USDA issues indicators of abuse or mismanagement
USDA issues indicators of abuse or mismanagement
As a follow-up to the audits by the Office of Inspector General (OIG), the USDA developed this chart which describes some of the more common characteristics or indicators of abuse or mismanagement that have been identified in reviews or audits. These indicators can serve as flags of problems or potential problems within CACFP institutions. The existence of a flag will not always indicate that an institution is experiencing problems. These indicators may be used by the state agency to further examine and investigate if program violations have occurred.
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Indicators |
Home Sponsors |
Center Sponsors |
Independent Centers |
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BOARD OVERSIGHT |
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Board of directors consists entirely of family members |
X |
X |
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Majority of members on the board of directors are sponsor officials |
X |
X |
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Board of directors is chaired by sponsor official |
X |
X |
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Board minutes do not reflect policy and management oversight (e.g. establishing policy, approving expenditures, approving officer salary increases, audit review) |
X |
X |
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BUDGET/CLAIM FOR REIMBURSEMENT |
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Consistently claiming at or near the approved budget amount for an administrative item |
X |
X |
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Year-to-date claims do not reflect approved budget |
X |
X |
X |
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Questionable or potentially fraudulent meal claiming practice (e.g., block claiming, meals claimed when facility closed) |
X |
X |
X |
|
Excessive reimbursement retained for administrative costs |
X |
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OPERATIONAL OVERSIGHT |
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Does not have a qualified accountant or an adequate accounting information system |
X |
X |
X |
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Lack of internal controls (e.g., inadequate separation of duties, position held by family member limits internal control) |
X |
X |
X |
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Does not have official policies and procedures for hiring and terminating or for employee activities and benefits |
X |
X |
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Related party transactions (e.g., director or family member is the owner of rented property housing CACFP facility) |
X |
X |
X |
|
Absentee management |
X |
X |
X |
|
MONITORING/TRAINING |
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Does not conduct unannounced monitoring visits/reviews have no findings |
X |
X |
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Inadequate number of monitors to conduct required visits |
X |
X |
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Implausible number of monitoring visits made on the same day |
X |
X |
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Sponsor does not have administrative staff or provider/center staff training programs |
X |
X |
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Sponsor does not require providers/center staff to attend training |
X |
X |
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AUDITS |
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Required audits are not performed |
X |
X |
X |
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Management/Board of directors do not follow-up on corrective action needed |
X |
X |
X |
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OTHER |
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Multiple requests from providers to transfer to another sponsor |
X |
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Rapid growth without appropriate increase in administrative staff |
X |
X |
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Sponsor’s income depends solely on CACFP administrative reimbursements |
X |
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Health and safety concerns reported from any source (e.g., parent complaints) |
X |
X |
X |