Finding Text
FINDING 2022-002 Subject: Child Nutrition Cluster ? Internal Controls Federal Agency: Department of Agriculture Federal Program: School Breakfast Program, National School Lunch Program, Summer Food Service Program for Children, Child Nutrition Discretionary Grants Limited Availability Assistance Listing Number: 10.533, 10.555, 10.559, 10.579 Pass-Through Entity: Indiana Department of Education Compliance Requirement: Procurement and Suspension and Debarment Audit Finding: Material Weakness Criteria: 2 CFR 200.303 states in part: "The non-Federal entity must: (a) 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. These internal controls should be in compliance with 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). . . ." 2 CFR 180.300 states: "When you enter into a covered transaction with another person at the next lower tier, you must verify that the person with whom you intend to do business is not excluded or disqualified. You do this by: (a) Checking the SAM Exclusions; or (b) Collecting a certification from that person; or (c) Adding a clause or condition to the covered transaction with that person." Condition: An effective internal control system was not in place at the School Corporation to ensure compliance with requirements related to the Child Nutrition Program and Procurement and Suspension and Debarment compliance requirements. Cause: The School Corporation's management had not developed a system of internal controls that would have ensured compliance with the Procurement and Suspension and Debarment compliance requirement. Effect: The failure to establish internal controls enabled noncompliance to go undetected. The failure to comply with the grant agreement and the compliance requirement could have resulted in the loss of federal funds to the School Corporation. Questioned Costs: There were no questioned costs identified. Context: The School Corporation contracts with a food service management company for the majority of food costs, labor costs, and operational costs, however in some cases the School Corporation will handle their own additional minor procurements outside of the food service management company. During the audit period, the School Corporation made one purchase between $10,000 and $150,000 which fell under the small purchase method for federal and state procurement regulations and was charged to Fund 0800 ? School Lunch Fund. For that purchase, documentation was not presented to verify methods or rationale used to satisfy the procurement requirements, which require three quotes to be obtained prior to entering into a transaction. The transaction was incurred in July 2021 in the amount of $21,668. Identification as a repeat finding, if applicable: No Recommendation: We recommended that the School Corporation's management establish and implement control procedures to ensure compliance with the grant agreement and the Procurement and Suspension and Debarment compliance requirement. This should include obtaining at least three quotes for any disbursements charged to a federal fund and ensuring suspension and debarment checks are performed and documented prior to entering into the transaction. Views of Responsible Officials and Planned Corrective Actions: Management agrees with the finding and has prepared a corrective action plan.