Finding Text
Federal Award Findings and Questioned Costs 2022-002 School Food Account - Net Cash Resources Child Nutrition Cluster (ALN Nos. 10.553, 10.555, and 10.559) Condition: At June 30, 2022, net cash resources in the School Lunch Fund exceeded the allowable limit cash by $500,599. At June 30, 2021, net cash resources in the School Lunch Fund exceeded the allowable limit by $213,355. Criteria: The school food authority shall limit its net cash resources to an amount that does not exceed 3 months average expenditures for its School Lunch Fund or such other amount as may be approved by the New York State agency in accordance with 7 CFR ?210.19(a). Cause: Revenues exceeded expenditures by $292,661 and $139,243 in the School Lunch Fund for the years ended June 30, 2022 and 2021, respectively. Effect: The School District is not in compliance with 7 CFR ?210.19(a). Repeat Finding: The finding is a repeat of finding 2021-002 from the prior year. Recommendation: We recommend the School District review its net cash resources in the School Lunch Fund and develop a plan to reduce them to an allowable amount. Response; The School District has begun taking action to address this issue, as follows: Equipment Improvement - School Food Service Director, Joe Kilmer, Food Service Manager, Ann Overhiser, and School Business Administrator have plans to improve and replace cafeteria equipment. The replacement plan will be completed in conjunction with the District?s Capital Project which is scheduled to be completed by June 30, 2023. Retained Balance for Pending Settlements - Increased wages (extending into 2022 and beyond) The minimum wage in New York State is expected to continue to rise over the next several years according to legislation. The rate will rise to $14.20 per hour by the end of 2022. Annual increases will continue until the rate reaches $15.00 per hour (a 66% increase from 2015-2016 levels). Annual increases will be published by the Commissioner of Labor and based on a number of economic factors. Due to the critical labor shortage, the District recently increased hourly wages for food service helpers and cooks in order to attract additional workers to maintain operations. Enhanced Meals - Food Service Director Joseph Kilmer and Food Service Manager, Ann Overhiser, continue to take steps to improve food options. They include making improvements to center of the plate options and improving local food options as well. In addition, the District plans to spend a portion of the School Lunch excess cash on cafeteria equipment as a part of its ongoing Capital Project which is expected to be completed by June 30, 2023.