LESLIE COUNTY FISCAL COURTLocal Government

The Leslie County Fiscal Court Failed To Monitor Prevailing Wage Compliance As Required By The FEMA-State Agreement Federal Program: ALN 97.036 ? Disaster Grants ? Public Assistance (Presidentially Declared Disasters) Award Number and Year: FEMA-4428DRKYP00000001 2019; FEMA-4540DRKYP00000001 2020; FEMA-4358DRKYP000000012. Name of Federal Agency: U.S. Department of Homeland Security, Federal Emergency Management Administration (FEMA) Pass-Thru Agency: Commonwealth of Kentucky Department of Military Affairs, Kentucky Division of Emergency Management Compliance Requirements: Special Tests and Provisions Type of Finding: Significant Deficiency; Noncompliance of Major Program Amount of Questioned Costs: None Opinion Modification (if applicable): Disclaimer COVID Related: No The Leslie County Fiscal Court failed to implement adequate monitoring controls over the DR 4428, DR 4540, and DR 4358 FEMA projects. The fiscal court has assigned a grant administrator to oversee the planning, design, inspection services, environmental services, and administration for the FEMA projects. The fiscal court failed to monitor whether the contractors paid laborers at prevailing wages determined by the U.S. Secretary of Labor. When work was performed on the contracts, the fiscal court did not ensure that the contractors submitted weekly a copy of the payroll and a statement of compliance to the fiscal court. The grant administrator stated the reason the fiscal court was not monitoring the payroll for the Davis Bacon Act requirement was the state grant agreements did not require the payroll documentation within the reimbursement requests. When grantees do not implement internal controls to properly oversee administration of federal programs, they cannot ensure they are adhering to federal grant compliance requirements. This deficiency could result in noncompliance with the federal grant agreements and affect the fiscal court?s ability to receive federal funds in the future. The FEMA grant agreements with the Commonwealth of Kentucky require compliance with Davis Bacon Act. Per the grant agreement, ?[t]he Davis-Bacon Act requires contractors pay laborers and mechanics at prevailing wages determined by the Secretary of Labor, and to make payment at least once per week. The non-federal entity must place a copy of the current prevailing wage determination issued by the Department of Labor in each solicitation. The decision to award a contract or subcontract must be conditioned upon the acceptance of the wage determination. The non-federal entity must report all suspected or reported violations to the federal awarding agency.? 2 CFR 200.303 states in part: "The non-Federal entity must: (a) Establish and maintain effective internal control over the Federal award that provides reasonable assurance that the non-Federal entity is managing the Federal award in compliance with Federal statutes, regulations, and the terms and conditions of the Federal award.? No questioned costs were noted. This is not a repeat finding. We recommend the fiscal court implement adequate monitoring controls and obtain certified payroll records to ensure compliance with the Davis Bacon Act compliance requirement.

GSA_MIGRATION