by Jon Styf
For the second consecutive year, an audit of Tennessee’s federally funded food programs showed a pair of programs requested reimbursements for meals the groups did not serve.
In the most recent report, the Tennessee Comptroller’s Office found that Nashville’s New Beginnings International Ministry and Shelby County’s Giving Youth a Chance requested reimbursements for meals that were not served.
In unannounced visits to meal sites on 16 occasions, investigators did not observe children or New Beginnings staff present yet New Beginnings claimed 643 meals totaling $2,319 on those days.
GYAC claimed 350 snacks and suppers were served on days the auditors visited feeding sites when no children were present.
In all, 11,781 meals were questioned totaling $63,304 in reimbursements.
“Both of these food program sponsors have a history of problems, and they’ve shown an inability to achieve permanent corrective action,” Comptroller Jason Mumpower said. “DHS has policies in place to remove sponsors who fail to correct issues. We’ve been pleased to work closely with DHS on addressing red flag situations like these.”
The auditors acknowledged that the high level of issues on visits could signify a much larger and costly issue.
“Our work covered only a small percentage of the sponsors’ operations; therefore, the issues we identified at the feeding sites we visited could have occurred at other sites,” the report said.
Both New Beginnings and GYAC have been consistently cited for issues in audits.
New Beginnings was reimbursed approximately $2.2 million for Summer Food Service Program for Children programs and $4 million from the Division of Child and Adult Care Programs between fiscal 2017 and 2021 while GYAC was reimbursed $3.1 million and $9 million, respectively, through the same federal programs over the same timeframe.
“During the last several years, the Department of Human Services has taken steps to strengthen the monitoring of food programs for compliance, while remaining mindful of the need to feed vulnerable children and adults across our state,” said DHS Commissioner Clarence H. Carter. “Our ongoing partnership with the Tennessee Comptroller allows us to ‘double-down’ on monitoring efforts and further advance our shared goal of combating fraud, waste, and abuse wherever it is found.
“DHS will continue to review internal processes for addressing site attendance inconsistencies and consider any additional safeguards permitted by applicable federal law and regulations.”
A review of the summer program released in August, which scrutinized Open Door, Inc. and Alumni Music, Inc., had similar results.
In that 2020 single audit for June through March, Open Door was observed collecting $55,853 of questioned costs for violations and meals not served. In the same audit, Alumni Music was found to have $41,784 of its $49,325 in June 2020 meal reimbursement claim denied for lack of proof while the group was given a Serious Deficiency Notice from the Department of Human Services.
In the fiscal 21 report, the Comptroller’s Office recommended that corrective action be proven or the groups should be removed from the meal program.
“We recommended that DHS program management follow their established policies to remove sponsors from SFSP and/or CACFP if they repeatedly fail to implement permanent corrective action,” the comptroller report said. “We have initiated a collaborative discussion with DHS management to work through these red flag situations.”
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Jon Styf is an award-winning editor and reporter who has worked in Illinois, Texas, Wisconsin, Florida and Michigan in local newsrooms over the past 20 years, working for Shaw Media, Hearst and several other companies.
This should be treated the same way you treat a physician or a medical facility that is committing Medicare and/or Medicaid fraud. End result the taxpayers are paying for it and like everything else the taxpayer is getting nothing out of it. These two facilities should be closed down ASAP.
What about some serious jail time for the swindlers? That usually solves those kinds of problems.
This is well past the point of restitution. The sanctions need to be greater; they need to be strong enough to stop further fraud. This is no different than embezzlement and needs to be treated as such. Restitution? Yes, 100% needs to be paid back. There needs to be a fine to send a clear message. Third, the organizations AND ITS OFFICERS need to be deemed ineligible for further contracting that is funded with public monies.
This is exactly what happens when the government uses our tax dollars to provide “free” stuff. The crooks come out of the woodwork. I do not imagine that the state (us taxpayers) ever get the money back. I am tired of bleeding hearts leading to fraud and much waste. Just think how much taxes could be cut if Tennessee do-gooders quit milking the system. I give to charities by choice. I do not need the state snatching my money to give to someone else.
I fully agree with one point of clarification. There is no such thing as “free stuff”, someone is paying the bill. The tax burden could easily be reduced with fraud and waste being eliminated.
Show these groups the door.
How about STOP giving them money??
Just stop looking for fraud waste and abuse. That usually stops any findings during an audit. My guess is that these orgs and many like them will see a windfall of taxpayers funding over the coming year.