From an audit conducted on the Department of Education (DOE), it was found that the DOE did not spend all the Early Grade Class Size Reduction (EGCSR) funding in accordance with EGCSR guidelines. Because of this, the number of classrooms paid for with EGCSR funds fell significantly short of expectations. In addition, a majority of the schools that did receive funding misused millions of dollars. Recommendations have been made to address these issues.
From an audit conducted on Food Craft, Inc., it was found that Food Craft paid license fees on time, maintained the required liability insurance and security deposit, and paid appropriate utility charges. However, Food Craft has extensive internal control weaknesses over the collecting, recording, and reporting of revenue, creating the possibility of fraudulent activity. In addition, the company did not follow all terms of the License Agreement. Recommendations have been made to address these issues.
An audit report was filed on September 1, 2009 on the Department of Environmental Protection's (DEP) oversight of costs to construct the Croton Water Treatment Plant. It was determined that DEP generally administered the construction of the Croton water treatment plant effectively to ensure that actual costs are substantiated, reasonable, and necessary. There were some issues regarding the maintaining of records and the conceptual cost estimate of the project, which was deemed unreliable. Recommendations were made to rectify these issues.
An audit report was filed on August 5, 2009 on the Department of Housing Preservation and Development (HPD) Cornerstone Program. The audit determined whether HPD ensured that the goals of the Cornerstone Program were met. The scope of the audit was Fiscal Year 2008 (July, 2007 through June 30, 2008). It was determined that HPD generally ensured the primary goals of the Cornerstone Program were met, however, there were a number of deficiencies in its implementation of the program. HPD did not maintain accurate information on number of developments participating in the Cornerstone Program, or on the number of affordable units being developed as a result of the first three Cornerstone RFPs. The housing lottery process, along with the oversight of the qualifications of the tenants, also had control weaknesses. Recommendations were made to rectify these issues.
An audit report was filed on July 28, 2009 on Vendor Contracts with New York City Transit to provide Access-A-Ride Services. The audit determined whether the New York City Transit Authority (NYCT) adequately monitored Access-A-Ride vendors' compliance with certain key contract provisions. It was determined that 6.3 percent of the 5.8 million assigned trips were no-shows. Otherwise, NYCT generally monitored the compliance of its vendors with key contract provisions. However, improvements were needed in NYCT's monitoring and handling of no-show incidents and complaints. Recommendations were made to rectify these issues.
An audit report was filed on July 22, 2009 on the administration of New York State standardized tests by the New York City Department of Education (DOE). The audit determined whether DOE has adequate internal controls over the administering of New York standardized tests for grades 3, 4, and 5. It was determined that DOE has adequate internal controls with respect to ensuring that schools are familiar with establishing procedures when administering standardized tests at elementary schools, and has also conformed to established rules and regulations. However, DOE lacks sufficient controls to deter manipulation of test scores and cheating. Recommendations were made to rectify these issues.
An audit report was filed on July 21, 2009 on the Department of Education's calculation of high school graduation rates. The audit determined whether the Department of Education (DOE) properly calculated high school graduation rates. It was determined that, despite its established system of internal quality control reviews, DOE needs to institute stronger controls to ensure that official records corroborate the classification of students as graduates. There were technical issues regarding transcripts and counting of credits, as well as discrepancies regarding drop out rates. Recommendations were made to rectify these issues.
An audit report was filed on July 20, 2009 on the Department of Health and Mental Hygiene (DOHMH) oversight of the correction of Health Code Violations at restaurants. The audit determined whether DOHMH had adequate internal controls to ensure that conditions that led to health code violations being issued to restaurants are corrected in a timely manner. It was determined that DOHMH's internal controls regarding the correction of health code violations need to be strengthened. DOHMH inspections of suspect restaurants were not always carried out in a timely or thorough manner, and its inspectors were not always adequately tracked. Recommendations were made to rectify these issues.