FOR the 14th year in a row, Northern Marianas College received a favorable, or unqualified, audit opinion in fiscal year 2020. The latest audit was conducted by independent and certified public accountants from Burger Comer Magliari.
An unqualified opinion means that “the financial statements present fairly, in all material aspects, the financial position of Northern Marianas College, and conform with accounting principles generally accepted in the U.S.”
NMC continues to be designated as a “low risk” auditee. This designation means less administrative burden for NMC when applying for and administering grants; fewer audit requirements; and higher confidence in the college on the part of federal agencies and the community.
There were no unresolved audit findings and questioned costs from the prior year audits of the college.
But the audit report, which covers the fiscal year that ended on Sept. 30, 2020, recognized that the Covid-19 pandemic has caused economic uncertainties which negatively affected NMC’s day-to-day administration.
The audit likewise noted deficiencies in internal control, pertaining to the timely processing of employees’ contract and renewal paperwork.
In his response to the auditors, NMC Chief Financial Officer Dave Attao said of the six payroll items tested only three employees did not have contracts. Of the three, one was undergoing a contract renewal and the other two were considered emergency short-term hires who were renewed, he said.
“All three employees had timesheets which were used to document, verify, and enable their pay process,” Attao said. “The college created the contracts needed to resolve this matter, as well as reinstated the process of obtaining the necessary signatures from the authorized personnel in a planned and timely manner for all contracts.”
As for an employee working without a valid personnel action form in place, Attao said the employee was not able to have a personnel action filed on time due to the Covid-19 pandemic. The employee, however, still submitted valid timesheets that allowed the employee to get paid.
“The college created the Personnel Action needed to resolve this matter as well as reinstated the process of obtaining the necessary signatures from the authorized personnel in a planned and timely manner for all personnel actions,” Attao said.
Despite these deficiencies, the audit report stated that NMC has no unresolved audit findings and questioned costs from the prior year audits.
“The Covid-19 pandemic reached the CNMI and caused adverse impacts throughout the Marianas and at NMC,” Attao said. “One of these impacts was the delay of efforts that were focused on creating new procedures to operate while still trying to correct past practices.”
He said NMC is committed to address the audit findings and will continue to strengthen its procedures to avoid delays in the processing of documents for renewal employees.
For his part, NMC President Dr. Galvin Deleon Guerrero commended the college’s finance office and other departments “for their diligence and strict adherence to internal controls and sound financial management.”
Copies of NMC’s latest financial audit have been transmitted to the Office of the Public Auditor and other government entities.
