Reports
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Wisconsin Legislative Audit Bureau
Wisconsin Economic Development Corporation
In fiscal year 2021-22, The Wisconsin Economic Development Corporation (WEDC) administered 30 economic development programs through which it allocated $58.0 million in tax credits, awarded $91.3 million in grants and $4.8 million in loans, and authorized local governments to issue $53.4 million in bonds. A portion of these funds were provided through the CARES Act and were used to support the state’s response to the pandemic. Through their biennial financial audit and program evaluation of WEDC, the Wisconsin Legislative Audit Burau found that, among other things, five grants totaling $50,000...
Small Business Administration OIG
SBA’s Awards for Staffing Support for COVID-19 Economic Relief Loan Programs
We reviewed the U.S. Small Business Administration’s (SBA) blanket purchase agreement with Highlight Technologies, LLC for loan support services. To meet the increased demand for Coronavirus Disease 2019 (COVID-19) loan program support services, SBA issued labor hour contracts, e.g. call orders, using an existing blanket purchase agreement. However, SBA contracting officials did not always perform adequate price analyses, awarding contracts that were not the best use of taxpayer funds. SBA did not establish adequate guidance to ensure contracting officials consistently followed federal...
Small Business Administration OIG
SBA’s Administrative Process to Address Potentially Fraudulent Restaurant Revitalization Fund Awards
We inspected the U.S. Small Business Administration’s (SBA) administrative process used to review potentially fraudulent Restaurant Revitalization Fund (RRF) applications and recover funds. Program officials designed the RRF application validation and approval processes using the Government Accountability Office’s A Framework for Managing Fraud Risks in Federal Programs. However, 3,790 applications submitted through a point-of-sale partner were processed without verifying gross sales, a key control designed to prevent ineligible entities from receiving awards. As a result, SBA’s RRF...
Small Business Administration OIG
COVID-19 Pandemic EIDL and PPP Loan Fraud Landscape
The U.S. Small Business Administration (SBA) Office of Inspector General (OIG) conducted this review to provide a comprehensive estimate of the potential fraud in the U.S. Small Business Administration’s (SBA) pandemic assistance loan programs. Over the course of the Coronavirus Disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic, SBA disbursed approximately $1.2 trillion of COVID-19 Economic Injury Disaster Loan (EIDL) and Paycheck Protection Program (PPP) funds. In the rush to swiftly disburse COVID-19 EIDL and PPP funds, SBA calibrated its internal controls. The agency weakened or removed the controls...
Wisconsin Legislative Audit Bureau
Department of Workforce Development: Unemployment Reserve Fund (FY 2020-21 and FY 2021-22)
As part of our financial statements audit of the Unemployment Reserve Fund, which accounts for Wisconsin’s Unemployment Insurance program paid to eligible individuals, we provided an unmodified opinion on the Fund’s financial statements and related notes as of and for the years ended June 30, 2022, and June 30, 2021. We found the assets of the Reserve Fund exceeded liabilities at the close of fiscal year (FY) 2021-22 by almost $1.4 billion. Except for $19.2 million in certain federal allocations, the Fund’s net position, if positive, can be used only to pay unemployment benefits to eligible...