Finding Text
Federal agency: U.S. Department of Education Federal program title: Student Support and Academic Enrichment Program Supporting Effective Instruction Grant English Language Acquisition Grant Assistance Listing Number: 84.367, 84.365, 84.424A, 84.424F, 84.424D Federal Award Identification Number, Year, and Award Period: S367A230030: 7/1/2023-12/31/2026 S365A220031: 7/1/2022 - 12/31/2025 S424A230032: 7/1/2023-12/31/2026 S424F220032: 9/15/2022 - 9/30/2025 S424D200005-22B:10/01/2020-09/30/2025 Pass-Through Agency: N/A Pass-Through Number(s): N/A Type of Finding: Significant Deficiency in Internal Control over Compliance, Other Matters Criteria or specific requirement: Per the most recent version of the Semiannual Certification, sign offs were required prior to 1/15/2025 for the first half of the fiscal year or 7/15/2025 for the last half of the fiscal year. Additionally, Personnel Activity Forms (PARs) are required to be prepared at least monthly and coincide with one or more pay periods. Per the PED grant manual, “At least quarterly, comparisons of actual costs to budgeted distributions based on the monthly activity reports are made.” Additionally, Under 2 CFR 200.430(g)(1)(vii), ‘Budget estimates (meaning, estimates determined before the services are performed) alone do not qualify as support for charges to Federal awards, but may be used for interim accounting purposes, provided that:’ and specifically under subparagraph (C), ‘The recipient's or subrecipient's system of internal controls includes processes to perform periodic after-the-fact reviews of interim charges made to a Federal award based on budget estimates. All necessary adjustments must be made so that the final amount charged to the Federal award is accurate, allowable, and properly allocated.' Condition: During single audit testwork over payroll, the following issues were noted which are detailed by ALN: 84.367: 7 of 15 samples had the Semiannual Certification completed after the required date of 1/15/2025 2 of 15 samples did not include a date of signature to complete the Semiannual Certification, making it impossible to verify whether it was completed within the required submission timeframe 2 of 15 timesheets reviewed did not agree to the charges entered into SHARE. The total of the variances is approximately $97. The variances were not corrected. 84.365: 1 of 10 samples had the PAR signed in February 2025 for work done in August 2024, which is beyond the monthly preparation requirement. 1 of 10 timesheets reviewed did not agree to the charges entered into SHARE. The total of the variances is approximately $18. The variances were not corrected. 84.424A: 2 of 15 samples had the Semiannual Certification completed after the required date of 7/15/2025 84.424F 1 of 15 samples had the PAR signed in August for work done in March, which is beyond the monthly preparation requirement. 84.424D 4 of 5 timesheets reviewed did not agree to the charges entered into SHARE. The total of the variances are approximately $10,189 of overcharges. Questioned costs: $10,916 Known amount Context: This was identified as we tested payroll. The samples described above were statistically valid samples. Cause: The Department has not maintained internal control designed to reasonably ensure compliance with Department’s policy. Effect: Noncompliance with applicable regulations and Department policy, possible undercharges and overcharges to the Federal grants. Repeat Finding: No Recommendation: We recommend that the Department assist the Programs by providing training to employees, including supervisory-level employees, to ensure adherence with Department or Program policy. Views of responsible officials: ALN 84.367 Open – Views of responsible officials and management’s planned corrective actions, timeline and designation of what employee position are responsible for meeting deadlines in the timeline. ALN 84.424A/F Open – Views of responsible officials and management’s planned corrective actions, timeline and designation of what employee position are responsible for meeting deadlines in the timeline. ALN 84.424D Open – Views of responsible officials and management’s planned corrective actions, timeline and designation of what employee position are responsible for meeting deadlines in the timeline. ALN 84.365 Open – Views of responsible officials and management’s planned corrective actions, timeline and designation of what employee position are responsible for meeting deadlines in the timeline.