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Springfield audit finds contract gaps, missing payments and liability risks in Sodexo school food program
Summary
An internal audit presented Feb. 5 to the Springfield City Council audit subcommittee identified several high‑risk contract compliance issues in the district’s $30 million Sodexo food service agreement, including possible double‑billing of management fees, a missing $300,000 pledged contribution, an overcharge later recovered, use of city vehicles and insurance and background‑check shortfalls.
The Springfield City audit subcommittee heard on Feb. 5 that an internal review of the school district’s food service contract with Sodexo turned up multiple high‑risk compliance gaps that officials say the district will address before the contract is rebid this summer.
Mister Ngo of the Office of Internal Audit told councilors the audit focused on contractual compliance and found ambiguity in how the management fee is defined and billed. "The contract is not clear," Ngo said, describing a potential overlap between a corporate management fee and local Sodexo staff salaries that the district also reimburses. He said the locally paid positions cost about $489,000 a year and recommended clarifying the RFP so the district is not effectively paying twice for the same functions.
Why it matters: the contract covers major program operations — the district reported roughly $35 million in reimbursements for FY24 and the FY25 contract value was about $30 million, with a roughly $1.5 million management fee. Councilors said clearer language is needed before the…
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