.......... .......... .......... .......... .......... .......... .......... .......... .......... .......... .......... .......... .......... .......... .......... .......... .......... ..........

FARMINGTON — A new Navajo Nation Council bill seeks to have sanctions imposed against the Teec Nos Pos Chapter and chapter officials for failing to implement a corrective action plan.

The corrective action plan is the result of a 2010 special review of the chapter and was developed to fix problems identified by tribal auditors.

Under the sanctions, the Office of the Controller would withhold 10 percent of the chapter’s budget and withhold 20 percent of payments issued to chapter officials.

ADVERTISEMENTSkip

................................................................

In a 2014 follow-up review of the corrective action plan, auditors found that the chapter continues to lack control over accounting activities, including unrecorded cash receipts and no assurance that all revenues were deposited into the chapter’s bank account.

Some of the findings in the follow-up review revealed that the chapter lacks a chapter resolution approving its operating budget for fiscal year 2014, as well as no detailed carryover budget from fiscal year 2013.

The chapter is not in compliance with tribal laws, rules and regulations, including those regarding the procurement process and travel authorization.

In the 2010 special review, auditors reported that $24,113 was paid in unauthorized stipends to chapter officials and the grazing officer.

Auditors reported that activity occurred after officials held chapter and committee meetings beyond the approved number of meetings appropriated by the tribe, and the chapter did not have all the meetings minutes on file to support the stipend payments.

In the follow-up review, a sample of 20 stipend payments was reviewed, and payments totaling $2,985 did not have approved claim forms.

Also reported is the continuing problem with the chapter reporting taxes to the Internal Revenue Service and needed improvements to the chapter’s accounting system.

Delegate Davis Filfred, who represents the Mexican Water, Teec Nos Pos and Tólikan chapters in Arizona, and Utah’s Aneth and Red Mesa chapters, is sponsoring the bill recommending the sanctions.

The bill will be eligible for committee action on Tuesday. It was assigned to the Resources and Development Committee, and the Budget and Finance Committee.

Noel Lyn Smith covers the Navajo Nation for The Daily Times. She can be reached at 505-564-4636 and nsmith@daily-times.com. Follow her @nsmithdt on Twitter.

——

©2015 The Daily Times (Farmington, N.M.)

Visit The Daily Times (Farmington, N.M.) at www.daily-times.com

Distributed by Tribune Content Agency, LLC

———-

Topics: g000065566,g000362661,g000066164