Grant Title: COVID-19 American Rescue Plan Elementary and Secondary School Emergency Relief Fund - Education Stabilization Fund (ESSER)
Federal Award Number and Year: 2023 Assistance Listing #: 84.425U Federal Agency: US Department of Education
Pass-through Entity number: 52
Pass-through Agency: WV Department of Education
CONDITION: The Board did not ensure that equipment purchased with funds from the COVID-19 American Rescue Plan Elementary and Secondary School Emergency Relief Fund - Education Stabilization Fund (ESSER) was properly tracked through an inventory list. In addition, the Board was unable to provide evidence of prior written approval for a construction project. CONTEXT: Specifically, we identified the following: Equipment purchased through a lease purchase agreement dated May 15, 2020, totaling $2,147,541, was not placed on an equipment inventory listing maintained for each school. The final lease payment of $536,829 was made during fiscal year 2023.
Additional equipment, totaling $38,475, was not placed on an equipment inventory listing maintained for each school.
The Board was unable to provide documentation of prior written approval from the West Virginia Department of Education for a HVAC construction project, totaling $1,777,483. CRITERIA: Title 2 U.S. Code of Federal Regulations (CFR) Part 200, Uniform Administrative Requirements, Cost Principles, and Audit Requirements for Federal Awards (Uniform Guidance) Appendix XI Part 4 Section 84.425-ESF Section 1 - Elementary and Secondary Education states, in part, that: "F. Equipment/Real Property Management Any purchases with ESF funds in this category are subject to applicable inventory control, log maintenance, and disposition requirements consistent with Part 3, Section F, "Equipment /Real Property Management" of the 2023 Compliance Supplement. Auditors should determine whether governors, SEAs, and/or subrecipients received prior approval for capital expenditures for equipment acquisition or improvements to land, buildings, or equipment. (1) For capital equipment or improvements to land, buildings, or equipment that were purchased with grant funds, the governor or SEA must receive prior approval from ED. (2) For capital equipment or improvements to land, buildings, or equipment that were purchased with grant funds, the governor or SEA pass-through agency must provide prior approval to subrecipients." Title 2 U.S. Code of Federal Regulations (CFR) Part 200.439 Equipment and other capital expenditures, states, in part, that: "(b) (1) Capital expenditures for general purpose equipment, buildings, and land are unallowable as direct charges, except with the prior written approval of the Federal awarding agency or pass-through entity. "(b) (2) Capital expenditures for special purpose equipment are allowable as direct costs, provided that items with a unit cost of $5,000 or more have the prior written approval of the Federal awarding agency or pass-through entity. Title 2 U.S. Code of Federal Regulations (CFR) Part 200.313 Equipment states, in part, that: "... (d)(1) Property records must be maintained that include a description of the property, a serial number or other identification number, the source of funding for the property (including the FAIN), who holds title, the acquisition date, and cost of the property, percentage of Federal participation in the project costs for the Federal award under which the property was acquired, the location, use and condition of the property, and any ultimate disposition data including the date of disposal and sales price of the property. (2) A physical inventory of the property must be taken and the results reconciled with the property records at least once every two years. (3) A control system must be developed to ensure adequate safeguards to prevent loss, damage, or theft of the property. Any loss, damage, or theft must be investigated." Title 7 CFR Section 3015.169 states, in part, that: "Recipient procedures for managing equipment shall, as a minimum, meet the following requirements (including replacement equipment) until such actions as transfer, replacement or disposal takes place: (a) Property records shall be maintained accurately. (Subpart D of this part contains retention and access requirements for these records.) The records shall include for each item of equipment the following: (1) A description of the equipment including manufacturer's serial numbers. (2) An identification number, such as the manufacturer's serial number. (3) Identification of the grant under which the recipient acquired the equipment. (4) The information needed to calculate the Federal share of the equipment (see § 3015.172). (5) Acquisition date and unit acquisition cost. (6) Location, use and condition of the equipment and the date the information was reported. (7) All pertinent information on the ultimate transfer, replacement, or disposal of the equipment. ... (b) Every two years, at a minimum, a physical inventory shall be conducted and the results reconciled with the property records to verify the existence, current utilization, and continued need for the equipment. Any discrepancies between quantities determined by the physical inspection and those shown in the accounting records shall be investigated to determine the causes of the differences." QUESTIONED COSTS: Unknown CAUSE: The Board did not have controls that would ensure inventory is properly tracked in accordance with all requirements of the ESSER program. Additionally, controls were not in place to track purchases of equipment. Also, the Board did not have controls in place to ensure that proper written approval was obtained in advance of starting a construction project. EFFECT: The Board did not properly track all equipment on an inventory list. Additionally, documentation was not available to verify compliance with requirements for approval of capital expenditures. This issue contributed to the disclaimer of opinion for the ESSER program. REPEAT FINDING: No RECOMMENDATION: The Upshur County Board of Education should establish and follow policies and procedures that will ensure compliance with requirements of the United States Department of Education's equipment management requirements and the requirements applicable to the ESSER program. VIEWS OF RESPONSIBLE OFFICIALS AND PLANNED CORRECTIVE ACTIONS: The Board will establish procedures that will ensure compliance with requirements of the United States Department of Education's equipment management requirements applicable to the ESSER program.