Finding 537552 (2024-002)

Significant Deficiency: Finding 2024-002: Allowable Costs U.S. Department of Education Passed-through Mississippi Department of Education Program Name: COVID-19 - Elementary and Secondary School Emergency Relief II & ARP III (ESSER) Program ALN: 84.425D & 84.425U Compliance Requirement: Allowable Costs CRITERIA: Recipients of ESF federal funds must adhere to procurement laws and regulations. CONDITION: During our testing of purchasing laws and regulations, we noted the district failed to hold a reverse auction on a non-EPL technology purchase exceeding the $75,000 threshold that requires a reverse auction. This purchase was also identified in a Mississippi Department of Education monitoring visit and resulted in the District having to reimburse the Mississippi Department of Education for the unallowable purchase. CONTEXT: The school district did not follow requirements related to allowable costs. CAUSE: The cause is a result of not properly implementing a designed system of accounting and internal controls whereby personnel in charge of approving expenditures of ESSER funds are familiar with and knowledgeable of the related compliance requirements. EFFECT: Noncompliance with allowable cost requirements. IDENTIFICATION OF REPEAT FINDING: No. QUESTIONED COSTS: None RECOMMENDATION: The school district should implement policies and procedures to ensure all applicable compliance requirements are being met. VIEWS OF RESPONSIBLE OFFICIALS: We will implement policies or procedures to establish an internal control system that will ensure strong financial accountability, including compliance with all requirements related to federal funding.