05/17/2017
Missouri State Auditor Nicole Galloway has released a follow up report on cash handling procedures for one central Missouri school district. The State Auditor found improvements in the Waynesville School District, located in Pulaski County, after a 2016 audit identified a number of concerns.
"My audit found districtwide problems and made a series of recommendations related to cash handling procedures," Auditor Galloway said. "The district has taken responsibility for the issues identified and has made progress toward fulfilling the corrective actions outlined in my initial report."
The district has adopted new policies and staff training curriculum. Planning is underway for onsite reviews to ensure the new processes are being implemented. Overall the district has made progress toward fully implementing audit recommendations.
The original audit, released last fall, found the district failed to instruct employees on proper handling, depositing and recording of cash payments. As a result, there were insufficient records for auditors or district personnel to conduct thorough reviews of payments made to each school or program.
In addition to recommending clearer cash handling procedures, the audit advised district officials to conduct independent reviews of the financial activities of employees. In too many cases, a small number of employees were responsible for all steps of handling cash with little supervisory oversight.
District officials requested an audit of money handling processes after identifying a discrepancy in financial records the previous spring. The complete follow up report for the Waynesville School District's cash handling procedures can be found online here.
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