Office of the Legislative Auditor - Financial Audit Division

Report Summary
Department of Human Services
Federal Compliance Audit

 

Financial Audit Division Report 16-06

Released March 24, 2016

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Conclusion

The Department of Human Services generally complied with and had internal controls to ensure compliance with certain legal requirements applicable to its major federal programs for fiscal year 2015. However, as noted in Finding 1, the department did not comply with and did not have adequate internal controls to comply with federal eligibility requirements for the Medical Assistance, Basic Health, Temporary Assistance for Needy Families, and the Child Care and Development Fund programs. Also, as a result of the weaknesses in internal controls for eligibility, we conclude that the department did not comply with and did not have adequate internal controls to comply with federal allowable costs and allowable activities requirements for the Medical Assistance and Basic Health programs and allowable costs for the Temporary Assistance for Needy Families and the Child Care and Development Fund programs. In addition, the department had other internal control weaknesses and instances of noncompliance, including three findings repeated from our prior report,¹ as noted in the findings in this report.

Audit Findings

• The Department of Human Services did not ensure the effectiveness of controls over eligibility determinations for the Medical Assistance, Basic Health, Temporary Assistance for Needy Families, Child Care and Development Fund, and Supplemental Nutrition Assistance programs. This is a repeat finding.
• The Department of Human Services did not ensure county workers with access to the department’s computer systems needed the access. This is a repeat finding.
• The Department of Human Services did not consistently reduce recipients’ cash assistance benefits when the recipients refused to cooperate with child support enforcement requirements.
• The Department of Human Services did not always perform on-site licensing reviews of child care centers within the required timeframe. This is a repeat finding.
• The Department of Human Services did not accurately split costs related to the Children’s Health Insurance Program between federal and state funding percentages, overcharging the federal share by $241,814.

Audit Scope

Our scope included programs we determined to be major federal programs for the State of Minnesota for fiscal year 2015, including: Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program Cluster, Temporary Assistance for Needy Families Cluster, Child Support Enforcement, Child Care and Development Fund Cluster, Foster Care, Social Services Block Grant, Children’s Health Insurance Program, Basic Health Program, and Medicaid Cluster.²

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¹ Office of the Legislative Auditor, Financial Audit Division Report 15-07, Department of Human Services Federal Compliance Audit, issued March 24, 2015.
² A cluster of programs is a group of closely related programs that have similar compliance requirements and are treated as a single program.