Finding Text
Finding 2024-018: Significant Deficiency in Internal Control – Completeness and Accuracy of the SEFA Assistance Listing Program Title and Number: Education Stabilization Fund- Elementary and Secondary School Emergency Relief (84.425D), American Rescue Plan Elementary and Secondary School Emergency Relief (84.425U) (collectively ESSERS) and Community Development Block Grants (CDBG) Entitlement/Special Purpose Grants Cluster (14.218) Federal Agency: U.S. Department of Education and U.S. Department of Housing Pass-through Entity: State of Connecticut Department of Education Award year: 2023 – 2024 Criteria or specific requirement: Committee of Sponsoring Organizations (COSO) Framework – control activities: Proper review of the schedule of expenditures of federal awards (SEFA) and schedule of expenditure of state awards (SESA) should ensure the accuracy and completeness of the schedules. Condition: We identified errors in the SEFA as originally provided by the City including fiscal year 2023 expenditures being included in the fiscal year 2024 SEFA expenditures reported for the Community Development Block Grants CDBG Entitlement/Special Purpose Grants Cluster (CDBG) ($178,900) and Education Stabilization Fund- Elementary and Secondary School Emergency Relief, American Rescue Plan Elementary and Secondary School Emergency Relief (ESSERS) ($37,382). The City needs improved centralized review of the completed SEFA. Cause: Turnover in the City and DPS finance departments along with grant management and reporting not being centralized within the City, with responsibility left to the individual departments. Effect: This can result in inaccurate amounts reported in the SEFA and the disallowance of expenditures/future awards by the grantor due to lack of proper reporting. Context: For CDBG from a population of 88 nonpayroll expenditure transactions we sampled 9 expenditures totaling $266,738 for testing. For one out of the 9 expenditures tested in the amount of $178,900, we noted the expenditure pertained to fiscal year 2023. For ESSERS out of a population of 302 nonpayroll transactions, we sampled 40 transactions totaling $727,290 for testing. Five out of 40 samples tested, totaling $37,382, pertained to fiscal year 2023. The samples were not statistically valid samples. Questioned Cost: None Repeat Finding: 2023-004 Recommendation: We recommend that City management, in coordination with the departments; improve established policies and procedures , including a more thorough review of the complete schedule, to help to make certain all federal and state expended funds are complete and accurate and included in the correct fiscal year in the SEFA and SESA. Views of Responsible Officials: Management agrees with the finding.