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YELLOW SHEET Office of the State Auditor of Missouri |
May 14, 2001
Report No. 2001-38
The
following problems were discovered as a result of an audit conducted by our
office of the Department of Conservation.
The
lease agreement between the department and the Conservation Employees� Credit
Union (Credit Union), a private corporation, may violate federal regulations
which could make the department ineligible for future federal funding.� In March 1999, the Department of
Conservation entered into an agreement to lease land to the credit union for
ninety-nine years, for the purpose of constructing a new office building, which
is adjacent to the department�s central office.� Department of Conservation personnel indicated the land the
department is leasing to the credit union was purchased with license fees.� The lease requires an annual fee of one
dollar.
Federal
regulations provide that revenues from hunting and fishing license fees shall
not be diverted to purposes other than administration of the state fish and
wildlife agency.� In addition, this
lease may violate state law.� Article
III, Section 38(a), of the Missouri Constitution prohibits state departments
from granting public money or property to any private person, association, or
corporation.
The audit also noted that the department should make an
effort to reduce expenditures for food costs and redirect these resources to
conservation activities.� During fiscal
years 2000 and 1999, the department paid approximately $271,000 and $158,000,
respectively, to various food service providers for purposes such as meals at
conferences and meetings held at motels, catered luncheons, and purchases from
local vendors.� These amounts do not
include amounts reimbursed to employees through expenses accounts.�
The department should review the need to routinely incur
meals costs for individuals attending training sessions and other events and
develop a comprehensive policy regarding food purchases.
During the two years ended June 30, 2000, the department
incurred credit card finance and late charges totaling $1,142 related to
operating expenses of the Special Investigations Unit.� Requests to replenish the Special
Investigations Account from the Conservation Commission Fund were not made on a
timely basis, and, as a result, monies were not deposited to the account in
time to pay credit card statements by the due date.� Failure to pay credit card statements by the due date results in
an unnecessary expense to the department.
Vehicles are not placed in service on a timely basis.� Approximately 200 vehicles were ordered in November and December 1999.� The delivery of these orders caused a backlog at the shops that prepare the vehicles for service.� The department should have staggered orders to reduce the quantity of each delivery and to allow for vehicles to be placed in operation in a more timely manner.
