| VAOIG: VA HAS
PROBLEMS TRACKING FLOW OF STIMULUS FUNDS
VA needs to more closely follow
Recovery Act reporting requirements related to the awarding and
use of funds.
by Larry Scott, VA Watchdog
dot Org ...
-------------------------
 The
VA has had its problems handling stimulus funds (Recovery Act
funds) ... more than $1.4 billion worth.
In September of this year the
VA's Office of Inspector General (VAOIG)
issued a Flash Report that said of the VA's program to distribute
stimulus funds to state veterans' homes:
Program's
insufficient and inadequately trained staff jeopardizes state
grants by delaying the distribution of stimulus funds.
More on that report is here:
http://www.vawatchdog.org/09/nf09
/nfsep09/nf090209-3.htm
Now, in a new report, we find
the VA is still having difficulty:
Audit of VA’s Data Quality
Review Process under the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act
of 2009 --
Report Number 09-01814-16, 10/30/2009 |
Summary |
Report (PDF)
What we find here is that VA,
although claiming to have a program to audit who gets the funds
and where they go, has been lax in implementing all aspects of the
program.
Highlights of the VAOIG report
are below:
-------------------------
Report Highlights: Audit of VA’s
Data Quality Review Process under the American Recovery and
Reinvestment Act of 2009
Why We Did This Audit
We conducted this audit to
determine if VA had established a process to perform limited data
quality reviews intended to identify material omissions or
significant reporting errors and to notify the recipients of the
need to make appropriate and timely changes.
What We Found
VA’s Office of Finance developed
a data quality review plan that meets Office of Management and
Budget (OMB) requirements and a “Recipient Reporting Data
Checklist” to be used by reviewers to ensure the completeness and
accuracy of recipient data. However, VA’s plan could be enhanced.
Suggested areas for improvement include:
• Identifying the number of
contractor and grant recipient reports to be reviewed
• Identifying the levels at which the reviews are to be performed
and the positions of the individuals who are to perform the
reviews
• Identifying a prescribed format to report review results and the
specific office to which the results are to be reported
What We Recommended
VA’s Office of Finance has
established a process to perform limited data quality reviews
intended to identify material omissions or significant reporting
errors and to notify the recipients of the need to make
appropriate and timely changes. Therefore, we made no
recommendations.
Agency Comments
No recommendations were made;
therefore, it was not necessary to obtain written comments.
However, Office of Finance personnel responsible for VA’s data
quality review plan agree that these modifications would further
ensure the transparency and accountability over Recovery Act funds
and will incorporate these changes after performing a complete
evaluation of the plan.
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TOPICS:
veterans, veterans' benefits, VA, Department of Veterans' Affairs,
VAOIG, stimulus funds, Recovery Act |
