Sec.17-470-5. Fiscal accountability of a community action agency

(a) The Community Action Agency will establish and will, for each approved program funded by the Commissioner, maintain in a bank or banks, which are members of the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation, a separate and special fund which will be designated "Expenditures Account" with identifying number. The Community Action Agency will promptly deposit in such account all funds received pursuant to an approved program funded by the Commissioner.

(b) The Community Action Agency will, at or prior to opening any bank account, enter into an appropriate agreement with the bank in which such account is to be opened which makes effective certain rights of the Commissioner. An executed copy of the bank agreement must be submitted by the Community Action Agency to the Commissioner.

(c) The Commissioner may waive the requirements of Section 17-470-5 (a)–(b) herein in writing if he determines such waiver to be beneficial to the operation of the program based on previous administrative practice or a Community Action Agency is under the fiscal control of a municipality and not contrary to the best interests of the State.

(d) The Community Action Agency shall maintain books, records, documents, program and individual service records and other evidence of its accounting and billing procedures and practices, which sufficiently and properly reflect all direct and indirect costs of any nature incurred in the performance of this regulation. These records shall be subject at all reasonable times to monitoring, inspection, review or audit by authorized employees or agents of the Commissioner or the State or interested Federal agencies. The Community Action Agency shall collect fiscal statistical data and submit fiscal statistical reports at times and in the manner prescribed by the Commissioner. The Community Action Agency will retain all such books, records, other financial and program and individual service documents concerning this regulation for a period of three (3) years after a completed audit.

(e) In the event the Commissioner has advanced funds to the Community Action Agency, the Community Action Agency shall at the end of the contract period, or earlier if the contract is terminated, pay back to the Commissioner, in full, any unexpended advanced funds; or such unexpended advanced funds may at the discretion of the Commissioner be carried over and used as part of the next advance if a new similar agreement with the Community Action Agency is executed. The same provisions will hold true with regard to any other monies owed to the Commissioner including audit exceptions. The Community Action Agency will remit to the Department of Human Resources that portion of such unexpended funds which is due and owing to the Department of Human Resources as determined by the Commissioner.

(f) Audits of programs administered by community action agencies, as defined in section 17-460, shall be conducted in a comprehensive fashion and the number of such audits conducted with respect to programs administered by a single community action agency shall be limited to the minimum required by state or federal law. Where permitted by Section 7-396a of the Connecticut General Statutes, a single independent audit shall be conducted on a yearly basis for each community action agency.

(Effective March 5, 1986)