Finding 25654 (2022-002)

Material Weakness
Requirement
AB
Questioned Costs
-
Year
2022
Accepted
2023-09-27

AI Summary

  • Core Issue: Erie County General Health District improperly charged $810 in employee wages to a federal grant based on budget estimates instead of actual work performed.
  • Impacted Requirements: Lack of internal controls violated federal regulations requiring accurate payroll records and reasonable compensation based on actual services rendered.
  • Recommended Follow-Up: Implement robust internal controls to ensure accurate tracking of employee time and proper allocation of salaries to federal programs.

Finding Text

2 C.F.R. ? 2400.101 provides that unless excepted under 24 CFR chapters I through IX, the Uniform Administrative Requirements, Cost Principles, and Audit Requirements for Federal Awards, set forth in 2 CFR part 200, shall apply to Federal Awards made by the Department of Housing and Urban Development to non-Federal entities. 2 C.F.R. ? 200.430(a)(1) states, in part, costs of compensation are allowable to the extent that they satisfy the specific requirements of this part, and that the total compensation for individual employees is reasonable for the services rendered and conforms to the established written policy of the non-Federal entity consistently applied to both Federal and non-Federal activities. In addition, 2 C.F.R. ? 200.430(i)(1) states, in part, charges to Federal awards for salaries and wages must be based on records that accurately reflect the work performed. These records must be supported by a system of internal control which provides reasonable assurance that the charges are accurate, allowable, and properly allocated; be incorporated into the official records of the non-Federal entity; and reasonably reflect the total activity for which the employee is compensated by the non-Federal entity. 2 C.F.R. ? 200.430(i)(1)(viii) further states that budget estimates (i.e., 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 the subsequent provisions are met. Due to a lack of internal controls over federal compensation costs, Erie County General Health District ultimately paid employee wages based on pre-determined budget percentages rather than actual time worked for the Assistance Listing Number #14.900 Lead-Based Paint Hazard Control in Privately-Owned Housing federal grant program. This error resulted in $810 in salary payments being incorrectly charged to the program. Failure to have the proper controls in place to ensure the accuracy of reported payroll costs could result in the Department of Housing and Urban Development taking action against the District for failure to comply with programmatic requirements. The District should implement and have controls in place to ensure salaries and wages are properly charged to federal programs.

Corrective Action Plan

The District will ensure that all employees not on a formal allocation plan or entirely allocated to a single source complete daily activity reports.

Categories

Allowable Costs / Cost Principles Matching / Level of Effort / Earmarking Internal Control / Segregation of Duties Special Tests & Provisions

Other Findings in this Audit

  • 602096 2022-002
    Material Weakness

Programs in Audit

ALN Program Name Expenditures
93.224 Consolidated Health Centers (community Health Centers, Migrant Health Centers, Health Care for the Homeless, and Public Housing Primary Care) $1.49M
14.900 Lead-Based Paint Hazard Control in Privately-Owned Housing $1.23M
93.224 Covid-19 Consolidated Health Centers (community Health Centers, Migrant Health Centers, Health Care for the Homeless, and Public Housing Primary Care) $772,417
93.243 Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services_projects of Regional and National Significance $651,636
10.557 Special Supplemental Nutrition Program for Women, Infants, and Children $594,566
93.323 Covid-19 Epidemiology and Laboratory Capacity for Infectious Diseases (elc) $345,201
93.391 Activities to Support State, Tribal, Local and Territorial (stlt) Health Department Response to Public Health Or Healthcare Crises $334,898
93.526 Covid-19 Affordable Care Act (aca) Grants for Capital Development in Health Centers $288,992
93.912 Rural Health Care Services Outreach, Rural Health Network Development and Small Health Care Provider Quality Improvement $224,523
16.838 Comprehensive Opioid Abuse Site-Based Program $216,170
93.136 Injury Prevention and Control Research and State and Community Based Programs $185,750
93.991 Preventive Health and Health Services Block Grant $178,406
93.217 Family Planning_services $125,915
14.913 Healthy Homes Production Program $101,889
93.994 Maternal and Child Health Services Block Grant to the States $96,483
93.788 Opioid Str $93,500
93.069 Public Health Emergency Preparedness $84,475
93.354 Public Health Emergency Response: Cooperative Agreement for Emergency Response: Public Health Crisis Response $81,423
93.276 Drug-Free Communities Support Program Grants $61,562
93.268 Covid-19 Immunization Cooperative Agreements $44,449
93.387 National and State Tobacco Control Program (b) $25,600
93.268 Immunization Cooperative Agreements $24,289
20.600 State and Community Highway Safety $18,977
93.421 Strengthening Public Health Systems and Services Through National Partnerships to Improve and Protect the Nations Health $16,000
93.103 Food and Drug Administration_research $9,602
93.945 Assistance Programs for Chronic Disease Prevention and Control $8,302
93.527 Covid-19 Affordable Care Act (aca) Grants for New and Expanded Services Under the Health Center Program $8,212