oversight

Audit of the National Science
Foundation’s Fiscal Years 2020 and 2019
Financial Statements
REPORT PREPARED BY KEARNEY & COMPANY, P.C.




November 13, 2020
OIG 21-2-001
AT A GLANCE
Audit of the National Science Foundation’s Fiscal Years 2020 and 2019
Financial Statements
Report No. OIG 21-2-001
November 13, 2020

 AUDIT OBJECTIVE
 The Chief Financial Officers Act of 1990, as amended, requires that NSF’s Inspector General or an
 independent external auditor, as determined by the Inspector General, audit NSF’s financial
 statements. Under a contract we monitored, Kearney & Company, P.C. (Kearney), an independent
 public accounting firm, performed the audit of NSF’s FY 2020 financial statements. Kearney is
 responsible for the attached auditor’s reports dated November 13, 2020, and the conclusions expressed
 therein. We do not express an opinion on NSF’s financial statements or on the conclusions expressed
 in Kearney’s reports on internal controls over financial reporting and on compliance with laws,
 regulations, contracts, and grant agreements.

 AUDIT RESULTS
 Kearney’s Independent Auditor’s Report includes an unmodified opinion on NSF’s financial
 statements as of and for the years ended September 30, 2020 and 2019. Per its Report on Internal
 Control over Financial Reporting, Kearney identified no material weaknesses. Per its Report on
 Compliance with Laws, Regulations, Contracts, and Grant Agreements, Kearney identified no
 instances in which NSF’s financial management systems did not substantially comply with the
 Federal Financial Management Improvement Act of 1996. Also, Kearney identified no reportable
 instances of noncompliance or other matters.
 See https://www.nsf.gov/pubs/2021/nsf21002/pdf/07-chap2-financials.pdf
 for Chapter 2, Financials, of NSF’s 2020 Agency Financial Report (AFR), which includes the audit
 reports. The complete AFR can be found at
 https://www.nsf.gov/publications/pub_summ.jsp?ods_key=nsf21002.

 RECOMMENDATIONS
 Kearney made no recommendations in its reports.

 AGENCY RESPONSE
 NSF’s response to Kearney’s draft reports is included in the AFR as Chapter 2, Attachment I.
 FOR FURTHER INFORMATION, CONTACT US AT OIGPUBLICAFFAIRS@NSF.GOV.
                     National Science Foundation • Office of Inspector General
                          2415 Eisenhower Avenue, Alexandria, Virginia 22314


MEMORANDUM

DATE:                 November 13, 2020

TO:                   Dr. Ellen Ochoa
                      Chair
                      National Science Board

                      Dr. Sethuraman Panchanathan
                      Director
                      National Science Foundation

FROM:                 Allison C. Lerner
                      Inspector General
                      National Science Foundation

SUBJECT:              Audit Report No. 21-2-001, Audit of the National Science Foundation’s Fiscal
                      Years 2020 and 2019 Financial Statements

This memorandum transmits the Kearney & Company, P.C.’s reports on its financial statement audit of
the National Science Foundation (NSF) for FY 2020, which includes FY 2019 comparative information.

Audit Reports on Financial Statements; Internal Control over Financial Reporting; and
Compliance with Laws, Regulations, Contracts, and Grant Agreements

The Chief Financial Officers Act of 1990 (CFO Act, Pub. L. No. 101-576), as amended, requires that
NSF’s Inspector General or an independent external auditor, as determined by the Inspector General,
audit NSF’s financial statements in accordance with Government Auditing Standards (GAS) issued by
the Comptroller General of the United States. We contracted with the independent certified public
accounting firm Kearney & Company, P.C. (Kearney) to audit NSF’s financial statements as of
September 30, 2020, and for the fiscal year then ended. The contract requires that the audit be performed
in accordance with GAS; Office of Management and Budget Bulletin 19-03, Audit Requirements for
Federal Financial Statements; and the U.S. Government Accountability Office/Council of the Inspectors
General on Integrity and Efficiency Financial Audit Manual.

For FY 2020, Kearney provided: (1) its opinion on the financial statements, (2) a report on internal
control over financial reporting, and (3) a report on compliance with laws, regulations, contracts, and
grant agreements. In its audit of NSF, Kearney:

   •   Found that the financial statements referred to above present fairly, in all material respects, the
       financial position of NSF as of September 30, 2020 and 2019, and its net cost of operations,
         changes in net position, and budgetary resources for the years then ended, in accordance with
         accounting principles generally accepted in the United States of America.
    •    Identified no material weaknesses in internal control over financial reporting. 1
    •    Identified no instances in which NSF’s financial management systems did not substantially
         comply with the Federal Financial Management Improvement Act of 1996 (FFMIA, Pub. L. No.
         104-208).
    •    Identified no reportable instances of noncompliance with provisions of laws, regulations,
         contracts, and grant agreements tested or other matters.

NSF’s response to the draft reports, dated November 13, 2020, follows Kearney’s reports.

Kearney is responsible for the attached auditor’s reports dated November 13, 2020, and the conclusions
expressed therein. We do not express opinions on NSF’s financial statements or internal control over
financial reporting or on whether NSF’s financial management systems substantially complied with the
requirements of FFMIA, or conclusions on compliance and other matters.

Kearney’s Independent Auditor’s Report is meant only to be distributed and read as part of the Agency
Financial Report (AFR). Also, Kearney’s Independent Auditor’s Report is not a stand-alone document
because it refers to the AFR contents and should not be circulated to anyone other than those receiving
this transmittal.

We thank your staff for the assistance that was extended to the auditors during this audit. If you have
any questions regarding this report, please contact Mark Bell, Assistant Inspector General, Office of
Audits, at 703.292.7100 or OIGpublicaffairs@nsf.gov.




1
  A material weakness is a deficiency, or combination of deficiencies, in internal control, such that there is a reasonable
possibility that a material misstatement of the entity’s financial statements will not be prevented or detected and corrected on
a timely basis.
About NSF OIG
We promote effectiveness, efficiency, and economy in administering the Foundation’s programs; detect
and prevent fraud, waste, and abuse within NSF or by individuals who receive NSF funding; and
identify and help to resolve cases of research misconduct. NSF OIG was established in 1989, in
compliance with the Inspector General Act of 1978, as amended. Because the Inspector General reports
directly to the National Science Board and Congress, the Office is organizationally independent from the
Foundation.

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To view this and any of our other reports, please visit our website at www.nsf.gov/oig.

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Report Fraud, Waste, Abuse, or Whistleblower Reprisal
   • File online report: https://www.nsf.gov/oig/report-fraud/form.jsp
   • Anonymous Hotline: 1.800.428.2189
   • Email: oig@nsf.gov
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NATIONAL SCIENCE FOUNDATION
OFFICE OF INSPECTOR GENERAL