Finding 1160856 (2025-004)

Federal programs Research and Development Cluster – National Institutes of Health – Drug Abuse and Addiction Research Programs AL #: 93.279 Award Year: 2024/2025 Type of finding Significant Deficiency and Noncompliance Compliance requirement Activities Allowed or Unallowed and Allowable Costs/Cost Principles Criteria Under 2 CFR section 200.430(i), costs of compensation for personal services are allowable to the extent the total compensation for individual employees is reasonable for the services rendered and conforms to the established written policies and practices, follows an appointment made in accordance with non-federal entities rules and written policies, and is determined and supported as provided in 2 CFR section 200.430(i), including that charges to federal awards for salaries and wages must be based on records that accurately reflect the work performed. Condition We noted one out of forty judgmentally selected payroll transactions included cost for an employee that did not relate to services performed in relation to the grant. Questioned costs $625 Context A portion of an employee’s benefits was improperly charged to the grant. Cause When the University changed their timekeeping platform an academic affairs employees’ compensation was improperly set up in the system which incorrectly allocated their vacation time to this grant. Effect The employee’s vacation time that occurred after the change in the University’s timekeeping platform in March 2025 until the discovery after year end was incorrectly included as compensation and benefits expense within the grant. Repeat finding No Recommendations We recommend that the University ensure controls are in place to adequately review all benefits pay charged to grants to ensure appropriate. View of responsible officials To safeguard from future errors and ensure data accuracy, Human Resources partnered with Enterprise Application Services department to develop an automated process that populates earnings codes and project account codes based on employee, job record and earnings code. This enhancement streamlines data entry by consolidating it into a single interface, reducing the risk of manual entry errors. Additionally, the HR Technology Manager has implemented a new monitoring report to track employees with multiple salary distribution accounts as a part of payroll process. The biweekly report will be automatically generated and sent via email to HR’s HRIS Consultants for review. The HRIS Consultants will analyze the report, resolve any discrepancies and escalate any issues to the HR Technology Manager or Lead Application Consultant as necessary. These processes will be routinely reviewed, with adjustments made as needed.