AmeriCorps submits quarterly grant and procurement award data for publication on USASpending.gov as required by the Digital Accountability and Transparency Act of 2014 (DATA Act). The Office of Management and Budget (OMB) and Department of Treasury (Treasury) established standards for Federal agencies to use 59 data elements in reporting its financial and award information. Periodically, the AmeriCorps Office Inspector General (OIG) audits the agency’s spending data to assess its completeness, accuracy, timeliness, and quality, as well as its adherence to the government-wide data standards.

Since FY 2017, independent auditors have declined to issue an opinion on AmeriCorps’ financial statements. This year, they again issued a disclaimer of opinion, reporting nine material weaknesses and one significant deficiency. Eight of the material weaknesses are recurring, three of them since FY 2017 and five since FY 2018. AmeriCorps acknowledged at the beginning of the audit that it had not made progress in addressing five of the material weaknesses and requested that they be excluded from the scope of the audit.

The National Service Trust holds the funds set aside to pay the education awards of national service members who successfully complete their service terms. Responsibility for the education awards that have been earned or will be earned in the near future is the largest liability on AmeriCorps’ financial statements at $356 million. Since FY 2017, independent auditors have declined to issue an opinion on the financial statements of AmeriCorps and the National Service Trust.