Finding Text
Finding 2025-003 Accounting for Grants, Schedule of Expenditures of Federal Awards, and Fiscal Man-agement (Material Weakness) Assistance Listing Number and Title: 84.184H Title IV ESEA, School Based Mental Health Name of Federal Agency: U.S. Department of Education Criteria: Per 2 CFR §200.510(b), the auditee must prepare a complete and accurate Schedule of Federal Expenditures (SEFA) for the period covered by the auditee’s financial statements and submit it with the reporting package by the date required by auditors. The SEFA must include total federal awards expended by Assistance Listing (ALN, formerly CFDA), pass-through entity identifying numbers as applicable, the amount provided to subrecipients (if any), and other required disclosures. The SEFA must include all federal expenditures and awards for the year reported and be reconciled to the General Ledger. Condition: The District did not timely prepare an accurate Schedule of Expenditures of Federal Awards (SEFA). The SEFA provided for audit did not reconcile to the District’s general ledger and contained multiple inaccuracies, including reporting federal expenditures in excess of current-year general ledger activity and misclassification of awards, with certain state programs incorrectly reported as federal programs. Cause: The District lacked effective internal controls over the preparation and review of the Schedule of Expenditures of Federal Awards. Specifically, expenditures reported on the SEFA were not reconciled to the District’s general ledger, and there was no documented review process to verify program classification or reported amounts. Changes in finance staff and the incomplete status of the District’s general ledger at year-end further contributed to the errors and untimely completion of the SEFA. Effect or Potential Effect: Expenditures of federal awards may be reported incorrectly and not be detected and corrected. Because the Auditee’s SEFA was completed incorrectly and not reconciled to the general ledger the SEFA was materially misstated, prior to auditors’ correction recommendations. Questioned Cost: None noted Context: The Schedule of Expenditures of Federal Awards (SEFA) is a required supplementary schedule for Single Audit reporting and is intended to accurately reflect federal award activity in accordance with Uniform Guidance requirements. During the audit, the District provided an initial SEFA that was not timely and contained material inaccuracies. The re-ported expenditures did not reconcile to the District’s general ledger. Certain programs were incorrectly identified as feder-al rather than state awards, and some federal expenditures exceeded amounts recorded in the accounting records. Because the SEFA was neither complete nor accurate at the time of submission, auditors were required to perform addi-tional procedures to identify errors, investigate discrepancies, and propose audit adjustments. Thei extended the audit timeline and increased the risk of noncompliance with federal reporting requirements. Repeat of a Prior-Year Finding: No Recommendation: The District should strengthen internal controls over SEFA preparation by ensuring the general ledger is finalized prior to preparation, reconciling all reported expenditures to accounting records, and implementing a docu-mented review and approval process to verify accuracy and proper program classification. Strengthening procedures, cross training staff, and implementing supervisory review and approval process to verify accuracy, completeness and proper classification of federal versus state awards will enhance compliance with Uniform Guidance, and reduce the risk of future audit findings, and support a more efficient and timely audit process. District’s Response: The District agrees with the finding and recognizes that staffing changes and an incomplete year-end close contributed to the SEFA issues. The District is strengthening reconciliation, review, and oversight procedures to en-sure timely and accurate SEFA reporting in future years. Corrective Action Plan: The District transitioned to a new accounting software for the year ended June 30, 2026. The new system will allow for more clear tracking of individual federal awardS. that are required to be reported on the Schedule of Expenditures of Federal Awards. Additionally, the new business manager for the 2026-2027 fiscal year has multiple years' experience in preparing Schedules of Expenditures of Federal Awards. Planned Implementation Date: August 1, 2026 Responsible Person: District Finance Director