FINDING REFERENCE NUMBER 2023-036 (See Finding Reference Number 2023-008)
FEDERAL PROGRAM (ALN – 10.566) NUTRITION ASSISTANCE FOR PUERTO RICO
U.S. DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE
AWARD NUMBERS 211PR426S7003/4; 221PR426S7003/4; 231PR426S7003/4 (Federal Award Years: 2021 through 2023)
ADMINISTRATION ADMINISTRATION FOR SOCIOECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT OF THE FAMILY (ADSEF, BY ITS SPANISH ACRONYM)
COMPLIANCE REQUIREMENT ELIGIBILITY
TYPE OF FINDING MATERIAL NONCOMPLIANCE AND MATERIAL WEAKNESS
CRITERIA Uniform Guidance at 2 CFR §200.303 (a) establish, document, and maintain effective internal control over the Federal award that provides reasonable assurance that the recipient or subrecipient is managing the Federal award in compliance with Federal statutes, regulations, and the terms and conditions of the Federal award. These internal controls should align with the guidance in “Standards for Internal Control in the Federal Government” issued by the Comptroller General of the United States or the “Internal Control-Integrated Framework” issued by the Committee of Sponsoring Organizations of the Treadway Commission (COSO).
In accordance with the State Plan the following is the list of documents required for the regular verification process: photo Id, residency, authorization release form, citizenship alien status, social security, income and resources, self-employment expenses, post-secondary student status, 5-7 years old evidence studying or home schooling, care minors/dependents with disabilities, disability status, medical expenses, age and homelessness.
In Regulation to Establish Eligibility Standards for the Nutrition Assistance for Puerto Rico (8684) from ADSEF, Article 27 (A) establishes that: School Requirement established that the person responsible for the service unit, their spouse, or authorized representative must provide evidence that the children between the ages of five (5) and seventeen (17) who are part of the service unit are enrolled in school.
In Article 45 establish that: Income deductions, Part C, Special deductions, Line number 4 established that a deduction of one hundred dollars ($100.00) will be applied to the income for each student who is part of the service unit and is enrolled full-time in a university or post-secondary educational institution. In the Manual of Procedures, Chapter 2, Part A, Line number 2 established that the student deduction is granted to any individual up to the age of 59.
In Article 60 establish that: Recertification Process, Part C established that a new certification period shall not be assigned unless an interview is conducted, the information provided is verified, and the eligibility of the service unit is determined.
In Article 74 establish that: Establishment of the Claim and Collection Procedures, Part F established in cases where the claim arises from benefits being used after the date of death of the sole beneficiary, collection efforts may be directed toward the beneficiary’s estate, authorized representative, or the individual who accessed the benefits.
In addition, 2 CFR 200.303 (e) requires to take reasonable cybersecurity and other measures to safeguard information including protected personally identifiable information (PII) and other types of information. This also includes information the Federal agency or pass-through entity designates as sensitive or other information the recipient or subrecipient considers sensitive and is consistent with applicable Federal, State, local, and tribal laws regarding privacy and responsibility over confidentiality.
STATEMENT OF CONDITION As part of our audit procedures over internal controls and compliance for eligibility requirements, we selected a sample of one hundred (100) participants who were active during the fiscal year under audit. During our audit we noted the following deficiencies:
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Eight (8) authorization release form without date.
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Nine (9) new participant files did not include supervisor approval of the eligibility determination.
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Four (4) files submitted were outside the scope of the audit period, and no information related to our audit period was provided.
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One (1) file showed an untimely eligibility determination based on the recertification date.
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One (1) file was missing documentation verifying family composition and evidence of schooling for dependent minors.
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One (1) student income deduction was incorrectly applied to a participant who did not meet the age and full-time student criteria.
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One (1) participant died on August 1, 2022. Death was confirmed on January 27, 2023, and benefits were not terminated until February 17, 2023. The participant had no authorized representative, and recovery of funds is not feasible, as it is unknown who accessed the benefits posthumously.
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In one case, the amount of income reported in the budget detail was not documented and was based on estimates derived from Social Security income, Medicare deductions, and Cost of Living (COL) adjustments, rather than verified income records.
Further, the participants' social security number is used to assign the file number, and all physical files are identified with the social security number.
In addition, the files are not uniform, and the documentation from the Nutrition Assistance for Puerto Rico, Payment to Territories and TANF are archived without maintaining an order, legend or uniformity between the regions.
QUESTIONED COSTS None.
PERSPECTIVE INFORMATION This deficiency is a systemic problem, lack of proper training and updated information to all personnel with the responsibility of determining, supervising, and monitoring the eligibility determinations and follow-up. The sampling was a statistical valid sample.
STATEMENT OF CAUSE ADSEF lacks supervisory review, delays in updating participant information, and insufficient controls over eligibility verification, income documentation, and file maintenance. There are no formal trainings for all regions and locals for the personnel involved in eligibility determination and subsequent follow-up. In addition, ADSEF does not have proper instructions and control over how the information should be archived in the participants’ files.
POSSIBLE ASSERTED EFFECT Improper documentation and ineligible determinations increase the risk of noncompliance and may result in improper benefit payments. ADSEF is not properly safeguarding PPI of participants. In addition, the way information is being filed in the records does not allow for adequate monitoring of the documents and information necessary to comply with Federal regulations.
IDENTIFICATION OF
REPEAT FINDING Similar missing documentation was reported in the prior year audit Finding Number 2022-01.
RECOMMENDATIONS We recommend ADSEF to strengthen internal controls to ensure complete and accurate eligibility documentation and improve timeliness of recertifications and participant terminations upon death notification. ADSEF should establish a schedule for continuous training for personnel in charge of eligibility determinations. In addition, other identification numbers should be used for participants instead of the social security number.