The State Education Resource Center (SERC) underreported vendor expenditures of roughly $13.6 million, leading to inaccurate records on Connecticut’s open data websites, according to a recent report from state auditors.
In an audit covering fiscal years 2023 and 2024, the Auditors of Public Accounts found that SERC, a quasi-public agency created by the legislature that provides professional development and resources with a goal of promoting equity for minority student populations in educational settings, did not report roughly $13.6 million in vendor expenditures to the Office of the State Comptroller (OSC), which maintains the state’s open data websites.
Auditors found that data on the Open Checkbook website totaled $8.4 million in 2023 and $7.9 million in 2023, while vendor payments they reviewed totaled $12.4 million in 2023 and $17.4 million in 2024.
A similar finding was reported by auditors in their previous audit, covering fiscal years 2021 and 2022.
As a result of the error, which auditors found was the result of SERC officials failing to adequately review data submitted to the comptroller’s office, Open Checkbook’s data was incomplete and inaccurate.
SERC agreed with the finding and blamed the departure of a former chief financial officer for the failure to adequately review the data.
“The reports at issue were prepared and transmitted to OSC by SERC’s former Chief Financial Officer. Following the former CFO’s departure, SERC experienced a period of turnover within the fiscal department during which the Chief Financial Officer position remained vacant.” SERC wrote in its response to auditors’ finding. “Upon subsequent review of the underlying correspondence and reporting activity, the SERC Fiscal Department determined that the submissions contained errors and that an adequate secondary review and reconciliation process has not been in place to identify those errors before transmission to OSC.”
SERC added that they have “implemented strengthened internal controls” over how they report data to Open Checkbook, including by reconciling submitted data with SERC’s accounting records and performing a secondary review.
Auditors also found SERC failed to review or approve 69 out of 72 reconciliations for its three bank accounts, which cover operating, reserve, and payroll funds, increasing the opportunity for irregularities and potential fraud to go undetected.
They further found SERC missed five statutory reporting requirements, failing to submit annual reports to the governor and auditors on its fiscal operations and work, yearly budgets and audits to the State Board of Education and General Assembly, and a report reviewing public transition programs for special education students to the General Assembly.
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