DEPARTMENTAL APPEALS BOARD
Department of Health and Human Services
SUBJECT: Sandoval County DATE: December 13, 1988
Economic Opportunity Corporation Docket No. 88-64
Audit Control No. 06-07129 Decision No. 1004
DECISION
Sandoval County Economic Opportunity Corporation appealed a decision by
the Office of Human Development Services disallowing $6,349 in costs
claimed under its Head Start Grant for the program year ending July 31,
1986. The basis for the disallowance was the grantee's failure to
document its costs in accordance with 45 C.F.R. 74.61(b) and (g). The
Agency asserted that the grantee failed to provide adequate documentary
support for claimed costs under program categories involving "training"
and "audit" as well as for $5,680 in management fees under a contract
for consultant services with a subgrantee, CDI of California. In a
telephone conference held on September 20, 1988, the grantee conceded
that the disallowance was proper and that the disallowance amount should
be repaid. It agreed to make a prompt repayment before the Board
proceeded to decision. Transcript of conference call, pp. 5, 8-10; 17.
See also the grantee's brief, p. 13.
In a subsequent conference call on October 4, 1988, the parties resolved
questions concerning the manner of repayment and the appellant again
confirmed its agreement to repay the disallowance.
At the Agency's request, the Board agreed to hold the case open until
the Agency received repayment, which grantee promised to make within no
more than three weeks from the October 4th call. Despite the Board's
repeated attempts to contact the grantee to determine whether the
grantee had fulfilled its promise (so that this matter might be closed
on the Board's docket), those telephone calls went unanswered. As of
December 7, 1988, no payment had been received by the Agency. In light
of the grantee's clear concession in the record that the disallowance
was proper and should be repaid, and its failure to do so within a time
frame it agreed to, we sustain the disallowance in full.
________________________________ Cecilia Sparks Ford
________________________________ Norval D. (John) Settle
________________________________ Donald F. Garrett Presiding
Board