Coffee County audit committee reviews procurement finding tied to senior center roofing contract

The Coffee County Audit Committee reviewed a fiscal-year audit finding that said the county used a multi-state cooperative to award a re-roofing contract for the senior citizen center on Highway 53 and that the use of that cooperative did not comply with the Tennessee Code Annotated at the time.

The finding matters because auditors concluded the county did not follow the state procurement restriction in effect then, and the committee was told corrective action plans have been submitted and the legislature has since amended the relevant Tennessee Code Annotated provisions.

Interim Mayor (name not specified) explained the finding to the committee, saying the county used a cooperative called Omnia to award the roofing contract. “Omnia is the cooperative,” the interim mayor said. The interim mayor told the committee that Omnia “does business outside of the state of Tennessee,” which the interim mayor said prevented the county from using it for construction materials and construction projects under the state procurement rule in effect at the time.

The interim mayor said the county had believed Omnia functioned like single-state state contracts the county uses for vehicle purchases and similar items, and that the difference led to the audit finding because the county did not solicit competitive bids for that roofing work. “Had Omnia been a single-state cooperative, state of Tennessee only, we would have been compliant,” the interim mayor said.

Committee members noted that corrective action plans were submitted and that the contracts in question were initiated before the interim mayor took office. A committee member observed that the change resulted in the roof being repaired sooner than a competitive bid process would have allowed.

Members also told the committee the Tennessee legislature amended the TCA provision cited in the finding so the county can use the cooperative for similar purchases going forward; a committee speaker said, “They have changed that where we could do this now, this year.”

Committee discussion also covered timing and administrative follow-up. Staff said auditors are doing prework for the current year’s audit, with fieldwork expected in September and October and a full audit report generally released the following March; one committee member said the audit opinion was dated Dec. 16. Audit Manager Steve Reeder and staff member Amy were identified as contacts for the audit schedule.

No formal vote was recorded on the finding during the meeting; committee members characterized the matter as resolved administratively and noted the corrective action plan and the subsequent legislative change.

The committee moved on to other business and adjourned; staff and the county’s auditors will continue the current-year audit work as scheduled.