State Auditor report outlines millions in questionable spending related to federal funds flowing to Mississippi

“This audit is meant to let the taxpayers see how their cash was spent, warts and all,” Auditor White mentioned.

The Mississippi Workplace of the State Auditor (OSA) launched their Single Audit Report for the State of Mississippi that covers federal funds spent by state companies from July 1, 2020, to June 30, 2021.

Based on a press launch, State Auditor Shad White’s crew found thousands and thousands of questioned prices in accordance to their Single Audit of federal funds flowing by Mississippi.

“That is an audit of federal cash flowing by the state companies and this audit is a bit completely different from the opposite audits which have been finished throughout my four-year tenure as State Auditor as a result of this includes a ton of federal stimulus cash,” Auditor White mentioned. “I feel the truth that this audit includes a lot cash exhibits the significance and important position that State Auditors across the nation play in ensuring that cash that’s handed out to states is spent correctly.”

The State Auditor mentioned one of many large image classes that they discovered from the stimulus {dollars} that flowed throughout the COVID-19 pandemic, is that the federal authorities tried to pump out a bunch of cash in a short time and the nation was not ready to disperse that cash and likewise assure that no fraud would occur with it.

“The lesson from this stimulus is: we have to discover methods as a rustic to push cash out to prop up our society when that’s obligatory with out shedding a number of that cash to fraud,” White continued.

Notable findings within the audit embody:

• The Mississippi Division of Employment Safety (MDES) dealt with unemployment compensation and noticed a 301% enhance in identified overpayments from the earlier yr. MDES made a minimum of $473 million in improper or fraudulent unemployment funds that yr. These included unemployment funds to prisoners and other people outdoors of Mississippi.
• MDES additionally spent stimulus cash on workforce coaching tools unrelated to combatting COVID-19, making the spending improper beneath stimulus guidelines.
• The Mississippi Division of Medicaid continues to supply funding to doubtlessly ineligible recipients. The same discovering was included in final yr’s Single Audit.
• The Mississippi Division of Schooling (MDE) did not observe correct procurement pointers. Particularly, MDE allowed an eventual contract-winning vendor early entry and the power to recommend edits to the procurement specs. The eventual profitable bid was chosen as a result of imprecise product particulars. The profitable bid was not one of many two lowest-priced bids.
• A number of state companies did not correctly monitor CRF spending by sub-recipients. This implies different organizations—like nonprofits—weren’t appropriately monitored after being chosen to function authorities packages. Years of comparable findings on the Mississippi Division of Human Providers (MDHS) preceded the conviction of 5 people related to the biggest public fraud scheme in Mississippi historical past, which was uncovered by the Workplace of the State Auditor.

Auditor White thanked the devoted crew of auditors and help workers for his or her work on the Single Audit.

“We’re dedicated to shining a lightweight on how the state dealt with the large quantity of stimulus funds that flowed by Mississippi,” White mentioned. “This audit is meant to let the taxpayers see how their cash was spent, warts and all.”

Click on right here to learn the total Single Audit Report.