Purpose

To determine whether the costs reported by Jowonio School (Jowonio) on its Consolidated Fiscal Reports (CFRs) were properly calculated, adequately documented, and allowable under the State Education Department’s (SED) guidelines, including the Reimbursable Cost Manual (RCM). The audit covered expenses reported on Jowonio’s CFR for the fiscal year ended June 30, 2014, and certain expenses reported on Jowonio’s CFRs for the two fiscal years ended June 30, 2013.

Background

Jowonio is an SED-approved not-for-profit special education provider located in Syracuse, New York. Jowonio provides preschool special education services to children with disabilities between three and five years of age. Jowonio is reimbursed for preschool special education services through rates set by SED. These reimbursement rates are based on financial information, including costs, that Jowonio reports to SED on its annual CFR. To be eligible for reimbursement, reported costs must comply with the RCM requirements. For the three years ended June 30, 2014, Jowonio reported over $7.6 million in reimbursable costs on its CFRs for four rate-based preschool special education programs.

Key Findings

For the three fiscal years ended June 30, 2014, we identified $118,110 in costs that were not in compliance with the RCM. These costs included:

• $98,572 in personal service costs, which consisted of ineligible employee bonuses; and
• $19,538 in other than personal service costs, which consisted of $16,656 in insufficiently documented vehicle costs, $2,370 in non-reimbursable interest, and $512 in non-reimbursable purchases.

Key Recommendations

To SED:

• Review the disallowances identified by our audit and, if warranted, make the necessary adjustments to the costs reported on Jowonio’s CFRs and to Jowonio’s tuition reimbursement rates.
• Remind Jowonio officials of the pertinent SED requirements that relate to the deficiencies we identified.

To Jowonio :

• Ensure that costs reported on annual CFRs fully comply with SED’s requirements, and communicate with SED to obtain clarification as needed.

Other Related Audits/Reports of Interest

Center for Disability Services: Compliance With the Reimbursable Cost Manual (2015-S-40)

The Arc of Orange County: Compliance With the Reimbursable Cost Manual (2015-S-45)