Grant and single-audit compliance for not-for-profit and government
If your organization spends money from grants, you answer to two groups: the funder who set the terms and the auditor who tests whether you followed them.
A partner firm can review your grant spending against those terms before either group asks. Fairview Audit connects not-for-profit and government bodies with partner firms for this work. Fairview does not perform the review itself.
Why this category matters for not-for-profit and government bodies
Grant money comes with conditions attached. Costs must be allowed under the award, charged to the right program and supported by records. Staff time must be documented in a way that matches the payroll.
Not-for-profit and government bodies often run many awards at once, with different reporting calendars. Drift between the award terms and daily practice is easy to miss in that setting.
Organizations that pass money on to other groups have an added duty. A pass-through entity usually has to monitor its subrecipients and keep proof that it did. A review can check whether that proof exists.
What a review typically examines
A partner firm usually starts from the award agreement and works toward the ledger. Areas it may look at include:
- Whether costs charged to each award fit the allowable cost terms.
- How shared costs are split between programs, and whether the split is documented.
- Whether indirect costs follow the rate agreement or the method your funder accepts.
- Whether payroll charged to a grant is backed by time and effort records.
- Whether subrecipient agreements, risk assessments and monitoring files are complete.
- Whether the schedule of federal awards ties back to the accounting records.
A single audit, where one applies, is a separate required audit of your organization. A partner firm review is a different exercise. It can help you find gaps early. Federal rules set a spending threshold for when a single audit is required. [VERIFY: current federal grant guidance and the spending level that triggers a single audit]
Note: A partner firm review does not replace your required audit, and it does not change who signs your audit report. Ask the firm how its work relates to your auditor.
What to have ready
Your partner firm will tell you exactly what it needs. Common items include:
- Award agreements, amendments and any special conditions from each funder.
- Your most recent indirect cost rate agreement or the method you use.
- General ledger detail for grant-funded programs.
- Payroll reports with timesheets or effort certifications.
- Procurement files for larger purchases, including quotes and approvals.
- Subrecipient agreements and your monitoring notes.
- Prior audit reports and your responses to any findings.
- A list of issues your team has already spotted.
For government bodies, add the budget ordinance or appropriation that authorized the grant match, if one applies.
How matching works
Choose the request path that fits your organization: larger business, smaller business, or not sure or another need. There is no fixed size cut-off between the two firm types.. Your request goes to the matched partner firm, or to Fairview for manual matching if you are unsure. You then talk with the firm directly. Any engagement and fees are between you and the firm under the firm's own terms. [CONFIRM: a partner firm supplies and approves how it handles not-for-profit and government grant work]
For the full sequence, see how it works. The action to take is "Request a professional" from the request page.
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.Who does the work
FAQ
Is this the same as a single audit?
No. A single audit is a required audit of your organization. A partner firm review looks at how you manage and document grant spending, and may help you prepare.
Does this apply to small organizations?
It can. Any organization with grant conditions to meet may find a review useful, whether or not it meets the threshold for a formal audit. [VERIFY: whether your funders impose their own audit requirements]
Will the partner firm contact my funder?
Not without your agreement. You stay involved at each stage, and you decide how to respond to findings.
Related pages
Read the parent page on grant and single-audit compliance and the not-for-profit and government industry page. Public bodies also carry large energy and water bills, covered in utilities for not-for-profit and government.
Tell us what you need reviewed. We match you by hand with an independent partner firm. You keep your existing vendors.Find out what you are overpaying.