DOL e-mail to plan administrators about the importance of audit quality and hiring an experienced auditor

The DOL Office of Chief Accountant recently e-mailed all plan administrators of employee benefit plans required to have an annual financial statement audit alerting them of the importance of obtaining a quality audit from a qualified and experienced CPA firm. The letter, "A Message from the US Dept. of Labor: The Importance of a Quality Benefit Plan Audit," was sent from the e-mail sender "Plan For Audit Quality: EBSA" to plan filers identified in the EFAST2 database.

• The letter stresses the importance of hiring qualified auditors that possess the necessary knowledge of employee benefit plan audit requirements and expertise to perform the audit in accordance with professional auditing standards. The letter lists certain qualifications plan administrators should verify to ensure that their CPA firm is a qualified firm.

Some clients have contacted us to provide them documentation of Plante Moran’s qualifications (to help them demonstrate their due diligence in hiring a qualified auditor). The following is some of the information on our qualifications that we have shared:

• Sixth largest benefit plan auditors in the United States
• Audit over 1,200 benefit plans annually
• Over 300 trained professionals who annually provide benefit plan audit services, including more than 80 partners and managers who specialize in the benefit plan practice, and 12 full-time professionals dedicated to the practice
• We commit over 100,000 hours to our benefit plan practice annually, auditing over $175 billion in benefit plan assets
• Our staff is extensively trained year round, and throughout their career, in benefit plan audit and disclosure requirements
• Plante Moran has a peer review performed every third year by an independent CPA firm. The most recent peer review was completed for the fiscal year ended June 30, 2013. The firm received a rating of “pass.” Firms can receive a rating of pass, pass with deficiency, or fail. There were no recommendations made in connection with our peer review.

If you have any questions on the letter or Plante Moran’s benefit plan audit credentials, please contact your Plante Moran professional.