Purpose

To determine whether the costs reported by The Child Study Center of New York (CSC) on its Consolidated Fiscal Report (CFR) 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 CSC’s CFR for the fiscal year ended June 30, 2014.

Background

CSC, a not-for-profit organization located in Jericho, New York, is authorized by SED to provide preschool special education services to children with disabilities who are between three and five years of age. CSC is reimbursed for preschool special education services through rates set by SED. These reimbursement rates are based on financial information, including costs, that CSC reports to SED on its annual CFR. To be eligible for reimbursement, reported costs must comply with the RCM requirements. For the fiscal year ended June 30, 2014, CSC reported approximately $5.9 million in reimbursable costs on its CFR for two rate-based preschool special education programs (Programs) it operated.

Key Findings

For the fiscal year ended June 30, 2014, we identified $127,101 in ineligible costs that CSC reported on its CFR for the Programs. The ineligible costs included:

• $121,255 in employee fringe benefit costs that were incorrectly allocated to the Programs; and
• $5,846 in ineligible costs for food, personal travel, gifts, and other non-reimbursable expenses.

Key Recommendations

To SED:

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

To CSC:

• 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)