Reports

Department of Housing and Urban Development OIG

Review of Drawdown Levels and Publicly Available Information on the Office of Native American Programs’ CARES Act and ARP Act Block Grants

We audited the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD), Office of Native American Programs’ (ONAP) Coronavirus Aid, Relief, and Economic Security (CARES) Act and American Rescue Plan (ARP) Act to identify drawdown levels for its block grant programs and assessed information ONAP made publicly available. As of October 4, 2022, grantees had drawn $231.6 million of the $300 million in CARES Act block grant funds and $135.8 million of the $735 million in ARP Act block grant funds. A total of $19.1 million of the appropriated funds was not authorized for access to grantees because...

Full Details: Oversight.gov Report Page

Department of Education OIG

University of Cincinnati’s Use of Higher Education Emergency Relief Fund Student Aid and Institutional Grants

Our objective was to determine whether the University of Cincinnati (University) used the Student Aid (Assistance Listing Number (ALN) 84.425E) and Institutional (ALN 84.425F) portions of its Higher Education Emergency Relief Fund (HEERF) funds for allowable and intended purposes. The University spent $109.9 million (83 percent) of its total HEERF allocation of $132.8 million as of September 30, 2021. The University generally used the Student Aid ($42.1 million) and Institutional ($67.8 million) portions of its HEERF grant funds for allowable and intended purposes but needs to strengthen its...

Full Details: Oversight.gov Report Page

Audit | 1/17/2023

1.1 - Open

Require the University of Cincinnati to develop and implement a review process to prevent or detect payment errors when awarding emergency financial aid grants to students, including written policies and procedures detailing how the reviews shall be conducted and the results documented, in accordance with 2 C.F.R. section 200.303.

1.2 - Open

Require the University of Cincinnati to develop and implement written policies, procedures, and management review to ensure that its award determinations, eligibility criteria, and management decisions related to eligibility for its emergency financial aid grants to students are adequately documented and supported at the time award decisions are made, in accordance with 2 C.F.R. section 200.302(b)(3).

1.3 - Open

Require the University of Cincinnati to carefully document how its student aid eligibility criteria prioritized and continues to prioritize students with exceptional need throughout the HEERF grant performance period.

2.1 - Open

Require the University of Cincinnati to develop and implement written policies and procedures, including procedures that would identify and prevent improper revenue recognition and duplicate charges, to ensure that future calculations for charging lost revenue to its HEERF Institutional grant are reviewed for accuracy and consistency with its financial reporting policies and procedures.

2.2 - Open

Determine whether the University of Cincinnati implemented appropriate corrective actions to resolve the $797,965 in unsupported lost revenue costs it charged to its HEERF Institutional grant; and, if the corrective actions are inappropriate, require the University to either return the funds to the Department or reallocate the funds for allowable expenditures.

2.3 - Open

Determine whether the $1,916,041 that the University of Cincinnati charged to its HEERF Institutional grant for noncompetitive procurements was reasonable when compared to the costs of suitable alternatives; and, if the charges were inappropriate, require the University to either return the funds to the Department or reallocate the funds for allowable expenditures.

2.4 - Open

Require the University of Cincinnati to develop and implement written policies and procedures to ensure that procurements charged to its HEERF Institutional grant are in accordance with applicable Federal requirements; and it consistently follows its procurement policies and procedures, including maintaining sufficient documentation to support its rationale for noncompetitive procurements and the basis for and reasonableness of the contract price.

3.1 - Open

Require the University of Cincinnati to incorporate in its policies and procedures and implement the cash management requirements for minimizing the time between drawing down and disbursing Federal grant funds, and remitting interest earned in excess of $500 in accordance with 2 C.F.R. section 200.305(b).

3.2 - Open

Require the University of Cincinnati to remit $35,439 based on the TIP’s average rate of return, less no more than $320 ($500 minus the $180 already retained) for administrative expenses if applicable; and remit the actual amount of earned interest on any future advances of Federal funds, in accordance with 2 C.F.R. section 200.305(b)(9).

4.1 - Open

Require the University of Cincinnati to develop and implement written policies and procedures that incorporate the HEERF program’s reporting requirements and ensure that the expenditures in its quarterly HEERF Institutional expenditure reports are accurate and reported in the appropriate expenditure category.

Election Assistance Commission OIG

Audit of the Help America Vote Act Grants Awarded to the State of California

EAC OIG, through the independent public accounting firm of McBride, Lock & Associates, LLC, audited funds received by the State of California under the Help America Vote Act, including state matching funds and interest earned, totaling $216.3 million. This included Election Security, reissued Section 101, reissued Section 251, and Coronavirus Aid, Relief, and Economic Security Act grants.

Full Details: Oversight.gov Report Page

Audit | 10/04/2022

1 - Closed

We recommend that the EAC require the Office perform a reconciliation of the grant activity for the Election Security, Section 251 reissued, Section 101 reissued, and CARES Act funds and ensure that all expenditures are fully disclosed, and file amended FFRs, as applicable. If the Office determines that it is unable to perform the reconciliation of the grant activity, obtain financial services to support the completion of the reconciliation.

2 - Closed

We recommend that the EAC require the Office implement procedures and training to properly fill out the required Federal Financial Reports, which reflect the uses of award funds and the interest and program income generated from those funds for all HAVA grants.

3 - Closed

We recommend that the EAC require the Office transfer into the election fund $51,012 and any related fringe benefits and indirect costs for the unsupported payroll costs cited above.

4 - Closed

We recommend that the EAC require the Office implement procedures or provide additional training to ensure that payroll costs are adequately supported with appropriate signature approvals, pay rates, and timesheets when being allocated to the HAVA grants.

5 - Closed

We recommend that the EAC require the Office perform detailed testing on the $180,350 of additional wages selected for substantive testing to determine what amount, if any, remains unsupported.

6 - Closed

We recommend that the EAC work with the Office to resolve the one remaining unsupported County reimbursement.

7 - Closed

We recommend that the EAC require the Office to transfer into the election fund any amount which remains unsupported.

8 - Closed

We recommend that the EAC require the Office to develop and implement policies and procedures and provide training to ensure adequate documentation is maintained to support the allowability of expenditures charged to the HAVA grant.

Small Business Administration OIG

SBA's Guaranty Purchases for Paycheck Protection Program Loans

The Office of Inspector General (OIG) is issuing this management advisory to express concerns regarding the U.S. Small Business Administration’s (SBA) decision to end collections on purchased Paycheck Protection Program (PPP) loans with an outstanding balance of $100,000 or less. In anticipation of a significant number of delinquent PPP loans that lenders will submit for guaranty purchase, we began reviewing SBA’s process for approving PPP guaranty purchases. During our review, we identified concerns with SBA’s decision to end collections on these loans and found that expedited management...

Full Details: Oversight.gov Report Page

Review | 9/30/2022

Small Business Administration OIG

Follow-up Inspection of SBA’s Internal Controls to Prevent COVID-19 EIDLs to Ineligible Applicants

This report presents the results of our follow-up inspection to assess the effectiveness of the U.S. Small Business Administration’s (SBA) enhanced internal controls to prevent Coronavirus Disease 2019 (COVID-19) Economic Injury Disaster Loans (EIDL) to ineligible applicants. The Coronavirus Aid, Relief, and Economic Security (CARES) Act prohibited the agency from requiring tax return transcripts to prove eligibility. Congress eliminated this restriction 9 months later with the Consolidated Appropriations Act, 2021. We found SBA did not implement the tax transcript requirement in a timely...

Full Details: Oversight.gov Report Page

Inspection / Evaluation | 9/29/2022

Department of Housing and Urban Development OIG

Fraud Risk Inventory for the Tenant- and Project-Based Rental Assistance, HOME, and Operating Fund Programs’ CARES and ARP Act Funds

In coordination with the Pandemic Response Accountability Committee, we conducted an audit to identify potential fraud schemes that could affect HUD’s pandemic funds. We reviewed the funds appropriated by the Coronavirus Aid, Relief, and Economic Security (CARES) Act and the American Rescue Plan (ARP) Act for the Tenant-Based Rental Assistance (TBRA), Project-Based Rental Assistance (PBRA), HOME Investment Partnerships, and Public Housing Operating Fund programs to identify the fraud risks and potential fraud schemes that they face while delivering services to the public. Our objective was to...

Full Details: Oversight.gov Report Page

Department of Housing and Urban Development OIG

Community Development Block Grant CARES Act Implementation Challenges

We audited the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development’s (HUD) Community Development Block Grant Coronavirus Aid, Relief, and Economic Security (CARES) Act program. Our audit objective was to determine what challenges grantees faced in using program funds for activities that prepare for, prevent, or respond to the coronavirus and its impact. We used a survey questionnaire to gather feedback and insight directly from 1,047 program grantees. As of July 30, 2022, grantees had drawn more than $1.79 billion, or 36 percent, of the $4.99 billion in program funds. We performed this audit to...

Full Details: Oversight.gov Report Page

Department of Education OIG

The Department’s Use of Pandemic Assistance Program Administration Funds

The objective of our review was to determine the Department’s progress on spending program administration funds authorized by coronavirus response and relief laws, including how those funds have been used to date, and the Department’s plans for using remaining funds. We found that the Department has allocated nearly 100 percent2 of its pandemic assistance program administration funds and that the Department is on track to obligate all of its program administration funds prior to the dates the funds are set to expire. The Department allocated the funds to 11 principal offices and as of February...

Full Details: Oversight.gov Report Page

Small Business Administration OIG

COVID-19 and Disaster Assistance Information Systems Security Controls

This report presents the results of our audit to determine whether the U.S. Small Business Administration (SBA) maintained effective management control activities and monitoring of the design and implementation of third-party operated SBA systems. SBA needed information technology systems from third-party service providers that could improve the system efficiency and productivity to process high transaction volumes, transmit data between other information systems, and safeguard the integrity and confidentiality of the personally identifiable information processed by the programs. We found the...

Full Details: Oversight.gov Report Page

Audit | 9/27/2022

1 - Open

Ensure the existing SBA System Development Methodology is updated to include supply chain risk-management practices as required by OMB Circular A-130 and high-value asset system designation guidance. Also, ensure high-value asset system risks are incorporated into the enterprise risk management framework, as recommended by OMB M-19-03 and SBA SOP 90 47 6.

10 - Open

Implement an automated process to document and monitor system changes as recommended by NIST SP 800-53 Rev. 5.

2 - Open

Communicate and enforce the SBA System Development Methodology in which a traceability matrix is used to ensure that system requirements can be tested and demonstrated in the operational system. Ensure all requirements are aligned with the contractual acceptance criteria.

3 - Open

Implement in updated agency guidance, the requirements of OMB Circular No. A-123 that stipulate a SOC 1 Type 2 report is needed for all new and existing financial systems. This guidance should also require confirmation at least annually that the controls are functioning as designed.

4 - Closed

Enforce the requirement to establish and implement internal controls to ensure appropriate program officials perform and document contract reviews to ensure that information security is appropriately addressed in the contracting language, as required by OMB Circular A-130 and SBA SOP 90 47 6.

5 - Open

In conjunction with the Enterprise Risk Management Board, implement enterprise-wide privacy risk mitigation practices that can be assimilated into new and existing system program designs.

6 - Open

Complete an initial assessment and authorization for each information system and all agency-designated common controls before operation.

7 - Open

Transition information systems and common controls to an ongoing authorization process (when eligible for such a process) with the formal approval of the respective authorizing officials or reauthorize information systems and common controls as needed, on a time or event-driven basis in accordance with agency risk tolerance, as required by OMB Circular No. A-130 and SOP 90 47 6.

8 - Open

Review and update POA&Ms at least quarterly as required by SOP 90 47 6.

9 - Closed

Ensure data-sharing agreements are reviewed annually as required by SBA SOP 90 47 6.

Department of Education OIG

The Department’s Use of Pandemic Assistance Program Administration Funds

We found that the Department has allocated nearly 100 percent of its pandemic assistance program administration funds and that the Department is on track to obligate all of its program administration funds prior to the dates the funds are set to expire. The Department allocated the funds to 11 principal offices and as of February 1, 2022, these principal offices have obligated or committed approximately $19.4 million (51 percent) of the $38 million in total pandemic assistance program administration funds.

Full Details: Oversight.gov Report Page

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Report Type

Report Category

Submitting Agency

State/Local Agency

State (State and Local Reports)

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Agency Reviewed

Related Organizations

Management Challenges

Any Recommendations

Any Open Recommendations

Reports

Review of Drawdown Levels and Publicly Available Information on the Office of Native American Programs’ CARES Act and ARP Act Block Grants

University of Cincinnati’s Use of Higher Education Emergency Relief Fund Student Aid and Institutional Grants

Audit of the Help America Vote Act Grants Awarded to the State of California

SBA's Guaranty Purchases for Paycheck Protection Program Loans

Follow-up Inspection of SBA’s Internal Controls to Prevent COVID-19 EIDLs to Ineligible Applicants

Fraud Risk Inventory for the Tenant- and Project-Based Rental Assistance, HOME, and Operating Fund Programs’ CARES and ARP Act Funds

Community Development Block Grant CARES Act Implementation Challenges

The Department’s Use of Pandemic Assistance Program Administration Funds

COVID-19 and Disaster Assistance Information Systems Security Controls

The Department’s Use of Pandemic Assistance Program Administration Funds

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