Federal Reports

Congress provided $5.5 billion for the Emergency Assistance to Nonpublic Schools (EANS) program. The purpose of the EANS programs, authorized under the Coronavirus Response and Relief Supplemental Appropriations Act (CRRSA) and American Rescue Plan (ARP), is to provide services or assistance to eligible nonpublic schools to address educational disruptions caused by the COVID-19 emergency. Our audit sought to determine whether the Tennessee Department of Education (Tennessee) designed and implemented (1) application processes that adequately assessed nonpublic schools’ eligibility for EANS-funded services or assistance and complied with other applicable requirements and (2) oversight processes to ensure that EANS-funded services or assistance were used for allowable purposes. We found that Tennessee designed and implemented application processes that adequately assessed nonpublic schools’ eligibility for EANS-funded services or assistance and complied with other applicable requirements despite not having written procedures. However, we identified several weaknesses in Tennessee’s oversight of its EANS programs that could be improved: Tennessee did not ensure that drawdowns of CRRSA EANS funds were always supported by CRRSA EANS expenditures; Tennessee had not fully implemented policies and procedures for maintaining a record of assets purchased with EANS funds; and Tennessee did not obtain prior approval for certain EANS expenditures.

Proper practices and procedures can reduce the number of accidents resulting from an inadvertent release of hazardous energy, according to the Occupational Safety and Health Administration. The Tennessee Valley Authority’s Safety Procedure 18.613, Clearance Procedure to Safely Control Hazardous Energy Using Group Tagout, establishes minimum TVA-wide clearance requirements, while Power Operations Standard Programs and Processes 10.015, Coal and Gas Clearance Procedure, governs the clearance process at gas sites. These requirements are to be utilized to ensure equipment is isolated from energy sources and rendered nonoperative before performing work where unexpected energizing, start up, or release of stored energy could occur and cause injury or property damage. Due to the importance of the clearance procedure in preventing injury and/or property damage while equipment is being serviced, we performed an evaluation of Gas Operations clearances to determine if clearances, required training, and audits were performed in compliance with clearance procedures.

We determined clearances, required training, and audits were not always performed in compliance with clearance procedures. Specifically, we identified clearance documentation was not always completed and maintained, some Clearance Personal Accountability Logs were illegible, and some tags were missing or illegible. We also found training had not been completed for some contractors who worked on clearances. Additionally, we determined that audits were not being conducted as required.

Semiannual Report to Congress: April 1, 2024, through September 30, 2024