Finding 1149723 (2020-002)

Material Weakness
Requirement
AB
Questioned Costs
$1
Year
2020
Accepted
2025-08-11
Audit: 364071
Organization: Richmond Housing Authority (CA)

AI Summary

  • Core Issue: Five transactions totaling $46,490 lacked necessary documentation to verify their legitimacy and compliance with federal funding requirements.
  • Impacted Requirements: Failure to maintain proper documentation violates 2 CFR part 200, which mandates that costs charged to federal funds must be allowable, reasonable, and well-supported.
  • Recommended Follow-Up: The Housing Authority should establish clear procedures for maintaining documentation and train staff on compliance to prevent future issues.

Finding Text

Finding SA2020-002: Lack of Supporting Documentation for Expenditures AL number: 14.850 AL Title: Public and Indian Housing Name of Federal Agency: Department of Housing and Urban Development Federal Award Identification number and year: CA010 (2020) Criteria: 2 CFR part 200, subpart E, costs charged to federal funds must be allowable, reasonable, and properly documented. Costs should be adequately supported to demonstrate they were necessary and directly related to the deferral programs. Condition: During our audit, we tested a sample of 51 transactions. Of these, 5 transactions with amount $46,490 lacked sufficient supporting documentation to verify the nature and allowability of the expenditures. Cause: We understand that the staff overseeing the federal awards during fiscal year 2020 are no longer with the Authority, and therefore, the staff overseeing the federal awards subsequent to the fiscal year were unable to provide supporting and documentation was not properly maintained, resulting in missing records to support certain expenditures. Effect: The Housing Authority may have charged unallowable costs to the Operating Fund, resulting in noncompliance with federal requirements. Questioned Costs: We question the costs in the amount of $46,490 noted above. Recommendation: The Housing Authority should develop and implement procedures to ensure that all required documentation related to public housing expenditures is properly maintained and supported. Staff responsible for approving and managing these records should be trained to ensure they understand and comply with applicable program requirements. Management Response: The Authority understands and accepts the recommendation to ensure that all required documentation is maintained and accessible. The Authority staff will follow the City’s processes by having management review invoices/charges for approval then will be scanned and attached to the payment records in MUNIS. In addition, the delay in timing to review and audit these records have allowed for documents to be transferred offsite and not easily accessible.

Categories

Questioned Costs Allowable Costs / Cost Principles

Other Findings in this Audit

  • 573280 2020-001
    Material Weakness Repeat
  • 573281 2020-002
    Material Weakness
  • 573282 2020-003
    Material Weakness Repeat
  • 573283 2020-004
    Material Weakness Repeat
  • 573284 2020-005
    Material Weakness
  • 573285 2020-006
    Material Weakness
  • 573286 2020-007
    Material Weakness
  • 573287 2020-007
    Material Weakness
  • 573288 2020-008
    Material Weakness
  • 1149722 2020-001
    Material Weakness Repeat
  • 1149724 2020-003
    Material Weakness Repeat
  • 1149725 2020-004
    Material Weakness Repeat
  • 1149726 2020-005
    Material Weakness
  • 1149727 2020-006
    Material Weakness
  • 1149728 2020-007
    Material Weakness
  • 1149729 2020-007
    Material Weakness
  • 1149730 2020-008
    Material Weakness

Programs in Audit

ALN Program Name Expenditures
14.850 Public Housing Operating Fund $1.86M
14.872 Public Housing Capital Fund $1.42M