Finding 12557 (2022-002)

Material Weakness
Requirement
AB
Questioned Costs
$1
Year
2022
Accepted
2023-03-30
Audit: 18152
Organization: Pine Bluff School District (AR)

AI Summary

  • Core Issue: $12,385 in unallowable costs were paid from federal COVID-19 funds due to undocumented compensation and improper incentive pay.
  • Impacted Requirements: Compliance with OMB 2 CFR section 200.430, which mandates proper documentation and adherence to established cost principles.
  • Recommended Follow-Up: The District should seek guidance from the Arkansas Division of Elementary and Secondary Education and strengthen internal controls over program expenditures.

Finding Text

U.S. DEPARTMENT OF EDUCATION PASSED THROUGH ARKANSAS DEPARTMENT OF EDUCATION COVID-19 ELEMENTARY AND SECONDARY SCHOOL EMERGENCY RELIEF FUND - AL NUMBER 84.425D PASS-THROUGH NUMBER 3505 AUDIT PERIOD - YEAR ENDED JUNE 30, 2022 2022-002. Allowable Cost/Cost Principles Criteria or specific requirement: Office of Management and Budget (OMB) 2 CFR section 200.430 established principles for determining the allowable costs incurred by the District under Federal awards. Such costs are to conform to the established written policy of the non-federal entity consistently applied to both federal and non-Federal activities. Condition: In our sample of payroll expenditures, we identified undocumented compensation of $7,685 and improperly awarded incentive pay of $4,700 paid from Federal funds without proper documentation or requirements. Cause: Lack of internal controls over program expenditures. Effect or potential effect: Unallowable costs of $12,385 were paid from COVID-19 Elementary and Secondary School Emergency Relief funds for additional hours and incentive pay. Questioned costs: The amount of questioned costs was $12,385. Context: An examination of COVID-19 Elementary and Secondary School Emergency Relief Fund payroll expenditures for 25 employees totaling $121,905 from a population of 609 employees totaling $3,869,314. Recommendation: The District should contact the Arkansas Division of Elementary and Secondary Education for guidance regarding this matter and implement proper controls over program expenditures. Views of responsible officials: The District acknowledges the finding and would take this opportunity to explain the circumstances surrounding this material weakness. While not an excuse, it in part explains the conditions under which these instances of undocumented compensation occurred. The District has been impacted by multiple staff changes in the Business Office. The District has employed and/or contracted for payroll services with four (4) persons and for the role of Business Manager with three (3) persons just during this calendar year alone. The District has taken steps to stabilize the workforce in the Business Office. In addition to addressing the human capital issues, the District will provide additional monitoring support to ensure the implementation of the existing internal controls over program expenditures. The District has already taken steps to recoup compensation that was improperly awarded and paid. As recommended, the District will contact Arkansas Division of Elementary and Secondary (DESE) for guidance regarding this matter.

Corrective Action Plan

2022-001 MATERIAL WEAKNESS Condition: The District's internal control system did not prevent or detect material errors in the financial accounting records, which are utilized to prepare the District's financial statements. The District failed to transfer dedicated maintenance and operation millage revenues of $725,843 from the general fund to the capital projects fund which is included in the other aggregate funds. The financial statements were subsequently corrected by adjusting entries during audit fieldwork. District Response: The District concurs with this finding. The District has debriefed internally and established a plan complete with appropriate action steps and safeguards to ensure that the dedicated maintenance and operation millage revenues are transferred from the general fund to the capital project fund in a timely manner. The District will ensure due care is exercised to ensure accurate and reliable financial reporting. The point of contact for this would be Kelvin Gragg, Rose Smith, and Ashley Granberry. This Correction should be corrected on or before June 30, 2022. 2022-002 PAYROLL EXPENDITURES Condition: In our sample of payroll expenditures, we identified undocumented compensation of $7,685 and improperly awarded incentive pay of $4,700 paid from Federal funds without proper documentation or requirements. District Response: The District acknowledges the finding and would take this opportunity to explain the circumstances surrounding this material weakness. While not an excuse, it in part explains the conditions under which these instances of undocumented compensation occurred. The District has been impacted by multiple staff changes in the Business Office. The District has employed and/or contracted for payroll services with four (4) persons and for the role of Business Manager with three (3) persons just during this calendar year alone. The District has taken steps to stabilize the workforce in the Business Office. In addition to addressing the human capital issues, the District will provide additional monitoring support to ensure the implementation of the existing internal controls over program expenditures. The district has already taken steps to recoup compensation that was improperly awarded and paid. As recommended, the district will contact the Arkansas Division of Elementary and Secondary (DESE) for guidance regarding this matter. The district began addressing these is July 2022 and have since made the necessary changes as of September 2022. The point of contact for this would be Rose Smith, Ashley Granberry, Lucretia James and Kelvin Gragg.

Categories

Questioned Costs Allowable Costs / Cost Principles

Other Findings in this Audit

  • 12558 2022-002
    Material Weakness
  • 588999 2022-002
    Material Weakness
  • 589000 2022-002
    Material Weakness

Programs in Audit

ALN Program Name Expenditures
84.010 Title I Grants to Local Educational Agencies $6.54M
84.027 Special Education_grants to States $1.37M
32.009 Emergency Connectivity Fund Program $1.28M
10.553 School Breakfast Program $703,678
84.367 Supporting Effective Instruction State Grants $197,247
84.424 Student Support and Academic Enrichment Program $152,715
10.555 National School Lunch Program $121,191
84.425 Covid-19 - Education Stabilization Fund $103,054
12.U01 Rotc $46,513
10.582 Fresh Fruit and Vegetable Program $39,336
84.173 Special Education_preschool Grants $25,504
93.558 Temporary Assistance for Needy Families $302