Finding 388089 (2023-001)

Finding: Several instances were noted where more hours than worked were turned in for reimbursement from the granting agency. In addition, an instance was noted where a USDA employee's time was charged to the transportation grant. Criteria: The Agency should only request funds they have earned from the granting agency. Cause: The program manager used a spreadsheet to recap the employees' time and did not always reduce the employees' time for the employees' lunch period. As reimbursement requests were prepared the spreadsheet was relied upon instead of the actual timesheet. The instance where the employee's time was charged to the wrong grant was just an oversight. Effect: The Agency received funds in excess of actual earned amounts. Our testing resulted in $694.08 of potential questioned costs. Recommendation: If the program manager is going to use a spreadsheet, extra caution needs to be taken to ensure the amounts are transferred correctly. Also the deputy director should either rely on the actual timesheet or verify the spreadsheet matches the timesheet prior to reimbursement request. The Agency needs to take extra caution reviewing employees time as it relates to each program. Management's Response: We concur with this finding.