Finding 571680 (2023-002)

Significant Deficiency Repeat Finding
Requirement
L
Questioned Costs
-
Year
2023
Accepted
2025-07-21
Audit: 362617
Organization: City of Bloomington (IN)
Auditor: Crowe LLP

AI Summary

  • Core Issue: The City of Bloomington's reporting for the Coronavirus State and Local Fiscal Recovery Funds lacks clarity in distinguishing between subrecipients and vendor purchases.
  • Impacted Requirements: Compliance with the US Department of Treasury's reporting guidelines is compromised due to ineffective internal controls and lack of secondary review.
  • Recommended Follow-Up: Implement a multi-stage review process for federal data reports to accurately track subrecipient activities and expenditures.

Finding Text

FINDING 2023-002 Information on the federal program: Federal Agency: Department of the Treasury Pass-Through Entity: N/A – Direct Grant Federal Program: Coronavirus State and Local Fiscal Recovery Funds (CSLFRF) Assistance Listing Number: 21.027 Compliance Requirement: Reporting Audit Findings: Significant Deficiency Criteria: The US Department of Treasury’s Compliance and Reporting Guidance for State and Local Fiscal Recovery Funds requires quarterly project expenditure reports to be completed with the key line items: 1) Obligations and Expenditures 2) Subawards 3) Detailed information of any loans issued; contracts and grants awarded; transfers made to other government entities; and direct payments made by the recipient that are greater than $50,000. For amounts less than $50,000, the recipient must report in the aggregate for these same categories of loans issued; contracts and grants awarded; transfers made to other government entities; and direct payments made by the recipient. Condition: City of Bloomington completed quarterly reporting in a timely manner substantiated by the City’s expenditure detail. However, management could not differentiate between subrecipients and standard vendor purchases. Cause: The City does not have an effective system of internal controls in place to effectively review CSLFRF reporting data prior to submission to the US Department of Treasury. Effect: Subrecipient expenditures and subawards on the quarterly data submissions were overstated. Questioned costs: There are no questioned costs. Context: During our testing procedures over CSLFRF reporting, we noted that segregation of duties is not present in the Federal reporting process. The Deputy Controller prepared and submitted the reports without a secondary review taking place. As a result, the City did not report expenditures for the grant that were consistent with the expenditures reported on the SEFA and could not properly identify subrecipient expenditures. Identification as a repeat finding, if applicable: Yes, finding 2022-003 in the prior year report. Recommendation: We recommend that the City implement a consistent multi-stage review process for federal data reports, which involves identifying and tracking subrecipient activity as well as expenditures by type. Views of responsible officials and planned corrective actions: Management acknowledges the finding. See management’s corrective action plan attached to this audit report.

Corrective Action Plan

FINDING 2023-002 Information on the federal program: Federal Agency: Department of the Treasury Pass-Through Entity: N/A – Direct Grant Federal Program: Coronavirus State and Local Fiscal Recovery Funds (CSLFRF) Assistance Listing Number: 21.027 Compliance Requirement: Reporting Audit Findings: Significant Deficiency Condition: City of Bloomington completed quarterly reporting in a timely manner substantiated by the City’s expenditure detail. However, management could not differentiate between subrecipients and standard vendor purchases. Context: During our testing procedures over CSLFRF reporting, we noted that segregation of duties is not present in the Federal reporting process. The Deputy Controller prepared and submitted the reports without a secondary review taking place. As a result, the City did not report expenditures for the grant that were consistent with the expenditures reported on the SEFA and could not properly identify subrecipient expenditures. Views of Responsible Officials and Planned Corrective Actions: Management will develop an internal controls process to ensure that there’s segregation of duties within the reporting process for federal programs. Responsible party and timeline for completion: The City’s Controller will oversee the implementation of the corrective action plan, which will be implemented starting during calendar year 2025.

Categories

Subrecipient Monitoring Reporting Internal Control / Segregation of Duties Procurement, Suspension & Debarment Significant Deficiency

Other Findings in this Audit

  • 571679 2023-001
    Material Weakness Repeat
  • 571681 2023-003
    Significant Deficiency Repeat
  • 1148121 2023-001
    Material Weakness Repeat
  • 1148122 2023-002
    Significant Deficiency Repeat
  • 1148123 2023-003
    Significant Deficiency Repeat

Programs in Audit

ALN Program Name Expenditures
21.027 Covid-19 - Coronavirus State and Local Fiscal Recovery Funds $5.59M
20.205 Highway Planning and Construction $323,969
16.922 Equitable Sharing Program $149,783
14.218 Community Development Block Grants/entitlement Grants $119,358
66.818 Brownfields Multipurpose, Assessment, Revolving Loan Fund, and Cleanup Cooperative Agreements $108,671
20.600 State and Community Highway Safety $18,736
20.608 Minimum Penalties for Repeat Offenders for Driving While Intoxicated $10,880
10.559 Summer Food Service Program for Children $10,646
14.169 Housing Counseling Assistance Program $7,446
14.239 Home Investment Partnerships Program $6,106
16.607 Bulletproof Vest Partnership Program $6,046
20.616 National Priority Safety Programs $4,998
16.543 Missing Children's Assistance $4,961
10.675 Urban and Community Forestry Program $4,400
16.738 Edward Byrne Memorial Justice Assistance Grant Program $3,184