HAVA FUNDSMANAGING, RECORDKEEPING,

REPORTING & AUDITING

FOR COUNTIESMARCH 14, 2006SBOE TRAININGDon Wright

Limited Use of Title I Funds

Title III requirements Improving the administration of Federal elections Educating voters on voting rights, voting procedures and voting

technology Training election officials, workers, and volunteers Developing state plan Improving, acquiring, leasing or replacing voting equipment Improving the accessibility and quantity of polling places 800 hotlines for voters to obtain election information and/or

report complaints of fraud or voting rights violations

Title I Spending Restrictions

OMB Circulars– A-87 Cost Principles for State, Local and Indian Tribe

Governments– A-122 Cost Principles for Non-Profit Organizations

Common Rule (GSA) Cash Management Improvement Act (CMIA) HAVA restrictions in Sections 101(b) and 102(a)(2) Restrictions contained in SBOE Grant Guidelines

Limited Uses of Title II Funds

Title III Requirements– Voting Systems Standards– Provisional Voting– Voter Information– State-wide Voter Registration Database– Voter Identification for First-time Voters

Improve the administration of Federal elections (only after completion of Title III requirements or not more than amount state could receive as its minimum payment)

Title II Spending Restrictions

OMB Circulars– A-87 Cost Principles for State, Local and Indian Tribe

Governments– A-102 (Common Rule)– A-122 Cost Principles for Non-Profit Organizations

HAVA restrictions State plan restrictions Restrictions contained in SBOE Grant

Guidelines

Managing HAVA Funds

DO NOT …….

USE HAVA FUNDS CONTRARY TO GUIDELINES CONTAINED IN GRANTAPPLICATIONS OR UPON YOUR PRIOR ASSERTATIONS TO THE SBOE IN DOCUMENTS RELATED TO YOUR GRANT REQUEST

Managing HAVA Funds

DO NOT ……. Use HAVA funds when the principal

purpose of the transaction is not to accomplish a purpose authorized by the provisions in HAVA under which the payment was made.

Use HAVA funds for alcoholic beverages or cost of entertainment.

Use HAVA funds for litigation or the payment of fines.

Managing HAVA Funds

DO NOT ……. Make any HAVA award or permit any

HAVA award (sub-award or contract) at any tier to any person that is debarred or suspended or is otherwise excluded from or ineligible for participation in Federal assistance programs under Executive Order 12549, ``Debarment and Suspension.'‘

Checking the Barred Vendor List

The federal government publishes a list of parties excluded from federal procurement and non-procurement programs which identifies those parties excluded throughout the U.S. Government from receiving federal contracts or certain subcontracts and from certain types of federal financial and non-financial assistance and benefits. State and county agencies should refer to this list if procurement projects involve federal funds and make a determination if federal policies on this matter apply to the project. The federal list may be

accessed at: http://epls.arnet.gov/.

Managing HAVA Funds

Do Only use HAVA funds to pay costs that

are reasonable and necessary for the performance and administration of the program or grant under which the funds were awarded.

Only use HAVA funds to pay costs that comply with the State plan, a State grant, and applicable State law and OMB circulars.

Managing HAVA Funds

Do (cont.) Establish internal financial controls. Develop a detailed implementation plan for

all HAVA projects, grants and activities Designate individuals responsible for these

activities and for ensuring implementation of the plan.

Managing HAVA Funds

Do (cont.) Use procurement procedures that reflect applicable State

and local laws and regulations, provided that the procurements conform to applicable Federal law and standards:

- Use a competitive bid process, where possible, restricting the use of exemptions to this process to those situations that truly justify the need for them.

- Implement written standards of conduct to avoid the appearance or the occurrence of a conflict of interest.

Managing HAVA Funds

Do (cont.)

- Take all necessary affirmative steps to assure that minority firms, women's business enterprises, and labor surplus area firms are used when possible.

- Give preference in procurement to the purchase of specific products containing recycled materials identified in guidelines published by the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency when possible.

Managing HAVA Funds

Do (cont.)- Specify in any announcement of the awarding of contracts

with an aggregate value in excess of $500,000 or more the amount of Federal funds that will be used to finance the acquisitions.

- Follow control procedures for the review and approval of contracts to ensure that contracts include a detailed description of the scope of work, specific services and work products, and performance measures.

- Maintain a contract administration system that ensures that contractors perform in accordance with the terms, conditions, and specifications of their contracts or purchase orders.

Managing HAVA Funds

Do (cont.)

Remember to credit refunds, rebates, discounts, and adjustments for overpayments or erroneous charges.

Contact the SBOE for approval in any major changes in items to be purchased or replacement of an item approved for purchase with another.

Return unused HAVA funds to the SBOE

Managing HAVA Funds

States must: Follow Federal and State law and procedures

when administering HAVA funds and awarding them to local jurisdictions or sub-awardees.

Ensure that recipients are aware of requirements imposed upon them by State and Federal statute, and OMB circulars.

Inform Counties of CFDA Numbers

CATALOG OF FEDERAL DOMESTIC ASSISTANCE (CFDA) NUMBERS

Your budget office, audit office, or other county finance office may ask you for The Catalog of Federal Domestic Assistance numbers for HAVA funds.

CFDA # 39.011 for section 101 and 102 funds (Title I funds)

CFDA # 90.401 for section 251 requirements payments. (Title II funds) THIS IS THE SOURCE OF THE CURRENT VOTING SYSTEMS GRANTS

Department of Health and Human Services HAVA Grants (used in most accessibility grants CFDA # 93.617

Keeping Records of HAVA Funds

HAVA section 902 requires each recipient of HAVA funds to keep records consistent with sound accounting principles to facilitate an effective audit.

Use Common Sense…can the records you keep show what was done with the funds?

Keeping Records of HAVA Funds

Fiscal control and accounting procedures must be sufficient to:

Permit preparation of reports by the SBOE required by EAC, HHS, and the statutes authorizing the payment or grant;

andPermit the tracing of funds to a level of expenditures

adequate to determine that funds have not been used in violation of Federal restrictions (HAVA and OMB) and that they comply with the State plan and grants.

Keeping Records of HAVA Funds

Accounting records must be supported by source documents, such as:

Cancelled checks Invoices and paid bills Payrolls and employee time sheets Contract and sub-award documents Records sufficient to detail history of

procurements

HAVA Audit Authority

Section 902(b)(1) – Single Audit Section 902(b)(3) – Mandatory one-time

audit by GAO Section 902(b)(6) – Special audit by EAC Section 902(c) – Recoupment of funds by

Comptroller General (proportion of amounts not in compliance; amount of overpayment)

EAC Special Audit Process

The EAC Acting Inspector General is Roger La Rouche

EAC determines the need for additional review and information. If additional information is needed, consider voting to conduct a special audit, such as the Special Audit of the California Secretary of State for misuse of HAVA funds.

If the discrepancies are evident and are sufficiently identified by the existing information, EAC will act to refer the discrepancy to the appropriate enforcement agency, whether that is the U.S. Department of Justice, the Comptroller General, or other appropriate State or Federal enforcement agency.

North Carolina Auditor

Just completed Single Audit of HAVA funds use during the North Carolina 2004-05 FY.

Will be starting again this December, 2006

another Single Audit for the North Carolina 2005-06 FY.

PLEASE SUBMIT HAVA REPORTS TO THE SBOE WHEN THEY ARE DUE

SHARE WITH YOUR COUNTY

Share this information with your county budget, finance, and audit office.

Help them understand HAVA and the HAVA grants

Make sure they understand HAVA grants only SUPPLEMENT budgeted county election funds and can not SUPPLANT such funds.

PROVIDE THE SBOE

TIMELY REPORTS OF HAVA FUNDS AS REQUIRED BY THE TERMS OF GRANTS

any performance or financial audits of your office conducted by or on behalf of any governmental body, including any part of a larger audit that pertains to your office