Reports & Testimonies

The Department of Veterans Affairs uses an electronic health record system to manage patient care. VA began to deploy its modernized system in 2020, but user concerns led to a pause in 2023. We testified about our work on VA's system modernization. VA has made progress but more is needed, including: Addressing over 1,800 requested configuration changes to the system Updating the cost estimate and...

Three banks failed in early 2023. Top executives at these banks received stock bonuses totaling about $130 million from Jan. 2021-March 2023. One bank paid bonuses to executives on the day it failed. Congress and others have raised questions about banks' incentive-based compensation practices. These practices can motivate good performance but also encourage risky behavior. Federal regulators monitor compensation and risks at large banks. In...

U.S. companies aren't usually required to publicly name the people who own them. This lack of transparency can be attractive to criminals laundering money or hiding illegal activities. In 2024, the Treasury Department started to require that some companies report owner identity information to its Financial Crimes Enforcement Network. Treasury also recently began granting a few law enforcement agencies access to this data. Treasury has...

We provide audited agencies with an opportunity to review and comment on draft reports before we issue a final report. For DOD, this period is usually 30 days. However, delays in DOD submitting comments to GAO have resulted in our issuing some reports late to Congress. Congress asked us to report on this issue every 6 months over a 2-year period. This is the fourth...

The Army Corps of Engineers manages water resources projects—such as dams, locks, and waterways—across the nation. The projects address flood risks, support commerce, strengthen national security, and manage ecosystems. We looked at the distribution of funding for such projects from FY 2018-2023, and found the Corps allocated about $28.5 billion to 278 projects across the country. Project distribution was based on congressional direction and Corps...

Veterans with service-related disabilities living or traveling abroad may use health care benefits through the Department of Veterans Affairs' Foreign Medical Program. The program has had trouble reimbursing some veterans and doctors. For example, despite a federal law calling for electronic payments, the program sends paper checks—sometimes resulting in lost or delayed payments. VA began transitioning to an electronic payment system, but it's unclear when...

Illegal funds from terrorism financing, human or drug trafficking, and other crimes can be moved and transferred through the U.S. financial system. Federal agencies often work together to combat this. Lead agencies set government-wide strategies to coordinate and implement these efforts. We found that lead agencies often didn't clearly define goals for these efforts or collect relevant data to determine if goals were being met...

The Department of Defense provides a pharmacy benefit to over 9 million beneficiaries through TRICARE. In FY 2023, TRICARE spent over $8 billion on prescription drugs for its beneficiaries. DOD's latest pharmacy contract reduced the minimum number of in-network pharmacies by about 25%. DOD pharmacy contractor reports say 98% of beneficiaries were still within a 15-minute drive of a network pharmacy in 2024. Our analysis...

The Maritime Administration (MARAD) is responsible for America's waterborne transportation—overseeing U.S. shipping, port and vessel operations, national security, and more. MARAD has about 800 employees to carry out its many missions. But the agency is facing staff turnover, high numbers of employees eligible to retire, and vacancies in critical positions. And it doesn't have a strategic human capital plan to address how it will hire...

Oversight helps U.S. agencies manage risks related to exporting firearms. In 2020, export oversight for most nonautomatic and semiautomatic firearms, e.g., certain rifles and pistols, was transferred from the State Department to the Commerce Department. Since then, the value of U.S. firearms exports to resellers increased greatly, specifically in regions where imported firearms are at risk of being diverted for illegal use. To mitigate this...

The Bureau of Indian Education supports and oversees schools for 46,000 students on or near reservations. Since 2013, we've reported numerous problems with the Bureau's work— safety hazards in schools and weak oversight of spending, for example. We testified that the Bureau has taken key steps toward improvement and addressed 28 of our 38 recommendations. But serious underlying issues remain. For example, the Bureau's workforce...

We testified about federal payment processes and systems related to the General Fund, and our knowledge of audit activities over these systems. This testimony is based on our recurring audits of the General Fund. Treasury's Fiscal Service manages the General Fund systems that are critical to the government's financial infrastructure. For example, these systems disburse payments to American people and businesses; collect taxes and other...

Owners and operators of U.S. maritime facilities and vessels rely on systems that are connected to internal and external networks—including the internet. These facilities and vessels face heightened cybersecurity risks from certain nations and transnational criminal organizations. The Coast Guard provides guidance for and inspects facilities and vessels that are subject to cybersecurity-related requirements. But it can't readily access complete information on these inspection results—which...

Nearly all children in foster care are eligible for Medicaid. After they age out of foster care, usually at 18, most remain eligible for coverage until 26. Over 100,000 of these young people had Medicaid in 2023. But it's hard for some young people to maintain their coverage. For example, some may miss communications because they change addresses frequently. Others may avoid seeking help because...

In 2019, the Department of Veterans Affairs updated its process for reviewing appointment requests for specialty health care, such as cardiology. VA facilities set up dedicated teams to review appointment requests and contact veterans about their scheduling options, e.g., letting them know they can see a health care provider in their community if they can't access a VA facility. VA facilities had mixed experiences implementing...

We testified about how the Department of Veterans Affairs helps ensure veterans get timely access to health care providers in their communities. The Veterans Community Care Program expanded the availability of non-VA care for veterans in 2018. About 2.8 million veterans got community care in 2023. We've made many recommendations to improve appointment scheduling and wait times, and VA's community care program oversight. VA has...

The U.S. Postal Service is consolidating some of its mail processing facilities. Before doing so, USPS must give public notice of the proposed changes and provide information on how the changes will affect costs, employees, and mail service. But we found that USPS's process for estimating the costs of these changes doesn't align with best practices we considered. For example, USPS doesn't document all the...

FEMA—the federal agency that coordinates disaster response and recovery—spends billions annually on contracts to help communities recover. These contracts are mostly for goods (like water) and services (like construction). FEMA has staff that have been trained and certified to oversee these contracts which helps ensure communities receive their goods and services. For instance, FEMA staff assess contractor reports of work performed and conduct unannounced site...

The National Nuclear Security Administration is overseeing a $200 billion nuclear modernization effort and hasn't been this busy since the Cold War. An internal review concluded that it wouldn't be able to meet this workload without changes. It made 18 recommendations, including new approaches to contractor management and workforce retention. The NNSA has taken actions to implement many recommended reforms. Several reforms cover areas we...