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Report File
Date Issued
Submitting OIG
Department of Education OIG
Other Participating OIGs
Department of Education OIG
Agencies Reviewed/Investigated
Department of Education
Components
Office of Elementary and Secondary Education
Report Number
A02T0001
Report Description

We determined that Texas’s system of internal control over displaced student count data did not ensure that the data provided to the Department were accurate and complete because it did not always prevent or detect inaccurate displaced student counts reported by LEAs. The displaced student count data for the three LEAs that we reviewed were inaccurate and incomplete. As a result, Texas reported inaccurate displaced student count data to the Department for school year 2017–2018, and its Emergency Impact Aid program grant allocations to these three LEAs were incorrect. We estimate that $10.55 million of the $23.1 million in Emergency Impact Aid program funds that the three LEAs received was not supported because of the inaccurate and incomplete displaced student count data. We also determined that Texas’s system of internal control over LEAs’ use of Emergency Impact Aid program funds did not ensure that (1) LEAs accounted for Emergency ImpactAid program funds received for students reported as children with disabilities in accordance with Federal requirements and (2) LEAs used Emergency Impact Aid program funds to pay salaries only for employees who supported schools with displaced students. We identified about $1.94 million in unsupported costs for students reported as children with disabilities at the three LEAs we reviewed and $750,088 in unsupported costs for employees who worked at schools for which no displaced students were reported at two of the three LEAs we reviewed.

Report Type
Audit
Location

TX
United States

Number of Recommendations
7
Questioned Costs
$12,366,942
Funds for Better Use
$0
External Entity
Texas Education Agency

Open Recommendations

This report has 10 open recommendations.
Recommendation Number Significant Recommendation Recommended Questioned Costs Recommended Funds for Better Use Additional Details
1.1 Yes $0 $0

We recommend that the Assistant Secretary for the Office of Elementary and Secondary Education require Texas to develop and implement effective policies and procedures that include guidance for Texas and its LEAs to track student enrollment in the event of a disaster in order to document and accurately report data.

1.2 Yes $0 $0

We recommend that the Assistant Secretary for the Office of Elementary and Secondary Education require Texas to develop and implement policies and procedures to ensure it collects accurate and complete data on displaced students that can be used for Federal reporting requirements related to the Emergency Impact Aid program.

1.3 Yes $0 $0

We recommend that the Assistant Secretary for the Office of Elementary and Secondary Education require Texas to revise, for any future Emergency Impact Aid program grants, (1) its reasonableness check for displaced student data counts to identify and follow up with LEAs regarding student counts that are identical in applications and weekly submissions, or that increase over all four quarters; and (2) its annual desk reviews to include steps to review Emergency Impact Aid program displaced student count data

1.4 Yes $10,551,519 $0

We recommend that the Assistant Secretary for the Office of Elementary and Secondary Education require Texas to provide support for the unsupported displaced student data counts at Houston, Goose Creek, and Spring, or return $10,551,519 million in Emergency Impact Aid program funds received based on unsupported displaced student count data. This amount includes $874,665 of duplicated unsupported funds noted in Finding 2.

1.5 Yes $0 $0

We recommend that the Assistant Secretary for the Office of Elementary and Secondary Education require Texas to identify all LEAs with reported displaced student counts, including Spring, that matched PEIMS data or that increased by quarter; review support for all, or a statistically valid sample of students reported as displaced by quarter; and return any funds related to unsupported displaced student counts.

2.1 Yes $1,065,335 $0

We recommend that the Assistant Secretary for the Office of Elementary and Secondary Education require Texas to provide support showing that the three LEAs we reviewed properly used Emergency Impact Aid program funds for students reported as students with disabilities or return $1.94 million to the Department. This amount includes $874,665 of duplicated unsupported funds noted in Finding 1.

2.2 Yes $750,088 $0

We recommend that the Assistant Secretary for the Office of Elementary and Secondary Education require Texas to provide support demonstrating that employees in Houston and Goose Creek worked at schools with displaced students or return $750,088 to the Department

2.3 Yes $0 $0

We recommend that the Assistant Secretary for the Office of Elementary and Secondary Education require Texas to determine whether other Texas LEAs that received Emergency Impact Aid program funds separately accounted for Emergency Impact Aid program funds received for the benefit of displaced students reported as students with disabilities. For all, or a statistical sample, of these LEAs that did not separately account for these funds, review support to determine whether they properly used these funds and return any funds that were not properly used.

2.4 Yes $0 $0

We recommend that the Assistant Secretary for the Office of Elementary and Secondary Education require Texas to develop procedures for providing guidance and monitoring of future emergency funding from the Department to ensure that (1) award notifications to the LEAs identify Emergency Impact Aid program funds by student type (including children with disabilities) and (2) as part of annual desk reviews, it determines whether LEAs separately recorded and tracked these funds

2.5 Yes $0 $0

We recommend that the Assistant Secretary for the Office of Elementary and Secondary Education require Texas to develop controls to provide reasonable assurance that LEAs use funds received for displaced students for activities and services related to serving displaced students.

Department of Education OIG

United States