YELLOW SHEET
Office of the State Auditor of Missouri
Claire McCaskill
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YELLOW SHEET Office of the State Auditor of Missouri |
May 30, 2003
Report No. 2003-46
The United States Congress passed the Single Audit Act of 1996 to establish uniform requirements for audits of federal awards administered by states, local governments, and non-profit organizations.� The Single Audit includes the federal awards expended by all state agencies, except for the public universities and various financing authorities which provide their financial information directly to the federal government.� State agencies expended $7.2 billion of federal grant funds during the year ended June 30, 2002. �Expenditures of federal awards have increased significantly over the past five years.� Although all sixteen state departments and other state offices expended federal awards, six state departments expended the bulk of the federal awards (95 percent).� These six departments are: Social Services, Labor and Industrial Relations, Transportation, Elementary and Secondary Education, Health and Senior Services, and Economic Development.
Overall, the state expended federal awards in 275 different programs.
Expenditures reported on the original schedule of expenditures of federal awards prepared by the Department of Health and Senior Services (DHSS) were understated by approximately $38 million.� Many of the understatements resulted from the incorrect compilations of data reported on the department's internal accounting system. �In addition, the DHSS does not reconcile its internal accounting system to the statewide accounting system (SAM II).� (page 31)
On July 19, 2002, the Missouri State Auditor's Office issued audit report No. 2002-52, Child Care Facilities Inspections and Licensing.� The audit noted several weaknesses in child care licensing laws and regulations, and DHSS procedures for ensuring facilities comply with these requirements.� These weaknesses include: not proactively identifying providers who are operating� without a license nor determining how many children may be in the care of such providers, and not establishing standard guidelines for determining the severity of rule violations and effectively assessing penalties or revoking child care licenses.� (page 32)
The Department of Labor and Industrial Relations, Division of Employment Security does not have adequate procedures to ensure that individuals (claimants) receiving unemployment benefits meet the eligibility requirement of conducting weekly work search contacts.� (page 36)
State and federal regulations require the Department of Social Services (DSS) conduct a redetermination of eligibility at least every 12 months for adults and children receiving� Medicaid and State Children's Health Insurance Program benefits. �However, the DSS does not have adequate procedures to ensure it performs eligibility redeterminations in accordance with state and federal regulations.
Similar conditions were noted in our prior report.� To ensure all recipients remain eligible for benefits, the eligibility status of all recipients should be reviewed annually.��� (page 40)
Weaknesses in DSS disbursement procedures have allowed duplicate payments to occur.� DSS county offices receive invoices and initiate payments for day care services, treatment services, and other contracted services for clients.� During our review of vendor refunds for the two years ending June 30, 2002, we identified approximately $348,000 of refunds received by the DSS for duplicate payments, including approximately $293,000 received from one vendor. �We also found vendor refunds were not always remitted to the Division of Budget and Finance for deposit on a timely basis.� �(page 43)