Finding 1056725 (2023-002)

Federal Agency: U.S. Department of Treasury Federal Program Name: Coronavirus State and Local Fiscal Recovery Funds Assistance Listing Number: 21.027 Federal Award Identification Number and Year: SLFRP1643 - 2021 Award Period: March 3, 2021 through December 31, 2024 Type of Finding: • Significant Deficiency in Internal Control over Compliance • Other Matters Criteria or Specific Requirement: Due to the amount of the noted contract being $28,424, the County should have followed the small purchases method of procurement for the related procurement. If small purchase procedures are used, price or rate quotations must be obtained from an adequate number of qualified sources as determined appropriate by the County. Condition: Formal documentation and quotes were not retained for a professional services contract. Questioned Costs: $28,424 Context: 1 of 8 procurements tested did not retain formal documentation of price or rate quotations from an adequate number of qualified sources. Cause: The County did not have an open competition for this service due to using Local Fiscal Recovery Fund on an annually recurring expense with the same vendor that was not known to have needed additional quotes when the department charged the contract expenditures to Local Fiscal Recovery Fund. Effect: Lack of formal procedure and controls and proper documentation of those controls related to procurement could result in the County entering into a contract with an entity at an unreasonable cost, and, therefore, incurring questioned costs. Repeat Finding: Yes – 2022-001 Recommendation: We recommend that County management ensure all departments are made aware of and trained to properly follow and document the County’s procurement procedures and controls, as they apply to federally funded contracts, to ensure the County retained documentation of price or rate quotations obtained for all procurements entered into using the small purchase procurement method. Views of Responsible Officials: There is no disagreement with the audit finding.