Meridian Community Unit School District No. 101Local Government

Criteria: For internal controls over reporting, the daily meal counts submitted to the Illinois State Board of Education should be reviewed by a responsible official for accuracy prior to submission. Condition: Meal counts are submitted to the Illinois State Board of Education without review for accuracy by a responsible official. Questioned Costs: None. Context: Expenditures from the Child Nutrition Cluster totaled $410,219 during the fiscal year ended June 30, 2025. Effect: Increased risk that inaccurate counts could be submitted to the Illinois State Board of Education, leading to inaccurate grant funds received. Cause: The Food Service Director was unaware that a responsible official should be reviewing the meal count reports before submission to ensure accuracy. Recommendtion: We recommend the District expand their internal controls to require a responsible official to review the daily meal count reports for accuracy prior to submission of the reports to the Illinois State Board of Education. Management's Response: Daily meal counts will be reviewed by administration on a monthly basis.

Criteria: For internal controls over reporting, the daily meal counts submitted to the Illinois State Board of Education should be reviewed by a responsible official for accuracy prior to submission. Condition: Meal counts are submitted to the Illinois State Board of Education without review for accuracy by a responsible official. Questioned Costs: None. Context: Expenditures from the Child Nutrition Cluster totaled $480,011 during the fiscal year ended June 30, 2024. Effect: Increased risk that inaccurate counts could be submitted to the Illinois State Board of Education leading to inaccurate grant funds received. Cause: The Food Service Director was unaware that a responsible official should be reviewing the meal count reports before submission to ensure accuracy. Recommendation: We recommend the District expand their internal controls to require a responsible official to review the daily meal count reports for accuracy prior to submission of the reports to the Illinois State Board of Education. Management's Response: Daily meal counts will be rectified by administration on a monthly basis.

Finding: 2021-005 Criteria: According to 7 CFR Section 210.14(a), a school food authority shall maintain a nonprofit school food service. In addition, 7 CFR Section 210.14(b) states that the school food service authority shall limit its net cash resources to an amount that does not exceed three months' average expenditures for its nonprofit school food service. Condition: The District has food service net cash resources in excess of the three month average expenditure carryover limit. Questioned Costs: None Context: The District has net cash resources of $96,023, and the three month average expenditures is $84,912, resulting in excess net cash resources of $11,111. Effect: The District has earned $11,111 in its food service program in excess of what is allowed. Cause: The District was previously unaware of the requirements, and was not charging all of the expenditures allowable to operate the food service program to the program. Recommendation: We recommend that the District monitor the profit made by the food service program. All allowable expenditures used to operate the program should be charged to the program. In addition, the District needs to adopt a plan to spend the accumulated cash reserves. Management's response: The cafeteria will be billed indirect cost items based on the rate provided by the Illinois State Board of Education. The cafeteria will also make a plan to spend the carryover amount.

Criteria: According to 7 CFR Section 210.14(a), a school food authority shall maintain a nonprofit school food service. In addition 7 CFR Section 210.14(b) states that the school food service authority shall limit its net cash resources to an amount that does not exceed three months' average expenditures for its nonprofit school food service. Condition: The District has food service net cash resources in excess of the three month average expenditure carryover limit. Questioned Costs: None. Context: The District has net cash resources of $176,719, and the three month average expenditures is $119,907, resulting in excess net cash resources of $56,812. Effect: The District has earned $56,812 in its food service program in excess of what is allowed. Cause: The District was previously unaware of the requirements, and was not charging all of the expenditures allowable to operate the food service program to the program. Recommendation: We recommend that the District monitor the profit made by the food service program. All allowable expenditures used to operate the program should be charged to the program. In addition, the District needs to adopt a plan to spend the accumulated cash reserves. Management's Response: The cafeteria will be billed such items as utilities to eliminate the surplus.

Criteria: Allowable costs are those necessary and reasonable for the performance and administration with federal grants. Condition: Two employees' salaries and benefits were charged to Title I, but their semi-annual certifications stated their duties performed were for a different program. Questioned Costs: $58,220. This represents the costs paid to the employees. This condition was not detected with statistical sampling. Context: Grant expenditures totaled $443,991. Effect: Allowable expenditures were overstated by $58,220. Cause: The person overseeing the time and effort logs was unaware that these people should have been charged to Title I. Recommendation: We recommend that the actual salaries charged to Title I be paid in accordance with the amount of time charged to the individual program according to the time and effort log. Management's Response: The costs were approved correctly in the grant. The time-sheers needed to be labeled correctly.

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