Federal Reports

The objectives of the audit were to determine whether the State of Missouri (Missouri) designed and implemented awarding processes that ensured that the Governor's Emergency Education Relief Fund (GEER grant) was used to support local educational agencies (LEAs) and institutions of higher education (IHEs) that were most significantly impacted by the coronavirus or LEAs, IHEs, or other education-related entities within the State that were deemed essential for carrying out emergency educational services; and monitoring processes to ensure that subgrantees used GEER grant funds in accordance with the Coronavirus Aid, Relief, and Economic Security Act (CARES Act) and other applicable Federal requirements.We found that for two of the initiatives Missouri funded with its GEER grant (LEA Transportation Supplement Initiative and IHE Initiative), Missouri’s DESE and DHEWD designed and implemented awarding processes that ensured the GEER grant was used to support LEAs and IHEs that were most significantly impacted by the coronavirus, as determined by the State. However, for the third initiative (LEA Connectivity Initiative), while DESE created a methodology designed to ensure the GEER grant funds were used to support LEAs that were most significantly impacted by the coronavirus, it did not correctly implement the process it designed. We found that for all three initiatives, Missouri ensured that the LEAs and IHEs that received a GEER grant allocation submitted the required applications and assurances. We also found that Missouri followed cash management requirements. We found that Missouri’s DHEWD designed and implemented a comprehensive reimbursement process as its monitoring strategy to ensure that subgrantees of its IHE Initiative used GEER grant funds in accordance with the CARES Act and other applicable Federal requirements. However, we found that DESE’s plan for monitoring subgrantees of its LEA Connectivity and LEA Transportation Supplement initiatives could be strengthened.

This letter responds to October 2020, December 2020, and February 2021 letters from Representatives Comer, Davis, and Hice requesting a review of the State of California's SKD Knickerbocker, LLC award and requesting assurance that Coronavirus Aid, Relief, and Economic Security Act and Help America Vote Act funds were used as intended.

An Amtrak manager based in Chicago, Illinois, was issued a letter of counseling on February 9, 2022, following the issuance of our report. Our investigation found that the employee performed military duties on days when he was also scheduled to be working for the company. As a result, the employee received compensation from the military for days in which he was also paid by the company. The employee failed to remit the wages paid by the government to the company upon returning from military leave. Our investigation found no compelling evidence that the employee intended to defraud the company. The employee agreed to repay the company a total of $27,904.50.