Grant and single-audit compliance

Organizations that spend government grant money must show they followed the rules attached to it. For some, that means a single audit each year. Fairview Audit connects you with a partner firm that performs this work.

Request a professional

Fairview does not perform audits or compliance reviews.

What the work looks at

A single audit is an organization-wide audit of an entity that spends government awards. In the United States it combines an audit of the financial statements with testing of compliance for the major federal programs selected, and it includes a schedule of expenditures of federal awards and a schedule of findings. It applies once an entity spends federal awards above a threshold set in the Uniform Guidance. [VERIFY: current spending threshold and reporting requirements]

Beyond the single audit, a partner firm may review grant compliance in other ways.

  • Whether costs charged to a grant were allowable and properly documented
  • Whether time and effort records support payroll charged to awards
  • Whether spending stayed within the approved budget
  • Whether procurement followed the required steps
  • Whether subrecipients were monitored
  • Whether reports to the funder agree with your books
  • Whether the schedule of expenditures of awards is complete

State, local and private funders may set their own rules. Your award terms are the starting point. [CONFIRM: a partner firm supplies and approves the grant programs it covers]

What you provide

Your partner firm will ask for records tied to each award.

  • Award letters, agreements and any amendments
  • A list of all awards with amounts spent in the year
  • General ledger detail and the trial balance
  • Payroll and time records for staff charged to grants
  • Procurement files and vendor contracts
  • Reports filed with funders and drawdown records
  • Subrecipient agreements and monitoring records
  • Prior audit reports and corrective action plans
  • Your written policies on cost allocation and procurement

Funders can ask for corrections when costs are disallowed, so tidy records before the work starts.

What happens after you submit a request

  1. You submit a request on the path that fits your organization.
  2. A partner firm contacts you to learn which awards you hold and what your deadline is.
  3. You agree on scope and timing. Audit reports are usually due on a fixed schedule set by the funder.
  4. You share documents and answer questions from the firm.
  5. The partner firm reports its findings to you. Where there are findings, you prepare a response and a corrective action plan.

The engagement and any fees are between you and the partner firm under the firm's own terms.

Who it suits and how matching works

This service suits not-for-profit organizations, local governments, schools and other bodies that receive government funds, and the finance staff who manage grants. It also suits organizations that have just crossed into audit requirements and have never had a single audit.

Fairview offers three request paths: larger business, smaller business, or not sure or another need. There is no fixed size cut-off. Fairview matches each request by hand. Each path leads to its own form: larger business, smaller business or not sure. Your request goes to the matched partner firm, or to Fairview for manual matching on the not sure path. You then speak with the firm directly.

Who does the work

An independent partner firm that specializes in grant and single-audit compliance handles this work. Fairview Audit makes the match. We do not perform the review ourselves.

Request a professional

Frequently asked questions

Do we need a single audit?

It depends on how much federal award money you spent in your fiscal year, measured against the Uniform Guidance threshold. A partner firm can help you work this out.

Is the single audit the same as a regular financial audit?

No. It includes a financial statement audit and adds an opinion on compliance for each major program tested.

What if we have findings?

The audit report lists findings and questioned costs. You respond in writing and set out how you will fix the issue.

Can you help us before the audit?

A partner firm may offer a readiness review. Ask when you submit your request.

Related pages

Find out what you are overpaying.

Tell us what you need reviewed. We match you by hand with an independent partner firm. You keep your existing vendors.

Request a professional

Sources