBO-00022 Crime Victim Assistance Reporting Material Weakness in Internal Control over Compliance Criteria: 2 CFR 200.303(a) establishes that the auditee must establish and maintain effective internal controls over the federal awards that provide assurance that the entity is managing the federal awards in compliance with federal statutes, regulations, and the conditions of the federal award. 2 CFR 200.327 and 2 CFR 200.328 require the auditee to collect financial information and monitor its activities under federal awards to assure compliance with applicable federal requirements and performance expectations are being achieved and report these items in accordance with the program requirements. Condition: The Victims’ Service final financial report was not completed and submitted until requested by the auditors. Cause: There was a lapse in the Organization’s internal control process ensuring reporting requirements were fulfilled timely. Effect: Lack of compliance with designed internal controls over reporting could result in the Organization reporting incorrect or incomplete information. Questioned Costs: None reported. Context/Sampling: A nonstatistical sample of 6 reports out of 10 reports. Repeat Finding from Prior Year(s): No Recommendation: We recommend management review internal control procedures over reporting to ensure reporting requirements are completed and submitted timely.
Finding: 2023-002 Program Affected: COVID-19 Higher Education Emergency Relief Fund (HEERF) (AL Number 84.425E) Finding Type: Significant deficiency on internal control Criteria: The HEERF I, II, and III funding came with various requirements instituted by the CARES Act, CRRSAA, and ARP and then further defined by the US Department of Education (ED). The ED exercised its reporting authority under 2 CFR section 200.328 and 2 CFR section 200.329 to define three reporting requirements for the HEERF program funds, which include 1) public reporting on the (a)(1) Student Aid Portion; 2) public reporting on the (a)(1) Institutional Portion (a)(2) and (a)(3) subprograms (Quarterly Reporting Form), as applicable; and 3) the annual report. These reporting requirements stipulate specific guidelines regarding when, how, and what information is to be reported on quarterly and the annual reports. Condition: Per review of the University’s annual report, we noted three instances where the amounts and information reported did not agree to the internal records. Issues noted included incorrect amounts and information posted for the Emergency Financial Aid grants, monitoring and suppressing coronavirus, and total of institutional annual expenditures. Cause: Reporting requirements posted by the Department of Education for HEERF program funds have continuously changed with the intent to be made clearer with each subsequent revision. However, it is difficult to draw conclusions on some of the reporting guidance. There were not adequate controls nor review processes in place to monitor the reporting requirements issued by the Department of Education to ensure the annual report was posted accurately. Effect: The effect or possible effect is that the University may be determined ineligible to receive future HEERF program funding. Additionally, the program does not have accurate information regarding how HEERF program funds were expended by the University. Questioned Costs: None Recommendation: Controls should be established to allow for a second detailed review of all reporting of HEERF program funds by an official extensively familiar with the reporting requirements published by the Department of Education and other regulators. Auditee's Response: The reports will be monitored more closely going forward. See attached corrective action plan.
Department of Education COVID-19 Higher Education Emergency Relief Fund (HEERF) – Assistance Listing #84.425E, #84.425F #2023-003 – Major Federal Award Finding – Reporting Significant Deficiency in Internal Controls over Compliance This is a repeat of prior year finding #2022-003. Conditions: We noted during testing of two quarterly reports and one annual report required under the HEERF program that the two quarterly reports selected for testing were not filed timely. There were also no review procedures in place surrounding these quarterly reports. In addition, some inaccuracies were noted within the annual reporting. Criteria: Federal regulations 2 CFR Section 200.328 - 200.329 provide that required reporting under the federal program must be completed timely and accurately. The quarterly reports for institutional and student aid are required to be updated and posted to the website within 10 days of the end of the quarter. Segregation of duties is also a key element of internal controls, including controls over compliance, and involves processes whereby the activities of one employee are reviewed or checked by the activities of another individual, and avoids one employee having the ability to perform a transaction or process from beginning to end. Cause/Context: The University did not meet the reporting deadline requirements set forth by the Department of Education for the HEERF program. Only one individual was involved in the reporting process for the quarterly reports. There is a higher likelihood of errors going undetected in the absence of monitoring and review. Inaccuracies were noted in the amounts reported in the 2022 calendar annual report for HEERF student disbursements and institutional expenditures. Recommendation: Management should review the University’s practices related to reporting under the HEERF program to ensure that reports are submitted timely and that more than one individual is involved in the reporting process. Management should also submit a revision of the HEERF calendar 2022 annual report once the reporting portal is reopened by the Department of Education. Views of Responsible Officials and Planned Corrective Actions: The University agrees with the recommendations put forth by the auditors. The University will submit a revised report for the 2022 calendar year and will put a procedure in place to ensure that all reports are reviewed prior to submission. See also attached Corrective Action Plan.
Department of Education COVID-19 Higher Education Emergency Relief Fund (HEERF) – Assistance Listing #84.425E, #84.425F #2023-003 – Major Federal Award Finding – Reporting Significant Deficiency in Internal Controls over Compliance This is a repeat of prior year finding #2022-003. Conditions: We noted during testing of two quarterly reports and one annual report required under the HEERF program that the two quarterly reports selected for testing were not filed timely. There were also no review procedures in place surrounding these quarterly reports. In addition, some inaccuracies were noted within the annual reporting. Criteria: Federal regulations 2 CFR Section 200.328 - 200.329 provide that required reporting under the federal program must be completed timely and accurately. The quarterly reports for institutional and student aid are required to be updated and posted to the website within 10 days of the end of the quarter. Segregation of duties is also a key element of internal controls, including controls over compliance, and involves processes whereby the activities of one employee are reviewed or checked by the activities of another individual, and avoids one employee having the ability to perform a transaction or process from beginning to end. Cause/Context: The University did not meet the reporting deadline requirements set forth by the Department of Education for the HEERF program. Only one individual was involved in the reporting process for the quarterly reports. There is a higher likelihood of errors going undetected in the absence of monitoring and review. Inaccuracies were noted in the amounts reported in the 2022 calendar annual report for HEERF student disbursements and institutional expenditures. Recommendation: Management should review the University’s practices related to reporting under the HEERF program to ensure that reports are submitted timely and that more than one individual is involved in the reporting process. Management should also submit a revision of the HEERF calendar 2022 annual report once the reporting portal is reopened by the Department of Education. Views of Responsible Officials and Planned Corrective Actions: The University agrees with the recommendations put forth by the auditors. The University will submit a revised report for the 2022 calendar year and will put a procedure in place to ensure that all reports are reviewed prior to submission. See also attached Corrective Action Plan.
Type of Finding – Significant Deficiency in Internal Control Over Compliance Condition/Context – Internal control procedures over reporting requirements did not ensure compliance with federal awards. The reports prepared by the Director of Grant Compliance and Procurement are not reviewed and approved before being submitted. Criteria – In accordance with Uniform Guidance, 2 CFR 200.328(i) requires that an entity implements control over the performance and financial reporting. 2 CFR 200.303(a) requires an entity to establish and maintain effective internal control over the Federal awards that provides reasonable assurance that the entity is managing the award in compliance with Federal statutes. Cause – Clerical oversight. Effect – Noncompliance with the Compliance Supplement and Uniform Guidance. Repeat Finding – No Questioned Costs – None Recommendation – The Organization implements a review and approval process over the performance and financial reports. View of Responsible Officials - There is no disagreement with the audit findings.
Type of Finding – Significant Deficiency in Internal Control Over Compliance Condition/Context – Internal control procedures over reporting requirements did not ensure compliance with federal awards. The reports prepared by the Director of Grant Compliance and Procurement are not reviewed and approved before being submitted. Criteria – In accordance with Uniform Guidance, 2 CFR 200.328(i) requires that an entity implements control over the performance and financial reporting. 2 CFR 200.303(a) requires an entity to establish and maintain effective internal control over the Federal awards that provides reasonable assurance that the entity is managing the award in compliance with Federal statutes. Cause – Clerical oversight. Effect – Noncompliance with the Compliance Supplement and Uniform Guidance. Repeat Finding – No Questioned Costs – None Recommendation – The Organization implements a review and approval process over the performance and financial reports. View of Responsible Officials - There is no disagreement with the audit findings.
Type of Finding – Significant Deficiency in Internal Control Over Compliance Condition/Context – Internal control procedures over reporting requirements did not ensure compliance with federal awards. The reports prepared by the Director of Grant Compliance and Procurement are not reviewed and approved before being submitted. Criteria – In accordance with Uniform Guidance, 2 CFR 200.328(i) requires that an entity implements control over the performance and financial reporting. 2 CFR 200.303(a) requires an entity to establish and maintain effective internal control over the Federal awards that provides reasonable assurance that the entity is managing the award in compliance with Federal statutes. Cause – Clerical oversight. Effect – Noncompliance with the Compliance Supplement and Uniform Guidance. Repeat Finding – No Questioned Costs – None Recommendation – The Organization implements a review and approval process over the performance and financial reports. View of Responsible Officials - There is no disagreement with the audit findings.
2023-001 Internal Control over Compliance and Compliance with Reporting (Preparation of the Schedule of Expenditures of Federal Awards (SEFA)) Information on the Major Federal Program: Department of Homeland Security Federal Emergency Management Agency Federal Assistance Listing Number: 97.024 Federal Assistance Listing Name: Emergency Food and Shelter National Board Program Pass-through Awards under the Uniform Guidance Requirements: Pass-through Entity Award Name Award Period The United Way SE Family Center DC Phase 39 November 1, 2021 to April 30, 2023 The United Way SE Family Center DC ARPAR November 1, 2021 to April 30, 2023 The United Way Mont. Co Family Center Phase 39 November 1, 2021 to April 30, 2023 The United Way Mont. Co Family Center ARPAR November 1, 2021 to April 30, 2023 The United Way Parish Partners PG Co Phase 39 November 1, 2021 to April 30, 2023 The United Way Parish Partners PG Co ARPAR November 1, 2021 to April 30, 2023 The United Way Parish Partners Calvert Co ARPAR November 1, 2021 to April 30, 2023 The United Way Parish Partners Charles Co ARPAR November 1, 2021 to April 30, 2023 The United Way Angel’s Watch Charles Co ARPAR November 1, 2021 to April 30, 2023 The United Way St. Josephine’s Shelter DC ARPAR November 1, 2021 to April 30, 2023 The United Way Adam’s Place Shelter DC ARPAR November 1, 2021 to April 30, 2023 The United Way SMFB ARPAR November 1, 2021 to April 30, 2023 The United Way SCC Food Pantry Phase 39 November 1, 2021 to April 30, 2023 The United Way SCC Food Pantry ARPAR November 1, 2021 to April 30, 2023 The United Way Phase HR22 April 13, 2022 to July 7, 2022 Criteria: Title 2 U.S. Code of Federal Regulations Part 200 (2 CFR part 200) Section §200.510(b) states in part: “The auditee must also prepare a schedule of expenditures of Federal awards for the period covered by the auditee’s financial statements which must include the total Federal awards expended as determined in accordance with CFR Section §200.502 Basis for determining Federal awards expended.” The schedule must provide total Federal awards expended for each individual Federal program. In accordance with §200.302 Financial Management, a non-Federal entity's financial management systems, including records documenting compliance with Federal statutes, regulations, and the terms and conditions of the Federal award, must be sufficient to permit the preparation of reports required by general and program-specific terms and conditions; and the tracing of funds to a level of expenditures adequate to establish that such funds have been used according to the Federal statutes, regulations, and the terms and conditions of the Federal award. The financial management system of each non-Federal entity must provide for the following: (1) Identification, in its accounts, of all Federal awards received and expended and the Federal programs under which they were received. (2) Accurate, current, and complete disclosure of the financial results of each Federal award or program in accordance with the reporting requirements set forth in §200.327 Financial Reporting and §200.328 Monitoring and Reporting Program Performance. (3) Records that identify adequately the source and application of funds for Federally-funded activities. (4) Effective control over, and accountability for, all funds, property, and other assets.
2023-001 Internal Control over Compliance and Compliance with Reporting (Preparation of the Schedule of Expenditures of Federal Awards (SEFA)) Information on the Major Federal Program: Department of Homeland Security Federal Emergency Management Agency Federal Assistance Listing Number: 97.024 Federal Assistance Listing Name: Emergency Food and Shelter National Board Program Pass-through Awards under the Uniform Guidance Requirements: Pass-through Entity Award Name Award Period The United Way SE Family Center DC Phase 39 November 1, 2021 to April 30, 2023 The United Way SE Family Center DC ARPAR November 1, 2021 to April 30, 2023 The United Way Mont. Co Family Center Phase 39 November 1, 2021 to April 30, 2023 The United Way Mont. Co Family Center ARPAR November 1, 2021 to April 30, 2023 The United Way Parish Partners PG Co Phase 39 November 1, 2021 to April 30, 2023 The United Way Parish Partners PG Co ARPAR November 1, 2021 to April 30, 2023 The United Way Parish Partners Calvert Co ARPAR November 1, 2021 to April 30, 2023 The United Way Parish Partners Charles Co ARPAR November 1, 2021 to April 30, 2023 The United Way Angel’s Watch Charles Co ARPAR November 1, 2021 to April 30, 2023 The United Way St. Josephine’s Shelter DC ARPAR November 1, 2021 to April 30, 2023 The United Way Adam’s Place Shelter DC ARPAR November 1, 2021 to April 30, 2023 The United Way SMFB ARPAR November 1, 2021 to April 30, 2023 The United Way SCC Food Pantry Phase 39 November 1, 2021 to April 30, 2023 The United Way SCC Food Pantry ARPAR November 1, 2021 to April 30, 2023 The United Way Phase HR22 April 13, 2022 to July 7, 2022 Criteria: Title 2 U.S. Code of Federal Regulations Part 200 (2 CFR part 200) Section §200.510(b) states in part: “The auditee must also prepare a schedule of expenditures of Federal awards for the period covered by the auditee’s financial statements which must include the total Federal awards expended as determined in accordance with CFR Section §200.502 Basis for determining Federal awards expended.” The schedule must provide total Federal awards expended for each individual Federal program. In accordance with §200.302 Financial Management, a non-Federal entity's financial management systems, including records documenting compliance with Federal statutes, regulations, and the terms and conditions of the Federal award, must be sufficient to permit the preparation of reports required by general and program-specific terms and conditions; and the tracing of funds to a level of expenditures adequate to establish that such funds have been used according to the Federal statutes, regulations, and the terms and conditions of the Federal award. The financial management system of each non-Federal entity must provide for the following: (1) Identification, in its accounts, of all Federal awards received and expended and the Federal programs under which they were received. (2) Accurate, current, and complete disclosure of the financial results of each Federal award or program in accordance with the reporting requirements set forth in §200.327 Financial Reporting and §200.328 Monitoring and Reporting Program Performance. (3) Records that identify adequately the source and application of funds for Federally-funded activities. (4) Effective control over, and accountability for, all funds, property, and other assets.
Criteria or specific requirement (including statutory, regulatory, or other citation): The grant agreements require quarterly cumulative expenditure reports and a final completion report, consistent with the financial reporting provisions of the Uniform Guidance (2 CFR section 200.328). Condition: Quarterly cumulative expenditure reports and the final completion reports, which are typically due within 30 days of the period end, were materially accurate but were filed late, as noted below: ‐ ESSER I: 9/30/22 expenditures were filed 1/23/23 ‐ ESSER II: 12/31/22 expenditures were filed 7/27/23; 3/31/23 expenditures were filed 7/28/23 ‐ Community Partnership: 12/31/22 expenditures were filed 7/13/23; 3/31/23 expenditures were filed 7/15/23 Questioned Costs: None noted. Context: Late quarterly expenditure report submissions were also noted on several other federal grant programs, including Title I and Title III grants, in which reports were filed up to 12 months past the respective due dates. Effect: As these grants operate on a reimbursement basis, the District taxpayers had to carry the costs of the program for far longer than necessary. The District was unable to reconcile grant expenditures recorded in the general ledger with those that were to be claimed under these grants during the year, putting the District at risk of submitting claims for duplicated expenditures or of not claiming eligible expenditures. Cause: The District did not have internal controls in place or allocate adequate resources to ensure timely grant reporting could be achieved. Recommendation: The District should implement internal controls over grant expenditure reporting and allocate adequate resources to ensure that all eligible grant expenditures are appropriately submitted for reimbursement in a timely manner. Management's response: See Corrective Action Plan.
Finding Number: 2023-001 Federal Program: COVID-19 ARP Elementary and Secondary School Emergency Relief Federal Award Identification Number and Year: N/A, 2023 Assistance Listing Number (ALN): 84.425U Federal Awarding Agency: U.S. Department of Education Compliance Requirement: Reporting – Final Expenditure Report Pass-through Entity: Ohio Department of Education Repeat Finding: No Significant Deficiency and Noncompliance – Reporting of Final Expenditure Report Criteria: 2 C.F.R. § 3474.1 gives regulatory effect to the Department of Education for 2 C.F.R. § 200.302(b)(2) which states, in part, the financial management system of each non-Federal entity must provide for the accurate, current, and complete disclosure of the financial results of each Federal award or program in accordance with the reporting requirements set forth in § 200.328. 2 C.F.R. § 200.328 states, in part, this information must be collected with the frequency required by the terms and conditions of the Federal award, but no less frequently than annually nor more frequently than quarterly except in unusual circumstances, for example where more frequent reporting is necessary for the effective monitoring of the Federal award or could significantly affect program outcomes, and preferably in coordination with performance reporting. 2 C.F.R. § 200.344(a) states, in part, a subrecipient must submit to the pass-through entity, no later than 90 calendar days (or an earlier date as agreed upon by the pass-through entity and subrecipient) after the end date of the period of performance, all financial, performance, and other reports as required by the terms and conditions of the Federal award. Ohio Department of Education Grants Manual requires a final expenditure report (FER) to be submitted to show how grant funds were expended during the grant period for each project immediately after all financial obligations have been liquidated. FERs are to be submitted by September 30. Condition: The Academy did not start and submit the FER until October 3, 2022, three days after the deadline of September 30, 2022. Questioned Costs: None. Identification of How Questioned Costs Were Computed: N/A Context: Auditor reviewed the FER via CCIP and noted the Academy did not start and submit the FER until October 3, 2022, which was three days after the deadline of September 30, 2022. Cause and Effect: The Academy did not have procedures in place to review and submit the Final Expenditure Report timely. As a result, the Academy filed the Final Expenditure Report after the required due date. Recommendation: We recommend that the Academy implement a process to ensure that the Final Expenditure Report is filed by the required due date. Views of Responsible Officials and Corrective Action Plan: See Corrective Action Plan.
Finding – Reporting, Immunization Cooperative Agreements, Assistance Listing Number 93.268, 2021- 2022 Award Year, U.S. Department of Health and Human Services Criteria or Specific Requirement The Federal awarding agency must solicit only the OMB-approved governmentwide data elements for collection of financial information. This information must be collected with the frequency required by the terms and conditions of the Federal award, but no less frequently than annually nor more frequently than quarterly except in unusual circumstances, for example where more frequent reporting is necessary for the effective monitoring of the Federal award or could significantly affect program outcomes, and preferably in coordination with performance reporting (2 CFR Section 200.328). Condition and Context The Organization is required to prepare and submit annual SF-425 Federal Financial Reports. During the fiscal year, one SF-425 annual report was required to be filed for the September 30, 2021 to September 29, 2022 grant period. We noted that the Cash Receipts and Disbursements on lines 10a and b, and the Federal share of expenditures on line 10e and unobligated balance of Federal funds on line 10h were incorrectly reported and not in agreement with the actual amounts reported in the Organization’s underlying accounting records. We did test Federal draw requests as part of our Uniform Guidance testing and noted that expenditures reported on the Schedule of Expenditures of Federal Awards and cash received and disbursed for this federal award were correct and supported by underlying documentation. No discrepancies in expenditures or cash activity were identified in the Organization’s accounting system but, rather, just the reporting of the figures in SF-425 was incorrect. Cause The Federal share of expenditures was not correctly entered based on the underlying expenditure detail. Effect Federal form SF-425 contained incorrect information that did not agree to the actual underlying expenditures. Identification as a Repeat Finding Not a repeat finding. Questioned Costs None Recommendation We recommend that management review their processes for preparing and reviewing forms such as the SF-425 to ensure that the cash and expenditures activity for the grant period being reported on agrees with the Organization’s underlying accounting system balances and activity. Views of Responsible Officials and Planned Corrective Actions See Corrective Action Plan.
2023-004 – Reporting – Material Weakness in Internal Controls over Compliance and Material Noncompliance Department of Education Federal Assistance Listing Number: 84.425E, 84.425F, 84.425L Federal Program Name: Higher Education Emergency Relief Funds (HEERF) Student Aid Portion, Higher Education Emergency Relief Funds (HEERF) Institutional Portion, Higher Education Emergency Relief Funds (HEERF) Minority Serving Institutions (MSIs) Federal Award Number: P425E200777, P425F201298, P425L200234 Award Year: 2022-23, 2021-22, 2020-21 Criteria – Under the Coronavirus Aid, Relief, and Economic Security Act 18004(e) and the Coronavirus Response and Relief Supplemental Appropriations Act 314(e) institutions that received funds under HEERF I and HEERF II are required to submit a report to the secretary on how the school used its HEERF funds. While the American Rescue Plan did not explicitly identify procedures by which institutions must report on their uses of HEERF grant funds, the Department of Education exercises this reporting authority under 2 CFR section 200.328 and 2 CFR section 200.329. Condition/context – A sample of 5 special reports from the population of 5 special reports was selected. Two of the quarterly reports were not posted timely. In addition, the University could not provide consistent institutional records for the data included in the reports nor could they provide support that the reports were reviewed prior to posting. Three of the four quarterly reports were corrected based on the audit procedures performed, the University did not properly identify these as “corrected” upon posting to the University website. Our sample was not, and was not intended to be, statistically valid. Questioned costs – None. Cause/effect – Due to the turnover in the business office, the University did not post its quarterly reports timely and was unable to provide consistent institutional records for the data included in the reports or documented review of the reports prior to posting. The lack of support for data reported and documented review results in a material noncompliance with the reporting compliance requirement. Repeat finding – Yes, 2022-005 Recommendation – We recommend the University update previously posted reports to accurately reflect the actual expenditures during the time period covered by the report. We recommend each report be posted to the University’s website on separate documents by quarter and should not be cumulative. We also recommend the University implement a process to ensure the submission dates and publication dates are maintained to ensure compliance with the reporting due dates and that the data submitted in the reports is properly supported by institutional records. Lastly, we recommend each report be properly reviewed by someone other than the preparer and that the review be documented with a signature and date. Views of responsible officials and planned corrective actions – Heritage University will update the previously posted reports to accurately reflect the actual expenditures during FY21, FY22 & FY23 on the University’s website by quarter. Going further, it will be the Grant accountant’s practice that the submission dates and publication dates are maintained and documented with reporting due dates. All documents will be reviewed and approved by the VP of Administration/CFO with dated signatures.
2023-004 – Reporting – Material Weakness in Internal Controls over Compliance and Material Noncompliance Department of Education Federal Assistance Listing Number: 84.425E, 84.425F, 84.425L Federal Program Name: Higher Education Emergency Relief Funds (HEERF) Student Aid Portion, Higher Education Emergency Relief Funds (HEERF) Institutional Portion, Higher Education Emergency Relief Funds (HEERF) Minority Serving Institutions (MSIs) Federal Award Number: P425E200777, P425F201298, P425L200234 Award Year: 2022-23, 2021-22, 2020-21 Criteria – Under the Coronavirus Aid, Relief, and Economic Security Act 18004(e) and the Coronavirus Response and Relief Supplemental Appropriations Act 314(e) institutions that received funds under HEERF I and HEERF II are required to submit a report to the secretary on how the school used its HEERF funds. While the American Rescue Plan did not explicitly identify procedures by which institutions must report on their uses of HEERF grant funds, the Department of Education exercises this reporting authority under 2 CFR section 200.328 and 2 CFR section 200.329. Condition/context – A sample of 5 special reports from the population of 5 special reports was selected. Two of the quarterly reports were not posted timely. In addition, the University could not provide consistent institutional records for the data included in the reports nor could they provide support that the reports were reviewed prior to posting. Three of the four quarterly reports were corrected based on the audit procedures performed, the University did not properly identify these as “corrected” upon posting to the University website. Our sample was not, and was not intended to be, statistically valid. Questioned costs – None. Cause/effect – Due to the turnover in the business office, the University did not post its quarterly reports timely and was unable to provide consistent institutional records for the data included in the reports or documented review of the reports prior to posting. The lack of support for data reported and documented review results in a material noncompliance with the reporting compliance requirement. Repeat finding – Yes, 2022-005 Recommendation – We recommend the University update previously posted reports to accurately reflect the actual expenditures during the time period covered by the report. We recommend each report be posted to the University’s website on separate documents by quarter and should not be cumulative. We also recommend the University implement a process to ensure the submission dates and publication dates are maintained to ensure compliance with the reporting due dates and that the data submitted in the reports is properly supported by institutional records. Lastly, we recommend each report be properly reviewed by someone other than the preparer and that the review be documented with a signature and date. Views of responsible officials and planned corrective actions – Heritage University will update the previously posted reports to accurately reflect the actual expenditures during FY21, FY22 & FY23 on the University’s website by quarter. Going further, it will be the Grant accountant’s practice that the submission dates and publication dates are maintained and documented with reporting due dates. All documents will be reviewed and approved by the VP of Administration/CFO with dated signatures.
2023-004 – Reporting – Material Weakness in Internal Controls over Compliance and Material Noncompliance Department of Education Federal Assistance Listing Number: 84.425E, 84.425F, 84.425L Federal Program Name: Higher Education Emergency Relief Funds (HEERF) Student Aid Portion, Higher Education Emergency Relief Funds (HEERF) Institutional Portion, Higher Education Emergency Relief Funds (HEERF) Minority Serving Institutions (MSIs) Federal Award Number: P425E200777, P425F201298, P425L200234 Award Year: 2022-23, 2021-22, 2020-21 Criteria – Under the Coronavirus Aid, Relief, and Economic Security Act 18004(e) and the Coronavirus Response and Relief Supplemental Appropriations Act 314(e) institutions that received funds under HEERF I and HEERF II are required to submit a report to the secretary on how the school used its HEERF funds. While the American Rescue Plan did not explicitly identify procedures by which institutions must report on their uses of HEERF grant funds, the Department of Education exercises this reporting authority under 2 CFR section 200.328 and 2 CFR section 200.329. Condition/context – A sample of 5 special reports from the population of 5 special reports was selected. Two of the quarterly reports were not posted timely. In addition, the University could not provide consistent institutional records for the data included in the reports nor could they provide support that the reports were reviewed prior to posting. Three of the four quarterly reports were corrected based on the audit procedures performed, the University did not properly identify these as “corrected” upon posting to the University website. Our sample was not, and was not intended to be, statistically valid. Questioned costs – None. Cause/effect – Due to the turnover in the business office, the University did not post its quarterly reports timely and was unable to provide consistent institutional records for the data included in the reports or documented review of the reports prior to posting. The lack of support for data reported and documented review results in a material noncompliance with the reporting compliance requirement. Repeat finding – Yes, 2022-005 Recommendation – We recommend the University update previously posted reports to accurately reflect the actual expenditures during the time period covered by the report. We recommend each report be posted to the University’s website on separate documents by quarter and should not be cumulative. We also recommend the University implement a process to ensure the submission dates and publication dates are maintained to ensure compliance with the reporting due dates and that the data submitted in the reports is properly supported by institutional records. Lastly, we recommend each report be properly reviewed by someone other than the preparer and that the review be documented with a signature and date. Views of responsible officials and planned corrective actions – Heritage University will update the previously posted reports to accurately reflect the actual expenditures during FY21, FY22 & FY23 on the University’s website by quarter. Going further, it will be the Grant accountant’s practice that the submission dates and publication dates are maintained and documented with reporting due dates. All documents will be reviewed and approved by the VP of Administration/CFO with dated signatures.
Finding: 2023-002 Program Affected: COVID-19 Higher Education Emergency Relief Fund (HEERF) (AL Number 84.425E) Finding Type: Significant deficiency on internal control Criteria: The HEERF I, II, and III funding came with various requirements instituted by the CARES Act, CRRSAA, and ARP and then further defined by the US Department of Education (ED). The ED exercised its reporting authority under 2 CFR section 200.328 and 2 CFR section 200.329 to define three reporting requirements for the HEERF program funds, which include 1) public reporting on the (a)(1) Student Aid Portion; 2) public reporting on the (a)(1) Institutional Portion (a)(2) and (a)(3) subprograms (Quarterly Reporting Form), as applicable; and 3) the annual report. These reporting requirements stipulate specific guidelines regarding when, how, and what information is to be reported on quarterly and the annual reports. Condition: Per review of the University’s annual report, we noted three instances where the amounts and information reported did not agree to the internal records. Issues noted included incorrect amounts and information posted for the Emergency Financial Aid grants, monitoring and suppressing coronavirus, and total of institutional annual expenditures. Cause: Reporting requirements posted by the Department of Education for HEERF program funds have continuously changed with the intent to be made clearer with each subsequent revision. However, it is difficult to draw conclusions on some of the reporting guidance. There were not adequate controls nor review processes in place to monitor the reporting requirements issued by the Department of Education to ensure the annual report was posted accurately. Effect: The effect or possible effect is that the University may be determined ineligible to receive future HEERF program funding. Additionally, the program does not have accurate information regarding how HEERF program funds were expended by the University. Questioned Costs: None Recommendation: Controls should be established to allow for a second detailed review of all reporting of HEERF program funds by an official extensively familiar with the reporting requirements published by the Department of Education and other regulators. Auditee's Response: The reports will be monitored more closely going forward. See attached corrective action plan.
FINDING 2023-002 Subject: COVID-19 - Education Stabilization Fund - Reporting Federal Agency: Department of Education Federal Program: COVID-19 - Education Stabilization Fund Assistance Listings Number: 84.425D Federal Award Numbers and Years (or Other Identifying Numbers): S425D200013, S425D210013 Pass-Through Entity: Indiana Department of Education Compliance Requirement: Reporting Audit Findings: Material Weakness, Other Matters Condition and Context The School Corporation had not properly designed or implemented a system of internal controls, which would include appropriate segregation of duties, that would likely be effective in preventing, or detecting and correcting, noncompliance. The School Corporation was required to submit annual data reports to the Indiana Department of Education via JotForm, a form/report builder. Data to be submitted included, but was not limited to, current period expenditures, prior period expenditures, and expenditures per activity. During the audit period the School Corporation submitted two ESSER I reports, two ESSER II reports, and two ESSER III reports, for a total of six reports. The annual data reports were complied, prepared, and submitted by the Assistant Superintendent of Schools without an oversight or review process in place to prevent, or detect and correct, errors. Furthermore, the reported data on two of the reports, as noted below, could not be traced back to records that accumulate or summarize the data; therefore, the accuracy and completeness of the reports could not be verified. ESSER I, Year 3 Report The key line item, "Meeting Students' Academic, Social, Emotional, and Other Needs (Excluding Mental Health Supports) Uses - Personnel Services - Salaries," was not able to be verified to the School Corporation's records. Additionally, the key line item, "Meeting Students' Academic, Social, Emotional, and Other Needs (Excluding Mental Health Supports) Uses - Personnel Services - Benefits," was understated by $16. ESSER II, Year 2 Report The key line item, "Meeting Students' Academic, Social, Emotional, and Other Needs (Excluding Mental Health Supports) Uses - Personnel Services - Salaries," was understated by $288,199. The lack of internal controls and noncompliance were systemic issues throughout the audit period. INDIANA STATE BOARD OF ACCOUNTS 17 MILL CREEK COMMUNITY SCHOOL CORPORATION SCHEDULE OF FINDINGS AND QUESTIONED COSTS (Continued) Criteria 2 CFR 200.303 states in part: "The non-Federal entity must: (a) Establish and maintain effective internal control over the Federal award that provides reasonable assurance that the non-Federal entity is managing the Federal award in compliance with Federal statutes, regulations, and the terms and conditions of the Federal award. These internal controls should be in compliance with guidance in 'Standards for Internal Control in the Federal Government' issued by the Comptroller General of the United States or the 'Internal Control Integrated Framework', issued by the Committee of Sponsoring Organizations of the Treadway Commission (COSO). . . ." 2 CFR 200.334 states in part: "Financial records, supporting documents, statistical records, and all other non-Federal entity records pertinent to a Federal award must be retained for a period of three years from the date of submission of the final expenditure report or, for Federal awards that are renewed quarterly or annually, from the date of the submission of the quarterly or annual financial report, respectively, as reported to the Federal awarding agency or pass-through entity in the case of a subrecipient. . . ." 2 CFR 200.302(b) states in part: "The financial management system of each non-Federal entity must provide for the following: . . . (2) Accurate, current, and complete disclosure of the financial results of each Federal award or program in accordance with the reporting requirements set forth in §§ 200.328 and 200.329. . . ." 34 CFR 76.722 states: "A State may require a subgrantee to submit reports in a manner and format that assists the State in complying with the requirements under 34 CFR 76.720 and in carrying out other responsibilities under the program." 34 CFR 76.731 states: "A State and a subgrantee shall keep records to show its compliance with program requirements." Cause A proper system of internal controls was not designed by management of the School Corporation. Embedded within a properly designed and implemented internal control system should be internal controls consisting of policies and procedures. Policies reflect the School Corporation's management statements of what should be done to effect internal controls, and procedures should consist of actions that would implement these policies. Effect Without the proper implementation of an effectively designed system of internal controls, the internal control system cannot be capable of effectively preventing, or detecting and correcting, material noncompliance. As a result, some data could not be traced back to the underlying records. INDIANA STATE BOARD OF ACCOUNTS 18 MILL CREEK COMMUNITY SCHOOL CORPORATION SCHEDULE OF FINDINGS AND QUESTIONED COSTS (Continued) Noncompliance with the provisions of federal statutes, regulations, and the terms and conditions of the federal award could result in the loss of future federal funding to the School Corporation. Questioned Costs There were no questioned costs identified. Recommendation We recommended that management of the School Corporation establish a proper system of internal controls and develop policies and procedures to ensure all reports submitted on behalf of the COVID-19 - Education Stabilization Fund program funds are accurate and complete. Views of Responsible Officials For the views of responsible officials, refer to the Corrective Action Plan that is part of this report.
FINDING 2023-002 Subject: COVID-19 - Education Stabilization Fund - Reporting Federal Agency: Department of Education Federal Program: COVID-19 - Education Stabilization Fund Assistance Listings Number: 84.425D Federal Award Numbers and Years (or Other Identifying Numbers): S425D200013, S425D210013 Pass-Through Entity: Indiana Department of Education Compliance Requirement: Reporting Audit Findings: Material Weakness, Other Matters Condition and Context The School Corporation had not properly designed or implemented a system of internal controls, which would include appropriate segregation of duties, that would likely be effective in preventing, or detecting and correcting, noncompliance. The School Corporation was required to submit annual data reports to the Indiana Department of Education via JotForm, a form/report builder. Data to be submitted included, but was not limited to, current period expenditures, prior period expenditures, and expenditures per activity. During the audit period the School Corporation submitted two ESSER I reports, two ESSER II reports, and two ESSER III reports, for a total of six reports. The annual data reports were complied, prepared, and submitted by the Assistant Superintendent of Schools without an oversight or review process in place to prevent, or detect and correct, errors. Furthermore, the reported data on two of the reports, as noted below, could not be traced back to records that accumulate or summarize the data; therefore, the accuracy and completeness of the reports could not be verified. ESSER I, Year 3 Report The key line item, "Meeting Students' Academic, Social, Emotional, and Other Needs (Excluding Mental Health Supports) Uses - Personnel Services - Salaries," was not able to be verified to the School Corporation's records. Additionally, the key line item, "Meeting Students' Academic, Social, Emotional, and Other Needs (Excluding Mental Health Supports) Uses - Personnel Services - Benefits," was understated by $16. ESSER II, Year 2 Report The key line item, "Meeting Students' Academic, Social, Emotional, and Other Needs (Excluding Mental Health Supports) Uses - Personnel Services - Salaries," was understated by $288,199. The lack of internal controls and noncompliance were systemic issues throughout the audit period. INDIANA STATE BOARD OF ACCOUNTS 17 MILL CREEK COMMUNITY SCHOOL CORPORATION SCHEDULE OF FINDINGS AND QUESTIONED COSTS (Continued) Criteria 2 CFR 200.303 states in part: "The non-Federal entity must: (a) Establish and maintain effective internal control over the Federal award that provides reasonable assurance that the non-Federal entity is managing the Federal award in compliance with Federal statutes, regulations, and the terms and conditions of the Federal award. These internal controls should be in compliance with guidance in 'Standards for Internal Control in the Federal Government' issued by the Comptroller General of the United States or the 'Internal Control Integrated Framework', issued by the Committee of Sponsoring Organizations of the Treadway Commission (COSO). . . ." 2 CFR 200.334 states in part: "Financial records, supporting documents, statistical records, and all other non-Federal entity records pertinent to a Federal award must be retained for a period of three years from the date of submission of the final expenditure report or, for Federal awards that are renewed quarterly or annually, from the date of the submission of the quarterly or annual financial report, respectively, as reported to the Federal awarding agency or pass-through entity in the case of a subrecipient. . . ." 2 CFR 200.302(b) states in part: "The financial management system of each non-Federal entity must provide for the following: . . . (2) Accurate, current, and complete disclosure of the financial results of each Federal award or program in accordance with the reporting requirements set forth in §§ 200.328 and 200.329. . . ." 34 CFR 76.722 states: "A State may require a subgrantee to submit reports in a manner and format that assists the State in complying with the requirements under 34 CFR 76.720 and in carrying out other responsibilities under the program." 34 CFR 76.731 states: "A State and a subgrantee shall keep records to show its compliance with program requirements." Cause A proper system of internal controls was not designed by management of the School Corporation. Embedded within a properly designed and implemented internal control system should be internal controls consisting of policies and procedures. Policies reflect the School Corporation's management statements of what should be done to effect internal controls, and procedures should consist of actions that would implement these policies. Effect Without the proper implementation of an effectively designed system of internal controls, the internal control system cannot be capable of effectively preventing, or detecting and correcting, material noncompliance. As a result, some data could not be traced back to the underlying records. INDIANA STATE BOARD OF ACCOUNTS 18 MILL CREEK COMMUNITY SCHOOL CORPORATION SCHEDULE OF FINDINGS AND QUESTIONED COSTS (Continued) Noncompliance with the provisions of federal statutes, regulations, and the terms and conditions of the federal award could result in the loss of future federal funding to the School Corporation. Questioned Costs There were no questioned costs identified. Recommendation We recommended that management of the School Corporation establish a proper system of internal controls and develop policies and procedures to ensure all reports submitted on behalf of the COVID-19 - Education Stabilization Fund program funds are accurate and complete. Views of Responsible Officials For the views of responsible officials, refer to the Corrective Action Plan that is part of this report.
FINDING 2023-002 Subject: COVID-19 - Education Stabilization Fund - Reporting Federal Agency: Department of Education Federal Program: COVID-19 - Education Stabilization Fund Assistance Listings Number: 84.425D Federal Award Numbers and Years (or Other Identifying Numbers): S425D200013, S425D210013 Pass-Through Entity: Indiana Department of Education Compliance Requirement: Reporting Audit Findings: Material Weakness, Other Matters Condition and Context The School Corporation had not properly designed or implemented a system of internal controls, which would include appropriate segregation of duties, that would likely be effective in preventing, or detecting and correcting, noncompliance. The School Corporation was required to submit annual data reports to the Indiana Department of Education via JotForm, a form/report builder. Data to be submitted included, but was not limited to, current period expenditures, prior period expenditures, and expenditures per activity. During the audit period the School Corporation submitted two ESSER I reports, two ESSER II reports, and two ESSER III reports, for a total of six reports. The annual data reports were complied, prepared, and submitted by the Assistant Superintendent of Schools without an oversight or review process in place to prevent, or detect and correct, errors. Furthermore, the reported data on two of the reports, as noted below, could not be traced back to records that accumulate or summarize the data; therefore, the accuracy and completeness of the reports could not be verified. ESSER I, Year 3 Report The key line item, "Meeting Students' Academic, Social, Emotional, and Other Needs (Excluding Mental Health Supports) Uses - Personnel Services - Salaries," was not able to be verified to the School Corporation's records. Additionally, the key line item, "Meeting Students' Academic, Social, Emotional, and Other Needs (Excluding Mental Health Supports) Uses - Personnel Services - Benefits," was understated by $16. ESSER II, Year 2 Report The key line item, "Meeting Students' Academic, Social, Emotional, and Other Needs (Excluding Mental Health Supports) Uses - Personnel Services - Salaries," was understated by $288,199. The lack of internal controls and noncompliance were systemic issues throughout the audit period. INDIANA STATE BOARD OF ACCOUNTS 17 MILL CREEK COMMUNITY SCHOOL CORPORATION SCHEDULE OF FINDINGS AND QUESTIONED COSTS (Continued) Criteria 2 CFR 200.303 states in part: "The non-Federal entity must: (a) Establish and maintain effective internal control over the Federal award that provides reasonable assurance that the non-Federal entity is managing the Federal award in compliance with Federal statutes, regulations, and the terms and conditions of the Federal award. These internal controls should be in compliance with guidance in 'Standards for Internal Control in the Federal Government' issued by the Comptroller General of the United States or the 'Internal Control Integrated Framework', issued by the Committee of Sponsoring Organizations of the Treadway Commission (COSO). . . ." 2 CFR 200.334 states in part: "Financial records, supporting documents, statistical records, and all other non-Federal entity records pertinent to a Federal award must be retained for a period of three years from the date of submission of the final expenditure report or, for Federal awards that are renewed quarterly or annually, from the date of the submission of the quarterly or annual financial report, respectively, as reported to the Federal awarding agency or pass-through entity in the case of a subrecipient. . . ." 2 CFR 200.302(b) states in part: "The financial management system of each non-Federal entity must provide for the following: . . . (2) Accurate, current, and complete disclosure of the financial results of each Federal award or program in accordance with the reporting requirements set forth in §§ 200.328 and 200.329. . . ." 34 CFR 76.722 states: "A State may require a subgrantee to submit reports in a manner and format that assists the State in complying with the requirements under 34 CFR 76.720 and in carrying out other responsibilities under the program." 34 CFR 76.731 states: "A State and a subgrantee shall keep records to show its compliance with program requirements." Cause A proper system of internal controls was not designed by management of the School Corporation. Embedded within a properly designed and implemented internal control system should be internal controls consisting of policies and procedures. Policies reflect the School Corporation's management statements of what should be done to effect internal controls, and procedures should consist of actions that would implement these policies. Effect Without the proper implementation of an effectively designed system of internal controls, the internal control system cannot be capable of effectively preventing, or detecting and correcting, material noncompliance. As a result, some data could not be traced back to the underlying records. INDIANA STATE BOARD OF ACCOUNTS 18 MILL CREEK COMMUNITY SCHOOL CORPORATION SCHEDULE OF FINDINGS AND QUESTIONED COSTS (Continued) Noncompliance with the provisions of federal statutes, regulations, and the terms and conditions of the federal award could result in the loss of future federal funding to the School Corporation. Questioned Costs There were no questioned costs identified. Recommendation We recommended that management of the School Corporation establish a proper system of internal controls and develop policies and procedures to ensure all reports submitted on behalf of the COVID-19 - Education Stabilization Fund program funds are accurate and complete. Views of Responsible Officials For the views of responsible officials, refer to the Corrective Action Plan that is part of this report.
FINDING 2023-002 Subject: COVID-19 - Education Stabilization Fund - Reporting Federal Agency: Department of Education Federal Program: COVID-19 - Education Stabilization Fund Assistance Listings Number: 84.425D Federal Award Numbers and Years (or Other Identifying Numbers): S425D200013, S425D210013 Pass-Through Entity: Indiana Department of Education Compliance Requirement: Reporting Audit Findings: Material Weakness, Other Matters Condition and Context The School Corporation had not properly designed or implemented a system of internal controls, which would include appropriate segregation of duties, that would likely be effective in preventing, or detecting and correcting, noncompliance. The School Corporation was required to submit annual data reports to the Indiana Department of Education via JotForm, a form/report builder. Data to be submitted included, but was not limited to, current period expenditures, prior period expenditures, and expenditures per activity. During the audit period the School Corporation submitted two ESSER I reports, two ESSER II reports, and two ESSER III reports, for a total of six reports. The annual data reports were complied, prepared, and submitted by the Assistant Superintendent of Schools without an oversight or review process in place to prevent, or detect and correct, errors. Furthermore, the reported data on two of the reports, as noted below, could not be traced back to records that accumulate or summarize the data; therefore, the accuracy and completeness of the reports could not be verified. ESSER I, Year 3 Report The key line item, "Meeting Students' Academic, Social, Emotional, and Other Needs (Excluding Mental Health Supports) Uses - Personnel Services - Salaries," was not able to be verified to the School Corporation's records. Additionally, the key line item, "Meeting Students' Academic, Social, Emotional, and Other Needs (Excluding Mental Health Supports) Uses - Personnel Services - Benefits," was understated by $16. ESSER II, Year 2 Report The key line item, "Meeting Students' Academic, Social, Emotional, and Other Needs (Excluding Mental Health Supports) Uses - Personnel Services - Salaries," was understated by $288,199. The lack of internal controls and noncompliance were systemic issues throughout the audit period. INDIANA STATE BOARD OF ACCOUNTS 17 MILL CREEK COMMUNITY SCHOOL CORPORATION SCHEDULE OF FINDINGS AND QUESTIONED COSTS (Continued) Criteria 2 CFR 200.303 states in part: "The non-Federal entity must: (a) Establish and maintain effective internal control over the Federal award that provides reasonable assurance that the non-Federal entity is managing the Federal award in compliance with Federal statutes, regulations, and the terms and conditions of the Federal award. These internal controls should be in compliance with guidance in 'Standards for Internal Control in the Federal Government' issued by the Comptroller General of the United States or the 'Internal Control Integrated Framework', issued by the Committee of Sponsoring Organizations of the Treadway Commission (COSO). . . ." 2 CFR 200.334 states in part: "Financial records, supporting documents, statistical records, and all other non-Federal entity records pertinent to a Federal award must be retained for a period of three years from the date of submission of the final expenditure report or, for Federal awards that are renewed quarterly or annually, from the date of the submission of the quarterly or annual financial report, respectively, as reported to the Federal awarding agency or pass-through entity in the case of a subrecipient. . . ." 2 CFR 200.302(b) states in part: "The financial management system of each non-Federal entity must provide for the following: . . . (2) Accurate, current, and complete disclosure of the financial results of each Federal award or program in accordance with the reporting requirements set forth in §§ 200.328 and 200.329. . . ." 34 CFR 76.722 states: "A State may require a subgrantee to submit reports in a manner and format that assists the State in complying with the requirements under 34 CFR 76.720 and in carrying out other responsibilities under the program." 34 CFR 76.731 states: "A State and a subgrantee shall keep records to show its compliance with program requirements." Cause A proper system of internal controls was not designed by management of the School Corporation. Embedded within a properly designed and implemented internal control system should be internal controls consisting of policies and procedures. Policies reflect the School Corporation's management statements of what should be done to effect internal controls, and procedures should consist of actions that would implement these policies. Effect Without the proper implementation of an effectively designed system of internal controls, the internal control system cannot be capable of effectively preventing, or detecting and correcting, material noncompliance. As a result, some data could not be traced back to the underlying records. INDIANA STATE BOARD OF ACCOUNTS 18 MILL CREEK COMMUNITY SCHOOL CORPORATION SCHEDULE OF FINDINGS AND QUESTIONED COSTS (Continued) Noncompliance with the provisions of federal statutes, regulations, and the terms and conditions of the federal award could result in the loss of future federal funding to the School Corporation. Questioned Costs There were no questioned costs identified. Recommendation We recommended that management of the School Corporation establish a proper system of internal controls and develop policies and procedures to ensure all reports submitted on behalf of the COVID-19 - Education Stabilization Fund program funds are accurate and complete. Views of Responsible Officials For the views of responsible officials, refer to the Corrective Action Plan that is part of this report.
FINDING 2023-002 Subject: COVID-19 - Education Stabilization Fund - Reporting Federal Agency: Department of Education Federal Program: COVID-19 - Education Stabilization Fund Assistance Listings Numbers: 84.425D, 84.425U Federal Award Numbers and Years (or Other Identifying Numbers): S425D200013, S425U210013 Pass-Through Entity: Indiana Department of Education Compliance Requirement: Reporting Audit Findings: Material Weakness, Other Matters Condition and Context The School Corporation had not properly designed or implemented a system of internal controls, which would include appropriate segregation of duties, that would likely be effective in preventing, or detecting and correcting, noncompliance. INDIANA STATE BOARD OF ACCOUNTS 18 GREENCASTLE COMMUNITY SCHOOL CORPORATION SCHEDULE OF FINDINGS AND QUESTIONED COSTS (Continued) The School Corporation was required to submit an annual data report to the Indiana Department of Education via JotForm, a form/report builder. Data to be submitted included, but was not limited to, current period expenditures, prior period expenditures, and expenditures per activity. The reports were prepared by one employee without an oversight, review, or approval process in place to prevent, or detect and correct, errors. Data for four of the six reports tested during the audit period could not be traced to the records that accumulated and summarized the data. The following errors were identified when tracing key line items to supporting documentation: ESSER I - Year II Report 'Addressing Physical Health and Safety - Supplies' was understated by $12,522, and 'Meeting Students' Academic, Social, Emotional, and Other Needs (Excluding Mental Health Supports) - Supplies' was overstated $19. ESSER II - Year I Report 'Meeting Students' Academic, Social, Emotional, and Other Needs (Excluding Mental Health Supports) - Personnel Services - Salaries' was understated by $20,536, and 'Meeting Students' Academic, Social, Emotional, and Other Needs (Excluding Mental Health Supports) - Supplies' was understated by $1,321. ESSER II - Year II Report 'Addressing Physical Health and Safety Uses - Supplies' was understated by $5,764, and 'Meeting Students' Academic, Social, Emotional, and Other Needs Uses (Excluding Mental Health Supports) - Personnel Services - Salaries' was overstated $264. ESSER III - Year II Report 'Meeting Students' Academic, Social, Emotional, and Other Needs (Excluding Mental Health Supports) - Personnel Services - Salaries' was overstated $141, and 'Meeting Students' Academic, Social, Emotional, and Other Needs (Excluding Mental Health Supports) - Supplies' was understated by $75,303. The lack of internal controls was a systemic issue throughout the audit period. The noncompliance was isolated to four of the six reports filed. Criteria 2 CFR 200.303 states in part: "The non-Federal entity must: (a) Establish and maintain effective internal control over the Federal award that provides reasonable assurance that the non-Federal entity is managing the Federal award in compliance with Federal statutes, regulations, and the terms and conditions of the Federal award. These internal controls should be in compliance with guidance in 'Standards for Internal Control in the Federal Government' issued by the Comptroller General of the United States or the 'Internal Control Integrated Framework', issued by the Committee of Sponsoring Organizations of the Treadway Commission (COSO). . . ." INDIANA STATE BOARD OF ACCOUNTS 19 GREENCASTLE COMMUNITY SCHOOL CORPORATION SCHEDULE OF FINDINGS AND QUESTIONED COSTS (Continued) 2 CFR 200.302(b) states in part: "The financial management system of each non-Federal entity must provide for the following: . . . (2) Accurate, current, and complete disclosure of the financial results of each Federal award or program in accordance with the reporting requirements set forth in §§ 200.328 and 200.329. . . . (3) Records that identify adequately the source and application of funds for federallyfunded activities. These records must contain information pertaining to Federal awards, authorizations, financial obligations, unobligated balances, assets, expenditures, income and interest and be supported by source documentation. . . ." 34 CFR 76.722 states: "A State may require a subgrantee to submit reports in a manner and format that assists the State in complying with the requirements under 34 CFR 76.720 and in carrying out other responsibilities under the program." Cause A proper system of internal controls was not designed by management of the School Corporation. Embedded within a properly designed and implemented internal control system should be internal controls consisting of policies and procedures. Policies reflect the School Corporation's management statements of what should be done to effect internal controls, and procedures should consist of actions that would implement these policies. Effect Without the proper implementation of an effectively designed system of internal controls, the internal control system cannot be capable of effectively preventing, or detecting and correcting, material noncompliance. As a result, reports were not supported by the School Corporation's underlying accounting records and key line items were misstated. Noncompliance with the provisions of federal statutes, regulations, and the terms and conditions of the federal award could result in the loss of future federal funding to the School Corporation. Questioned Costs There were no questioned costs identified. Recommendation We recommended that management of the School Corporation establish a proper system of internal controls and develop policies and procedures to ensure reports are supported by the records and key line items are accurate. Views of Responsible Officials For the views of responsible officials, refer to the Corrective Action Plan that is part of this report.
FINDING 2023-002 Subject: COVID-19 - Education Stabilization Fund - Reporting Federal Agency: Department of Education Federal Program: COVID-19 - Education Stabilization Fund Assistance Listings Numbers: 84.425D, 84.425U Federal Award Numbers and Years (or Other Identifying Numbers): S425D200013, S425U210013 Pass-Through Entity: Indiana Department of Education Compliance Requirement: Reporting Audit Findings: Material Weakness, Other Matters Condition and Context The School Corporation had not properly designed or implemented a system of internal controls, which would include appropriate segregation of duties, that would likely be effective in preventing, or detecting and correcting, noncompliance. INDIANA STATE BOARD OF ACCOUNTS 18 GREENCASTLE COMMUNITY SCHOOL CORPORATION SCHEDULE OF FINDINGS AND QUESTIONED COSTS (Continued) The School Corporation was required to submit an annual data report to the Indiana Department of Education via JotForm, a form/report builder. Data to be submitted included, but was not limited to, current period expenditures, prior period expenditures, and expenditures per activity. The reports were prepared by one employee without an oversight, review, or approval process in place to prevent, or detect and correct, errors. Data for four of the six reports tested during the audit period could not be traced to the records that accumulated and summarized the data. The following errors were identified when tracing key line items to supporting documentation: ESSER I - Year II Report 'Addressing Physical Health and Safety - Supplies' was understated by $12,522, and 'Meeting Students' Academic, Social, Emotional, and Other Needs (Excluding Mental Health Supports) - Supplies' was overstated $19. ESSER II - Year I Report 'Meeting Students' Academic, Social, Emotional, and Other Needs (Excluding Mental Health Supports) - Personnel Services - Salaries' was understated by $20,536, and 'Meeting Students' Academic, Social, Emotional, and Other Needs (Excluding Mental Health Supports) - Supplies' was understated by $1,321. ESSER II - Year II Report 'Addressing Physical Health and Safety Uses - Supplies' was understated by $5,764, and 'Meeting Students' Academic, Social, Emotional, and Other Needs Uses (Excluding Mental Health Supports) - Personnel Services - Salaries' was overstated $264. ESSER III - Year II Report 'Meeting Students' Academic, Social, Emotional, and Other Needs (Excluding Mental Health Supports) - Personnel Services - Salaries' was overstated $141, and 'Meeting Students' Academic, Social, Emotional, and Other Needs (Excluding Mental Health Supports) - Supplies' was understated by $75,303. The lack of internal controls was a systemic issue throughout the audit period. The noncompliance was isolated to four of the six reports filed. Criteria 2 CFR 200.303 states in part: "The non-Federal entity must: (a) Establish and maintain effective internal control over the Federal award that provides reasonable assurance that the non-Federal entity is managing the Federal award in compliance with Federal statutes, regulations, and the terms and conditions of the Federal award. These internal controls should be in compliance with guidance in 'Standards for Internal Control in the Federal Government' issued by the Comptroller General of the United States or the 'Internal Control Integrated Framework', issued by the Committee of Sponsoring Organizations of the Treadway Commission (COSO). . . ." INDIANA STATE BOARD OF ACCOUNTS 19 GREENCASTLE COMMUNITY SCHOOL CORPORATION SCHEDULE OF FINDINGS AND QUESTIONED COSTS (Continued) 2 CFR 200.302(b) states in part: "The financial management system of each non-Federal entity must provide for the following: . . . (2) Accurate, current, and complete disclosure of the financial results of each Federal award or program in accordance with the reporting requirements set forth in §§ 200.328 and 200.329. . . . (3) Records that identify adequately the source and application of funds for federallyfunded activities. These records must contain information pertaining to Federal awards, authorizations, financial obligations, unobligated balances, assets, expenditures, income and interest and be supported by source documentation. . . ." 34 CFR 76.722 states: "A State may require a subgrantee to submit reports in a manner and format that assists the State in complying with the requirements under 34 CFR 76.720 and in carrying out other responsibilities under the program." Cause A proper system of internal controls was not designed by management of the School Corporation. Embedded within a properly designed and implemented internal control system should be internal controls consisting of policies and procedures. Policies reflect the School Corporation's management statements of what should be done to effect internal controls, and procedures should consist of actions that would implement these policies. Effect Without the proper implementation of an effectively designed system of internal controls, the internal control system cannot be capable of effectively preventing, or detecting and correcting, material noncompliance. As a result, reports were not supported by the School Corporation's underlying accounting records and key line items were misstated. Noncompliance with the provisions of federal statutes, regulations, and the terms and conditions of the federal award could result in the loss of future federal funding to the School Corporation. Questioned Costs There were no questioned costs identified. Recommendation We recommended that management of the School Corporation establish a proper system of internal controls and develop policies and procedures to ensure reports are supported by the records and key line items are accurate. Views of Responsible Officials For the views of responsible officials, refer to the Corrective Action Plan that is part of this report.
FINDING 2023-002 Subject: COVID-19 - Education Stabilization Fund - Reporting Federal Agency: Department of Education Federal Program: COVID-19 - Education Stabilization Fund Assistance Listings Numbers: 84.425D, 84.425U Federal Award Numbers and Years (or Other Identifying Numbers): S425D200013, S425U210013 Pass-Through Entity: Indiana Department of Education Compliance Requirement: Reporting Audit Findings: Material Weakness, Other Matters Condition and Context The School Corporation had not properly designed or implemented a system of internal controls, which would include appropriate segregation of duties, that would likely be effective in preventing, or detecting and correcting, noncompliance. INDIANA STATE BOARD OF ACCOUNTS 18 GREENCASTLE COMMUNITY SCHOOL CORPORATION SCHEDULE OF FINDINGS AND QUESTIONED COSTS (Continued) The School Corporation was required to submit an annual data report to the Indiana Department of Education via JotForm, a form/report builder. Data to be submitted included, but was not limited to, current period expenditures, prior period expenditures, and expenditures per activity. The reports were prepared by one employee without an oversight, review, or approval process in place to prevent, or detect and correct, errors. Data for four of the six reports tested during the audit period could not be traced to the records that accumulated and summarized the data. The following errors were identified when tracing key line items to supporting documentation: ESSER I - Year II Report 'Addressing Physical Health and Safety - Supplies' was understated by $12,522, and 'Meeting Students' Academic, Social, Emotional, and Other Needs (Excluding Mental Health Supports) - Supplies' was overstated $19. ESSER II - Year I Report 'Meeting Students' Academic, Social, Emotional, and Other Needs (Excluding Mental Health Supports) - Personnel Services - Salaries' was understated by $20,536, and 'Meeting Students' Academic, Social, Emotional, and Other Needs (Excluding Mental Health Supports) - Supplies' was understated by $1,321. ESSER II - Year II Report 'Addressing Physical Health and Safety Uses - Supplies' was understated by $5,764, and 'Meeting Students' Academic, Social, Emotional, and Other Needs Uses (Excluding Mental Health Supports) - Personnel Services - Salaries' was overstated $264. ESSER III - Year II Report 'Meeting Students' Academic, Social, Emotional, and Other Needs (Excluding Mental Health Supports) - Personnel Services - Salaries' was overstated $141, and 'Meeting Students' Academic, Social, Emotional, and Other Needs (Excluding Mental Health Supports) - Supplies' was understated by $75,303. The lack of internal controls was a systemic issue throughout the audit period. The noncompliance was isolated to four of the six reports filed. Criteria 2 CFR 200.303 states in part: "The non-Federal entity must: (a) Establish and maintain effective internal control over the Federal award that provides reasonable assurance that the non-Federal entity is managing the Federal award in compliance with Federal statutes, regulations, and the terms and conditions of the Federal award. These internal controls should be in compliance with guidance in 'Standards for Internal Control in the Federal Government' issued by the Comptroller General of the United States or the 'Internal Control Integrated Framework', issued by the Committee of Sponsoring Organizations of the Treadway Commission (COSO). . . ." INDIANA STATE BOARD OF ACCOUNTS 19 GREENCASTLE COMMUNITY SCHOOL CORPORATION SCHEDULE OF FINDINGS AND QUESTIONED COSTS (Continued) 2 CFR 200.302(b) states in part: "The financial management system of each non-Federal entity must provide for the following: . . . (2) Accurate, current, and complete disclosure of the financial results of each Federal award or program in accordance with the reporting requirements set forth in §§ 200.328 and 200.329. . . . (3) Records that identify adequately the source and application of funds for federallyfunded activities. These records must contain information pertaining to Federal awards, authorizations, financial obligations, unobligated balances, assets, expenditures, income and interest and be supported by source documentation. . . ." 34 CFR 76.722 states: "A State may require a subgrantee to submit reports in a manner and format that assists the State in complying with the requirements under 34 CFR 76.720 and in carrying out other responsibilities under the program." Cause A proper system of internal controls was not designed by management of the School Corporation. Embedded within a properly designed and implemented internal control system should be internal controls consisting of policies and procedures. Policies reflect the School Corporation's management statements of what should be done to effect internal controls, and procedures should consist of actions that would implement these policies. Effect Without the proper implementation of an effectively designed system of internal controls, the internal control system cannot be capable of effectively preventing, or detecting and correcting, material noncompliance. As a result, reports were not supported by the School Corporation's underlying accounting records and key line items were misstated. Noncompliance with the provisions of federal statutes, regulations, and the terms and conditions of the federal award could result in the loss of future federal funding to the School Corporation. Questioned Costs There were no questioned costs identified. Recommendation We recommended that management of the School Corporation establish a proper system of internal controls and develop policies and procedures to ensure reports are supported by the records and key line items are accurate. Views of Responsible Officials For the views of responsible officials, refer to the Corrective Action Plan that is part of this report.
FINDING 2023-002 Subject: COVID-19 - Education Stabilization Fund - Reporting Federal Agency: Department of Education Federal Program: COVID-19 - Education Stabilization Fund Assistance Listings Numbers: 84.425D, 84.425U Federal Award Numbers and Years (or Other Identifying Numbers): S425D200013, S425U210013 Pass-Through Entity: Indiana Department of Education Compliance Requirement: Reporting Audit Findings: Material Weakness, Other Matters Condition and Context The School Corporation had not properly designed or implemented a system of internal controls, which would include appropriate segregation of duties, that would likely be effective in preventing, or detecting and correcting, noncompliance. INDIANA STATE BOARD OF ACCOUNTS 18 GREENCASTLE COMMUNITY SCHOOL CORPORATION SCHEDULE OF FINDINGS AND QUESTIONED COSTS (Continued) The School Corporation was required to submit an annual data report to the Indiana Department of Education via JotForm, a form/report builder. Data to be submitted included, but was not limited to, current period expenditures, prior period expenditures, and expenditures per activity. The reports were prepared by one employee without an oversight, review, or approval process in place to prevent, or detect and correct, errors. Data for four of the six reports tested during the audit period could not be traced to the records that accumulated and summarized the data. The following errors were identified when tracing key line items to supporting documentation: ESSER I - Year II Report 'Addressing Physical Health and Safety - Supplies' was understated by $12,522, and 'Meeting Students' Academic, Social, Emotional, and Other Needs (Excluding Mental Health Supports) - Supplies' was overstated $19. ESSER II - Year I Report 'Meeting Students' Academic, Social, Emotional, and Other Needs (Excluding Mental Health Supports) - Personnel Services - Salaries' was understated by $20,536, and 'Meeting Students' Academic, Social, Emotional, and Other Needs (Excluding Mental Health Supports) - Supplies' was understated by $1,321. ESSER II - Year II Report 'Addressing Physical Health and Safety Uses - Supplies' was understated by $5,764, and 'Meeting Students' Academic, Social, Emotional, and Other Needs Uses (Excluding Mental Health Supports) - Personnel Services - Salaries' was overstated $264. ESSER III - Year II Report 'Meeting Students' Academic, Social, Emotional, and Other Needs (Excluding Mental Health Supports) - Personnel Services - Salaries' was overstated $141, and 'Meeting Students' Academic, Social, Emotional, and Other Needs (Excluding Mental Health Supports) - Supplies' was understated by $75,303. The lack of internal controls was a systemic issue throughout the audit period. The noncompliance was isolated to four of the six reports filed. Criteria 2 CFR 200.303 states in part: "The non-Federal entity must: (a) Establish and maintain effective internal control over the Federal award that provides reasonable assurance that the non-Federal entity is managing the Federal award in compliance with Federal statutes, regulations, and the terms and conditions of the Federal award. These internal controls should be in compliance with guidance in 'Standards for Internal Control in the Federal Government' issued by the Comptroller General of the United States or the 'Internal Control Integrated Framework', issued by the Committee of Sponsoring Organizations of the Treadway Commission (COSO). . . ." INDIANA STATE BOARD OF ACCOUNTS 19 GREENCASTLE COMMUNITY SCHOOL CORPORATION SCHEDULE OF FINDINGS AND QUESTIONED COSTS (Continued) 2 CFR 200.302(b) states in part: "The financial management system of each non-Federal entity must provide for the following: . . . (2) Accurate, current, and complete disclosure of the financial results of each Federal award or program in accordance with the reporting requirements set forth in §§ 200.328 and 200.329. . . . (3) Records that identify adequately the source and application of funds for federallyfunded activities. These records must contain information pertaining to Federal awards, authorizations, financial obligations, unobligated balances, assets, expenditures, income and interest and be supported by source documentation. . . ." 34 CFR 76.722 states: "A State may require a subgrantee to submit reports in a manner and format that assists the State in complying with the requirements under 34 CFR 76.720 and in carrying out other responsibilities under the program." Cause A proper system of internal controls was not designed by management of the School Corporation. Embedded within a properly designed and implemented internal control system should be internal controls consisting of policies and procedures. Policies reflect the School Corporation's management statements of what should be done to effect internal controls, and procedures should consist of actions that would implement these policies. Effect Without the proper implementation of an effectively designed system of internal controls, the internal control system cannot be capable of effectively preventing, or detecting and correcting, material noncompliance. As a result, reports were not supported by the School Corporation's underlying accounting records and key line items were misstated. Noncompliance with the provisions of federal statutes, regulations, and the terms and conditions of the federal award could result in the loss of future federal funding to the School Corporation. Questioned Costs There were no questioned costs identified. Recommendation We recommended that management of the School Corporation establish a proper system of internal controls and develop policies and procedures to ensure reports are supported by the records and key line items are accurate. Views of Responsible Officials For the views of responsible officials, refer to the Corrective Action Plan that is part of this report.
FINDING 2023-002 Subject: COVID-19 - Education Stabilization Fund - Reporting Federal Agency: Department of Education Federal Program: COVID-19 - Education Stabilization Fund Assistance Listings Numbers: 84.425D, 84.425U Federal Award Numbers and Years (or Other Identifying Numbers): S425D200013, S425U210013 Pass-Through Entity: Indiana Department of Education Compliance Requirement: Reporting Audit Findings: Material Weakness, Other Matters Condition and Context The School Corporation had not properly designed or implemented a system of internal controls, which would include appropriate segregation of duties, that would likely be effective in preventing, or detecting and correcting, noncompliance. INDIANA STATE BOARD OF ACCOUNTS 18 GREENCASTLE COMMUNITY SCHOOL CORPORATION SCHEDULE OF FINDINGS AND QUESTIONED COSTS (Continued) The School Corporation was required to submit an annual data report to the Indiana Department of Education via JotForm, a form/report builder. Data to be submitted included, but was not limited to, current period expenditures, prior period expenditures, and expenditures per activity. The reports were prepared by one employee without an oversight, review, or approval process in place to prevent, or detect and correct, errors. Data for four of the six reports tested during the audit period could not be traced to the records that accumulated and summarized the data. The following errors were identified when tracing key line items to supporting documentation: ESSER I - Year II Report 'Addressing Physical Health and Safety - Supplies' was understated by $12,522, and 'Meeting Students' Academic, Social, Emotional, and Other Needs (Excluding Mental Health Supports) - Supplies' was overstated $19. ESSER II - Year I Report 'Meeting Students' Academic, Social, Emotional, and Other Needs (Excluding Mental Health Supports) - Personnel Services - Salaries' was understated by $20,536, and 'Meeting Students' Academic, Social, Emotional, and Other Needs (Excluding Mental Health Supports) - Supplies' was understated by $1,321. ESSER II - Year II Report 'Addressing Physical Health and Safety Uses - Supplies' was understated by $5,764, and 'Meeting Students' Academic, Social, Emotional, and Other Needs Uses (Excluding Mental Health Supports) - Personnel Services - Salaries' was overstated $264. ESSER III - Year II Report 'Meeting Students' Academic, Social, Emotional, and Other Needs (Excluding Mental Health Supports) - Personnel Services - Salaries' was overstated $141, and 'Meeting Students' Academic, Social, Emotional, and Other Needs (Excluding Mental Health Supports) - Supplies' was understated by $75,303. The lack of internal controls was a systemic issue throughout the audit period. The noncompliance was isolated to four of the six reports filed. Criteria 2 CFR 200.303 states in part: "The non-Federal entity must: (a) Establish and maintain effective internal control over the Federal award that provides reasonable assurance that the non-Federal entity is managing the Federal award in compliance with Federal statutes, regulations, and the terms and conditions of the Federal award. These internal controls should be in compliance with guidance in 'Standards for Internal Control in the Federal Government' issued by the Comptroller General of the United States or the 'Internal Control Integrated Framework', issued by the Committee of Sponsoring Organizations of the Treadway Commission (COSO). . . ." INDIANA STATE BOARD OF ACCOUNTS 19 GREENCASTLE COMMUNITY SCHOOL CORPORATION SCHEDULE OF FINDINGS AND QUESTIONED COSTS (Continued) 2 CFR 200.302(b) states in part: "The financial management system of each non-Federal entity must provide for the following: . . . (2) Accurate, current, and complete disclosure of the financial results of each Federal award or program in accordance with the reporting requirements set forth in §§ 200.328 and 200.329. . . . (3) Records that identify adequately the source and application of funds for federallyfunded activities. These records must contain information pertaining to Federal awards, authorizations, financial obligations, unobligated balances, assets, expenditures, income and interest and be supported by source documentation. . . ." 34 CFR 76.722 states: "A State may require a subgrantee to submit reports in a manner and format that assists the State in complying with the requirements under 34 CFR 76.720 and in carrying out other responsibilities under the program." Cause A proper system of internal controls was not designed by management of the School Corporation. Embedded within a properly designed and implemented internal control system should be internal controls consisting of policies and procedures. Policies reflect the School Corporation's management statements of what should be done to effect internal controls, and procedures should consist of actions that would implement these policies. Effect Without the proper implementation of an effectively designed system of internal controls, the internal control system cannot be capable of effectively preventing, or detecting and correcting, material noncompliance. As a result, reports were not supported by the School Corporation's underlying accounting records and key line items were misstated. Noncompliance with the provisions of federal statutes, regulations, and the terms and conditions of the federal award could result in the loss of future federal funding to the School Corporation. Questioned Costs There were no questioned costs identified. Recommendation We recommended that management of the School Corporation establish a proper system of internal controls and develop policies and procedures to ensure reports are supported by the records and key line items are accurate. Views of Responsible Officials For the views of responsible officials, refer to the Corrective Action Plan that is part of this report.
FINDING 2023-002 Subject: COVID-19 - Education Stabilization Fund - Reporting Federal Agency: Department of Education Federal Program: COVID-19 - Education Stabilization Fund Assistance Listings Numbers: 84.425D, 84.425U Federal Award Numbers and Years (or Other Identifying Numbers): S425D200013, S425U210013 Pass-Through Entity: Indiana Department of Education Compliance Requirement: Reporting Audit Findings: Material Weakness, Other Matters Condition and Context The School Corporation had not properly designed or implemented a system of internal controls, which would include appropriate segregation of duties, that would likely be effective in preventing, or detecting and correcting, noncompliance. INDIANA STATE BOARD OF ACCOUNTS 18 GREENCASTLE COMMUNITY SCHOOL CORPORATION SCHEDULE OF FINDINGS AND QUESTIONED COSTS (Continued) The School Corporation was required to submit an annual data report to the Indiana Department of Education via JotForm, a form/report builder. Data to be submitted included, but was not limited to, current period expenditures, prior period expenditures, and expenditures per activity. The reports were prepared by one employee without an oversight, review, or approval process in place to prevent, or detect and correct, errors. Data for four of the six reports tested during the audit period could not be traced to the records that accumulated and summarized the data. The following errors were identified when tracing key line items to supporting documentation: ESSER I - Year II Report 'Addressing Physical Health and Safety - Supplies' was understated by $12,522, and 'Meeting Students' Academic, Social, Emotional, and Other Needs (Excluding Mental Health Supports) - Supplies' was overstated $19. ESSER II - Year I Report 'Meeting Students' Academic, Social, Emotional, and Other Needs (Excluding Mental Health Supports) - Personnel Services - Salaries' was understated by $20,536, and 'Meeting Students' Academic, Social, Emotional, and Other Needs (Excluding Mental Health Supports) - Supplies' was understated by $1,321. ESSER II - Year II Report 'Addressing Physical Health and Safety Uses - Supplies' was understated by $5,764, and 'Meeting Students' Academic, Social, Emotional, and Other Needs Uses (Excluding Mental Health Supports) - Personnel Services - Salaries' was overstated $264. ESSER III - Year II Report 'Meeting Students' Academic, Social, Emotional, and Other Needs (Excluding Mental Health Supports) - Personnel Services - Salaries' was overstated $141, and 'Meeting Students' Academic, Social, Emotional, and Other Needs (Excluding Mental Health Supports) - Supplies' was understated by $75,303. The lack of internal controls was a systemic issue throughout the audit period. The noncompliance was isolated to four of the six reports filed. Criteria 2 CFR 200.303 states in part: "The non-Federal entity must: (a) Establish and maintain effective internal control over the Federal award that provides reasonable assurance that the non-Federal entity is managing the Federal award in compliance with Federal statutes, regulations, and the terms and conditions of the Federal award. These internal controls should be in compliance with guidance in 'Standards for Internal Control in the Federal Government' issued by the Comptroller General of the United States or the 'Internal Control Integrated Framework', issued by the Committee of Sponsoring Organizations of the Treadway Commission (COSO). . . ." INDIANA STATE BOARD OF ACCOUNTS 19 GREENCASTLE COMMUNITY SCHOOL CORPORATION SCHEDULE OF FINDINGS AND QUESTIONED COSTS (Continued) 2 CFR 200.302(b) states in part: "The financial management system of each non-Federal entity must provide for the following: . . . (2) Accurate, current, and complete disclosure of the financial results of each Federal award or program in accordance with the reporting requirements set forth in §§ 200.328 and 200.329. . . . (3) Records that identify adequately the source and application of funds for federallyfunded activities. These records must contain information pertaining to Federal awards, authorizations, financial obligations, unobligated balances, assets, expenditures, income and interest and be supported by source documentation. . . ." 34 CFR 76.722 states: "A State may require a subgrantee to submit reports in a manner and format that assists the State in complying with the requirements under 34 CFR 76.720 and in carrying out other responsibilities under the program." Cause A proper system of internal controls was not designed by management of the School Corporation. Embedded within a properly designed and implemented internal control system should be internal controls consisting of policies and procedures. Policies reflect the School Corporation's management statements of what should be done to effect internal controls, and procedures should consist of actions that would implement these policies. Effect Without the proper implementation of an effectively designed system of internal controls, the internal control system cannot be capable of effectively preventing, or detecting and correcting, material noncompliance. As a result, reports were not supported by the School Corporation's underlying accounting records and key line items were misstated. Noncompliance with the provisions of federal statutes, regulations, and the terms and conditions of the federal award could result in the loss of future federal funding to the School Corporation. Questioned Costs There were no questioned costs identified. Recommendation We recommended that management of the School Corporation establish a proper system of internal controls and develop policies and procedures to ensure reports are supported by the records and key line items are accurate. Views of Responsible Officials For the views of responsible officials, refer to the Corrective Action Plan that is part of this report.
FINDING 2023-006 Subject: COVID-19 - Education Stabilization Fund - Reporting Federal Agency: Department of Education Federal Program: COVID-19 - Education Stabilization Fund Assistance Listings Numbers: 84.425D, 84.425U Federal Award Numbers and Years (or Other Identifying Numbers): S425D200013, S425U210013 Pass-Through Entity: Indiana Department of Education Compliance Requirement: Reporting Audit Findings: Material Weakness, Modified Opinion Repeat Finding This is a repeat finding related to Annual Data Reports from the immediately prior audit report. The prior audit finding number was 2021-004. Condition and Context Annual Data Report The School Corporation had not properly designed or implemented a system of internal controls, which would include appropriate segregation of duties, that would likely be effective in preventing, or detecting and correcting, noncompliance. The School Corporation was required to submit an annual data report to the Indiana Department of Education (IDOE) via JotForm, a form/report builder. Data to be submitted included, but was not limited to, current period expenditures, prior period expenditures, and expenditures per activity. The annual data reports were prepared by the Treasurer and reviewed by a second knowledgeable individual; however, this process did not allow for the prevention, or detection and correction of errors. The School Corporation was required to submit six Annual Data Reports during the audit period. The three Annual Data Reports for the period of July 1, 2020 to June 30, 2021, were not submitted in a timely manner. The reports were to be submitted to the IDOE by May 13, 2022, but the School Corporation did not submit the reports until March 16, 2023. Reimbursement Requests The School Corporation completes reimbursement requests on a periodic basis. The reimbursement requests are prepared by the Treasurer utilizing various ledger reports and are reviewed by a second knowledgeable employee; however, this process did not allow for the prevention, or detection and correction, of errors. INDIANA STATE BOARD OF ACCOUNTS 26 CULVER COMMUNITY SCHOOL CORPORATION SCHEDULE OF FINDINGS AND QUESTIONED COSTS (Continued) While gaining an understanding of how the School Corporation spent its COVID-19 - Education Stabilization Fund award, various issues with reimbursement requests were noted. The issues identified at that time revealed that the School Corporation submitted reimbursement requests for and received reimbursements for four invoices, twice which resulted an extra $50,000 in grant funds being claimed. Additionally, three reimbursement requests tested did not agree with supporting documentation which resulted in $6,071 being reimbursed that was not supported by the School Corporation's records. The $56,071 is considered a questioned cost. As a result of these errors, we determined that reimbursement requests should be tested. Therefore, a sample of 8 reimbursement requests were selected from the population of 49 for testing. No additional errors were noted in the 8 reimbursement requests tested. The lack of internal controls was a systemic issue that occurred throughout the audit period; the noncompliance was limited to the reports noted above. Criteria 2 CFR 200.303 states in part: "The non-Federal entity must: (a) Establish and maintain effective internal control over the Federal award that provides reasonable assurance that the non-Federal entity is managing the Federal award in compliance with Federal statutes, regulations, and the terms and conditions of the Federal award. These internal controls should be in compliance with guidance in 'Standards for Internal Control in the Federal Government' issued by the Comptroller General of the United States or the 'Internal Control Integrated Framework', issued by the Committee of Sponsoring Organizations of the Treadway Commission (COSO). . . ." 2 CFR 200.302(b) states in part: "The financial management system of each non-Federal entity must provide for the following: . . . (2) Accurate, current, and complete disclosure of the financial results of each Federal award or program in accordance with the reporting requirements set forth in §§ 200.328 and 200.329. . . ." 34 CFR 76.722 states: "A State may require a subgrantee to submit reports in a manner and format that assists the State in complying with the requirements under 34 CFR 76.720 and in carrying out other responsibilities under the program." 34 CFR 76.731 states: "A State and a subgrantee shall keep records to show its compliance with program requirements." Cause A proper system of internal controls was not designed by management of the School Corporation. Embedded within a properly designed and implemented internal control system should be internal controls consisting of policies and procedures. Policies reflect the School Corporation's management statements of what should be done to effect internal controls, and procedures should consist of actions that would implement these policies. INDIANA STATE BOARD OF ACCOUNTS 27 CULVER COMMUNITY SCHOOL CORPORATION SCHEDULE OF FINDINGS AND QUESTIONED COSTS (Continued) Effect Without the proper implementation of an effectively designed system of internal controls, the internal control system cannot be capable of effectively preventing, or detecting and correcting, material noncompliance. As a result, reports were not timely submitted to the IDOE, and reimbursement requests were not supported by the School Corporation's underlying accounting records. Noncompliance with the provisions of federal statutes, regulations, and the terms and conditions of the federal award could result in the loss of future federal funding to the School Corporation. Questioned Costs Known questioned of $56,071 were identified as noted in the Condition and Context. Recommendation We recommended that management of the School Corporation establish a proper system of internal controls and develop policies and procedures to ensure reports are submitted timely and supporting documentation is used and retained for reimbursement requests. Views of Responsible Officials For the views of responsible officials, refer to the Corrective Action Plan that is part of this report.
FINDING 2023-006 Subject: COVID-19 - Education Stabilization Fund - Reporting Federal Agency: Department of Education Federal Program: COVID-19 - Education Stabilization Fund Assistance Listings Numbers: 84.425D, 84.425U Federal Award Numbers and Years (or Other Identifying Numbers): S425D200013, S425U210013 Pass-Through Entity: Indiana Department of Education Compliance Requirement: Reporting Audit Findings: Material Weakness, Modified Opinion Repeat Finding This is a repeat finding related to Annual Data Reports from the immediately prior audit report. The prior audit finding number was 2021-004. Condition and Context Annual Data Report The School Corporation had not properly designed or implemented a system of internal controls, which would include appropriate segregation of duties, that would likely be effective in preventing, or detecting and correcting, noncompliance. The School Corporation was required to submit an annual data report to the Indiana Department of Education (IDOE) via JotForm, a form/report builder. Data to be submitted included, but was not limited to, current period expenditures, prior period expenditures, and expenditures per activity. The annual data reports were prepared by the Treasurer and reviewed by a second knowledgeable individual; however, this process did not allow for the prevention, or detection and correction of errors. The School Corporation was required to submit six Annual Data Reports during the audit period. The three Annual Data Reports for the period of July 1, 2020 to June 30, 2021, were not submitted in a timely manner. The reports were to be submitted to the IDOE by May 13, 2022, but the School Corporation did not submit the reports until March 16, 2023. Reimbursement Requests The School Corporation completes reimbursement requests on a periodic basis. The reimbursement requests are prepared by the Treasurer utilizing various ledger reports and are reviewed by a second knowledgeable employee; however, this process did not allow for the prevention, or detection and correction, of errors. INDIANA STATE BOARD OF ACCOUNTS 26 CULVER COMMUNITY SCHOOL CORPORATION SCHEDULE OF FINDINGS AND QUESTIONED COSTS (Continued) While gaining an understanding of how the School Corporation spent its COVID-19 - Education Stabilization Fund award, various issues with reimbursement requests were noted. The issues identified at that time revealed that the School Corporation submitted reimbursement requests for and received reimbursements for four invoices, twice which resulted an extra $50,000 in grant funds being claimed. Additionally, three reimbursement requests tested did not agree with supporting documentation which resulted in $6,071 being reimbursed that was not supported by the School Corporation's records. The $56,071 is considered a questioned cost. As a result of these errors, we determined that reimbursement requests should be tested. Therefore, a sample of 8 reimbursement requests were selected from the population of 49 for testing. No additional errors were noted in the 8 reimbursement requests tested. The lack of internal controls was a systemic issue that occurred throughout the audit period; the noncompliance was limited to the reports noted above. Criteria 2 CFR 200.303 states in part: "The non-Federal entity must: (a) Establish and maintain effective internal control over the Federal award that provides reasonable assurance that the non-Federal entity is managing the Federal award in compliance with Federal statutes, regulations, and the terms and conditions of the Federal award. These internal controls should be in compliance with guidance in 'Standards for Internal Control in the Federal Government' issued by the Comptroller General of the United States or the 'Internal Control Integrated Framework', issued by the Committee of Sponsoring Organizations of the Treadway Commission (COSO). . . ." 2 CFR 200.302(b) states in part: "The financial management system of each non-Federal entity must provide for the following: . . . (2) Accurate, current, and complete disclosure of the financial results of each Federal award or program in accordance with the reporting requirements set forth in §§ 200.328 and 200.329. . . ." 34 CFR 76.722 states: "A State may require a subgrantee to submit reports in a manner and format that assists the State in complying with the requirements under 34 CFR 76.720 and in carrying out other responsibilities under the program." 34 CFR 76.731 states: "A State and a subgrantee shall keep records to show its compliance with program requirements." Cause A proper system of internal controls was not designed by management of the School Corporation. Embedded within a properly designed and implemented internal control system should be internal controls consisting of policies and procedures. Policies reflect the School Corporation's management statements of what should be done to effect internal controls, and procedures should consist of actions that would implement these policies. INDIANA STATE BOARD OF ACCOUNTS 27 CULVER COMMUNITY SCHOOL CORPORATION SCHEDULE OF FINDINGS AND QUESTIONED COSTS (Continued) Effect Without the proper implementation of an effectively designed system of internal controls, the internal control system cannot be capable of effectively preventing, or detecting and correcting, material noncompliance. As a result, reports were not timely submitted to the IDOE, and reimbursement requests were not supported by the School Corporation's underlying accounting records. Noncompliance with the provisions of federal statutes, regulations, and the terms and conditions of the federal award could result in the loss of future federal funding to the School Corporation. Questioned Costs Known questioned of $56,071 were identified as noted in the Condition and Context. Recommendation We recommended that management of the School Corporation establish a proper system of internal controls and develop policies and procedures to ensure reports are submitted timely and supporting documentation is used and retained for reimbursement requests. Views of Responsible Officials For the views of responsible officials, refer to the Corrective Action Plan that is part of this report.
FINDING 2023-006 Subject: COVID-19 - Education Stabilization Fund - Reporting Federal Agency: Department of Education Federal Program: COVID-19 - Education Stabilization Fund Assistance Listings Numbers: 84.425D, 84.425U Federal Award Numbers and Years (or Other Identifying Numbers): S425D200013, S425U210013 Pass-Through Entity: Indiana Department of Education Compliance Requirement: Reporting Audit Findings: Material Weakness, Modified Opinion Repeat Finding This is a repeat finding related to Annual Data Reports from the immediately prior audit report. The prior audit finding number was 2021-004. Condition and Context Annual Data Report The School Corporation had not properly designed or implemented a system of internal controls, which would include appropriate segregation of duties, that would likely be effective in preventing, or detecting and correcting, noncompliance. The School Corporation was required to submit an annual data report to the Indiana Department of Education (IDOE) via JotForm, a form/report builder. Data to be submitted included, but was not limited to, current period expenditures, prior period expenditures, and expenditures per activity. The annual data reports were prepared by the Treasurer and reviewed by a second knowledgeable individual; however, this process did not allow for the prevention, or detection and correction of errors. The School Corporation was required to submit six Annual Data Reports during the audit period. The three Annual Data Reports for the period of July 1, 2020 to June 30, 2021, were not submitted in a timely manner. The reports were to be submitted to the IDOE by May 13, 2022, but the School Corporation did not submit the reports until March 16, 2023. Reimbursement Requests The School Corporation completes reimbursement requests on a periodic basis. The reimbursement requests are prepared by the Treasurer utilizing various ledger reports and are reviewed by a second knowledgeable employee; however, this process did not allow for the prevention, or detection and correction, of errors. INDIANA STATE BOARD OF ACCOUNTS 26 CULVER COMMUNITY SCHOOL CORPORATION SCHEDULE OF FINDINGS AND QUESTIONED COSTS (Continued) While gaining an understanding of how the School Corporation spent its COVID-19 - Education Stabilization Fund award, various issues with reimbursement requests were noted. The issues identified at that time revealed that the School Corporation submitted reimbursement requests for and received reimbursements for four invoices, twice which resulted an extra $50,000 in grant funds being claimed. Additionally, three reimbursement requests tested did not agree with supporting documentation which resulted in $6,071 being reimbursed that was not supported by the School Corporation's records. The $56,071 is considered a questioned cost. As a result of these errors, we determined that reimbursement requests should be tested. Therefore, a sample of 8 reimbursement requests were selected from the population of 49 for testing. No additional errors were noted in the 8 reimbursement requests tested. The lack of internal controls was a systemic issue that occurred throughout the audit period; the noncompliance was limited to the reports noted above. Criteria 2 CFR 200.303 states in part: "The non-Federal entity must: (a) Establish and maintain effective internal control over the Federal award that provides reasonable assurance that the non-Federal entity is managing the Federal award in compliance with Federal statutes, regulations, and the terms and conditions of the Federal award. These internal controls should be in compliance with guidance in 'Standards for Internal Control in the Federal Government' issued by the Comptroller General of the United States or the 'Internal Control Integrated Framework', issued by the Committee of Sponsoring Organizations of the Treadway Commission (COSO). . . ." 2 CFR 200.302(b) states in part: "The financial management system of each non-Federal entity must provide for the following: . . . (2) Accurate, current, and complete disclosure of the financial results of each Federal award or program in accordance with the reporting requirements set forth in §§ 200.328 and 200.329. . . ." 34 CFR 76.722 states: "A State may require a subgrantee to submit reports in a manner and format that assists the State in complying with the requirements under 34 CFR 76.720 and in carrying out other responsibilities under the program." 34 CFR 76.731 states: "A State and a subgrantee shall keep records to show its compliance with program requirements." Cause A proper system of internal controls was not designed by management of the School Corporation. Embedded within a properly designed and implemented internal control system should be internal controls consisting of policies and procedures. Policies reflect the School Corporation's management statements of what should be done to effect internal controls, and procedures should consist of actions that would implement these policies. INDIANA STATE BOARD OF ACCOUNTS 27 CULVER COMMUNITY SCHOOL CORPORATION SCHEDULE OF FINDINGS AND QUESTIONED COSTS (Continued) Effect Without the proper implementation of an effectively designed system of internal controls, the internal control system cannot be capable of effectively preventing, or detecting and correcting, material noncompliance. As a result, reports were not timely submitted to the IDOE, and reimbursement requests were not supported by the School Corporation's underlying accounting records. Noncompliance with the provisions of federal statutes, regulations, and the terms and conditions of the federal award could result in the loss of future federal funding to the School Corporation. Questioned Costs Known questioned of $56,071 were identified as noted in the Condition and Context. Recommendation We recommended that management of the School Corporation establish a proper system of internal controls and develop policies and procedures to ensure reports are submitted timely and supporting documentation is used and retained for reimbursement requests. Views of Responsible Officials For the views of responsible officials, refer to the Corrective Action Plan that is part of this report.
FINDING 2023-006 Subject: COVID-19 - Education Stabilization Fund - Reporting Federal Agency: Department of Education Federal Program: COVID-19 - Education Stabilization Fund Assistance Listings Numbers: 84.425D, 84.425U Federal Award Numbers and Years (or Other Identifying Numbers): S425D200013, S425U210013 Pass-Through Entity: Indiana Department of Education Compliance Requirement: Reporting Audit Findings: Material Weakness, Modified Opinion Repeat Finding This is a repeat finding related to Annual Data Reports from the immediately prior audit report. The prior audit finding number was 2021-004. Condition and Context Annual Data Report The School Corporation had not properly designed or implemented a system of internal controls, which would include appropriate segregation of duties, that would likely be effective in preventing, or detecting and correcting, noncompliance. The School Corporation was required to submit an annual data report to the Indiana Department of Education (IDOE) via JotForm, a form/report builder. Data to be submitted included, but was not limited to, current period expenditures, prior period expenditures, and expenditures per activity. The annual data reports were prepared by the Treasurer and reviewed by a second knowledgeable individual; however, this process did not allow for the prevention, or detection and correction of errors. The School Corporation was required to submit six Annual Data Reports during the audit period. The three Annual Data Reports for the period of July 1, 2020 to June 30, 2021, were not submitted in a timely manner. The reports were to be submitted to the IDOE by May 13, 2022, but the School Corporation did not submit the reports until March 16, 2023. Reimbursement Requests The School Corporation completes reimbursement requests on a periodic basis. The reimbursement requests are prepared by the Treasurer utilizing various ledger reports and are reviewed by a second knowledgeable employee; however, this process did not allow for the prevention, or detection and correction, of errors. INDIANA STATE BOARD OF ACCOUNTS 26 CULVER COMMUNITY SCHOOL CORPORATION SCHEDULE OF FINDINGS AND QUESTIONED COSTS (Continued) While gaining an understanding of how the School Corporation spent its COVID-19 - Education Stabilization Fund award, various issues with reimbursement requests were noted. The issues identified at that time revealed that the School Corporation submitted reimbursement requests for and received reimbursements for four invoices, twice which resulted an extra $50,000 in grant funds being claimed. Additionally, three reimbursement requests tested did not agree with supporting documentation which resulted in $6,071 being reimbursed that was not supported by the School Corporation's records. The $56,071 is considered a questioned cost. As a result of these errors, we determined that reimbursement requests should be tested. Therefore, a sample of 8 reimbursement requests were selected from the population of 49 for testing. No additional errors were noted in the 8 reimbursement requests tested. The lack of internal controls was a systemic issue that occurred throughout the audit period; the noncompliance was limited to the reports noted above. Criteria 2 CFR 200.303 states in part: "The non-Federal entity must: (a) Establish and maintain effective internal control over the Federal award that provides reasonable assurance that the non-Federal entity is managing the Federal award in compliance with Federal statutes, regulations, and the terms and conditions of the Federal award. These internal controls should be in compliance with guidance in 'Standards for Internal Control in the Federal Government' issued by the Comptroller General of the United States or the 'Internal Control Integrated Framework', issued by the Committee of Sponsoring Organizations of the Treadway Commission (COSO). . . ." 2 CFR 200.302(b) states in part: "The financial management system of each non-Federal entity must provide for the following: . . . (2) Accurate, current, and complete disclosure of the financial results of each Federal award or program in accordance with the reporting requirements set forth in §§ 200.328 and 200.329. . . ." 34 CFR 76.722 states: "A State may require a subgrantee to submit reports in a manner and format that assists the State in complying with the requirements under 34 CFR 76.720 and in carrying out other responsibilities under the program." 34 CFR 76.731 states: "A State and a subgrantee shall keep records to show its compliance with program requirements." Cause A proper system of internal controls was not designed by management of the School Corporation. Embedded within a properly designed and implemented internal control system should be internal controls consisting of policies and procedures. Policies reflect the School Corporation's management statements of what should be done to effect internal controls, and procedures should consist of actions that would implement these policies. INDIANA STATE BOARD OF ACCOUNTS 27 CULVER COMMUNITY SCHOOL CORPORATION SCHEDULE OF FINDINGS AND QUESTIONED COSTS (Continued) Effect Without the proper implementation of an effectively designed system of internal controls, the internal control system cannot be capable of effectively preventing, or detecting and correcting, material noncompliance. As a result, reports were not timely submitted to the IDOE, and reimbursement requests were not supported by the School Corporation's underlying accounting records. Noncompliance with the provisions of federal statutes, regulations, and the terms and conditions of the federal award could result in the loss of future federal funding to the School Corporation. Questioned Costs Known questioned of $56,071 were identified as noted in the Condition and Context. Recommendation We recommended that management of the School Corporation establish a proper system of internal controls and develop policies and procedures to ensure reports are submitted timely and supporting documentation is used and retained for reimbursement requests. Views of Responsible Officials For the views of responsible officials, refer to the Corrective Action Plan that is part of this report.
FINDING 2023-006 Subject: COVID-19 - Education Stabilization Fund - Reporting Federal Agency: Department of Education Federal Program: COVID-19 - Education Stabilization Fund Assistance Listings Numbers: 84.425D, 84.425U Federal Award Numbers and Years (or Other Identifying Numbers): S425D200013, S425U210013 Pass-Through Entity: Indiana Department of Education Compliance Requirement: Reporting Audit Findings: Material Weakness, Modified Opinion Repeat Finding This is a repeat finding related to Annual Data Reports from the immediately prior audit report. The prior audit finding number was 2021-004. Condition and Context Annual Data Report The School Corporation had not properly designed or implemented a system of internal controls, which would include appropriate segregation of duties, that would likely be effective in preventing, or detecting and correcting, noncompliance. The School Corporation was required to submit an annual data report to the Indiana Department of Education (IDOE) via JotForm, a form/report builder. Data to be submitted included, but was not limited to, current period expenditures, prior period expenditures, and expenditures per activity. The annual data reports were prepared by the Treasurer and reviewed by a second knowledgeable individual; however, this process did not allow for the prevention, or detection and correction of errors. The School Corporation was required to submit six Annual Data Reports during the audit period. The three Annual Data Reports for the period of July 1, 2020 to June 30, 2021, were not submitted in a timely manner. The reports were to be submitted to the IDOE by May 13, 2022, but the School Corporation did not submit the reports until March 16, 2023. Reimbursement Requests The School Corporation completes reimbursement requests on a periodic basis. The reimbursement requests are prepared by the Treasurer utilizing various ledger reports and are reviewed by a second knowledgeable employee; however, this process did not allow for the prevention, or detection and correction, of errors. INDIANA STATE BOARD OF ACCOUNTS 26 CULVER COMMUNITY SCHOOL CORPORATION SCHEDULE OF FINDINGS AND QUESTIONED COSTS (Continued) While gaining an understanding of how the School Corporation spent its COVID-19 - Education Stabilization Fund award, various issues with reimbursement requests were noted. The issues identified at that time revealed that the School Corporation submitted reimbursement requests for and received reimbursements for four invoices, twice which resulted an extra $50,000 in grant funds being claimed. Additionally, three reimbursement requests tested did not agree with supporting documentation which resulted in $6,071 being reimbursed that was not supported by the School Corporation's records. The $56,071 is considered a questioned cost. As a result of these errors, we determined that reimbursement requests should be tested. Therefore, a sample of 8 reimbursement requests were selected from the population of 49 for testing. No additional errors were noted in the 8 reimbursement requests tested. The lack of internal controls was a systemic issue that occurred throughout the audit period; the noncompliance was limited to the reports noted above. Criteria 2 CFR 200.303 states in part: "The non-Federal entity must: (a) Establish and maintain effective internal control over the Federal award that provides reasonable assurance that the non-Federal entity is managing the Federal award in compliance with Federal statutes, regulations, and the terms and conditions of the Federal award. These internal controls should be in compliance with guidance in 'Standards for Internal Control in the Federal Government' issued by the Comptroller General of the United States or the 'Internal Control Integrated Framework', issued by the Committee of Sponsoring Organizations of the Treadway Commission (COSO). . . ." 2 CFR 200.302(b) states in part: "The financial management system of each non-Federal entity must provide for the following: . . . (2) Accurate, current, and complete disclosure of the financial results of each Federal award or program in accordance with the reporting requirements set forth in §§ 200.328 and 200.329. . . ." 34 CFR 76.722 states: "A State may require a subgrantee to submit reports in a manner and format that assists the State in complying with the requirements under 34 CFR 76.720 and in carrying out other responsibilities under the program." 34 CFR 76.731 states: "A State and a subgrantee shall keep records to show its compliance with program requirements." Cause A proper system of internal controls was not designed by management of the School Corporation. Embedded within a properly designed and implemented internal control system should be internal controls consisting of policies and procedures. Policies reflect the School Corporation's management statements of what should be done to effect internal controls, and procedures should consist of actions that would implement these policies. INDIANA STATE BOARD OF ACCOUNTS 27 CULVER COMMUNITY SCHOOL CORPORATION SCHEDULE OF FINDINGS AND QUESTIONED COSTS (Continued) Effect Without the proper implementation of an effectively designed system of internal controls, the internal control system cannot be capable of effectively preventing, or detecting and correcting, material noncompliance. As a result, reports were not timely submitted to the IDOE, and reimbursement requests were not supported by the School Corporation's underlying accounting records. Noncompliance with the provisions of federal statutes, regulations, and the terms and conditions of the federal award could result in the loss of future federal funding to the School Corporation. Questioned Costs Known questioned of $56,071 were identified as noted in the Condition and Context. Recommendation We recommended that management of the School Corporation establish a proper system of internal controls and develop policies and procedures to ensure reports are submitted timely and supporting documentation is used and retained for reimbursement requests. Views of Responsible Officials For the views of responsible officials, refer to the Corrective Action Plan that is part of this report.