Finding 11827 (2023-001)

Significant Deficiency

Requirement

Questioned Costs

Year

2023

Accepted

2024-02-05

Audit: 15657

Organization: City of Brewer (ME)

Auditor: Runyon Kersteen Ouellette

AI Summary

Core Issue: One out of three employees lacked required time and effort documentation for the ESSER grant.
Impacted Requirements: Proper documentation is necessary to confirm that payroll expenses are allowable under the grant.
Recommended Follow-Up: Management should implement checks to ensure all employee time charged to the grant is documented correctly.

Finding Text

2023-001 – U.S. Department of Education, For the Period July 1, 2022 through June 30, 2023, Assistance Listing #84.425 – Internal Controls over Elementary and Secondary School Emergency Relief Fund Criteria: Time and effort documentation is required to ensure activities charged to the ESSER grant are allowable. Statement of Condition: Of the three employees tested, one did not have time and effort documentation. Cause: This appears to be an oversight in not ensuring that all employee time charged to the grant had proper time and effort documentation. Effect: Unallowable payroll expenditures may have been charged to the program. Recommendation: Management should ensure that all employee time charged to the grant has proper time and effort documentation. Questioned Costs: None

Corrective Action Plan

Management response/corrective action plan: With one of our temporary and newer grants related to multilingual and homeless students, we had missed doing a semi-annual certification for an employee's time working as a tutor under this temporary funding period. We have developed a more detailed checklist of all staff who are being paid throughout the year to ensure all federally funded employees have either a semi-annual certification or a Personnel Activity Report on file. We are also seeing considerably less federal funding sources which will reduce the number of employees needing to have time and effort certification.

Other Findings in this Audit

11828 2023-001

Significant Deficiency
11829 2023-001

Significant Deficiency
11830 2023-001

Significant Deficiency
588269 2023-001

Significant Deficiency
588270 2023-001

Significant Deficiency
588271 2023-001

Significant Deficiency
588272 2023-001

Significant Deficiency

Programs in Audit

ALN	Program Name	Expenditures
84.425	Elementary and Secondary School Emergency Relief 3 - Covid	$957,422
10.760	Water and Waste Disposal Systems for Rural Communities - 2018	$665,728
84.010	Title Ia Disadvantaged	$493,127
84.027	Special Education State Grants Individuals with Disabilities Act	$376,835
10.555	National School Lunch Program	$348,965
21.027	Arp Extended Learning Opportunities - Covid	$106,697
84.367	Title Iia - Supporting Effective Instruction	$87,966
10.553	National School Lunch Program - Breakfast Program	$80,330
84.027	Local Entitlement - Arp - Covid	$63,146
10.555	State Administrative Expenses for Child Nutrition	$51,203
10.555	Food Donation Program	$37,968
16.710	Public Safety Partnership and Community Policing Grants	$37,551
21.027	2022 Dwsrf - Covid	$36,803
84.424	Title IV - Student Support and Academic Enrichment	$32,990
84.425	Governor Emergency Relief Funding (geer) - Waves	$29,162
84.425	Crrsa Homeless And/or Multilanguage Learners	$23,414
97.067	Homeland Security Grant - Pd - Intelligence Sharing Equip Delphi Solutions	$15,450
84.425	Crrsa Esser - Learning Loss - Learning Management System	$12,940
84.173	Special Education State Grants Individuals with Disabilities Act Pre-K	$12,882
84.173	Local Entitlement - Arp - Covid Pre-K	$9,819
66.468	Cgdwsrf - 2021 Source Water Protection Grant	$8,788
16.922	Equitable Sharing Program	$6,821
10.664	Volunteer Fire Assistance Grant - 2023	$2,047
20.205	I395 Extension Eastern Avenue Water Line Relocation	$1,764
10.558	Child and Adult Care Food Program	$1,256
21.016	Equitable Sharing Program - Asset Forfeiture	$753