State & Local Reports

The objective of our audit was to determine if the department maintained an adequate information technology service management level during the increase in claims processing related to the COVID-19 pandemic. An additional objective was to determine if the selected general controls were working properly to ensure the confidentiality, integrity, and availability of the applications and data in the claims processing environment. We found that the department provided a sufficient information technology service management level to claimants to meet the increased needs in the unemployment insurance (UI) claims processing environment, and we found no evidence that delays in the processing of initial claims or recertifications were caused by deficiencies in the information technology structure or operations.

The objective whether the Department of Labor (Department) has taken appropriate steps to oversee and manage the Unemployment Insurance system and to comply with selected portions of the New York State Information Security Policy and Standards. Overall, we found deficiencies with the Department's oversight and management of its UI system that ultimately compromised its ability to effectively mitigate risks related to the processing of claims.

This Single Audit identifies federal funds spent by state agencies from July 1, 2020, to June 30, 2021. During this time, many state agencies were drawing down federal stimulus dollars from the Coronavirus Relief Fund (CRF). In our audit we discovered millions of questioned costs. Notable findings include that the Mississippi Department of Employment Security saw a 301 percent increase in known overpayments from the previous year and made at least $473 million in improper or fraudulent unemployment payments this year. This included unemployment payments to prisoners and people outside of Mississippi.

Our audit sought to determine if unemployment claims filed I the name of Ulster County employees were handled in accordance with current law and Ulster County policy. Our audit revealed that the Personnel Department properly identified fraudulent unemployment claims and challenged those claims. In addition, the Personnel Department staff appropriately notified the Sheriff’s Department and the Information Systems Department about the potential unemployment insurance fraud. However, it appears that some employees may not have been notified by the Personnel Department that they were the victims of identity theft. The Personnel Department has since changed the process for addressing unemployment claims.

The Broward Office of the Inspector General (OIG) concluded its investigation into several allegations against City of Dania Beach public works department utilities manager Jose Urtecho, including that he was receiving kickbacks from city vendors. The OIG substantiated this allegation and found that Mr. Urtecho committed state ethics misconduct1 when he corruptly used his public position to rig city purchases from certain city vendors and requested and accepted from those vendors special benefits or gifts for himself and his girlfriend. The investigation uncovered Mr. Urtecho’s manipulations in 2018 and 2019 to give city work or payment to vendors who, at Mr. Urtecho’s suggestion and in return for getting city work or payment, provided money and free services to Mr. Urtecho and work for Mr. Urtecho’s girlfriend. To perpetuate his scheme, Mr. Urtecho directed subordinate employees to pay these vendors with their city-issued purchasing cards (p-cards), as the city had suspended and then banned him in 2015 from using his own p-card for violating the city’s purchasing policy. Although we found that Mr. Urtecho’s employees were not aware of his scheme, some of them saw red flags in his procurements but did as they were told because they feared retaliation from him, their manager. Thus, Mr. Urtecho was free to choose vendors that would provide personal benefits to him. The OIG found that, from January 2016 to June 2019, the city paid a total of $429,420.80 to the four vendors discussed in this report.

The Office of Inspector General (OIG) conducted an inquiry into two Chicago Police Department (CPD or the Department) strategies to support members’ mental health and wellbeing, here termed “officer wellness support strategies.”1 The two officer wellness support strategies evaluated here are (1) the Peer Support Program (PSP) and (2) CPD’s reliance on frontline supervisors to monitor their officers’ mental health and refer them to services as needed.Most of CPD’s existing officer wellness programs are run through its Professional Counseling Division (PCD). PCD’s services include the Employee Assistance Program, Traumatic Incident Stress Management (TISM) Program, Alcohol-use and Substance-use Services Program, and PSP. Additionally, the Department charges supervisors with identifying members who may be struggling with their mental health and referring them to professional services as needed, whether within or outside the programs offered through PCD.The objectives of this inquiry were to determine: (1) whether PSP is designed and implemented in accordance with best practices as defined by mental health experts and the policing profession; and (2) whether CPD adequately prepares its supervisors to identify members in need of mental health assistance. OIG opted to review just two of CPD’s officer wellness support strategies because the full universe of officer wellness strategies is too broad to review comprehensively in the space of a single report. Other CPD officer wellness strategies and PCD programs may be topics of future OIG inquiry.At the conclusion of this inquiry, OIG reached two findings:1. Several operational limitations prevent PSP from better meeting officer wellness needs. Specifically, there are deficiencies in recruitment and staffing, training, documentation and record-keeping, internal communications, and cultural competency.2. CPD does not adequately prepare its supervisors to identify members in need of wellness services, and does not ensure that supervisors remain up to date on supervisory responsibilities relating to officer wellness. a. Some supervisors expressed the opinion that they were not fully prepared for their wellness support roles.b. Some supervisors lacked knowledge of key aspects of their wellness support responsibilities.c. CPD has provided supervisors little in-service officer wellness training, and strategies for new directive rollouts have been insufficient to keep supervisors informed of directive changes.

Using supplemental federal funding, the Wisconsin Department of Revenue (DOR) awarded $220.7 million through its We’re All In program to small businesses, restaurants, and similar entities and $375.2 million through its Wisconsin Tomorrow program to small businesses and lodging establishments. We performed a detailed review of 172 grants, and we found DOR did not follow written eligibility requirements when it awarded 45 of these grants. We recommend that DOR report to the Joint Legislative Audit Committee on the results of its ongoing efforts to identify and recover program grants it made in error.

Since March 2020, early in the COVID-19 pandemic, and through September 2022, the federal government has allocated through various acts $77.8 billion to the State of Arizona and its local governments, businesses, and individuals for COVID-19 response and relief efforts. This special COVID-19 funding report presents information on the amounts, intended purposes, and recipients of those allocations. It also presents the results of our audit of the allocated monies Arizona State government directly spent and distributed during fiscal year 2021.

Since March 2020, early in the COVID-19 pandemic, and through September 2022, the federal government has allocated through various acts $77.8 billion to the State of Arizona and its local governments, businesses, and individuals for COVID-19 response and relief efforts. This special COVID-19 funding report presents information on the amounts, intended purposes, and recipients of those allocations. It also presents the results of our audit of the allocated monies Arizona State government directly spent and distributed during fiscal year 2021.