Financial Audit: District of Columbia Highway Trust Fund's Fiscal Year 1999 and 1998 Financial Statements
GAO-01-41
Published: Oct 31, 2000. Publicly Released: Oct 31, 2000.
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Highlights
GAO audited the financial statements of the District of Columbia's Highway Trust Fund for fiscal years 1999 and 1998. GAO found that the District did not maintain effective internal control over financial reporting related to its Highway Trust Fund as of September 30, 1999. Material weaknesses affected accounting for expenditures and computer system general controls.
Recommendations
Recommendations for Executive Action
| Agency Affected | Recommendation | Status |
|---|---|---|
| DC Public Works Department | The District of Columbia, Department of Public Works should establish procedures to properly calculate the percentage of project costs to be charged to the Highway Trust Fund or billed to the Federal Highway Administration. |
Closed – Implemented
According to the District's Office of the Inspector General, which performed the fiscal year 2000 audit of the Highway Trust Fund (Fund), the Department of Public Works established procedures to ensure that the percentage of project costs were properly calculated and either appropriately charged to the Fund or billed to the Federal Highway Administration. The procedures require a first and second level review of all voucher packages that did not exist in prior years. Also, the Department of Public Works has instituted a policy to perform internal control audits at least twice a year to assure that project cost allocations are recorded properly and that Fund billings are accurate and valid expenses. In addition, the Department of Public Works performed a review of all codes assigned to its capital projects during fiscal year 2000. Errors were found and corrected during the fiscal year. The Inspector General auditors found no instances of incorrect cost allocations during their audit.
|
| DC Public Works Department | The District of Columbia, Department of Public Works should examine all expenditure transactions for fiscal year 2000 to ensure that the capital expenditure costs that were charged to the Fund or billed to the Federal Highway Administration are correct. |
Closed – Implemented
According to the District's Office of the Inspector General, which performed the fiscal year 2000 audit of the Highway Trust Fund (Fund), the Department of Public Works established procedures to ensure that the percentage of project costs were properly calculated and either appropriately charged to the Fund or billed to the Federal Highway Administration. The procedures require a first and second level review of all voucher packages that did not exist in prior years. Also, the Department of Public Works has instituted a policy to perform internal control audits at least twice a year to assure that project cost allocations are recorded properly and that Fund billings are accurate and valid expenses. In addition, the Department of Public Works performed a review of all codes assigned to its capital projects during fiscal year 2000. Errors were found and corrected during the fiscal year. The Inspector General auditors found no instances of incorrect cost allocations during their audit.
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| Office of the Chief Financial Officer | The District of Columbia, Department of Public Works Chief Financial Officer should establish additional procedures requiring the communication and evaluation of all changes made during the review process to the appropriate officials or agencies involved in preparing the revised data. The communication should ensure that the impact of any changes made during the review process are evaluated and applied throughout the forecasted statements. |
Closed – Implemented
According to the District's Office of the Inspector General, which performed the fiscal year 2000 audit of the Highway Trust Fund (Fund) and examination of the forecasted statements, the District established additional written procedures requiring the communication and evaluation of all changes made during the review process. In addition, to address GAO's concerns, the OIG now examines the forecasted statements for accuracy prior to submission to the Congress.
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Topics
Accounting proceduresAuditing standardsComputer securityFederal aid for highwaysFinancial statement auditsFund auditsInternal controlsMunicipal governmentsTrust fundsPublic roads or highways