Finding Text
Finding 2023-001
Assistance Listing # 93.323 - Epidemiology and Laboratory Capacity for Infectious Diseases
(ELC)
Allowable Costs/Cost Principles
Immaterial Noncompliance
Criteria: Allowable costs for the federal award program are to be used for non-research activities
that (1) strengthen epidemiologic capacity; (2) enhance laboratory capacity; (3) improve
information systems; and (4) enhance collaboration among epidemiology, laboratory and
information system components of public health departments.
Condition: The Health Department charged a community luncheon to the federal award program
that was not related to the purpose of the grant.
Cause: Department supervisors overseeing the coding of expenditures miscoded the expenditure
to the federal award program.
Effect: An unallowed expenditure was charged to the federal award program.
Context: The Health Department miscoded an expenditure to the federal award program in error.
Upon discovery of the miscoded expenditure during audit testing, the questioned expenditure was
removed from the federal award program, and other excess program-eligible costs were coded
against the federal award program in its place.
Questioned Costs: Known questioned costs are below the reporting threshold of $25,000.
Recommendation: Per the Health Department's internal control policies, department supervisors
are responsible for coding of grant expenditures. We recommend department supervisors
carefully review the coding of individual transactions to ensure reasonableness of expenditures
charged to federal award programs.
Management's Response and Planned Corrective Action: Accounting leadership will review
general Federal guidelines for allowable costs with directors and supervisors. Additionally,
directors and supervisors will be reminded of their responsibility for, and the importance of,
carefully reviewing coding of individual program expenditures to align with Federal guidelines.
Accountants currently meet monthly with directors and supervisors to review the financial status
of each program, including unreasonable budget variances and the reasonableness of current
expenditure levels. Going forward, they will also review the individual expenditures in categories
deemed most likely to have unallowable transactions.
Responsible Party for Corrective Action: Shannon Klownowski, Chief Financial and
Administrative Officer
Anticipated Completion Date: January 2024.
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