Finding 605541 (2022-002)

Material Weakness Repeat Finding
Requirement
N
Questioned Costs
-
Year
2022
Accepted
2023-06-29
Audit: 24564
Auditor: Forvis LLP

AI Summary

  • Core Issue: The Authority failed to maintain proper documentation to verify compliance with the Davis-Bacon Act, resulting in a 33% error rate in payroll certifications for federal contracts.
  • Impacted Requirements: Non-compliance with federal wage rate requirements and inadequate internal controls over federal awards.
  • Recommended Follow-Up: Implement improved monitoring and records retention controls to ensure compliance with contractor requirements and prevent future issues.

Finding Text

2022-002: Material Weakness ? Repeat Finding: Davis-Bacon Act Federal Assistance Listing Number 20.106 ? Airport Improvement Program Criteria: All 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 the locality of the project (prevailing wage rates) by the Department of Labor (DOL) (40 USC 3141?3144, 3146, and 3147). Non-Federal entities shall include in their construction contracts subject to the Wage Rate Requirements (which still may be referenced as the Davis-Bacon Act) a provision that the contractor or subcontractor comply with those requirements and the DOL regulations. This includes a requirement for the contractor or subcontractor to submit to the Non-Federal entity weekly, for each week in which any contract work is performed, a copy of the payroll and a statement of compliance (certified payrolls). (29 CFR sections 5.5 and 5.6; the A-102 Common Rule (section 36(i)(5)); OMB Circular A-110 (2 CFR Part 215, Appendix A, Contract Provisions); 2 CFR Part 176, Subpart C; and 2 CFR section 200.326). In addition, according to 2 CFR Part 200.303, the non-Federal entity must establish and maintain effective internal control over the Federal award that provides reasonable assurance that the non-Federal entity is managing the Federal award in compliance with Federal statutes, regulations, and the terms and conditions of the Federal award. Condition: Proper documentation is not maintained by the Authority to verify compliance with Davis-Bacon. There were nine grant draws during fiscal year 2023, which were subject to Davis-Bacon requirements. We selected all nine payments for testing. The Authority was unable to provide the required payroll certifications for three of the nine selections, resulting in an error rate of 33%. Effect: The Authority is not in compliance with Davis-Bacon requirements. Questioned Costs: N/A Cause: Lack of centralized storage/ filing. There was also employee turnover and transfers from the contract compliance department. As a result, controls and procedures were not consistently applied. Repeat Finding: 2021-003 Recommendation: We recommend the Authority implement controls to improve monitoring of contractor compliance and records retention to demonstrate compliance with these requirements. Management?s response: See Corrective Action Plan

Categories

Subrecipient Monitoring Material Weakness Matching / Level of Effort / Earmarking Internal Control / Segregation of Duties Special Tests & Provisions

Other Findings in this Audit

  • 29099 2022-002
    Material Weakness Repeat

Programs in Audit

ALN Program Name Expenditures
20.106 Airport Improvement Program - Covid 19 $3.00M
20.106 Airport Improvement Program $2.94M
97.090 Law Enforcement Officer Reimbursement Program $215,660