Finding 3185 (2022-004)

WaterSMART (Sustain and Manage America’s Resources for Tomorrow) Assistance Listing Number 15.507, Reporting Condition: The District completed all the required federal financial reports during the year. However, one report submitted the amount reported as district share of expenditures was overstated. Criteria: The grant award for the Arnold Coulee project required federal financial reports be submitted on a semi-annual basis. Federal financial reports must be submitted on the SF-425 report. Context: The District included one invoice twice, therefore overstating the amount reported as the District share by $217,809. Once this error was found, management contacted BOR and received guidance on how to correct the error. Effect: The report submitted for the period end date of March 31, 2023, showed an overstatement of $217,809 for the District’s share of expenditures. Questioned Costs: There are no questioned costs. Cause: This was an error. Audit Recommendation: We recommend the District review the reports for accuracy prior to submission. District’s Response: The redundant expenditure reported was part of the recipient’s in-kind match requirement. Without this duplicate claimed expenditure, the District's in-kind match is still sufficient to satisfy the grant requirement. This error will be corrected in the next Grant Performance Report due on March 31st, 2024. More attention to detail is the only appropriate recommendation going forward.