The Comptroller of Puerto Rico issued a qualified opinion on the fiscal operations of the municipality of Maricao. A qualified opinion is issued when the noncompliance items, individually or together, are significant, but not pervasive.
The Report reveals that the municipality executed two contracts for professional advisory and lobbying services five months after having received the services. The Comptroller's auditors identified that those contracts had the purpose of retroactively validating the services that the company had provided in the preparation of a proposal for the purchase of trucks and lobbying services to obtain federal funds.
This situation, contrary to the laws in effect and to decisions of the Supreme Court of Puerto Rico, fosters the commission of irregularities in disbursements and possible improper payments for services rendered prior to the signing of the contract. The Municipality paid $173,600 for those contracts between May 1, 2015 and September 14, 2016.
The one-finding audit also notes that the disbursement vouchers lacked a breakdown of the work performed, dates and time invested, that would evidence the meetings with the mayor, with the federal authorities and the trips made to the United States, among others.
The Report recommends that the director of the Office of Management and Budget ensure that the Municipality complies with the Corrective Action Plan established by the Office of the Comptroller. In addition, the mayor must determine whether the recovery of the payments made is warranted and must ensure that contracts and amendments are executed in writing before the services are rendered.
This third and last report of Maricao covers the period from January 1, 2014 to June 30, 2017.
See Audit Report M-20-29.
To see other published reports, visit our Audit Reports section.
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