WORK IN PROGRESS
Department of Probation, Parole and Pardon Services
We have been requested to review selected issues at the Department of Probation, Parole and Pardon Services (SCDPPPS). Our review will include an examination of SCDPPPS’s use of composite bank accounts, personnel practices, procurement practices, revenues and expenditures of the Ignition Interlock Device Program, and agent caseload and workload standards. In addition, we will examine SCDPPPS's methodology for calculating the number of individuals and expenditures that have been avoided as a result of reductions in the revocation rate and the new felony conviction rate due to sentencing reform.
South Carolina First Steps to School Readiness
Members of the General Assembly asked us to review "the operations, systems, and management practices" of First Steps. Operated out of Columbia, First Steps is a statewide network of organizations and programs whose objective is to ensure that children begin school ready to learn. Examples of these programs include training in parenting skills, increasing child care quality, pre-literacy services, making the transition to school, and early intervention for infants and toddlers. Our report will include an assessment of statewide demographic patterns, state and local organizational structure, administrative costs, and program effectiveness.
South Carolina Arts Commission
Members of the House Ways and Means Committee requested us to review the S.C. Arts Commission. The review will focus on the administrative costs of the agency, performance measures, staffing levels, use and distribution of grant funds, and program accounting and recordkeeping.
Department of Employment and Workforce
The Audit Council is required by Section 112 of Act 146 of 2010 to conduct periodic management audits of the Department of Employment and Workforce. By statute, the audits: - Include a detailed accounting of revenues and expenditures of the Unemployment Insurance (UI) Trust Fund since 2000.
- Determine the adequacy of the process for notifying state officials of the financial status of the trust fund.
- Assess alternatives for maintaining the solvency of the trust fund.
- Examine the UI eligibility process for efficiency and compliance with law and policy.
- Evaluate the effectiveness of DEW’s programs for assisting claimants in returning to work.
Department of Disabilities and Special Needs
We have been requested to conduct an audit of the Department of Disabilities and Special Needs. The requesters have specified several issues for review, including consumer abuse/neglect and eligibility. We will also follow up on recommendations made in our December 2008 audit.