BALTIMORE (WBFF) — A Maryland nonprofit that has received more than $60 million taxpayer dollars since 2022 stated it has yet to complete a required audit of its services, sparking concerns from some accounting experts, according to a Spotlight on Maryland investigation.
Federal regulations require that the Connections Thru Life (CTL) nonprofit, which is based in Owings Mills, undergo an audit of how it manages $61.4 million federal taxpayer dollars it received through the Ryan White HIV program. However, CTL stated on its past three nonprofit tax forms from 2022, 2023 and 2024 that “no audit has been completed” to fulfill the requirement. The organization also states on the three consecutive tax forms that it has not undergone an independent audit of its financial statements, meaning the tax forms have not been verified by a third party.
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The lack of oversight furthers transparency concerns about Maryland’s network of taxpayer-funded nonprofits. The U.S. Department of Health and Human Services sent the more than $60 million taxpayer funds for the Ryan White program to the Baltimore City Health Department (BCHD), which chose CTL to take over the fiscal agent duties of the program in 2022, just months after the nonprofit was formed.
The Ryan White program provides medical services and support for those living with HIV. CTL manages the program’s funds in the Baltimore metropolitan area by providing oversight and disbursement of taxpayer money to specific grantees, which includes institutions such as Johns Hopkins University (JHU), as well as local health departments in Harford, Anne Arundel and Baltimore counties.
CTL states on its latest tax form from 2024 that 100% of its revenue and expenses are related to the Ryan White program.
A spokeswoman for the Health Resources and Services Administration (HRSA), which manages the Ryan White program, said BCHD is charged with ensuring its subrecipients are properly audited.
“Ryan White HIV/AIDS Program recipients are required to conduct independent audits to ensure proper oversight of Ryan White HIV/AIDS Program funds. HRSA does not have direct legal or oversight relationship with subrecipients, but the recipient (Baltimore County Health Department) is responsible for ensuring their subrecipients comply with all applicable federal requirements, including financial management and audit requirements. As such, the recipient is expected to assess and manage any financial or compliance risks associated with a subrecipient’s audit status and take appropriate action to ensure compliance with federal requirements and the proper stewardship of Ryan White HIV/AIDS Program funds,” the HRSA spokeswoman told Spotlight on Maryland.
A spokeswoman for BCHD told Spotlight on Maryland that CTL was able to provide a completed audit during BCHD’s last site visit at the nonprofit. When asked if BCHD could provide documentation of this audit, the spokeswoman said a public information request must be filed. She did not immediately respond to questions about what type of audit was provided and what time period it covered.
CTL did not respond to questions about its auditing.
Erica Harris, a professor at Florida International University who focuses on nonprofit accounting and governance, said a nonprofit is generally expected to complete a financial audit to confirm its tax forms, then a program audit when receiving federal funds. The fact that CTL admitted it has done neither, she said, is “troublesome.”
“Why those audits haven’t been completed three years later is certainly not a best practice,” Harris told Spotlight on Maryland.
Brian Mittendorf, a professor at Ohio State University who teaches classes on financial statements for nonprofits, expressed similar skepticism about CTL’s inability to undergo a completed audit after three years. He said the auditing concern, paired with how CTL began receiving taxpayer dollars within months of its incorporation, leads to questions about whether it was qualified to manage such a large taxpayer program.
“You need a track record of governance in order to justify having government grants of this sort — and it seems like they’re getting government grants before having even an audit in place, or having governance practices in place,” Mittendorf told Spotlight on Maryland. “We need assurance that the funds are being used appropriately.”
Amanda Beck, a professor at Georgia State University who specializes in nonprofit accounting and government auditing, described CTL’s inability to produce a completed audit as “really concerning.”
“There’s really no way of knowing whether these records are accurate,” Beck told Spotlight on Maryland in reference to CTL’s tax forms. “There needs to be some real pressure here to show accountability.”
A spokeswoman for BCHD told Spotlight on Maryland in August that her office is “currently building its capacity” to end its partnership with CTL by moving its work to within the government. BCHD did not respond to a question this week about when that switch would be finalized.
A spokesman for Baltimore City Comptroller Bill Henry told Spotlight on Maryland that his office conducts a performance audit of BCHD that does not include a review of CTL. The spokesman continued to say that Baltimore City should “bring more of its administrative work in-house and rely less on third-party vendors.”
Spotlight on Maryland began its investigation last year on BCHD’s decision to select CTL to manage tens of millions of taxpayer funds, with findings including how:
CTL appears to have recently launched a website, which provides a new address, with the only change being the office suite number from 212 to 210. Spotlight on Maryland visited the office building on Thursday, which displayed a joint sign for Anderson and Company and CTL.
An employee for CTL declined to comment when asked by Spotlight on Maryland in a phone call whether the nonprofit moved office spaces.
CTL filed its 2024 tax form in November, which for the first time, listed employees other than Anderson, as well as specific salaries. The top paid listed employee is Monet Cromwell, who made $92,958. Anderson made the second most at $78,750. The salary list includes an employee reportedly working zero hours per week with a salary of $29,242, as well as three employees working 30 to 40 hours a week with salaries of less than $5,000 each.
“This is clearly poor reporting. This is just not accurate. Dare I say sloppy?” Harris told Spotlight on Maryland of CTL’s listed salaries on its tax form. “It’s also surprising and maybe disappointing from an organization that is touting themselves as a fiscal agent, right?”
The listed salaries for Cromwell and Anderson differ from numbers on the nonprofit’s contract with BCHD, which Spotlight on Maryland obtained in a public information request. The Baltimore City Board of Estimates approved the contract for the period of March 2025 to February 2026. It listed Cromwell’s salary at $72,000 and Anderson’s at $48,000.
Spotlight on Maryland is a joint venture by The Baltimore Sun, FOX45 News and WJLA in Washington, D.C. Have a news tip? Call 410-467-4670 or email SpotlightOnMaryland@sbgtv.com. Contact Patrick Hauf at pjhauf@sbgtv.com and @PatrickHauf on X.
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