The audit instrument is built around three core components for each set of PREA Standards: the Pre-Audit Questionnaire, Auditor Compliance Tool, and Audit Report Template.
Pre-Audit Questionnaire
The Pre-Audit Questionnaire, a tool used to gather information during the pre-onsite phase of the audit, identifies the minimum information and supporting documents that the agency and facility should provide to the auditor before the onsite phase of the audit begins. Submission of the Pre-Audit Questionnaire and the auditor’s initial analysis of agency and facility documentation are critical components of the audit process. These steps lay the foundation for the audit and form the basis for the auditor’s understanding of the facility’s operations, terminology, structure, population, and other important information. Agencies and facilities should remember that the PREA Standards place the burden to demonstrate compliance with the Standards on the agency (§115.401(e)).
The Pre-Audit Questionnaire is a snapshot of information gathered at one point in time. It is entirely normal and expected that information may change between the time the facility submits the Pre-Audit Questionnaire and any other point in time during the audit process. Agency and facility personnel and auditors are encouraged to treat information submitted in the Pre-Audit Questionnaire accordingly, and to recognize changes in some details as an ordinary part of the audit process. For example, a facility’s population may change between when the facility uploads the Pre-Audit Questionnaire and when the onsite phase of the audit begins. The auditor should be attentive to such differences and determine whether such changes have implications for audit findings.
Pre-Audit Questionnaire in the Online Audit System
Once an audit has been created in the Online Audit System (OAS), the PREA Coordinator(s) and PREA Compliance Manager(s) can begin entering information and uploading documentation into the Pre-Audit Questionnaire. After a Pre-Audit Questionnaire is submitted, all information and documentation provided by the agency and facility is automatically populated into the “pre-audit” section of the Auditor Compliance Tool. Additionally, some of the agency and facility information is automatically populated into the Audit Report Template, which reduces the auditor’s burden when preparing the interim and final audit reports.
PDF versions of the Pre-Audit Questionnaire
Access fillable and non-fillable versions of the Pre-Audit Questionnaire:
Auditor Compliance Tool
The Auditor Compliance Tool guides auditors in making compliance determinations for each provision of every PREA Standard, including identification of key sources of evidence that auditors should gather to assess compliance. The Auditor Compliance Tool walks the auditor step-by-step through evidence collection, application of evidence to each provision of each Standard, and review and analysis of the detailed requirements for compliance.
Auditor Compliance Tool in the Online Audit System
The Auditor Compliance Tool in the Online Audit System (OAS) is the auditor’s “home base.” In the OAS, every Standard in the Auditor Compliance Tool includes the following sections:
- Pre-audit
- Audit
- Provision findings
- Supporting Documentation
- Auditor Overall Determination
The Auditor Compliance Tool also includes the post-audit reporting information questions. Auditors who use the OAS to conduct an audit must complete the post-audit reporting information directly in the OAS before they can complete the audit.
PDF versions of the Auditor Compliance Tool (for reference only)
The pdf versions of the Auditor Compliance Tool are to be used only as a reference. As of June 30, 2022, all auditors are required to conduct and report their PREA audits using the Online Audit System1:
- Prisons and Jails Auditor Compliance Tool
- Lockups Auditor Compliance Tool
- Community Confinement Auditor Compliance Tool
- Juvenile Facilities Auditor Compliance Tool
1After June 30, 2022, the PREA Management Office will consider, on a case-by-case basis, rare exceptions that may require an auditor to conduct an audit using the paper audit instrument. Auditors who are approved to conduct an audit using the paper audit instrument will receive copies of the paper audit instrument from the PREA Resource Center and will be required to complete their post-audit reporting requirements using the OAS Paper Audit Reporting Portal.
Audit Report Template
The Audit Report Template standardizes audit reports, addresses the reporting requirements in the PREA Standards, and prompts auditors to address each of the PREA Standards, including each provision and element in each Standard. In the OAS, when an auditor submits their Auditor Compliance Tool, the audit report (whether an interim or final) is automatically generated from information provided by the agency and facility (i.e., agency profile and facility information) and the auditor (i.e., overall compliance determinations and narratives, provision findings, and post-audit reporting information). Auditors can access the system-generated reports (i.e., interim or final report) at any time to print, download, or review as necessary.
It is important to note that the OAS does not send a copy of the audit report to the agency or facility. It is the auditor’s responsibility to send the interim and/or final report to the agency and facility. Agency- and facility-based users are able to access the audit report 15 days after the audit report is completed in the OAS. However, this does not relieve auditors of their obligation to submit the final report to the audited facility and/or agency.
PDF versions of the Audit Report Template (for reference only)
The pdf versions of the Audit Report Template are to be used only as a reference. As of June 30, 2022, all auditors are required to conduct and report their PREA audits using the Online Audit System2:
- Prisons and Jails Audit Report Template
- Lockups Audit Report Template
- Community Confinement Audit Report Template
- Juvenile Facilities Audit Report Template
2After June 30, 2022, the PREA Management Office will consider, on a case-by-case basis, rare exceptions that may require an auditor to conduct an audit using the paper audit instrument. Auditors who are approved to conduct an audit using the paper audit instrument will receive copies of the paper audit instrument from the PREA Resource Center and will be required to complete their post-audit reporting requirements using the OAS Paper Audit Reporting Portal.