Which of the following is the factor used to determine a school's Cash Control Amount at the start of the award year?

• A. The school's prior-year disbursement history
• B. The school's prior-year unsubstantiated cash
• C. The school's prior-semester disbursements
• D. The school's prior-year enrollment numbers

Answer: (A)

This item tests how the Cash Control Amount is established: it’s based on the school’s disbursement history from the prior year. Using prior-year disbursement history provides a real, data-backed baseline of how much cash the school actually disbursed, which helps set a reasonable limit to monitor and control cash disbursements at the start of the award year.

Other factors don’t fit as well because unsubstantiated cash isn’t a reliable baseline and raises compliance concerns, while disbursements from only a single semester don’t reflect a full year's activity. Enrollment numbers influence overall funding, but they don’t directly determine the cash control limit, which hinges on actual disbursement activity.