Philly Controller Report Finds School Program At Risk Of Abuse - Philadelphia News, Weather and Sports from WTXF FOX 29

Philly Controller Report Finds School Program At Risk Of Abuse, Theft

A report released Thursday by Philadelphia City Controller Alan Butkovitz suggests the School District of Philadelphia's $33 million TransPass program is at risk of theft and abuse that could result in the potential loss of millions of dollars.

As part of the FY2011 School District of Philadelphia Report on Internal Control and Compliance, a testing of the TransPass program at four schools over the span of a week revealed 575 of the nearly 5,000 passes issued could not be accounted for.

Butkovitz says that loss comes out to $9,545.

The TransPass program provides free transportation to eligible students at Philadelphia public and non-public schools.

"The District needs to account for every dollar spent on student TransPasses and eliminate any risk of theft and abuse," Butkovitz said in a statement.

According to Butkovitz, school staff is required to account for every pass distributed. Schools are then required to provide a summary with the number of TransPasses received, distributed and returned for the month.

The audit also revealed a number of deficiencies related to activity funds at select schools, according to the controller's office.

You can download a copy of the audit on the Philadelphia City Controller's website.