Finding Text
Condition: The agency amended the administrative expenditure budget effective February 1, 2024. One employee had a budgeted salary amended effective February 1, 2024. The amended budget document shows the amended salary at $27.95 per hour for 88 hours at a total of $19,676.80. Per discussion with management, this amount was not correct. The employee’s amended salary should have been $27.95 per hour at 8 hours for 3 days per week from February 2024 through September 2024. The correct amended budget salary should have been $22,807.20. The amount that should have been paid per month was $2,850.90 or $22,807.20 for February through September 2024. The employee was actually paid $3,521.70 per month from February 1, 2024 through September 30, 2024 for a total of $28,173.60. The result was an overpayment of $5,366.Criteria: Internal controls should be in place to ensure budgeted salaries that are amended are computed correctly and that the correct pay rate is used to pay employees. Cause: The budgeted salary for an employee were not amended correctly. For payroll processing, the correct amended budget for wages was not used on one employee. The correct revised change was not processed in the payroll system.Effect: The employee was over paid in the amount of $5,366.Recommendation: The Executive Director must ensure that any amended budgets for salaries are computed correctly and properly reflected in the accounting system before processing the payroll that includes the change. Copies of the payroll that is budgeted for administrative salaries should be provided for review and to ensure that the correct pay rate is used for computing payroll expenditures. Management Response: We agree with finding and the recommended procedure to be implemented. Responsible Official: Mark Cittadino, Executive Director, PO Box 5280, Slidell, LA 70469, Telephone (985) 641-5051