Finding 39276 (2022-002)

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Requirement
E
Questioned Costs
-
Year
2022
Accepted
2023-05-20
Audit: 37137
Auditor: One River CPAS

AI Summary

  • Core Issue: The Board has not documented the review and approval of financial eligibility guidelines since April 2019, missing the required deadline of April 2022.
  • Impacted Requirements: Guidelines must be reviewed and approved by the governing body at least every three years as per LSC regulations (45 CFR §1611.3(a)).
  • Recommended Follow-Up: Establish a reminder system to ensure timely documentation of the review and approval process for financial eligibility guidelines.

Finding Text

Finding 2022-002 ? Financial Eligibility ? Documentation of Board Review and Approval of Financial Eligibility Guidelines Federal Award Program ? Legal Services Corporation (LSC) Basic Grant, CFDA #09.120000 Statement of Condition ? The last time the Board documented review and approval of financial eligibility guidelines was at the April 2019 meeting. They would have been required to review and approve them again by April 2022. Criteria ? The governing body of a recipient must adopt guidelines for determining the financial eligibility of persons seeking legal assistance under the LSC Act. (45 CFR ?1611.3(a)). The governing body is to review these guidelines at least once every three years and make any necessary adjustments (45 CFR ?1611.3(a)). Questioned Costs ? None. There was no effect on the expenditure of LSC funds. Cause ? Loss of key personnel responsible for this requirement. Effect ? Review and approval of financial eligibility guidelines was not documented in the last three years. Recommendation ? Implement a reminder system to ensure the review and approval of financial eligibility guidelines is documented at a minimum of every three years. Views of Responsible Officials ? PTLA faced a challenging year in 2022 with a significant change in leadership, which resulted in this deadline being missed. In particular, at the time of the Board of Directors meeting when the triennial review of our client financial eligibility policy would have occurred, PTLA's Executive Director had recently passed away, and the Board was fully engaged in the search process for a new ED. Moving forward, PTLA will develop a reminder system to ensure this review and approval occurs on a timely basis.

Corrective Action Plan

FINDING ? FEDERAL AWARD PROGRAMS AUDIT LEGAL SERVICES CORPORATION 2022-002 Legal Services Corporation ? CFDA No. 09.120000 Noncompliance: The last time the Board documented review and approval of financial eligibility guidelines was at the April 2019 meeting. They would have been required to review and approve them again by April 2022. Recommendation: Implement a reminder system to ensure the review and approval of financial eligibility guidelines is documented at a minimum of every three years. Responsible Person for Corrective Action: Tom Fritzsche, Executive Director Corrective Action to be Taken: PTLA faced a challenging year in 2022 with a significant change in leadership, which resulted in this deadline being missed. In particular, at the time of the Board of Directors meeting when the triennial review of our client financial eligibility policy would have occurred, PTLA's Executive Director had recently passed away, and the Board was fully engaged in the search process for a new ED. Moving forward, PTLA will develop a reminder system to ensure this review and approval occurs on a timely basis. The anticipated completion date for this corrective action is June 22, 2023. The review and approval will take place at the next board meeting, at which time a regular schedule will be established for timely review.

Categories

Eligibility

Other Findings in this Audit

Programs in Audit

ALN Program Name Expenditures
09.120 Lsc General $1.40M
16.575 Crime Victim Assistance $957,392
09.120 Lsc Migrant $351,873
14.418 Private Enforcement Initiatives $174,277
09.120 Lsc Pro Bono Innovation Fund $158,878
09.120 Lsc Native American $105,020
21.008 Low Income Taxpayer Clinics $95,406
16.588 Violence Against Women Formula Grants $82,321
21.027 Coronavirus State and Local Fiscal Recovery Funds $71,085
09.120 Lsc Migrant Carryover Funds $70,891
14.537 Eviction Protection Grant Program $65,557
16.524 Legal Assistance for Victims $60,628
09.120 Lsc Native American Carryover Funds $39,490
09.120 Veterans Consortium Pro Bono Project $35,000
64.033 Va Supportive Services for Veteran Families Program $24,807
09.120 Lsc Technology Initiative Grant $24,414