Audit Report On The Administration Of Imprest Funds By The Department For The Aging

AUDIT REPORT IN BRIEF

This audit determined whether the Department for the Aging (DFTA) complied with Comptroller’s Directive #3, “Procedures for the Administration of Imprest Funds.” Imprest funds are agency-controlled checking accounts that can be used for small purchases and petty cash transactions. During Fiscal Year 2006, DFTA Imprest Fund expenditures consisted of 783 payments totaling $76,822. Expenditures for that year consisted of the following three types of payments: 361 vendor payments totaling $47,361; 372 personal payments totaling $25,727; and 50 petty cash payments totaling $3,734.

Audit Findings and Conclusions

DFTA generally complied with certain provisions of Comptroller’s Directive #3, “Procedures for the Administration of Imprest Funds.” The major areas of compliance included the following: Imprest Funds were deposited and properly recorded; petty cash transactions were supported by receipts; expenditures for reimbursement of employee expenses and out-of-town travel were properly approved; petty cash and checkbooks were kept secure; checks were signed by two authorized signatories; and bank statements were reconciled and reviewed promptly each month and all voided and canceled checks were accounted for and recorded on the bank reconciliations.

However, our examination also disclosed areas of non-compliance with other provisions of Comptroller’s Directive #3. Those areas included an inadequate segregation of duties over bank reconciliations, the use of incorrect object codes, the underutilization of requirements contracts, late payments, split purchases, and an inadequate maintenance of required documents.

Audit Recommendations

:Based on our findings, we make 10 recommendations, five of which are listed below. DFTA should:

• Assess its segregation of duties within the Imprest Fund functions and should ensure that individuals assigned the task of bank reconciliations are not assigned other Imprest Fund functions.

• Ensure that the correct object codes are used when recording expenditures.

• Ensure that items available through the Central Storehouse and requirements contracts are not purchased through the Imprest Fund.

• Follow Comptroller’s Directive #3 and not circumvent the $250 expenditure limit.

• Ensure that a vendor expense form is filled out by the individual requesting the purchase of goods and services and that it is approved by an authorized individual prior to purchasing the goods and services.

Agency Response

In their response, DFTA officials generally agreed with the audit’s findings and recommendations.