Audit Requirements The Department of Children and Families (DCF) establishes grant contracts with counties, tribes, school districts, boards, and a number of non-profit organizations for the implementation of the Department's programs. Audits of these agencies and Department programs are to be conducted by certified public accountants and accounting firms in accordance with federal and state audit requirements. Update: U.S. Department of Health and Human Services has announced that they will be adopting 2 CFR 200, effective October 1, 2025. DCF is working on updating its guidance materials to reflect this change. State Audit Requirements Wisconsin statute §49.34 establish the audit requirements for the Department of Children and Families. Effective, January 1, 2018, providers who receive funds in excess of $100,000 from the Department of Children and Families (DCF), either directly or passed through another agency, for the purchase of care and services, need to have an audit that meet department standards, unless the audit is waived by the department. DCF guidance on audit funding for agencies receiving DCF funding. Waiving Department Audit Requirements Mandate Relief Waivers of Audit Threshold Wis. Stat. 66.0143 authorizes local governments to file requests for waivers of statutory mandates with the Department of Revenue. These waivers are effective for four years. The Department may renew the waivers for additional four-year periods. No audits are required for providers who do not meet the audit threshold. DCF Audit Guides DCF Appendix to the State Single Audit Guidelines. The Wisconsin Department of Administration issues the State Single Audit main document. Provider Agency Audit Guide Contact Information Department of Children and Families website DCFAuditors@wisconsin.gov Federal Requirements View the following links for additional information about federal audit standards and resources. Government Auditing Standards Federal Audit Clearinghouse Assistance Listing Electronic Code of Federal Regulations 2023, 2 CFR PART 200, Appendix XI, OMB Compliance Supplement Frequently Asked Questions Can I do my own audit? Can my accountant do the audit? Does the audit have to be done by a CPA? An audit must be performed by a certified public accounting firm. When is the audit report due? See above for updates. Audit reports are due by the earlier occurring date: The date specified in the contract or grant agreement. OMB specified due date for Single Audits, if the auditee is a Single Audit filer. Six months from the end of the fiscal period for other providers. Your audit report must be submitted on time to be compliant with the DCF audit requirement. Am I required to submit an audit report if my agency is no longer in operation or if I no longer have a contract with DCF? If you received funds in excess of the $100,000 audit threshold for the year in question you are required to submit a closeout audit report. What needs to be sent to DCF? All auditees receiving DCF funding shall send a copy of the audit report to the department. We must receive a complete audit reporting package (only one copy needed) for the requirement of providing an audit to be complete. For single audits, the department requires reporting packages stated in the State Single Audit Guide. In addition, DCF requires the management letter or other document conveying audit comments and management's responses to the comments. For all other audits, refer to the list of elements referred to the audit guide. Please include an agency contact for potential questions. How and where should I send the audit report? To save on printing and mailing costs, the department recommends the agency's auditor send an electronic .pdf to the DCF Auditors mailbox. Please do not scan a physical copy or change the default security settings in your .pdf creator. If you receive an error stating that our system cannot accept your message because it is too large, please contact us. If an electronic copy is not available, paper copies may be sent to: Department of Children and Families Division of Management Services P.O. Box 8916 Madison, WI 53703-8916 Attn: Fiscal Integrity and Audit Section
