Finding 58419 (2022-001)

Material Weakness
Requirement
N
Questioned Costs
$1
Year
2022
Accepted
2023-05-25

AI Summary

  • Core Issue: The Board did not include required prevailing wage rate clauses in nine construction contracts over $2,000, violating the Davis-Bacon Act.
  • Impacted Requirements: Contractors failed to submit weekly certified payrolls, leading to non-compliance with federal wage rate standards.
  • Recommended Follow-Up: Implement controls to ensure all future contracts funded by ESSER grants comply with the Davis-Bacon Act regulations.

Finding Text

Title 29, U.S. Code of Federal Regulations, Part 5, Sub-Part A Davis Bacon and Related Acts Provisions and Procedures (the ?Davis-Bacon Act?), requires that any construction contract in excess of $2,000 that is funded wholly or in part by federal funds include prevailing wage rate clauses. The laborers and mechanics employed by contractors or subcontractors to work on construction contracts in excess of $2,000 financed by federal assistance funds must be paid wages not less than those established for locality of project (prevailing wage rates) by the Department of Labor (DOL) and the contractor or subcontractor must submit to the nonfederal entity weekly, for each week in which any contract work is performed, a copy of the payroll and a statement of compliance (certified payrolls). During fiscal year 2022, the Tuscaloosa County Board of Education (the ?Board?) entered into nine construction project contracts totaling $4,576,909.23 that did not include prevailing wage rate clauses. As of September 30, 2022, the Board expended $2,803,189.31 of COVID-19 Education Stabilization Funds (?ESSER?) on the projects. The Board did not have controls in place to ensure the Davis-Bacon Act wage rate requirements were included in construction contracts, therefore, the nine construction project contracts awarded during the fiscal year did not include prevailing wage rate clauses nor did the contractors submit weekly certified payrolls to the Board. As a result, the Board is not in compliance with the Davis-Bacon Act as it pertains to wage rate requirements. Recommendation: The Board should comply with Title 29, U.S. Code of Federal Regulations, Part 5, Sub-Part A Davis Bacon and Related Acts Provisions and Procedures (the ?Davis-Bacon Act?) when using ESSER grants on construction contracts in excess of $2,000.00.

Corrective Action Plan

Finding 2022-001: Title 29, U.S. Code of Federal Regulations, Part 5, Sub-Part A Davis Bacon and Related Acts Provisions and Procedures (the ?Davis-Bacon Act?), requires that any construction contract in excess of $2,000 that is funded wholly or in part by federal funds include prevailing wage rate clauses. The laborers and mechanics employed by contractors or subcontractors to work on construction contracts in excess of $2,000 financed by federal assistance funds must be paid wages not less than those established for locality of project (prevailing wage rates) by the Department of Labor (DOL) and the contractor or subcontractor must submit to the nonfederal entity weekly, for each week in which any contract work is performed, a copy of the payroll and a statement of compliance (certified payrolls). During fiscal year 2022, the Tuscaloosa County Board of Education (the ?Board?) entered into nine construction project contracts totaling $4,576,909.23 that did not include prevailing wage rate clauses. As of September 30, 2022, the Board expended $2,803,189.31 of COVID-19 Education Stabilization Funds (?ESSER?) on the projects. The Board did not have controls in place to ensure the Davis-Bacon Act wage rate requirements were included in construction contracts, therefore, the nine construction project contracts awarded during the fiscal year did not include prevailing wage rate clauses nor did the contractors submit weekly certified payrolls to the Board. As a result, the Board is not in compliance with the Davis-Bacon Act as it pertains to wage rate requirements. Recommendation: The Board should comply with Title 29, U.S. Code of Federal Regulations, Part 5, Sub-Part A Davis Bacon and Related Acts Provisions and Procedures (the ?Davis-Bacon Act?) when using ESSER grants on construction contracts in excess of $2,000.00. Response/Views: We agree with the finding. Corrective Action Planned: The Tuscaloosa County Board has contacted all parties involved in future bids and Title 29, U.S. Code of Federal Regulations, Part 5, Sub-Part A Davis Bacon and Related Acts Provisions and Procedures (the "Davis-Bacon Act") will be included in bids going forward. Anticipated Completion Date: The Tuscaloosa County Board will implement the corrective action immediately. Contact Person(s): Please contact Danny Higdon, CSFO, at 205-342-2767 or by email at dhigdon@tcss.net if you have any questions or concerns.

Categories

Questioned Costs Matching / Level of Effort / Earmarking Special Tests & Provisions

Other Findings in this Audit

  • 634861 2022-001
    Material Weakness

Programs in Audit

ALN Program Name Expenditures
84.010 Title I Grants to Local Educational Agencies $4.50M
10.553 School Breakfast Program $2.48M
32.009 Emergency Connectivity Fund Program $1.91M
10.555 National School Lunch Program $1.03M
84.367 Supporting Effective Instruction State Grants $856,609
84.027 Special Education_grants to States $347,529
84.424 Student Support and Academic Enrichment Program $311,973
84.048 Career and Technical Education -- Basic Grants to States $282,067
12.U01 Rotc $249,212
84.365 English Language Acquisition State Grants $154,104
10.582 Fresh Fruit and Vegetable Program $148,307
10.558 Child and Adult Care Food Program $126,585
10.560 State Administrative Expenses for Child Nutrition $83,518
84.173 Special Education_preschool Grants $73,931
84.425 Education Stabilization Fund $29,805
10.649 Pandemic Ebt Administrative Costs $12,632
96.001 Social Security_disability Insurance $4,098
84.196 Education for Homeless Children and Youth $2,262
10.559 Summer Food Service Program for Children $65