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Auditors pouring over DISD grant spending
2:24 PM Thu, Dec 27, 2007 | Permalink
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It's expected that the district will get stung next month by an audit that will point out significant weaknesses in its internal spending controls and accounting practices. District officials have already prepped trustees and some community members in anticipation of that bad news. But included in a draft financial report are details on another looming problem: Misspent grant money. Click the jump for a glimpse into what the auditors have found. First, it's important to know that federal grants are highly restricted, meaning schools can only spend the money on specific, pre-approved items. So, while it might seem perfectly reasonable to spend some federal grant money on, say, a graduation ceremony, the feds aren't going to like it because their rules specifically prohibit parties, banquets and celebrations. That's just one example. The list of prohibited expenditures for federal grants runs 57 pages. So what's going on at DISD? For starters, auditors have examined how DISD spent its Title I money -- a federal grant meant to improve the education of low-income kids. Here's what a draft financial report says about that audit: "From discussion with the Office of Inspector General, the district expects to receive a report with findings. The amount is undetermined but the district expects the amount to be approximately $9 million." Translation: DISD spent about $9 million in violation of Title I rules. Meanwhile, at the state's behest, DISD is also undergoing a "self report" -- basically it hired its own auditor to examine grant purchases made with district credit cards. From the same report: "It appears that the district would be required to reimburse between a range of $1.1 million to $8.5 million for expenditures over [a] four-year period." Combine the two, and you're looking at upwards of $18 million in misspent grants since 2002. But what's the upshot? It seems likely that DISD will have to pay some portion of the money back. It probably will not be the full $18 million, because the district will get a chance to present evidence that some of the questioned expenses were legit. If the feds agree, then those purchases will be subtracted from the total. It's happened before. A few years ago the feds determined that the district has misspent $1.3 million from a foreign language grant. In the end, DISD successfully whittled that figure down to $111,000. Time will tell if the district can achieve a similar reduction. But even if it does, it could still be looking at repayments north of $1 million, which isn't chump change, even in a district with an operating budget in excess of $1.5 billion. Finally, does anyone else find it ironic that this audit comes just a few months after DISD got a "Superior Achievement" rating in this state award for fiscal greatness? |
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Comments
Posted by Philip B. Mendershausen @ 12:32 AM Mon, Jan 14, 2008
It's been known that federal grant money was involved in the DISD credit card scandal of about three years ago, so an award for fiscal management today while housekeeping is still underway is crazy. It is also absurd that the DISD Office of Professional Responsibility, that employs four managers and 12 investigators, has so far come up with theft of $1600 worth of cobblers, a king-size bed for a teacher and some gifts of Maverick tickets. Does "Cobblergate" justify the OPR operating expenses?
Posted by reader1 @ 9:13 AM Wed, Feb 06, 2008
Thanks for the insights. (btw, the word is poring, not pouring)