A settlement has been reached to resolve False Claims Act allegations against Jackson State University.
The allegations arose from a lawsuit that claimed Jackson State University mismanaged National Science Foundation (NSF) Grants.
According to the Department of Justice, allegedly between June 1, 2006 and September 30, 2011, Jackson State University submitted claims and/or expended funds under NSF Grants and in so doing, impliedly certified that every claim and/or expenditure was supportable, allocable, and allowable and that Jackson State University would maintain adequate records to support these claims and expenditures. In 2012, an audit of the NSF Grants performed under contract for the NSF Office of Inspector General ("NSF-OIG") identified salary and non-salary expenditures that were unallowable, not allocable, and/or had insufficient, inadequate and/or no supporting documentation. A subsequent NSF-OIG investigation determined that, in preparation for the audit, and subsequently in response to the preliminary audit findings, Jackson State University employees fabricated time and effort reports and provided them to the auditors, and in some instances presented inadequate and/or no supporting documentation.
Reportly, as part of the settlement, Jackson State University has also agreed to take specific steps to prevent these events from reoccurring by instituting a compliance program, which includes a comprehensive training program on time and effort reporting and other aspects of federal grants management, for a five-year period beginning in February.
"Recipients of federally-funded grants must adhere to the regulations applicable to those grants and accurately report the required information. This settlement sends a strong signal to grant recipients that failure to follow the applicable requirements may lead to significant financial consequences," stated Gregory K. Davis, United States Attorney for the Southern District of Mississippi.
