Finding Text
Finding 2023-009 – Special Test & Provisions- Priorities in Use of Resources (Non-compliance)
Information on the Federal Program: Legal Services Corporation Basic Field Grant, Award No.
09.610020
Criteria: 45 CFR 1620 requires a recipient of LSC funding to adopt a written statement of priorities
that determines the cases and matters that can be undertaken. All staff who handle cases or matters,
or make decisions about case acceptance must sign an agreement acknowledging they have read
and understand the priorities and read and understand an emergency situation, and will not undertake
any case or matter that is not a priority or emergency.
Condition/Context: We selected 25 payroll allocations charged to the LSC grant. Of those 25
employees tested, 5 did not have the required signed priority statement on file.
Cause: The Organization did not obtain or retain the required priority statements for employees
involved with cases or other matters.
Effect: The Organization did not document compliance with priorities in use of resources compliance
requirements.Questioned costs: None
Recommendation: We recommend the Organization strengthen its policies and procedures
surrounding employee onboarding to ensure the required statement is signed when a new employee
is hired. In addition, the policy should include periodic review of employee files to ensure all required
documentation is present and up to date.
Views of Responsible Officials: See Management’s View and Corrective Action Plan included at
the end of the report.