GAINESBORO – The Tennessee Comptroller’s annual audit of Jackson County government found that 19 employees – 18 county employees and one in the highway department employee – were not participating in the Tennessee Consolidated Retirement System (TCRS) pension plan. State law mandates participation by all eligible employees.
The finding is “the result of management’s lack of understanding of TCRS policies,” the audit says.
Comptroller auditors were unable to determine if Jackson County’s pension liability was recorded correctly. This resulted in a finding of material noncompliance and qualified opinions on the county’s financial statements.
Jackson County received eight audit findings in its fiscal year 2015 report. Six of these findings were also noted in the previous year’s report but had not been corrected.
Additional findings in the report include problems with purchasing procedures, expenditures exceeding appropriations, multiple employees using the same cash drawer, and a failure to separate money-handling responsibilities in several county offices.
“Jackson County leaders should work with TCRS to correct this situation,” Comptroller Justin P. Wilson said in a release issued Monday. “I would also encourage county officials to follow the recommendations in the audit report to address our auditors’ findings. All 95 Tennessee counties have an audit committee which can be very useful in mitigating risk and improving internal controls.”
Findings
OFFICE OF COUNTY MAYOR
Jackson County does not require all eligible employees to participate in the Tennessee Consolidated Retirement System.
OFFICES OF COUNTY MAYOR AND ROAD SUPERINTENDENT
The office had deficiencies in budget operations.
The office had deficiencies in purchasing procedures.
General ledger payroll liability accounts were not reconciled.
OFFICE OF COUNTY CLERK
Wheel tax collections were not remitted to the county on a monthly basis.
OFFICE OF CIRCUIT AND GENERAL SESSIONS COURTS CLERK
Multiple employees operated from the same cash drawer.
OFFICES OF CIRCUIT AND GENERAL SESSIONS COURTS CLERK, AND CLERK AND MASTER
Execution docket trial balances did not reconcile with general ledger accounts.
OFFICES OF COUNTY MAYOR, ROAD SUPERINTENDENT, TRUSTEE, COUNTY CLERK, CIRCUIT AND GENERAL SESSIONS COURTS CLERK, CLERK AND MASTER, AND SHERIFF
Duties were not segregated adequately.
