Finding 47674 (2022-009)

Significant Deficiency

Requirement

Questioned Costs

Year

2022

Accepted

2023-03-30

Audit: 53246

Organization: City of Amsterdam, New York (NY)

Auditor: Rbt CPAS

AI Summary

Core Issue: The City lacks adequate internal controls to verify contractor debarment before using federal funds.
Impacted Requirements: Federal rules mandate checks to ensure no payments are made to debarred contractors.
Recommended Follow-up: The City should enhance its internal controls and documentation processes related to debarment for federal fund expenditures.

Finding Text

Finding 2022-009 Coronavirus State and Local Fiscal Recovery Fund Internal Control Procurement, Suspension, and Debarment Condition: The City did not provide evidence of sufficient internal controls over debarment. Criteria: Federal expenditure debarment requirements provide for internal controls to ensure federal funds are not used to pay contractors that are debarred. Cause: The City depended on the City Plumbing Board to require non-debarment before a license was issued. This was not specified in documentation as something that is confirmed. Effect: Debarment may not have been verified. Recommendation: RBT recommends that the City review the internal controls and documentation process for debarment when spending federal funds.

Corrective Action Plan

2022-009 - Coronavirus State and Local Fiscal Recovery Fund The City Engineer's Office has confirmed that they complete a timely debarment check for all low bidders. They have determined that the appropriate document to record that a check was made for debarment would be the Recommendation to Award. This is generally a letter from a consulting engineer OR a memo from the City Engineer to the common council that states that the lowest responsible bidder is ?XXX? and that their bid has been carefully reviewed. Wording will be added to these documents effective immediately that specifically states that a debarment check was completed. The City Engineer's Office believes it is unnecessary to add this wording to bid documents because there would be no ?apparent low bidder ?at that point in the process.

Other Findings in this Audit

47673 2022-008

Significant Deficiency
52002 2022-010

Significant Deficiency
624115 2022-008

Significant Deficiency
624116 2022-009

Significant Deficiency
628444 2022-010

Significant Deficiency

Programs in Audit

ALN	Program Name	Expenditures
97.039	Hazard Mitigation Grant	$1.09M
21.027	Coronavirus State and Local Fiscal Recovery Funds	$664,779
97.044	Assistance to Firefighters Grant	$62,507
14.228	Community Development Block Grants/state's Program and Non-Entitlement Grants in Hawaii	$21,622
97.036	Disaster Grants - Public Assistance (presidentially Declared Disasters)	$6,308