Finding 10484 (2023-001)

Significant Deficiency
Requirement
E
Questioned Costs
-
Year
2023
Accepted
2024-01-29

AI Summary

  • Core Issue: The Organization is not consistently documenting veterans' homelessness status, relying too much on self attestation instead of required case notes.
  • Impacted Requirements: U.S. Department of Labor guidelines state that documentation must support participant eligibility, particularly for the "at risk of homelessness" category.
  • Recommended Follow-Up: Ensure all staff are trained to collect and maintain necessary case notes and documentation to verify eligibility, reducing reliance on self attestation.

Finding Text

Assistance Listing Number, Federal Agency, and Program Name - 17.805, U.S. Department of Labor, Homeless Veterans Reintegration Program Federal Award Identification Number and Year - 38368-22-6-5-56, 2023 Pass through Entity - N/A - Direct Finding Type - Significant deficiency Repeat Finding - No Criteria - Per the U.S. Department of Labor's Veterans' Program Letter No. 02 23 regarding homeless veterans’ reintegration program participant eligibility, grant recipients are required to document the participant’s circumstances of homelessness and eligibility category within the participant case file. For the “at risk of homelessness” category, self attestation should only be used in rare instances to document the circumstances. Condition - In a monitoring visit performed by the U.S. Department of Labor, the grantor found that service coordinators are verifying that the veterans meet the “Homelessness” requirement to be enrolled in the program but in some instances were missing the verification (case notes or form entries) and relying on self attestation, which should be a last resort. Questioned Costs - None Identification of How Questioned Costs Were Computed - N/A Context - The Organization did not have case notes or form entries on file to support that the veterans meet the homelessness requirement; however, there was self attestation, which according to the Department of Labor, which should be a last resort. Cause and Effect - The Organization did not have case notes or form entries on file to support that the veterans meet the homelessness requirement. Overrelying on self attestation could result in the Organization providing services to ineligible veterans. Recommendation - The Organization should retain case notes or form entries to support the eligibility determination. Views of Responsible Officials and Corrective Action Plan - The Organization responded to the monitoring visit recommendation referred by providing additional staff training and implementing a verification function to ensure all applicable case notes, form entries, and documentation are acquired and made part of the case file.

Corrective Action Plan

Condition: In a monitoring visit performed by the U.S. Department of Labor, the grantor found that service coordinators are verifying that the veterans meet the “Homelessness” requirement to be enrolled in the program, but in some instances, were missing the verification (case notes or form entries) and relying on self-attestation, which should be a last resort. Planned Corrective Action: The Organization responded to the monitoring visit recommendation referenced by providing additional staff training and implementing a verification function to ensure all applicable case notes, form entries, and documentation are acquired and made part of the case file. Contact person responsible for corrective action: Craig Fisgus, Vice President of Veteran Services Anticipated Completion Date: Revised processes were implemented immediately following the receipt of the monitoring visit recommendation.

Categories

Eligibility Subrecipient Monitoring Significant Deficiency

Other Findings in this Audit

  • 586926 2023-001
    Significant Deficiency

Programs in Audit

ALN Program Name Expenditures
64.033 Va Supportive Services for Veteran Families Program $10.56M
14.239 Home Investment Partnerships Program $1.73M
17.805 Homeless Veterans Reintegration Project $1.33M
64.024 Va Homeless Providers Grant and Per Diem Program $798,061
93.788 Opioid Str $538,322
93.959 Block Grants for Prevention and Treatment of Substance Abuse $501,525
21.027 Covid-19 - Coronavirus State and Local Fiscal Recovery Funds $493,122
64.055 Staff Sergeant Parker Gordon Fox Suicide Prevention Grant Program $447,811
14.231 Covid-19 - Emergency Solutions Grant Program $311,191
14.181 Supportive Housing for Persons with Disabilities $273,000
93.940 Hiv Prevention Activities_health Department Based $123,692
14.218 Community Development Block Grants/entitlement Grants $98,413
16.540 Juvenile Justice and Delinquency Prevention_allocation to States $97,939
14.231 Emergency Solutions Grant Program $91,130
14.276 Youth Homelessness Demonstration Program $51,406
93.674 John H. Chafee Foster Care Program for Successful Transition to Adulthood $50,682
93.498 Covid-19 - Provider Relief Fund $50,087
93.569 Community Services Block Grant $45,595
93.917 Hiv Care Formula Grants $35,000
14.871 Section 8 Housing Choice Vouchers $30,228
93.623 Basic Center Grant $25,000
84.425 Covid-19 - Education Stabilization Fund $24,892
93.958 Block Grants for Community Mental Health Services $10,554
93.674 Covid-19 - John H. Chafee Foster Care Program for Successful Transition to Adulthood $8,208
14.267 Continuum of Care Program $6,000
93.569 Covid-19 - Community Services Block Grant $-8,049