The Mississippi Department of Transportation (MDOT) Equipment Shop, located in Jackson, provides maintenance and repair for departmental vehicles and support equipment located in the Jackson metropolitan area. PEER received allegations concerning maintenance operations and personnel practices at the MDOT Equipment Shop. These allegations concerned shop personnel using the state facility and its assets to repair privately owned vehicles or their component parts during the state work day and the department's promotion of an unqualified equipment mechanic, hereafter called mechanic, to a master mechanic position.
Conclusions
At the request of the MDOT Director of Support Services Division, the department's Internal Audit Division reviewed the Jackson equipment shop's internal control policies and procedures in May 1997. The Internal Audit Division determined that shop personnel did not consistently adhere to the shop's internal controls. In response, the Director of Support Services detailed actions to become effective July 1, 1997, to correct noncompliance. PEER found that the equipment shop superintendent and supervisor had taken corrective action to authorize and approve repair or service work and to document the purchased parts and labor hours on each work order. However, the shop's supervisory personnel had not taken corrective action to inspect completed repairs and service to ensure the quality of the work and the proper use of parts and supplies.
MDOT has established a rudimentary and limited internal control system for its shop operations through a series of policies and forms to be completed primarily by shop managers, but this system lacks controls relative to:
Concerning employee selection procedures, MDOT and State Personnel Board staffs did not ensure that an applicant's work experience was valid and complete prior to hiring (and later promoting) him as a mechanic in the Jackson equipment shop.
PEER also detected a possible violation of state conflict of interest laws. The MDOT Equipment Shop Supervisor bought two surplus MDOT automobiles for his son's used car business, which could have violated MISS. CODE ANN. Section 25-4-105 (3) (b). The purchase of these vehicles creates the appearance of unethical use of the supervisor's position to benefit a private business.
Recommendations
Internal Controls
1. The Mississippi Department of Transportation should enforce its internal control system within its Jackson equipment shop. The department should also develop, implement, and enforce appropriate policies and controls for:
2. The MDOT Director of the Support Services Division should implement a policy which requires equipment shop supervisors to review the maintenance records of vehicles and equipment prior to authorizing and scheduling their periodic maintenance or emergency repair services. This review would help to ensure that maintenance is accomplished in accordance with manufacturers' recommendations and departmental policy, plus help identify maintenance part problems, misuse, or theft.
3. Using existing resources, MDOT should determine the feasibility of implementing a computer-based system which could be used to manage the Jackson equipment shop, as well as its district equipment shop operations, more effectively and efficiently. This study should consider the purchase of existing commercial software which is used for fleet maintenance management programs in the public and private sectors.
Employee Selection Practices
4. The State Personnel Director and MDOT Executive Director should direct their respective staffs to review the personnel transaction involving the mechanic (later promoted to master mechanic) to identify processing weaknesses and to determine whether systemic changes should be implemented. If the State Personnel Director and MDOT Executive Director find that the selection process was implemented incorrectly, these officials should take appropriate personnel action regarding employees involved in the transaction.
5. Using existing resources, the State Personnel Board should determine the feasibility and cost of implementing a personnel audit program to verify that the state agencies are fulfilling their responsibilities in the personnel recruitment and selection process, as outlined in the State Personnel Board's Policy and Procedures Manual.
Conflict of Interest
6. The Mississippi Ethics Commission should review the MDOT Equipment Shop Supervisor's purchase of MDOT vehicles to determine whether this act constitutes a violation of the state's conflict of interest laws.
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