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At the School Board Meeting of February 13, 2024, School Board Member Danny Espino proffered agenda item H-8, authorizing the Superintendent of Schools along with the General Counsel to initiate rule-making procedures to, where appropriate, codify, within School Board policy, the corrective actions recently implemented that required the submission of signed pre-authorization forms, the invoices from vendors, and their acknowledgment of receipt with the credit card reconciliation each month for both P-Card and Travel Card accounts and that the Chief Financial Officer, as assigned by the Superintendent, will oversee the final approval of the reconciliation process.
As a result of the recent inquiry conducted by the Office of the Inspector General outlining allegations of fund mismanagement by a former School Board Member, Good Cause Item H2, Immediate Review and Audit of Purchasing Procedures Related to P-CARD and Travel Card Expenditures in Miami-Dade County Public Schools, Including the Offices of School Board Members, and Support Further Review/Audits by the Office of the Inspector General (Good Cause Revised 2), was proffered by School Board Chair Mari Tere Rojas and unanimously co-sponsored and approved by the Board during the School Board Meeting of January 17, 2024. Among other actions, this item directed the Superintendent of Schools to “Take immediate action, inclusive of quarterly reviews and reviews of procedures governing the use of the P-Card and Travel Card for School Board Members, and upon receipt of the Final Report from the Office of the Inspector General, and Chief Auditor, make any policy revisions and/or recommendations, as appropriate.”
Pursuant to Good Cause Item H-2, the Superintendent of Schools, Dr. Jose L. Dotres, transmitted to the School Board a memorandum on January 24, 2024, with the subject: UPDATE REGARDING P-CARDS AND TRAVEL CARDS, which, among other actions, directed the Superintendent’s Chief of Staff and the District’s Chief Financial Officer to have final review of any Purchase Card (P-Card) or Travel Card spending limit increases. This memorandum also notified the School Board that the Superintendent had instructed the Chief Financial Officer to assign an Accounts Payable staff member to review the P-Card and Travel Card expenditures for the School Board Members, the General Counsel, the Chief Auditor, the Superintendent, and the Chief of Staff. This review will now require these offices to submit the signed pre-authorization forms, the invoices from vendors, and the acknowledgments of receipt with the credit card reconciliation each month for both P-Card and Travel Card accounts. Following this review, the Chief Financial Officer will approve these reconciliations.
These actions by the Superintendent of Schools are appropriate first steps in demonstrating to the Miami-Dade County residents that Miami-Dade County Public Schools sees its fiduciary responsibilities as one of its highest priorities. Codifying these new processes within School Board policy would immediately strengthen the policies that delineate how School Board Members, the General Counsel, the Chief Auditor, the Superintendent, and the Chief of Staff utilize their P-Cards.
“There should be no doubt about this School Board’s commitment to fulfilling our fiduciary duty to the highest standards. As stewards of public trust, we must be diligent and proactive in ensuring that appropriate safeguards, processes, and procedures are in place and that our School Board policies fully support those safeguards, processes, and procedures,” said Board Member Danny Espino.
This Board item directs the Superintendent of Schools, along with the General Counsel, to initiate rule-making procedures to codify, within School Board policy, the newly required submission of signed pre-authorization forms, the invoices from vendors, and their acknowledgment of receipt with the credit card reconciliation each month for both P-Card and Travel Card accounts and that the Chief Financial Officer will oversee the final approval of the reconciliation process. Making this newly required process part of School Board policy will prevent any changes to this procedure without the authorization of the School Board.
