No malfeasance uncovered in town audit | Information, Sporting activities, Work

The just lately introduced 2020 audit report on Altoona’s finances incorporates five findings that replicate staffing problems.
This consists of a shortage of personnel, heavy personnel turnover, the deficiency of a distinct sort of expertise on staff, continuation of a customary exercise that is considerably less than excellent and an unfamiliar software program method, according to the report from Young Oakes & Brown, which was discussed at a City Council conference this 7 days.
There ended up no results of malfeasance.
The metropolis has sought to handle all the results, in accordance to the report.
One particular locating cites the city’s failure to assure “complete segregation of duties” in the Setting up and Community Improvement Office, the place “one man or woman initiates purchase orders, receives vendor invoices, prepares checks, has obtain to checks just after signature, controls accounts receivable features and maintains all journals,” in accordance to the report. The consolidation of individuals obligations in one particular man or woman is a challenge mainly because it potential customers to inadequate oversight, the audit report said.
The city corrected the dilemma by going the accounting supervisor for scheduling into the Finance Office, in accordance to the report.
Another finding cites failures to properly doc “drawdowns” in the Community Improvement Block Grant system that show certain function or merchandise currently being purchased.
The challenge resulted from a important restructuring of Planning and Local community Development as component of funds-preserving actions. This led to a new personnel becoming supplied accountability for new issues. “The turnover instantly led (also) to a sizeable loss of institutional knowledge relating to suitable economic administration inside of these packages,” the report mentioned.
To right the issue, the metropolis will produce a spreadsheet that will enable identification of the source of cash, no matter whether funds are from system cash flow or a drawdown and to which vendor or contractor and for what work the cash addresses, the report said.
A further finding cites the failure to be certain payables related with CDBG were being booked in the proper yr, an issue that occurred simply because the CDBG application is based mostly on a fiscal year ending in June and the city’s other finances are primarily based on the calendar year — and simply because the section did not completely undertake the city’s new money software program system right away, according to the report.
The trouble ought to be corrected by the change of the Organizing Department’s accounting supervisor to the Finance Department.
An additional getting cites the deficiency of anyone on staff members able of getting ready “external financial statements, which include notice disclosures,” which led to quite a few accounts payable not being recorded for the CDBG application by the stop of 2020. The city is “reviewing the possibility of adding a personnel member who has the account background” important to retain up with these varieties of statements and disclosures, in accordance to the report.
Yet another obtaining cites the failure of departments — other than Finance — to share the documentation on grants they applied for and acquired, so that the grants could be tracked and audited thoroughly, according to the report. The managing of grants by departments other than Finance is necessitated by the compact sizing of the Finance Section and the perception that those other departments are much better geared up to deal with matters dependable with their missions, according to the report. The metropolis intends to appropriate the problem by insisting that all the departments diligently report grant info to Finance.
Mirror Team Writer William Kibler is at 814-949-7038.








