MAS NEWSLETTER

A quarterly publication distributed by UMBC Management Advisory Services

Web Site: http://www.umbc.edu/mas

 

VOLUME 3, NUMBER 2

OCT, 2002

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Legislative Audit Results

The most recent Legislative Audit of UMBC took place between January and July 2002. Overall, the results of the audit were encouraging. Several of our prior audit items were resolved and the remaining exceptions were of a more minor nature. The auditors even complimented the University for our efforts to correct prior audit issues and our campus-wide knowledge of internal controls. Thanks to everyone who took time out of their very busy schedules to work with the auditors when they were auditing in your area.

 

The following exceptions from the previous report were resolved:

• CHPDM - invoice review procedures

• Revolving Accounts – deficit balances with no action plans on file

• Equipment/Inventory Control – inadequate procedures for taking physical inventories, record keeping and reconciliation.

 

Kudos to CHPDM, Financial Services - Cost Accounting, Financial Services – Inventory Control, the Dean’s Offices and numerous campus departments that worked together to resolve these issues!!

 

The following exceptions from the previous report were not resolved:

• Purchasing Cards – lack of supervisory review

• Student Accounts Receivable – incomplete reconciliations

• Payroll - inadequate separation of duties

• Cash Receipts – lack of restrictive endorsement, untimely deposits, failure to verify receipts to deposit

 

The following exceptions were NEW this audit:

• IT – various network security issues

• Bookstore – inadequate separation of duties/security

• Tuition Waivers – insufficient verification of employee eligibility

• Purchases and Disbursements – inadequate separation of duties

• Student Account Receivable – inadequate review of system overrides

• Equipment – inaccuracies noted in records and property tags

• Cash Receipts – inadequate control over distribution of pre-numbered receipt books

• Contractual Payments – inadequate documentation of contract monitoring

 

Although all of these exceptions will not appear in the final report, we still want to ensure we have addressed each of them prior to the next audit. If any of the items were cited in your area, MAS has already contacted you to discuss corrective actions. As we have done in the past, we will continue to offer internal control education sessions to keep the campus community informed. See the notice in this newsletter concerning the session scheduled for November. Additionally, over the next 2 – 3 years we will continue to follow up in various departments with reviews and assistance visits to check on the status of our corrective actions in anticipation of the next audit. Eliminating repeat audit exceptions will still be a primary goal. As always, please contact us if you have any questions about internal controls, campus audits, the audit results, or your corrective actions - and remember – we have come a long way, so keep up the good work!

 

INTERNAL CONTROL EDUCATION SESSION

MAS has scheduled an Internal Control Education Session on Tuesday, November 19th, 2002 from 10:00 A.M. to 12:00 P.M. in Room 331 of the Commons. This session is appropriate for anyone who:

1) is responsible for departmental business functions,

2) is responsible for authorizations, approval, reconciliation or verification procedures, or

3) wants to know more about internal control.

Both staff and supervisory attendance is welcomed. If you have attended the session in the past, please feel free to join us again for a refresher. With the Legislative Audit just completed and the recurrence of some internal control weaknesses, this is a great opportunity to brush up on your knowledge of the internal control requirements that impact all of our departments. If you would like to attend, please contact Sylvia Wickham at wickham@umbc.edu.

 

P-CARD CORNER

 

PERSONAL PURCHASES REMINDER

Please remember that the purchasing card is not to be used for personal purchases, or as personal identification, under any circumstances. Violations may result in disciplinary action against the cardholder. If a cardholder inadvertently uses the card for a personal purchase, the cardholder must immediately notify his/her supervisor and reimburse UMBC for the amount of the purchase by depositing a check made payable to UMBC into the account against which the personal purchase was charged. A copy of this check should be retained with the cardholder’s transaction log.

 

KUDOS…

…to Environmental Safety and Health (formerly Risk Management). A recently completed purchasing card review by MAS has shown this department is managing its program well. Thanks for your efforts and keep up the good work!

 

 

 

 

ENJOY THE FALL!!!!!!

 

MANAGEMENT ADVISORY SERVICES

Michele L. Evans, CPA

Director

Email: mevans@umbc.edu

Extension: 51354

 

Frances Toth, CPA

Management Analyst

Email: ftoth@umbc.edu

Extension: 56257

 

Sharon D. Doherty-Ritter, CPA

Management Analyst

Email: doherty@umbc.edu

Extension: 51620

Shared Fax: 51009