Audit of Last Quarter Grant Expenditures at Tufts University, A-01-98-04004

Chaun - Hhs Office Of Inspector General , Office Of Audit Services (Oas)

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OFFICE OFINSPECTOR GENERALAUDIT OF LAST QUARTER GRANTEXPENDITURES AT TUFTS UNIVERSITYThe mission of the Office of Inspector General (OIG), as mandated by Public Law 95-452, as amended, is to protect the integrity of the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) programs, as well as the health and welfare of beneficiaries served by those programs. This statutory mission is carried out through a nationwide network of audits, investigations, and inspections conducted by the following operating components: Office of Audit Services The OIG’s Office of Audit Services (OAS) provides all auditing services for HHS, either by conducting audits with its own audit resources or by overseeing audit work done by others. Audits examine the performance of HHS programs and/or its grantees and contractors in carrying out their respective responsibilities and are intended to provide independent assessments of HHS programs and operations in order to reduce waste, abuse, and mismanagement and to promote economy and efficiency throughout the Department. Office of Evaluation and Inspections The OIG’s Office of Evaluation and Inspections (OEI) conducts short-term management and program evaluations (called inspections) that focus on issues of concern to the Department, the Congress, and the public. The findings and recommendations contained in the inspections reports generate rapid, accurate, and up-to-date information on the efficiency, vulnerability, and ...

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Publié par	Chaun
Nombre de lectures	6
Langue	English

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OFFICE OF

INSPECTOR GENERAL

AUDIT OF LAST QUARTER GRANT

EXPENDITURES AT TUFTS UNIVERSITY
The mission of the Office of Inspector General (OIG), as mandated by Public Law 95-452, as amended,
is to protect the integrity of the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) programs, as well as
the health and welfare of beneficiaries served by those programs. This statutory mission is carried out
through a nationwide network of audits, investigations, and inspections conducted by the following
operating components:
Office of Audit Services
The OIG’s Office of Audit Services (OAS) provides all auditing services for HHS, either by conducting
audits with its own audit resources or by overseeing audit work done by others. Audits examine the
performance of HHS programs and/or its grantees and contractors in carrying out their respective
responsibilities and are intended to provide independent assessments of HHS programs and operations
in order to reduce waste, abuse, and mismanagement and to promote economy and efficiency
throughout the Department.
Office of Evaluation and Inspections
The OIG’s Office of Evaluation and Inspections (OEI) conducts short-term management and program
evaluations (called inspections) that focus on issues of concern to the Department, the Congress, and
the public. The findings and recommendations contained in the inspections reports generate rapid,
accurate, and up-to-date information on the efficiency, vulnerability, and effectiveness of departmental
Office of Investigations
The OIG’s Office of Investigations (01) conducts criminal, civil, and administrative investigations of
allegations of wrongdoing in HHS programs or to HHS beneficiaries and of unjust enrichment by
providers. The investigative efforts of 01 lead to criminal convictions, administrative sanctions, or
civil monetary penalties. The 01 also oversees State Medicaid fraud control units which investigate and
prosecute fraud and patient abuse in the Medicaid program.
Office of Counsel to the Inspector General
The Office of Counsel to the Inspector General (OCIG) provides general legal services to OIG, rendering
advice and opinions on programs and operations and providing all legal support in OIG’s internal
operations. The OCIG imposes program exclusions and civil monetary penalties on health care providers
and litigates those actions within the Department. The OCIG also represents OIG in the global
settlement of cases arising under the Civil False Claims Act, develops and monitors corporate integrity
agreements, develops model compliance plans, renders advisory opinions on OIG sanctions to the health
care community, and issues fraud alerts and other industry guidance.
programs. THIS REPORT IS AVAILABLE TO THE PUBLIC
at
In accordance with the principles of the Freedom of Information Act, 5 U.S.C. 552, as
amended by Public Law 104-231, Office of Inspector General, Office of Audit Services,
reports are made available to members of the public to the extent information contained
therein is not subject to exemptions in the Act. (See 45 CFR Part 5.)
OAS FINDINGS AND OPINIONS
The designation of financial or management practices as questionable or a
recommendation for the disallowance of costs incurred or claimed as well as other
conclusions and recommendations in this report represent the findings and opinions of the
Final determination on these matters will be made by authorized officials
of the HHS divisions. DEPARTMENT OF HEALTH HUMAN SERVICES OFFICE OF INSPECTOR GENERAL
Office of Audit Services

Region I

John F. Kennedy Federal Building

Boston, MA 02203

CIN:A-0 l-98-04004

Mr. Robert Gawlak

Senior Manager, Sponsored Programs Accounting

Tufts University

136 Harrison Avenue

Boston, MA 02111

Dear Mr. Gawlak:

This report presents the results of our audit of last quarter grant expenditures at Tufts University

(University). The objective of this audit was to determine whether the last quarter grant

expenditures are reasonable and allowable in accordance with the Office of Management and

Budget (OMB) Circular A-2 1, Cost Principles for Educational Institutions, and other applicable

regulations governing the grants.

We found that the expenditures reviewed, relating to the selected grants, were reasonable and

allowable. We reviewed 65 transactions charged, during the last quarter of the grants, to ten

judgmentally selected grants. The 65 transactions represented expenditures which were

classified as equipment, supplies, travel, or other direct non-labor costs. We found that the

selected transactions represented expenditures which were necessary for the performance of the

grant or contract.

BACKGROUND
The University is a not-for-profit institution committed to education and research. The
University, with approximately 8,000 students attending undergraduate and graduate programs,
occupies three campuses: Boston, and Massachusetts. In its fiscal
year (FY) ended June 30, 1997, the University had over 700 active Federal grants with
expenditures totaling $62 million. The University expended approximately $48 million on
Federally sponsored research projects. Based on data provided by the University, over $1.8
million were expended during the last quarter of the 96 Federal grants which ended in FY 1997.
Of that amount, approximately $539,892 was spent on non-labor direct costs: $14,847 for
equipment, $26,032 for travel, $271,207 for supplies, and $227,806 for other non-labor direct
costs.
INTRODUCTION -
Page 2 Mr. Robert Gawlak
The allowability of costs incurred by institutions of higher education is determined in accordance
with the provisions of the OMB Circular A-21. Cost Principles for Educational Institutions.
The OMB Circular A-21, Part C.2, provides the general criteria for determining the allowability
of costs as: (a) they must be reasonable; (b) they must be allocable to sponsored agreements;
(c) they must be given consistent treatment; and (d) they must conform to any limitations or
exclusions set forth in the cost principles or in the sponsored agreements as to types or amounts
of costs items. Parts C.3 and C.4 of this Circular further define the requirements for determining
the reasonableness and allocability, respectively, of costs incurred under sponsored agreements.
OBJECTIVE, SCOPE AND METHODOLOGY
The objective of this audit was to determine whether expenditures incurred in the last quarter of
Federal grants were reasonable and allowable in accordance with the OMB Circular A-2 1.
Specifically, we determined whether grant expenditures for equipment, travel, supplies and other
non-labor direct costs were incurred for the stated grant purpose in compliance with these
regulations.
Our audit covered the period July 1, 1996 through June 30, 1997. Our audit was limited to
reviewing transactions selected from Federal grants ending in FY 1997, with either high dollar
total expenditures incurred in the last quarter of the project period or significant expenditures in
expense categories of equipment, supplies, travel or other non-labor direct costs. To accomplish
our objective, we:
Reviewed policies and procedures pertaining to the University’s cost transfers and
business expense policies;
Obtained an understanding of the University accounting system/general ledger and
reporting practices through discussions with University officials;
Reviewed the University’s FY 1996 and 1997 audit reports issued in accordance with
OMB Circular A- 133, Audits of States, Local Governments, and Nonprofit Institutions;
Obtained a listing of all Federal grants that ended in FY 1997 and reconciled the listing to
the sponsored programs subsidiary ledger and the FY 1997 A-l 33 audit report;
Analyzed the monthly expenditure reports for the last quarter of each of the grants ending
in FY 1997, and computed last quarter expenses in total, and by expense category; I
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Judgementally selected for review ten accounts with either high dollar total last quarter
expenses or specific high dollar expenditures for equipment, travel, supplies, and other
non-labor direct costs in the last quarter;
Selected 65 transactions from these ten accounts and reviewed source documentation; and
Reviewed grant proposal files for selected accounts and compared budget to actual
expenses and interviewed Principal Investigators to understand the nature of selected
grants and justification for selected expense items.
We conducted our audit in accordance with generally accepted government auditing standards.
We performed field work at Tufts University in Boston, Massachusetts from July through
August 1998, and discussed the results of our audit with University officials on August 28. 1998.
RESULTS OF AUDIT
We found that the last quarter expenditures reviewed, relating to the selected grants, were
reasonable and allowable in accordance with OMB Circular A-2 1. The policies and procedures
pertaining to cost transfers and business expenses contributed to the University charging only
those expenses which were reasonable and allowable to the selected grants. In addition, we
determined that the selected expenditures were necessary for the performance of the a