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Brought to you by the Council of the Inspectors General on Integrity and Efficiency
I am pleased to submit this semiannual report on the accomplishments of the OIG for the six-month period ending March 31, 2003.I have been honored to serve as the Acting Inspector General since January 2002. The OIG staff and I now look forward to serving with a recent presidentially nominated Inspector General. As we have always done, the management team and I will assist the Inspector General in providing leadership, coordination, and oversight to pro- mote economy, efficiency, and effectiveness in all TVA programs and operations.Our products for the six-month period are summarized throughout this report. They have been well received and have contributed in many ways toward helping TVA achieve its goals. I also want to point out some of the note- worthy OIG accomplishments during the past 15 months of which I am especially proud.I remain sensitive of the need for TVA to conduct its business in an open and forthright manner that instills confidence in Congress, the Administration, investors, and TVA customers and ratepayers. Working toward this end, I assisted the TVA Board in strengthening corporate accountability, enhancing financial disclosure, and increasing external auditor independence. The OIG agreed to assume technical management of the external financial audit contract in 2003. Previously, this role was performed by the TVA Chief Financial Officer (CFO). Additionally, TVA's Board and CFO will certify the financial statements and related information in TVA's Annual Report, as well as all future financial statements and related information. The Information Statement, which is TVA's disclosure report to the public financial markets, will be similarly certified. The certification process will include signed certifications by all TVA Officers and Business Managers for the information they provide for these reports.At the same time, the OIG consolidated its financial audit resources into one department to assure an adequate number of Certified Public Accountant-certified auditors were available to conduct the annual audit of the work of TVA’s external auditor (PricewaterhouseCoopers [PWC]). While assuring that PWC’s financial audit work complies with government auditing standards, We will continue to assist TVA in upgrading its computer security infrastructure. Working with TVA's Information Services organization and an outside consultant, we agreed to establish the Information Technology Security Assessment Team. To date, the team has identified critical risk and the current status of information technology security for critical TVA computer systems and the steps necessary to protect the systems from cyber-attack.The Homeland Security Act of 2002 provided law enforcement authority for TVA OIG special agents under guidelines to be issued by the Department of Justice. Our special agents received comprehensive federal law enforcement skills training at the beginning of their careers. However, in preparation for this new status, we have undertaken an aggressive law enforcement skills refresher training pro- gram. The training included topics such as the rules of search and seizure, federal rules of criminal procedure, arrest authority and techniques, defensive tactics, firearms training, and the use of non- lethal weapons. I believe this training will ensure that our special agents exercise this authority responsibly and professionally.Finally, I have worked to develop a solid framework for excellence and future improvement in OIG operations. The management team and I created momentum to implement our strategic plan. We focused on three key areas: (1) maintaining our integrity as an independent watchdog; (2) strengthening working relationships with our stakeholders; and (3) leveraging OIG resources to optimize productivity and results.I am pleased with the support I have received from OIG employees, the TVA Board, Congress, and other stakeholders. I look forward to further serving these constituencies.Sincerely, G. Donald Hickman
We completed an audit of the Coshocton Metropolitan Housing Authority's Public Housing Program. The review of the Housing Authority's Public Housing Program was conducted as part of a comprehensive review of the Authority. The comprehensive review was performed based upon a request from HUD's Columbus Field Office Coordinator of Public Housing Program Center. The objectives of the audit were to: (1) determine whether the Housing Authority had adequate management controls for safeguarding cash, other monetary assets, and inventory; (2) review for indicators of possible waste, loss, and misuse of cash, other monetary assets, and inventory; and (3) assess the appropriateness of the Housing Authority's procurement process.
The audit resulted in nine findings. In accordance with HUD Handbook 2000.06 REV-3, within 60 days please provide us, for each recommendation without a management decision, a status report on: (1) the corrective action taken; (2) the proposed corrective action and the date to be completed; or (3) why action is considered unnecessary. Additional status reports are required at 90 days and 120 days after report issuance for any recommendation without a management decision.
Also, please furnish us copies of any correspondence or directives issued because of the audit. Should you or your staff have any questions, please contact Ronald Farrell, Senior Auditor, at (614) 469-5737 extension 8279 or me at (312) 353-7832.
Provides documentation to support the $72,329 of unsupported salaries and wages cited in this finding. If documentation cannot be provided, the Authority should reimburse its Public Housing Program the appropriate amount from non-Federal funds.
We completed an audit of the Coshocton Metropolitan Housing Authority's Comprehensive Improvement Assistance Program for Fiscal Years 1997, 1998, and 1999. The audit of the Housing Authority's Program was conducted as part of a comprehensive review of the Authority. The comprehensive review was performed based upon a request from HUD's Columbus Field Office Coordinator of Public Housing Program Center.
The objectives of the audit were to: (1) determine whether the Housing Authority had adequate management controls for safeguarding cash, other monetary assets, and inventory; (2) review for indicators of possible waste, loss, and misuse of cash, other monetary assets, and inventory; and (3) assess the appropriateness of the Housing Authority's procurement process.
The audit identified that the Housing Authority did not: (1) ensure that $287,224 of Comprehensive Improvement Assistance Program funds were used according to HUD's regulations: (2) ensure that $36.408 of Program funds were used in accordance with its Board approved operating budget; (3) procure goods and services in accordance with HUD's regulations; and (4) perform contractor employee wage surveys for its Program. Our report contains three recommendations to address the issues identified in this audit.
In conducting the audit, we reviewed the Housing Authority's policies and procedures for the period January 1999 to April 2002. We also reviewed and evaluated the Authority's: management controls over the Comprehensive Improvement Assistance Program; reliability of computer-processed data; general ledgers; and the Independent Auditor's Report for July 1. 2000 to June 30, 2001. In addition, we reviewed: the Authority's records; HUD's records; bank statements; cancelled checks; 24 CFR Parts 85 and 968; and HUD Handbooks 4910.1 and 7485.2.
We interviewed the Housing Authority's and HUD's staff regarding the Authority's Comprehensive Improvement Assistance Program. A HUD Construction Analyst inspected a sample of 26 Public Housing units and the exterior of 19 buildings comprising the Authority's Meadows and North Meadows housing developments. Our audit covered the period January 1999 to April 2002. This period was adjusted as necessary. We performed our on-site audit work between March 2001 and May 2002.
We conducted the audit in accordance with Generally Accepted Government Auditing Standards.
In accordance with HUD Handbook 2000.06 REV-3, within 60 days please provide us, for each recommendation without a management decision, a status report on: (1) the corrective action taken; (2) the proposed corrective action and the date to be completed; or (3) why action 15 considered unnecessary. Additional status reports are required at 90 days and 120 days after report issuance for any recommendation without a management decision. Also, please furnish us copies of any correspondence or directives issued because of the audit.
Should you or your staff have any questions, please have them contact Ronald Fairell, Senior Auditor, at (614) 469-5737 extension 8279 or me at (312) 353-7832.
Open configuration options Open configuration options Recommendations Public and Indian Housing 2003-CH-1011-001-A $287,224.00
Ensures that the $287,224 of housing work cited in this finding is completed correctly using non-federal funds. If the Authority is unable to ensure the work is completed correctly, then the Authority should reimburse its Comprehensive Assistance Improvement Program (now the Capital Fund Program) from non-Federal funds the applicable amount of work not completed correctly or not provided.
