Purpose

To determine whether the costs reported by Bright Start Pediatric Services, LLC (Bright Start) on its Consolidated Fiscal Report (CFR) were properly calculated, adequately documented, and allowable under the State Education Department’s (SED’s) guidelines, including the Reimbursable Cost Manual (RCM). The audit covered the fiscal year ended June 30, 2013.

Background

Bright Start provides preschool special education services to children with disabilities between the ages of three and five years. Pursuant to the State Education Law, providers such as Bright Start are reimbursed by counties through rates set by SED. SED sets the special education tuition rates based on financial information, including costs, reported by providers on their annual CFR. To be eligible for reimbursement, the provider's reported costs must comply with the guidelines specified in the RCM. For the fiscal year ended June 30, 2013, Bright Start reported $442,638 in reimbursable costs for the preschool Special Education Itinerant Teacher (SEIT) program we audited.

Key Finding

We identified $4,798 in costs charged to the SEIT program that did not comply with SED’s requirements for reimbursement. The disallowances included $4,552 in various other than personal service costs, such as vehicle and food expenses, and $246 in personal service costs for employee bonuses.

Key Recommendations

To SED:

• Review the disallowances identified by our audit and, if warranted, make the necessary adjustments to Bright Start’s reimbursement rates.
• Remind Bright Start officials of the pertinent SED guidelines that relate to the deficiencies we identified.

To Bright Start:

• Ensure that costs reported on annual CFRs fully comply with SED’s requirements.

Other Related Audit/Report of Interest

State Education Department: The Norman Howard School - Compliance With the Reimbursable Cost Manual (2012-S-18)