YELLOW SHEET Office of the State Auditor of Missouri Claire McCaskill

Report No. 2004-30

April 30, 2004

The following problems were discovered as a result of an audit conducted by our office of the Department of Corrections, Northeast Correctional Center.

The Northeast Correctional Center (NECC) opened in 1998.� The facility is located on 92 acres in Bowling Green, Missouri and is a high-medium security facility.� As of June 30, 2003, this facility housed 1,954 offenders.

The NECC receives money from photo sales, dry cleaning, and vendor refunds, which are transmitted to Jefferson City for deposit.� Our review of cash procedures noted the number of photo tickets sold is not reconciled to the actual dollars collected.� Checks are not restrictedly endorsed immediately upon receipt, and the duties of receiving, recording, and transmitting receipts are not adequately segregated. Additionally,� the stamp fund is not maintained at a constant, predetermined balance and the state purchased postage meter is not always being used solely for state business.

The Department of Corrections (DOC) contracts with the St. Charles Community College (SCCC) to provide educational services at NECC.� Contract expenditures totaled approximately $596,000 for the year ended June 30, 2003.� Costs associated with the program are accumulated by the college's business office throughout the month and are billed directly to the DOC-Central Office.� A careful review of supporting documentation is necessary to substantiate the validity, propriety, and reasonableness of amounts billed by the college for monthly program expense.� Because NECC personnel are more familiar with the college personnel and services being provided, it appears essential that these detailed comparisons of billings to supporting documentation be performed at the facility level prior to submitting the billings to DOC-Central Office for payment.

NECC operates a canteen with commissions to be used for recreational, religious, and education services that benefit the offenders.� Our review noted that canteen commissions are being spent in areas other than those listed by state law.

NECC appears to be underutilizing their state-owned vehicles.�� Thirteen of the 32 state owned vehicles were driven less than 15,000 miles during the year ended June 30, 2003, and six of these vehicles were driven less than 5,000 miles during this time period.� Low mileage can often indicate that a facility has too many vehicles or is not using them efficiently.

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