NCJ Number
250459
Date Published
November 2016
Length
39 pages
Annotation
This report presents the findings and methodology of the U.S. Justice Department's Office of the Inspector General's (OIG's) audit of the grants awarded to the Nebraska Commission on Law Enforcement and Criminal Justice to support eligible crime victim assistance programs that provide direct services to crime victims, as well as to fund compensation to eligible crime victims.
Abstract
The audit's objective was to determine whether costs claimed under the grants were allowable, supported, and in accordance with applicable laws, regulations, guidelines, and terms and conditions of the grants. Performance was assessed in the following areas of grant management: financial management, expenditures, drawdowns, Federal financial reports, and program performance. As of October 7, 2015, the Crime Commission had drawn down $7,135,802 of the total grant funds awarded ($8,474,916). The audit found that the Crime Commission charged unallowable and unsupported costs to the awards; five of the six State performance reports were inaccurate; drawdowns were not always timed to ensure that Federal money on hand was the minimum needed for disbursements; and the drawdowns for five of the six awards exceeded the recorded expenditures. In addition, the audit found a potential for a conflict of interest in the Crime Commission's awarding of Federal assistance sub-awards. The audit determined that some Crime Commission and Grant Review Committee members did not abstain and voted to award grant funds to an agency or county that employed them or which they represented. This practice could possibly have a detrimental effect on the integrity of the Crime Commission's grant award process and programs under the Federal Victims of Crime Act (VOCA). This report presents eight recommendations to the U.S. Justice Department's Office of Justice Program's (administrator of the grants) regarding corrective actions that should be taken to remedy the issues identified in the audit. 7 tables and appended audit methodology, schedule of dollar-related findings, and OJP's and the Crime Commission's response to the draft audit report