Finding Text
2023-003 - #84.425U COVID-19 Elementary and Secondary School Emergency Relief Fund III Federal Grantor: U.S. Department of Education
Pass-through Award Number: 2022-291673-DPI-ESSERFIII-165
Pass-through Entity: Wisconsin Department of Public Instruction
Condition: There were Education Stabilization Fund construction projects performed by contractors. Grant expenditures for the projects paid by the Education Stabilization Fund totaled $556,368. There was not a prevailing wage clause in the contracts and certified payrolls were not received.
Criteria: Wage rate requirements apply to the Education Stabilization Fund when laborers and mechanics employed by contractors or subcontractors work on construction contracts more than $2,000. Laborers must be paid wages not less than those established for the locality of the project (prevailing wage rates) by the Department of Labor (DOL).
Nonfederal entities shall include in their contracts, subject to wage rate requirements, 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 District weekly payrolls and a statement of compliance (certified payrolls).
Cause: The District was not aware that wage rate requirements applied to the construction projects.
Effect: A reimbursement request was made for expenditures that did not comply with wage rate requirements.
Questioned Costs: $556,368
Auditor’s Recommendation: Establish controls to comply with wage rate requirements related to the Education Stabilization Fund.
Grantee Response: The District has implemented additional procedures to ensure prevailing wage rate requirements are included in all contracts funded by federal programs.