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An Audit: | |
State of Wisconsin Single Audit 2009-10 |
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March 2011 | |
Report Highlights | |
In fiscal year
ARRA requirements place an increased emphasis on accountability
and transparency in the administration of federal funds, and our
independent audit of compliance with federal grant requirements is an
important component of the State’s oversight efforts. To meet federal
audit requirements, including specific requirements associated with
ARRA funding, our audit efforts increased significantly for As part of the single audit, we evaluate state agencies’ internal controls and test for compliance with federal grant requirements. We also follow up on findings included in our prior single audit report to determine whether state agencies appropriately implemented our recommendations. Overall, state agencies have complied with federal grant requirements and have taken steps to address our findings from previous years.
Our
Federal Assistance
Six state agencies—the departments
of Health Services (DHS), Workforce
Development (DWD), Public Instruction
(DPI), Transportation (DOT),
and Children and Families (DCF), as
well as UW System—administered
Wisconsin’s federal assistance,
including ARRA funding, consisted
of
Of the
Of the
Federal financial assistance for DOT
totaled Most of the federal funding administered by UW System supported student financial aid or research and development grants. DPI provided the majority of its federal funding to local school districts and other entities that provide education and nutrition programs for children, while DCF used its federal funding primarily to support adoption and foster care services, Wisconsin Shares, and Wisconsin Works.
ARRA Funding
Four programs accounted for
Adoption Assistance
In We reviewed 90 cases for compliance with program rules, which do not allow federally reimbursed payments for adoption assistance to exceed amounts the federal government would have paid for foster care. In 73 of those cases, foster care payments were increased shortly before the child’s adoption. However, in the majority of those cases the increased amounts were not eligible for reimbursement under federal program rules. We therefore questioned $122,192 that DCF charged the federal government in the cases we reviewed. Because of the significance of this concern, we qualified our opinion on the State’s compliance with federal requirements for the Adoption Assistance program.
Unemployment Benefit Overpayments
DWD’s computer system was not programmed to identify improper claims for a $25 weekly unemployment benefit supplement that was funded under ARRA and available between February 22, 2009, and December 11, 2010.
At our request, DWD generated
a report that identified the overpayments
for the entire period that
the supplement was available.
From that report, we determined
that nearly
Inappropriate Payments to Inmates
In prior audits, we recommended that both DWD and DHS take steps to identify and recover any unemployment or food stamp benefits that inmates may have inappropriately sought and received. As part of this audit, we matched data for recipients of Unemployment Insurance and FoodShare program benefits with Department of Corrections’ data on incarcerated individuals. We identified 59 individuals who appear to have inappropriately received Unemployment Insurance program benefits while incarcerated. DWD confirmed that overpayments of $221,889 were made to 37 of these individuals, and it continues to investigate the others. We also identified 33 incarcerated individuals who are likely to have either improperly received FoodShare program benefits themselves or to have increased the benefits available to households that improperly claimed them as members. We reviewed case records for ten of these individuals and determined that $21,838 in benefits had been inappropriately used during our audit period. DHS is investigating the remaining cases.
TANF Maintenance of Effort
DCF received
It is unclear whether pre-kindergarten
educational expenditures can be
considered qualified expenditures
for TANF maintenance of effort
purposes. Therefore, we recommend
DCF work with the federal government
to determine whether the State
appropriately claimed
Construction Materials Testing
For several years, we have raised concerns about DOT’s efforts to ensure that all materials used in federally funded highways and bridges meet minimum specifications. DOT continues to make progress in addressing our concerns by reducing deficiencies both in documentation and in the completion of testing. However, pavement in 12 of the 34 asphalt projects we reviewed as part of a March 2011 program evaluation of DOT’s contractor warranty program, which is a subset of its quality assurance program, did not meet contractually required performance standards during warranty periods.
Internal Service Fund Lapses
The Department of Administration (DOA) continues to lapse funds from appropriations for centralized services—such as computer processing, telecommunications, and financial and procurement services—to the State’s General Fund. In a January 2011 letter to the Joint Legislative Audit Committee, we questioned the appropriateness of lapses from certain appropriations with negative cash balances, including some for internal service funds.
DOA has indicated that those
lapses will be reversed. However,
Recommendations
Our report includes 29 recommendations related to state agencies’ administration of federal grant programs, 5 internal control concerns related to our audit of the State’s financial statements, and 1 internal control concern related to both federal grant program administration and the State’s financial statements. Agency responses and corrective action plans are also included in our report. |
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