Finding Text
2022-001 Lack of Segregation of Duties. Condition: The School District does not have enough staff to implement certain internal controls that would be preferred to provide optimum segregation of duties. Criteria: A good system of control allows for segregation of duties between authorization, custody, record-keeping, and reconciliation. Context: Although there is some oversight from Board members, and there is division of certain duties, the business manager is still able to perform and oversee most accounting functions, including receipting and depositing of revenue, initiating and approving invoices, writing and signing checks, and preparation and review of financial reports. Effect: When one individual is able to perform all accounting functions, intentional or unintentional errors could be made and not detected, transactions could be reported in improper categories, and steps could be taken to cover up fraud. Cause: The School District has limited staffing resources with skills, experience, and competency to participate in the financial reporting process. Recommendation: While additional staff would be ideal to segregate the duties to a fuller extent, we realize that may not be possible due to limited resources. Therefore, we recommend that the School District continues to review, implement, and monitor their financial procedures to segregate duties to the extent possible. We also encourage Board involvement in oversight, questioning transactions, and reviewing the financial reports monthly. Response: The School District will continue to monitor and review their financial procedures and policies, incorporating Board oversight as much as possible. Adding additional staff to provide a more robust system of internal control is not practical.