Category: Compliance

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Travel expense reimbursement issues at Northern Arizona University – The case for re-evaluating, reviewing and testing travel reimbursement policies and procedures in local governments

Recently the Arizona Auditor General released its report for Northern Arizona University’s (NAU) internal control and compliance for the year ending June 30, 2019. The report includes only one finding, that the “University inappropriately paid for $40,277 of the President’s and her spouse’s travel  expenses that conflicted with policies and lacked appropriate documentation, which put …

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Internal audit?

An audit can be defined as a process where business records are examined by an auditor to determine whether a business’s financial statements appear to be accurate. There are two types of audits: external and internal. It is important to understand the meaning of the two as your organization may at one-point experience both. It’s …

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What is missing from your SEFA?

In addition to your many end of fiscal year document requirements, you’re also responsible for the Schedule of Expenditures of Federal Awards (SEFA).  Below is a list of items you’ll need to prepare the SEFA under Uniform Guidance as well as some helpful tips to ensure the information is complete and accurate. Tips for preparing …

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Updated public debt disclosure requirements

Have you issued public debt? If so, you are going to want to be aware of the amendment the SEC approved to Rule 12c2-12. Effective February 27, 2019, all broker-dealers buying or selling municipal securities, governments, as well as any other obligated persons who issue obligations subject to the Rule will be required, through contractual …

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South Dakota v Wayfair: landmark sales tax decision

There has been a lot of buzz in the past few months regarding the South Dakota vs. Wayfair, Inc. case. It’s important because state and local governments cannot enforce their sales tax laws on internet retail sales unless the retailer has a local physical presence. This is a precedent that was established in U.S. Court …

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A Look at Financial Accountability for Student Activities in Arizona Schools

Student activities for Arizona School Districts have many requirements, that by law, each school should be aware of before processing student activity transactions. It is important that school districts understand what constitutes a student activity, such as a club, organization, school play, or other student entertainment raised through the efforts of students at the District …

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FY2016 School District Budget Changes

Each year the Auditor General (AG) makes changes to the School District Annual Budget. We know that it can be hard to keep up with all of the budget changes; therefore, we have summarized the list of those changes made to the FY2016 School District Budget below: Cover – Additional Information Added lines for the …

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Conflicts of Interest in School and Government Procurement

As many school district business personnel are aware of, Arizona State Statute 38-509 and Arizona USFR guidelines require each District to maintain a conflict of interest file disclosing substantial conflicts of interest with their employees and board members. However, this can be taken a step further to help protect a City, Town or School District …

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Is Your School Ready for Its Audit?

Often times, School Districts and Charter Schools are busy running the operations of their organization that they forget how much preparedness is needed for their annual or biennial audits. The summer time is a great time to take a moment to look through the items your auditors often ask for each year and do a …

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Updated Annual Financial Report (AFR) for Arizona School Districts

With the Annual Financial Report due next week, make sure to have the most up to date form by visiting http://www.auditorgen.state.az.us/forms_schooldistrict.htm.  The Arizona Auditor General recently released Memo 256 with a few updates to the form. In the memo, it explains the major changes that have occurred from last year’s form including the removal of …

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