Local Purchases and Payments – Hicksville, NY, Post Office
Background
The Hicksville Post Office is in the Long Island District of the Northeast Area. OIG data analytics identified districts with high amounts of local purchases and payments recorded to account identifier code (AIC) 587, Miscellaneous Services, which were paid for by cash or money order. Based on our data analysis for fiscal year (FY) 2019, Quarter (Q) 2 through FY 2020, Q1, we identified the Hicksville Post Office had four local purchases and payments totaling $11,217. One local purchase in FY 2020, Q1, totaling $7,680, was 87 percent of the overall amount of local purchases for miscellaneous services in the Long Island District.
In addition, we identified the unit had high-risk purchase card transactions totaling $5,083 by merchant category codes that were considered prohibited, restricted or questionable due to policy restrictions for professional services, cleaning, and maintenance services.
We completed our fieldwork before the President of the United States issued the national emergency declaration concerning the novel coronavirus disease outbreak (COVID-19) on March 13, 2020. The results of this audit do not reflect operational changes and/or service impacts that may have occurred at this facility as a result of the pandemic.
Our objective was to determine whether local purchases and payments made at the Hicksville, NY, Post Office were valid, properly supported, and processed; and whether the post office effectively processed refunds paid with no-fee money orders.