8 | Audit of Contracted Human Services August 2024 2. Timeliness of External Audits Observation The Sarasota County Government Human Services contractual agreement requires agencies to submit prior and current fiscal year audits. Specifically, copies of the required audit, including the management letter if applicable, covering the County's fiscal year must be sent to the County Human Services Manager within 150 days after the end of the provider's fiscal year. A review of current year audits submitted to Human Services revealed compliance issues with eleven (11) out of twenty-nine (29) agencies who failed to submit the required external audits within 150 days after the end of the fiscal year. This non-compliance not only contravenes contractual obligations but also undermines financial accountability and transparency within these agencies. Upon conversation with management, it was determined that several agencies have requested extensions on their audit deadlines. However, the current contracts do not include provisions for deadline extensions. Recommendation Upon notification of the issue, Human Services revised the contracts for the next fiscal year to remove the requirement for the provider to submit copies of the audit within 150 days after the end of the provider’s fiscal year. Human Services added new language to the contracts that stated that copies of the required audit, including the management letter if applicable, covering the County’s fiscal year will be sent to the County Human Services Manager within 30 days of the provider’s receipt of the audit report. Human Services should revise their Annual Monitoring Report to reflect the new contractual requirements regarding external audits. If agencies are unable to meet these updated requirements, the County should reevaluate its funding commitments to those agencies. Management Response Contracted Human Services revised the language regarding Timeliness of External Audits. The contract template was provided to the auditor on July 3, 2024. The revised language is as follows: B. Current Fiscal Year Audit: If the Provider’s total revenue exceeds SEVEN HUNDRED FIFTY THOUSAND Dollars ($750,000) per fiscal year OR the Provider is receiving County fund in excess of FIFTY THOUSAND Dollars ($50,000); a full audited financial statement is required. The audit must fully represent the financial condition of the Provider and comply with County standards in order for the County to accept the audit. Acceptance of any audit by another funding source does not constitute a determination that the audit complies with County standards for purposes of acceptance by the County. The County has the right to reject or accept the audit and the right to request additional financial information which, in the determination of the County, is needed to fully evaluate the financial condition of the Provider. In the event the Provider does not file a timely and complete audit in accordance with County standards, the
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