Report I2007-1158 All Recommendation Responses
Report I2007-1158: California State University, Chancellor's Office: Failure to Follow Reimbursement Policies Resulted in Improper and Wasteful Expenditures (Release Date: December 2009)
Case Number I2007-1158
Recommendation #1 To: University, California State
The university should revise its travel policy to establish defined maximum limits for reimbursing the costs of lodging and to establish controls that allow for exceptions to such limits only under specific circumstances.
Agency Response From April 2013
Effective April 1, 2013, the university revised its travel policy to establish a maximum limit for reimbursing the costs of lodging. The revised policy also established that exceptions to the lodging cost limit must be requested and approved in advance in accordance with the university's process for handling exceptions and individual campus approval processes.
California State Auditor's Assessment of Status: Fully Implemented
Agency Response From September 2012
The university drafted a policy establishing a maximum limit for reimbursing the cost of lodging. It will be included within the university's system-wide travel policy. The policy will be finalized in consultation with campus leadership and will be broadly communicated when finalized.
California State Auditor's Assessment of Status: Partially Implemented
Case Number I2007-1158
Recommendation #2 To: University, California State
To recover improper payments and improve its review process over travel claims submitted to its accounting department, the university should reexamine its preapproval and reimbursement review process for all high-level university employees, and require staff at all organizational levels to submit correct and complete claims along with detailed documentation supporting those claims, subject to thorough and appropriate review by the university accounting staff.
Agency Response From August 2011
The university reported that it will reimburse employees for "expenses that are ordinary, reasonable, not extravagent, and necessary to conduct official university business."
California State Auditor's Assessment of Status: Fully Implemented
Case Number I2007-1158
Recommendation #3 To: University, California State
To recover improper payments and improve its review process over travel claims submitted to its accounting department, the university should specify upper monetary limits for its food and beverage policy and specify when this policy applies.
Agency Response From August 2011
To strengthen its policies relating to food and beverage reimbursements, the university implemented a policy of only reimbursing employees based on the actual cost of meals and setting a maximum limit on meal reimbursements for any 24-hour period.
California State Auditor's Assessment of Status: Fully Implemented
Case Number I2007-1158
Recommendation #4 To: University, California State
To recover improper payments and improve its review process over travel claims submitted to its accounting department, the university should terminate any agreements with university employees that allow them to work at a location other than their headquarters and expressly prohibit the making of such agreements.
Agency Response From August 2011
The university stated that it has a critical need to maintain the ability to establish work arrangements, when necessary, to conduct business in an efficient and cost-effective manner. Aided by modern technologies, in select cases, it may permit employees to work in remote locations. Nevertheless, the university reviewed all of the existing alternate work location agreements with current employees of the Chancellor's Office. When it found no compelling reason for the agreements, the university gave the employee the option of either relocating his or her headquarters or terminating his or her employment. The university noted that few of its employees chose to work at remote locations.
California State Auditor's Assessment of Status: Fully Implemented
Case Number I2007-1158
Recommendation #5 To: University, California State
To recover improper payments and improve its review process over travel claims submitted to its accounting department, the university should recover from the official the $1,834 in duplicate payments and overpayments.
Agency Response From December 2009
The university collected from the former official $1,903—consisting of the $1,834 we identified and $69 it identified later—in duplicate payments or overpayments.