Tag: Audits and Accountability
Md. blames proofreading error for $34 million feds want returned from disabilities aid
Federal auditors told state officials earlier this week that more than $34 million for the care of developmentally-disabled citizens during 2010-2013 had been spent improperly, and the money needs to be refunded. This latest disclosure indicates the state continues to harbor chronic and widespread deficiencies involving the care for people with disabilities despite “fixes” implemented over 10 years or longer.
Read More
Md. gets better at child support collection, but still need improvement, auditors find
The state of Maryland is getting a lot better at collecting child support payments, auditors say, but is still collecting less than a third of $1.8 billion owed by non-custodial parents to take care of their children.
The good news, according to an audit of Child Support Enforcement Administration in the Department of Human Resources released Monday, is that the agency has corrected all 11 of the problems legislative auditors found four years ago and the amount of child support payments in arrears has been substantially reduced.
Read More
Credit rating firm helps state validate welfare recipients
State auditors hope to find less potential for fraud in their next audit of the Maryland Department of Human Resources, which recently partnered with an online credit bureau to validate that people receiving government assistance actually qualify.
Read More
Audit: Public assistance programs lack documents to detect fraud
Social service agencies are missing critical documentation to check whether people currently enrolled in food stamps and energy assistance programs are actually eligible for those benefits, a state audit has found.
Read More
Md. Transit Admin. plagued by cost-control problems
Since 2005, the Maryland Transit Administration, or MTA, has fallen short of the goal to bring in 35 cents in fares for every dollar spent. While state law mandates the goal and tasks the MTA to control costs while keeping fares low, the Office of Legislative Audits just reported a litany of cost-containment controls the transit agency failed to exercise.
Read More
Auditors slam Md. Transit Admin. and Towson University, make criminal referral
When legislative auditors examined training programs for the Mass Transit Administration run by Towson University they found no bid contracts, circumvented procurement regulations, lack of controls, undocumented work, doctored documents and many other problems. They made a criminal referral to the attorney general’s office.
Read MoreAgencies fixing some repeated problems found by auditors
State agencies are doing a better job at correcting past financial problems found by audits, the legislature’s top auditor told lawmakers Tuesday.
The improved performance appears to be a result of legislators withholding appropriations until repeat audit findings have been fixed.
Read More
UMd.-Eastern Shore lacked over oversight of grant and loan programs, had potential conflicts, auditors find
Two high-level officials at the University of Maryland Eastern Shore had conflicts of interest in up to $1.9 million of spending and grants funneled through the university’s affiliated foundation and private companies, an audit has found. Auditors reported possible conflicts involving the university and its affiliated foundation, which promotes the university and its mission. The audit described potential conflicts involving the foundation and two private companies: one controlled by the foundation’s executive director and the other owned by a relative.
Read More
Auditors find continuing accounting issues at Maryland cities and towns
Some local governments in Maryland are having difficulty preparing adequate financial statements and getting passing grades from their outside auditors, state auditors found in an annual review of local audit practices for the fiscal year ending June 2013.
But the report found that the City of Baltimore’s financial statements are improving, and it also stated the overall financial condition of three cities, including Cumberland, is improving.
Read More
Audit: Mental Health Administration failed to check patients’ eligibility and patient information is not secure
State auditors found that the state Mental Health Administration found that the MHA failed to keep documentation showing patients who received over $16 million in mental health services were eligible and failed to maintain adequate security over computers and sensitive patient data.
Read More
Md. treasurer, auditors continue wrangling over how to handle worker compensation insurance
Auditors have found continuing problems with how the Maryland State Treasurer’s Office handles workers compensation insurance payments and claims for state employees amounting to $268 million over the past three years. Treasurer Nancy Kopp said it’s up to the legislature and the Board of Public Works to make some of the changes auditors want.
Read More
Human Resources Dept. spent money it didn’t have and paid bills without verifying they were due
In the last four years, the Department of Human Resources (DHR) overspent its budget by $27 million — and inadvertently masked its overruns with improper accounting adjustments, an audit of the department has revealed.
After the audit came out, DHR removed the director of the grants management office due to concerns about oversight of millions of dollars of grants.
Read More
Recent Comments