Finding 1155476 (2024-002)

Material Weakness Repeat Finding
Requirement
L
Questioned Costs
-
Year
2024
Accepted
2025-09-26

AI Summary

  • Core Issue: 50% of the District's quarterly reports had incorrect expenditures, indicating a lack of proper internal controls.
  • Impacted Requirements: Reports must be submitted accurately and on time as per the grant agreement with USDOT.
  • Recommended Follow-Up: Establish policies to review reports before submission to ensure completeness and accuracy.

Finding Text

2 CFR § 1201.1 except as otherwise provided in this part, the Department of Transportation adopts the Office of Management and Budget Uniform Administrative Requirements, Cost Principles, and Audit Requirements for Federal Awards (2 CFR part 200). 2 CFR § 200.328 states unless otherwise approved by Office of Management and Budget (OMB), the Federal awarding agency must solicit only the OMB-approved governmentwide data elements for collection of financial information (at time of publication the Federal Financial Report or such future, OMB-approved, governmentwide data elements available from the OMB-designated standards lead). 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. The Federal awarding agency must use OMB approved common information collections, as applicable, when providing financial and performance reporting information. The District’s grant agreement states on or before the 20th day of the first month of each quarter and until the budget period end date of December 31, 2026, the Recipient shall submit to the U.S. Department of Transportation (USDOT) a Quarterly Project Progress Report and Recertification. During testing we noted two out of four (50%) of the District’s quarterly reports were submitted to USDOT with the incorrect expenditures. Due to the deficient internal control structure, elements of the reporting requirements were not properly submitted during Fiscal Year 2024. Failure to properly submit quarterly reports could result in USODOT taking action against the District for failure to comply with programmatic requirements. The District should implement policies and procedures to review the reports prior to submission to USODOT, to help ensure the reports are complete and accurate.

Corrective Action Plan

The corrective action for this finding was completed following the 2023 audit. The finding did not reoccur since that time but rather the reissue of the finding for reporting periods that occurred prior to the implementation of the 2023 corrective action plan. The position of Grants Coordinator was created and filled to handle grants management functions which ensures proper quarter end dates and expenditures appropriate for the period are reported. Under this process, the Grant Coordinator collaborates with the Construction Financial Administrator to complete forms which are then reviewed with the Director of Grants and CFO prior to submission.

Categories

Reporting Allowable Costs / Cost Principles

Programs in Audit

ALN Program Name Expenditures
20.933 National Infrastructure Investments $11.17M
20.205 Highway Planning and Construction $677,072
66.469 Geographic Programs - Great Lakes Restoration Initiative $423,257
11.419 Coastal Zone Management Administration Awards $150,000
81.087 Renewable Energy Research and Development $77,000
15.608 Fish and Wildlife Management Assistance $75,000
16.710 Public Safety Partnership and Community Policing Grants $68,247
15.662 Great Lakes Restoration $25,421
10.680 Forest Health Protection $9,576
15.611 Wildlife Restoration and Basic Hunter Education and Safety $3,672
10.664 Cooperative Forestry Assistance $2,657