Finding Text
U.S. Department of Justice
Crime Victim Assistance – Assistance #16.575
#2023-008 – Major Federal Award Finding – Reporting
Nature of Finding: Compliance Finding Reporting and Material Weakness in Internal Controls over Compliance
This is a repeat of prior year finding #2022-006.
Criteria/Condition: Federal regulations 2 CFR 200.328 - 200.329 provide that required reporting under the federal program must be completed timely and accurately. The federal award agreement includes specific report filing due dates. Segregation of duties is also a key element of internal controls, including controls over compliance, and involves processes whereby the activities of one employee are reviewed or checked by the activities of another individual, and avoids one employee having the ability to perform a transaction or process from beginning to end. We noted during testing of sixteen different required reports that five of these reports tested were not filed in a timely manner. There were also no review procedures in place surrounding these reports.
Cause/Context: Controls were not in place to ensure timely reporting. Only one individual was involved in the reporting process for the reports. A total of five of the reports tested were submitted more than ten days late.
Effect: A lack of controls could result in late or failed reporting.
Recommendation: We recommend the Organization establish procedures and controls to ensure financial and performance reports are filed timely.
Views of Responsible Officials and Planned Corrective Actions:
The Organization will ensure that all federal award reports are filed in a timely manner. The Organization is in the process of posting a new position, Director of Grants and Compliance. The individual in this new role will be responsible for tracking report due dates and working with the individuals responsible for the content of these reports to ensure the information is accurate and on time. In situations where the Director of Grants and Compliance is responsible for gathering the data for required reporting, the data will be reviewed by either the CFO or CEO prior to submission of the report.