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Audit Buzz Newsletter
October 2026
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In this issue, we summarize the October 12 Audit Committee meeting; introduce our new Auditor III; and offer a training opportunity.
Prior editions of Audit Buzz are archived here on Office of Auditor General (OAG) website.
We appreciate the continued cooperation and courtesy shown to our staff by Fairfax County Public Schools (FCPS) management and employees during all audit engagements.
October 12 Audit Committee Meeting Summary
At the October 12 Audit Committee meeting, OAG presented the following items:
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FY26 Specific Contracts, Vendor Management Audit – OAG conducted a performance audit of Specific Contracts and Vendor Management for contracts administered by the Department of Special Services (or DSS) and Instructional Services Department (ISD). Additional details provided in Audit Spotlight section.
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Audit Follow-Up – OAG presented the follow-up status of open audit recommendations as of July 31.
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FY27 OAG Internal Audit Status – All approved audits are on schedule. In addition, OAG is in the process of conducting the fiscal year (FY) 2028 risk assessment and audit topics.
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OAG Internal Inquiry Updates – From July 1 to September 30, 2026, OAG received 25 inquiries. During this period, there were four reportable inquiries.
Audit Spotlight
FY27 Specific Contracts, Vendor Management Audit
The objective of this audit was to evaluate the two user departments’ controls over vendor management, covering contract administration processes and controls for contracts that were active between July 1, 2024, and December 31, 2025. As of December 31, the total contract value for active contracts was approximately $68 million for DSS and $254 million for ISD. In performing this audit, we reviewed applicable regulations, vendor management procedures, contract documentation, purchase orders, and invoices. This audit did not focus on procurement processes, as an audit of that topic was recently performed in Fiscal Year 2025.
As a result, we identified two low risk findings:
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Invoice and Purchase Order Errors: While reviewing $9.3 million of purchase orders across the sampled contracts, we identified approximately $3,200 in erroneous payments across four contracts. The errors included prices above contract rates; double and overlapping services; and duplicate charges for the same service period. Approximately $1,900 worth of errors had been rectified between OAG making management aware of the erroneous invoices and the finalization of this report. There is not a documented control prescribed by departments that ensures improper payments are prevented and detected; thus, some invoices and purchase orders did not align with contract terms. As the total erroneous payments consisted of 0.03% of total purchase orders reviewed, OAG found that these errors were not systemic and therefore met the criteria for a low risk finding.
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Annual Contractor Performance Assessment Reports: Annual contractor performance assessment reports were not consistently completed in accordance with the Contract Administration Best Practice guidance within the Procurement Manual. Best practices do not differentiate between requirements for annual assessments and renewal assessments, leading to department confusion on responsibilities. This reduces assurance that contractor performance is consistently monitored and documented throughout the contract term.
OAG recommended:
- Departments enhance procedures by requiring documented verification that purchase order and invoice amounts agree with pricing schedules; billed services do not include duplicate or overlapping charges; and invoices have not already been paid before payment is approved.
- The Office of Procurement Services (or OPS), who established the contract administration guidance for departments to follow, review that guidance for clarity on the annual and renewal assessment requirements for program managers and departments, and that departments ensure that contractor performance assessment reports are completed annually in accordance with the guidance.
Overall, our findings highlight areas for improvement within the current control environment, while our recommendations focus on strengthening department controls to reduce the risk of erroneous payments; promote consistency in invoice review practices across departments; and encourage accountability through documenting performance monitoring. Management concurred with our findings, and provided actions within the report to address the proposed recommendations.
Did You Know?
Welcome Recent and New OAG Hires
Sabrina Boyd, Auditor III
Please welcome Sabrina Boyd, the newest Auditor III, to join the Office of the Auditor General!
Sabrina is thrilled to return to internal audit, where her career originally began in the private sector. She brings over 20 years of global audit and financial oversight experience, combining corporate audit leadership with extensive service across Fairfax County Public Schools. Most recently, as Grants Compliance Officer in the Office of the Comptroller, where she managed compliance for over $500M in federal funds, she was recognized as a 2024 Outstanding Collaborative Leader.
Sabrina holds a bachelor's degree in accounting from Tuskegee University and is actively pursuing her Certified Public Finance Officer (CPFO) designation.
Outside of work, her happy place is with her family. She loves traveling and reading or watching old school mysteries.
We are excited to welcome her to the team!
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OAG aims at providing regular training to all staff members, covering topics related to mitigating financial and process risks to FCPS. OAG is a certified National Association of State Boards of Accountancy (NASBA) Continuing Professional Education (CPE) provider, on behalf of FCPS. FCPS can award employees with CPE credits required to maintain professional certification status.
Course Details: By the end of this session, participants will be able to internalize ethical core competencies and values and apply such competencies over decision-making in their everyday work. There is no pre-requisite for this training. This is a Part II of the April 24 training. Employees are welcome to participate without joining the Part I training.
Format and Date/Time: Synchronous online training via Zoom, on December 4 (Friday), from 9 a.m. to 12 p.m. Three CPE credits will be awarded for the entire training.
FCPS employees may sign-up here December 4, 2026 Training.
Upcoming Events
The next Audit Committee meeting is scheduled for December 7 at 4 p.m. Please refer to BoardDocs for meeting information once it becomes available.
Fraud, Waste & Abuse Hotline:
(571) 423-1333 (anonymous voicemail)
InternalAudit@fcps.edu (email is not anonymous)
Online Submission Form
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