A Performance Audit
An Audit Report on the General Land Office’s Use of Appropriations for the Alamo Complex
January 2021
Summary Analysis
The General Land Office (Office) followed applicable requirements while using the funds it was appropriated for the preservation and maintenance of the Alamo Complex in San Antonio.
For fiscal years 2016 through 2021, the Texas Legislature appropriated the Office $136.0 million to preserve and maintain the Alamo Complex. The Office had $46.4 million in remaining appropriations as of October 31, 2020. In addition to its remaining appropriations, the Office had an accounts receivable balance totaling $183,857 for prior payments to two contractors. However, the Office did not record part of that balance in its accounting system.
In October 2020, the Office created a budget plan that identified planned Alamo Complex projects and their estimated costs.
The Office implemented adequate monitoring controls of Alamo Complex projects to verify compliance with contract requirements.
The Office encountered several challenges to completing various Alamo Complex projects within the initial timelines. Primarily, those challenges were caused by (1) the denial of a request for a permit to move the Alamo Cenotaph Monument to another location and (2) the discovery of human remains during excavation in the Alamo Church within the Alamo Complex.
For fiscal years 2016 through 2021, the Texas Legislature appropriated the General Land Office (Office) a total of $136.0 million to preserve and maintain the Alamo Complex in San Antonio. As of October 31, 2020, the Office (1) had spent $81.8 million, (2) had $7.9 million in outstanding obligations, and (3) had a $183,857 accounts receivable balance. As a result, the Office had $46.4 million in remaining appropriations.
The Office prepared a detailed budget plan that identified planned Alamo Complex projects for remaining Alamo Master Plan appropriations.
The Office did not record accounts receivable balances for two contractors in its accounting system, and it did not maintain invoices supporting how one contractor spent advance funds or make timely requests for refunds. Specifically,
- An advance of $55,000 for one-time start-up costs, for which the contractor was required by the contract to submit invoices showing how those funds were spent. However, the Office did not have any invoices from the contractor for the $55,000.
- The Office had a $43,857 receivable balance for the non-profit contractor managing the Alamo Complex that it tracked in a document outside the Office’s accounting system. As of October 31, 2020, the Office had not invoiced that contractor for more than two years for a refund of unallowable expenditures that the Office reimbursed the contractor in error. However, the Office deducted the receivable balance from the management fee in November 2020 after auditors requested documentation related to that balance.
As of October 31, 2020, the Office had expended $81.8 million of its Alamo Complex appropriations. The Office used its appropriations for allowable purposes as defined in Chapter 31 of the Texas Natural Resources Code and the General Appropriations Acts (84th through 86th Legislatures).
Auditors tested a total of 90 expenditures, including 30 expenditures selected based on risk and 60 expenditures selected randomly. The Office ensured that those expenditures were supported, accurate, approved, paid in the correct amount, and used for the purposes defined by Chapter 31 of the Texas Natural Resources Code and Rider 16b, page VI-31, General Appropriations Act (85th Legislature). Only one of the expenditures tested was not paid for the correct amount. That expenditure, which auditors selected based on risk, was underpaid by $2,761.
Of the $81.8 million in Alamo Complex funds the Office expended between September 1, 2015, and October 31, 2020, $1.6 million (2 percent) were for indirect administrative costs. The Office has interpreted the requirements governing Alamo Complex appropriations to include indirect costs for administering the program.
The Office implemented adequate monitoring controls of Alamo Complex projects to verify compliance with contract requirements. In addition, it provided support for the status of all projects related to the implementation of the Alamo Master Plan that the Office is funding.
The Office ensured that logical access controls over its access to the Uniform Statewide Accounting System (USAS), in which the Office records its accounting data, were appropriate. In addition, the Office had adequate general and application controls over its procurement system, BuySpeed, including logical access controls to its system and appropriate edit checks for key procurement data.
The Alamo Master Plan was developed as a comprehensive assessment and plan of the future vision of the Alamo Complex. Both the Office and the City of San Antonio (San Antonio) approved the Alamo Master Plan on June 9, 2017. The implementation of the Alamo Master Plan was expected to be completed by 2024. However, the Office has encountered two primary challenges for completing its Alamo Complex projects within expected timelines.
The Texas Historical Commission denied San Antonio’s request for a permit to relocate the Alamo Cenotaph Monument (Cenotaph). According to the Office, part of the Alamo Master Plan relied on the relocation of the Cenotaph to make room for the outdoor section of the new museum and visitor center that was planned to be built. Without the relocation of the Cenotaph, the Office and San Antonio could not proceed with building the new museum and visitor center as planned. According to the Office, private individuals with experience in fundraising for large projects withdrew from those efforts for the construction of the new museum and visitor center.
During the excavation at the Alamo Church, archaeologists discovered human remains. This resulted in the activation of the protocol developed by the Office and Alamo Trust Inc. (ATI, which is the manager and operator of the Alamo Complex) to establish procedures that must be performed if human remains were discovered. The protocol requires the project to be paused until a decision is made on how to handle the remains.
Graphics, Media, Supporting documents