Audit of the Communitas, Inc. and Affiliates

This is a state performance audit of Communitas, a nonprofit that serves people with intellectual and developmental disabilities.

“This report details the audit objectives, scope, and methodology for the audit period, July 1, 2015 through June 30, 2018.”

Auditors checked whether Communitas properly spent and documented money charged to state contracts.

“In this performance audit, we examined certain administrative and program expenses that Communitas charged to state contracts to determine whether they were reasonable, allowable, and properly documented and whether Communitas had properly disclosed in its financial statements all of its nonreimbursable expenses for the audit period, July 1, 2015 through June 30, 2018.”

The audit matters because Communitas receives public money to provide human services, so taxpayers need to know whether those funds were handled properly.

“Communitas, Inc. and Affiliates provides various programs for people with developmental and intellectual disabilities.”

If you are a taxpayer, family member, or service user, the report gives some assurance that the audited spending followed the rules in all major ways.

“Below is a list of our audit objectives, indicating each question we intended our audit to answer and the conclusion we reached regarding each objective.”

The auditor answered “yes” to both main audit questions: expenses were allowable and documented, and nonreimbursable expenses were properly identified and reported.

“Are the administrative and program expenses charged to state contracts reasonable, allowable, and properly documented according to Section 1 of Title 808 of the Code of Massachusetts Regulations (CMR)?”

The report says Communitas management was told about the small $644 issue and said it would address it.

“During our audit, we brought this matter to the attention of Communitas management, who said that they would properly address this issue.”

This was not a tiny operation: Communitas had many employees and millions in yearly public and program revenue, so clean audit results are meaningful.

“Communitas employed an average of 186 full-time employees during our audit period.”

“Nonreimbursable expenses” means costs the state contract should not pay for; if found, they may have to be recovered or offset with non-state money.

“The standards state that nonreimbursable expenses are subject to recovery through recoupment, delivery of in-kind services, or rate adjustment.”