the largest capital budget approved for any year of the project.
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A recent independent audit done for Honolulu’s rail transit project found its finances to be in order with one exception: Rail finance officials failed to properly record $83.8 million in federal funds received for the project.
PKF Pacific Hawaii LLP completed the analysis of the project’s finances through June 30. Officials with the Honolulu-based firm presented their report to the Honolulu Authority for Rapid Transportation board during its general meeting Thursday.
Those federal dollars aren’t missing, HART Chief Financial Officer Diane Arakaki explained after the meeting. There was simply a "recording error," which caused no adverse impact to the project, she said.
The funds were used to reimburse the city money already spent on the $5.26 billion rail project, Arakaki added.
PKF said the accounting error was caused by a "lack of policies and procedures" by HART "to ensure that reimbursable expenses are billed in a timely manner."
In a written response on the issue, HART said it’s recruiting for a full-time federal grants manager, who will make sure those dollars are recorded in a timely manner.
This is HART’s second annual audit. PKF Pacific has a multiyear contract with HART and is slated to complete the audit again next year, according to HART spokeswoman Jeanne Mariani-Belding.
