Wildlife Management Institute, Inc.

Criteria: Compensation and benefit charges to grant programs are to be based on amounts paid to or on behalf of each employee. Statement of Condition: We tested 100% of payroll expenditures for the Regional Conservation Partnership Program. We noted that the Institute overcharged grant program #68-3D47-15-6 a total of $17,221 in costs related to payroll and indirect charges for the year ended March 31, 2020. Cause and Effect: The Institute uses excel to calculate and allocate payroll expense to its grant programs. Indirect costs are calculated based on the payroll allocation. An error in this excel spreadsheet for one employee resulted in the grant being overcharged. Questioned Costs: None over the reportable threshold. Recommendation: Procedures should be established to ensure that the Institute reviews the calculations in the payroll spreadsheet prior to charging payroll and indirect costs to grant programs.

Within the audit period, Wildlife Management Institute, Inc. management reviewed, and approved activity reports submitted by employees that segregated reimbursable personnel expense by grant. One accountant then transcribed the monthly activity reports, calculated the approximate hourly rate, and entered the resulting personnel and fringe expense into the Wildlife Management Institute, Inc. accounting system. Testing of the date input was not performed. The accountant inadvertently utilized the wrong data resulting in a misrepresentation of one employee?s hourly rate leading to an overbilling of the Regional Conservation Partnership Program. Beginning the new fiscal year, Wildlife Management Institute, Inc. has instructed our independent accounting firm to perform quality checks prior to entering into accounting system with all calculations reviewed independently by a second accountant. Wildlife Management Institute, Inc. will also be randomly sampling personnel expenses as an additional check on accuracy.

Criteria: Compensation and benefit charges to grant programs are to be based on amounts paid to or on behalf of each employee. Statement of Condition: We tested 100% of payroll expenditures for the Cooperative Landscape Conservation program. We noted that the Institute overcharged grant program #F16AC00884 a total of $623 in costs related to payroll for the year ended March 31, 2020. The Institute corrected the overcharge by preparing a journal entry and moving the cost to a non-federal source. Cause and Effect: The Institute uses excel to calculate and allocate payroll expense to its grant programs. An error in this excel spreadsheet for one employee resulted in the grant being overcharged. Questioned Costs: None, the error was corrected. Recommendation: Procedures should be established to ensure that the Institute reviews the calculations in the payroll spreadsheet prior to charging payroll costs to grant programs.

Within the audit period, Wildlife Management Institute, Inc. management reviewed, and approved activity reports submitted by employees that segregated reimbursable personnel expense by grant. One accountant then transcribed the monthly activity reports, calculated the appropriate hourly rate, and entered the resulting personnel and fringe expense into the Wildlife Management Institute, Inc. accounting system. Testing of the date input was not performed. The accountant inadvertently utilized the wrong data resulting in a misrepresentation of one employee?s hourly rate leading to an overbilling of the Cooperative Landscape Conservation Program. Beginning with the new fiscal year, Wildlife Management Institute, Inc. has instructed our independent accounting firm to perform quality checks prior to entering into accounting system with all calculations reviewed independently by a second account. Wildlife Management Institute, Inc. will also be randomly sampling personnel expense as an additional check on accuracy.

Note: NFWF-USFWS Conservation Program was not a major program at March 31, 2020. However, during the review of payroll expenditures for the major program, procedures detected an audit finding for this nonmajor program as detailed below. Criteria: Compensation and benefit charges to grant programs are to be based on amounts paid to or on behalf of each employee Statement of Condition: We noted that the Institute overcharged a non-major grant program, grant #0403.18.063028, a total of $52,203 in costs related to payroll and indirect charges for the year ended March 31, 2020. Cause and Effect: The Institute uses excel to calculate and allocate payroll expense to its grant programs. Indirect costs are calculated based on the payroll allocation. An error in this excel spreadsheet for one employee resulted in the grant being overcharged. Questioned Costs: $52,203 Recommendation: Procedures should be established to ensure that the Institute reviews the calculations in the payroll spreadsheet prior to charging payroll and indirect costs to grant programs.

Within the audit period, Wildlife Management Institute, Inc. management reviewed, and approved activity reports submitted by employees that segregated reimbursable personnel expense by grant. One accountant then transcribed the monthly activity reports, calculated the appropriate hourly rate, and entered the resulting personnel and fringe expense into the Wildlife Management Institute, Inc. accounting system. Testing of the date input was not performed. The accountant inadvertently utilized the wrong data resulting in a misrepresentation of one employee?s hourly rate leading to an overbilling of the NFWF/USFWS Conservation Partnership Program. Beginning with the new fiscal year, Wildlife Management Institute, Inc. has instructed our independent account firm to perform quality checks prior to entering into accounting system with all calculations reviewed independently by a second account. Wildlife Management Institute, Inc. will also be randomly sampling personnel expenses as an additional check on accuracy.