Department of Public Service Regulation financial-compliance audit report for the two fiscal years ended June 30 .. PDF
Preview Department of Public Service Regulation financial-compliance audit report for the two fiscal years ended June 30 ..
s 354.728 L72DPSR 1992 Office of the Legislative Auditor State of Montana Report to the Legislature Financial-Compliance Audit December 1992 For the Two Fiscal Years Ended June 30, 1992 Department of Public Service Regulation We issued an unqualifled opinion on the department's flnancial schedules and our report contains no recommendations. STATE Dccu:ii::iT3 cgllectig;^ APkS: 1993 MONTANA STATE LIBRARY 1515 E. 6th AVE. HELENA, MONTANA S9620 r" ?**'-v jp"*"^*^'"''" f: ii ii Direct comments/inquiries to: Office of the Legislative Auditor Room 135, State Capitol 92-24 Helena, Montana 59620 MontanaStaleLibrary !|i|i|i 3 0864 1003 2719 9 FINANCIAL-COMPLIANCE AUDITS Financial-compliance audits are conducted by the Office ofthe Legislative Auditor to deter- mine ifan agency'sfinancial operationsare properly conducted, the financial reportsare pre- sented fairly, and the agency has complied with applicable laws and regulations which could have a significant financial impact. In performing the audit work, the audit staff uses stand- ards set forth by the American InstituteofCertified Public Accountants and the United States General Accounting Office. Financial-compliance audit staff members hold degrees with an emphasis in accounting. Most staff members hold Certified Public Accountant (CPA) certificates. The Single Audit Act of 1984 and OMB Circular A-128 require the auditor to issue certain financial, internal control, and compliance reports regarding the state's federal financial assistance programs, including all findings of noncompliance and questioned costs. This individual agency audit report is not intended to comply with the Single Audit Act of 1984 or OMB Circular A-128 and is therefore not intended for distribution to federal grantor agencies. The Office of the Legislative Auditor issues a statewide biennial Single Audit Reportwhich complies withthe reporting requirements listed above. TheSingle Audit Report for the two fiscal years ended June 30, 1991 has been issued. Copies of the Single Audit Report can be obtained by contacting: Office of the Legislative Auditor Room 135, State Capitol MT Helena, 59620 MEMBERS OF THE LEGISLATIVE AUDIT COMMITTEE Senator Greg Jergeson, Chairman RepresentativeJohn Cobb, ViceChairman Senator Tom Keating Representative Larry Grinde Senator Paul Svrcek Representative Mike Kadas Senator Gene Thayer Representative Robert Pavlovich Office of the Legislative Auditor Financial-Compliance Audit For the Two Fiscal Years Ended June 30, 1992 Department of Public Service Regulation Members of the audit staff involved in this audit were: Wayne D. Guazzo, Charles V. Jensen, Glenn Jorgenson, and Vickie Rauser. Digitized by the Internet Archive in 2010 with funding from IVIontana State Library http://www.archive.org/details/departmentofpubl1992mont Table of Contents Elected and Administrative Officials ii Introduction Introduction 1 Background 1 Prior Audit Prior Audit Recommendations 3 Recommendations Independent Auditor's Summary of Independent Auditor's Report A-2 Report and Agen<7 Financial Schedules Independent Auditor's Report A-3 Schedule of Changes in Fund Balances for the Two Fiscal Years Ended June 30, 1992 A-4 Schedule of Budgeted Revenue - Estimate & Actual for the Two Fiscal Years Ended June 30, 1992 A-5 Schedule of Budgeted Program Expenditures by Object and Fund, Budget and Actual, for the Two Fiscal Years Ended June 30, 1992 A-6 Notes to the Financial Schedules A-7 Agency Response Department of Public Service Regulation B-3 Page i Elected and Administrative Officials Public Service During the Audit Period Term Expires Commission Danny Oberg, Chairman January 1995 Wallace W. Mercer January 1993 John Driscoll January 1993 Ted C. Macy January 1993 Bob Anderson January 1995 Effective January 4. 1993 Term Expires Danny Oberg January 1995 Bob Anderson January 1995 Nancy McCaffree January 1997 Dave Fisher January 1997 Robert Rowe January 1997 Administrative Officials Madeline L. Cottrill Administrator Centralized Services Division Robin McHugh Administrator Legal Division Wayne Budt Administrator Transportation Division Dan Elliott Administrator Utility Division Page ii Introduction Introduction We performed a financial-compliance audit of the Department of Public Service Regulation for the two fiscal years ended June 30, 1992. The objectives of the audit were to: 1. Determine if the department complied with applicable laws and regulations. 2. If necessary, make recommendations for improvement in the administrative and accounting controls of the depart- ment. 3. Determine if the department's financial schedules present fairly the results of operations for the two fiscal years ended June 30, 1992. 4. Determine implementation status of prior audit recommen- dations. Background The Department of Public Service Regulation was created by the Executive Reorganization Act of 1971 and operates under the direction of the Public Service Commission. The commission consists of five voting members who are elected on a district basis and serve a term of four years. After each general elec- tion, one of the commissioners is elected by the commission to serve as chairman for the two years until the ne.xt general election. The department is responsible for the regulation of public util- ities, motor carriers, railroads, and pipelines within the state and performs safety inspections of those activities, except for motor carriers. The department's responsibility is to assure the public receives safe, adequate, and economical utility and transportation service at just and reasonable rates. The commission chairman serves as the department head. The department was authorized to employ 42 full-time equivalent (FTE) personnel in fiscal years 1990-91 and 1991-92. The department is divided into the following four divisions. 1. The Utility Division exercises general control over public utilities, including rate determination and safety standards. The division has 14 FTE. Page 1 Introduction 2. The Transportation Division exercises general supervisory control over the activities of motor carriers and railroads. The division has 15 FTE, 5 of which are motor carrier enforcement officers stationed throughout the state. 3. The Legal Division advises the commission on matters requiring a legal interpretation or opinion and represents the commission in legal proceedings. The division has six FTE. 4. The Centralized Services Division performs the depart- ment's administrative support functions. The division has seven FTE. As of September 9, 1991 the department moved from office space rented from the Department of Transportation to office space rented from a private source. This move caused an increase of approximately $100,000 in rent each year. Also as a result of the move there were one time costs of $31,822 in the equipment category. Page 2 Prior Audit Recommendations Prior Audit Our office performed an audit of the department for the two Recommendations fiscal years ended June 30, 1990. The prior audit contained five recommendations of which three were implemented and two are in the process of being implemented. The two recommendations which are in the process of being implemented deal with the department seeking legislation to exempt the setting of natural gas and electrical standards from the requirements of the Mon- tana Administrative Procedure Act and seeking budget authority to account for reimbursable travel expenditures in the General Fund. Page 3
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