AUDIT COMMITTEE. APPROVE MINUTES Approval of the minutes of the meeting of March 4, Motion: Layton Second: Bilotta Vote: Unanimous

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1 MINUTES CLARK COUNTY SCHOOL DISTRICT SPECIAL MEETING OF THE BOARD OF SCHOOL TRUSTEES ADMINISTRATIVE CENTER, ROOM WEST SAHARA AVENUE, LAS VEGAS, NV AUDIT COMMITTEE May 21, :00 a.m. Roll Call: Members Present Member Absent Joe R. Saucedo, Jr., Chairman Warren Kim Craig Bilotta Erlinda B. Penaflor Donald R. Layton Chris Garvey, Board Liaison Dr. Walt Rulffes, Superintendent of Schools Also present were: Bill Hoffman, General Counsel, Legal Department; Jeffrey Weiler, Chief Financial Officer, Operations Support Unit; Jim McIntosh, Deputy Chief Financial Officer, Operations Support Unit; David Boley, Internal Auditor, Internal Audit Department, Office of the Chief of Staff; Tamara Miramontes, CPA, Kafoury, Armstrong, & Co.; Michael Biel, CPA, Kafoury, Armstrong, & Co.; Cindy Krohn, Executive Assistant, Board Office; and Stephanie Gatlin, Transcriber/Recording Secretary, Board Office. ADOPT AGENDA Adopt agenda. Motion: Bilotta Second: Layton Vote: Unanimous APPROVE MINUTES Approval of the minutes of the meeting of March 4, Motion: Layton Second: Bilotta Vote: Unanimous UPDATE ON THE EXTERNAL AUDIT Presentation and discussion by the independent auditors regarding the status of the annual financial audit of the Clark County School District for the fiscal year ending June 30, Ms. Miramontes and Mr. Biel provided an update and expected timeline of the annual financial audit. Mr. Bilotta asked if the auditors perform any analysis as it would relate to the risk assessment. Page 1 of 6

2 UPDATE ON THE EXTERNAL AUDIT (continued) Ms. Miramontes stated that is done as part of the audit work papers but are not typically made available for public view, but that she could discuss any issues with the committee. UPDATE ON THE BUDGET Presentation of information and discussion regarding an update on the District's budget. Mr. Weiler guided the Board to the CCSD web site for view of the various presentations to the Board regarding the budget. He briefly went over all the recent cuts made to the budget in order to reconcile the budget, and he discussed some expectations and plans for next year s budget. Mr. Layton inquired about federal funds. Mr. Weiler stated that was part of stimulus funds last year; that for this year and next year, the District would be receiving special education funding or Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (IDEA) and Title I funding, but that those funds can only be used for specific purposes. Mr. McIntosh offered that the stimulus funds were only for two years. Mr. Saucedo stated he was interested in how the budget affects internal operations. Mr. Weiler stated staff is looking at that with regard to processes and procedures. He said staff has been able to accommodate some reductions that have been made, and that staff does not anticipate any cuts for next fiscal year in terms of staffing. Mr. McIntosh added that the District has not seen any substantial changes in internal controls based on these budget cuts, but that there are some concerns in terms of school banking due to people being placed in positions through the staffing process that may not be necessarily qualified for the position they are placed in. APPROVE UPDATE ON THE CLARK COUNTY SCHOOL DISTRICT INTERNAL AUDIT DEPARTMENT Approval on work performed and review of the audit plan, by the Clark County School District Internal Audit Department for the current fiscal year and the outlook for Mr. Boley gave an update of the CCSD Internal Audit Department audit plan for fiscal year 2010 (FY10). Trustee Garvey asked if there are any checks in place to ensure that the video training is effective. Mr. Boley stated that when the auditors go out to perform audits, they can assess then whether or not individuals are learning from the training. Page 2 of 6

3 UPDATE ON THE CLARK COUNTY SCHOOL DISTRICT INTERNAL AUDIT DEPARTMENT (continued) Trustee Garvey asked if individuals can look back in the training portal to answer questions they may have. Mr. Boley stated he was not sure, but that people are directed to ask questions of the Audit Department and to utilize the Help Desk. Trustee Garvey asked Mr. Boley to check to see if that information would be available online. Mr. Saucedo asked if the Internal Audit Department conducts this training. Mr. Boley stated the School Bank Help Desk also conducts training, but this is from an internal audit perspective. Mr. Saucedo noted that the audit plan shows that the engagement for Accounts Payable could be delayed for two years. He inquired about the last audit for Accounts Payable. Mr. Boley stated he did not have that information at this time. Mr. Layton asked if ethics are covered in training. Mr. Boley stated not in school banking. Mr. Layton suggested that it may be helpful to have an evaluation of the training to assess whether or not the training is effective. Mr. Boley stated the certification process could be viewed as a way of evaluating the efficacy of the training, and that the class, itself, is evaluated. Mr. Bilotta asked if it is part of the audit to see how well staff manages internal controls. Mr. Boley answered yes. Ms. Penaflor asked how the Audit Department plans to audit new schools being opened. Mr. Boley answered staff s goal is to audit new schools within their first year of opening. Ms. Penaflor asked if those new schools are included in the plan to be audited. Mr. Boley answered yes, all schools are placed in the plan, and those schools that do not have any findings of concern are placed lower on the priority list. Page 3 of 6

4 UPDATE ON THE CLARK COUNTY SCHOOL DISTRICT INTERNAL AUDIT DEPARTMENT (continued) Trustee Garvey asked for a timeline of the auditing cycle for schools. Mr. Boley stated the Audit Department s goal is a three-year plan for elementary schools, and one and a half to two years for secondary schools. Mr. Saucedo asked about administrative departments. Mr. Boley responded those departments are also on a cycle. Ms. Penaflor asked if the schools are notified of their upcoming audits. Mr. Boley said the schools are not notified of the auditor s visit. Mr. Layton asked what the procedure is when a deficiency is found, and whether or not school police may be called. Mr. Boley stated that typically, the individual involved is suspended that day, and school police are called depending on the situation. He continued with his presentation, discussing the Capital Improvement update, and he gave an outlook for next year. Mr. Saucedo inquired about the change order reviews. Mr. McIntosh explained that for new construction all change orders are reviewed. APPROVE REVIEW OF THE CLARK COUNTY SCHOOL DISTRICT AUDIT COMMITTEE BYLAWS AND CALENDAR Approval regarding the review of bylaws of the Clark County School District Audit Committee, as recommended in Reference Trustee Garvey recommended reviewing how and when committee members are appointed, how a chair is appointed, and the length of the chair s appointment. Mr. Layton suggested that their terms should be staggered for continuity of the committee. All committee members agreed that the staggered approach would allow for continuity of knowledge and history among the committee members. Trustee Garvey asked for the committee members input on how the chair is appointed. Mr. Layton stated he felt that the committee should retain that authority. Page 4 of 6

5 APPROVE REVIEW OF THE CLARK COUNTY SCHOOL DISTRICT AUDIT COMMITTEE BYLAWS AND CALENDAR (continued) The committee agreed that the terms should be two years for committee members and that the chair should serve in that capacity for two years as well. Trustee Garvey stated the word advisory would be added to the Audit Committee s name to make clear the distinction that this is a volunteer committee. She referenced the Audit Committee Responsibilities Calendar, number 6, and stated the words prior to shall be stricken and replaced with the word upon. Mr. Saucedo asked for clarification of whether the 12-month period described in Reference 2.04, page 1 of 5, under Membership, referred to the calendar year or the fiscal year. Trustee Garvey stated that would be the fiscal year. She suggested adding language, such as, The committee members will be appointed by the Board. APPROVE APPOINTMENT OF AUDIT COMMITTEE MEMBERS Approval regarding the Board of Trustees process of how committee members are appointed to the Audit Committee, as recommended. Trustee Garvey informed the committee that the Board would consider and vote on renewal of their appointments at the May 27, 2010, Board meeting. AGENDA PLANNING: ITEMS FOR FUTURE AGENDAS Mr. Saucedo suggested July 20, 2010, and September 30, 2010, as possible dates for the next committee meetings. Mrs. Krohn stated there may be some scheduling conflicts, and she offered alternative dates. Mr. Saucedo suggested waiting until the appointments of the committee members are decided before finalizing any future meeting dates. Mr. Layton inquired about the presentation of accounting procedures as discussed at the previous committee meeting. Mr. Boley stated staff planned on making that presentation at the next committee meeting. Mr. Bilotta asked if communications through s would become public information. Trustee Garvey stated yes, a member of the public could request it. Mr. Hoffman stated the s are public documents, but that the committee is not required to retain information that is sent to them via . Page 5 of 6

6 PUBLIC COMMENT PERIOD None. ADJOURN: 10:05 a.m. Motion: Layton Second: Bilotta Vote: Unanimous Page 6 of 6