Kettle Falls School District No. 212Local Government

The District did not have adequate internal controls for ensuring compliance with wage rate requirements. Assistance Listing Number and Title: 84.425, COVID ? 19 Education Stabilization Fund Federal Grantor Name: U.S. Department of Education Federal Award/Contract Number: N/A Pass-through Entity Name: Office of Superintendent of Public Instruction Pass-through Award/Contract Number: COVID-19, 84.425D, 0120456 COVID-19, 84.425U, 0137144 COVID-19, 84.425U, 0138126 COVID-19, 84.425U, 0712066 Known Questioned Cost Amount: $0 Background The objectives of the Education Stabilization Fund (ESF) program are to prevent, prepare for and respond to the COVID-19 pandemic. In fiscal year 2022, the District expended a total of $888,146 of its ESF awards. This included $54,699 in the Elementary and Secondary School Emergency Relief Fund (ESSER II) subprogram (84.425D), and $833,447 in the American Rescue Plan Elementary and Secondary School Emergency Relief (ARP ESSER/ESSER III) subprogram (84.425U). Federal regulations require recipients to establish and maintain internal controls that ensure compliance with program requirements. These controls include understanding grant requirements and monitoring the effectiveness of established controls. Under federal wage rate requirements, also known as the Davis-Bacon Act, contractors and subcontractors that work on projects financed with more than $2,000 of federal money must pay laborers and mechanics wage rates that the U.S. Department of Labor considers being similar to what local workers have been paid for similar projects. For construction contracts subject to these wage rate requirements, the District must include a provision that the contractor and subcontractor comply with those requirements and the Department of Labor?s regulations. This includes a requirement for the contractor and its subcontractor to submit to the District weekly, for each week in which any contract work is performed, certified payroll reports. These reports must include a copy of the payroll and a signed statement of compliance. Description of Condition During the 2021-22 school year, the District spent $313,124 from its ESSER III award to pay one contractor and its subcontractor to replace the elementary school?s roof. This project was part of the District?s school facility capital improvement efforts to prevent the spread of COVID-19 by improving the structure of the elementary school building. During the audit period, the District awarded and entered into a contract with one contractor. The District was responsible for collecting weekly certified payroll reports from the contractor and subcontractor. Our audit found the District did not have adequate internal controls for ensuring compliance with federal prevailing wage rate requirements. Specifically, the District did not: ? Include the required prevailing wage rate clauses in the contract established with its contractor ? Collect weekly certified payroll reports from the contractor and its subcontractor to confirm they paid laborers proper prevailing wages We consider these deficiencies in internal controls to be a material weakness, which led to material noncompliance. The issue was not reported as a finding in the prior audit. Cause of Condition The District does not normally use federal funds on public works projects, so management and staff overlooked the federal prevailing wage requirements for the construction project. Additionally, management did not dedicate the necessary resources to ensure staff were aware of and understood the requirements. Effect of Condition Without adequate internal controls that ensure it includes the prevailing wage rate clauses in its contract and collects all weekly certified payroll reports, the District cannot demonstrate it complied with federal wage rate requirements. The District could also be liable for paying any additional wages if the contractor and subcontractor did not pay prevailing wage rates to laborers working on the contract. Recommendation We recommend the District develop internal controls that ensure compliance with federal wage rate requirements. This should include informing District staff about federal program requirements, inserting prevailing wage clauses into contracts, and implementing effective monitoring processes to collect and review all weekly certified payroll reports timely from contractors and subcontractors. District?s Response Utilizing Federal funds for public works projects is very uncommon. We utilize a project management firm to oversee large projects, such as the replacement of the elementary school roof. We informed them, and reminded them throughout the project, that we were using Federal funds for the elementary school roof project, so that they would make sure that all Federal rules were followed. However, they were not familiar with the Davis Bacon Act requirements, nor were we. We have already made a change to our practice to ensure that this oversight does not happen again. Auditor?s Remarks We appreciate the District?s commitment to resolve this finding and thank the District for its cooperation and assistance during the audit. We will review the corrective action taken during our next regular audit. Applicable Laws and Regulations Title 2 U.S. Code of Federal Regulations (CFR) Part 200, Uniform Administrative Requirements, Cost Principles, and Audit Requirements for Federal Awards (Uniform Guidance), section 516, Audit findings, establishes reporting requirements for audit findings. Title 2 CFR Part 200, Uniform Guidance, section 303, Internal controls, describes the requirements for auditees to maintain internal controls over federal programs and comply with federal program requirements. The American Institute of Certified Public Accountants defines significant deficiencies and material weaknesses in its Codification of Statements on Auditing Standards, section 935, Compliance Audits, paragraph 11. Title 29 CFR, Section 3.3 ? Weekly statement with respect to payment of wages, and Section 3.4 ? Submission of weekly statements and the preservation and inspection of weekly payroll records, establishes requirements for contractor or subcontractor submission of weekly certified payroll reports. Title 29 CFR, Section 5.5 ? Contract provisions and related matters establishes the requirements for the contracting officer to insert in full any contract in excess of $2,000 which is entered into for the actual construction, alteration and/or repair, including painting and decorating, of a public building or public work, or building or work financed in whole or in part with federal funds the clauses listed, which includes but is not limited to the minimum wages to be paid and payrolls and basic records to be maintained (submission of weekly certified payrolls).

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