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As of May 30, 2024, there are 5144 open recommendations that still need to be addressed. 411 of these are priority recommendations, those that we believe warrant priority attention. Learn more about our priority designation on our Recommendations page.

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4841 - 4860 of 5144 Recommendations, including 411 Priority Recommendations

Mortgage Reforms: Actions Needed to Help Assess Effects of New Regulations

GAO-15-185
Matthew Scirè
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1 Open Recommendations
Agency Recommendation Status
Department of Housing and Urban Development To enhance the effectiveness of its preparations for conducting a retrospective review of its QM regulations, HUD should develop a plan that identifies the metrics, baselines, and analytical methods to be used. Furthermore, to account for and help mitigate the limitations of existing data and the uncertain availability of enhanced datasets, HUD should include in its plan alternate metrics, baselines, and analytical methods that could be used data were to remain unavailable.
Open

In February 2017, HUD noted that it does not currently collect data on the annual percentage rate (APR) for each loan that would allow for a perfect comparison to the average prime offer rate. According to HUD, its Office of Housing has on its long-term list of systems priorities to collect specific information from the Uniform Closing Data that could be used to conduct such a comparison. However, HUD stated that it has not received adequate funding to meet these systems enhancements. According to HUD, it is considering the feasibility and potential utility of alternative data sources or the

Energy Savings Performance Contracts: Additional Actions Needed to Improve Federal Oversight

GAO-15-432
Frank Rusco
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1 Open Recommendations
Agency Recommendation Status
Office of Management and Budget To help agencies decide whether to use ESPCs to consolidate federal data centers, the Director of the Office of Management and Budget should document, for the purposes of scoring ESPCs, (1) what qualifies as energy-related savings and (2) the allowable proportion of energy and energy-related cost savings.
Open

As of April 2023, GAO has repeatedly requested information on the status of the recommendation, but has not received any information. We will update the recommendation's status if information is received from OMB.

Defense Civilian Compensation: DOD and OPM Could Improve the Consistency of DOD's Eligibility Determinations for Living Quarters Allowances

GAO-15-511
Johana Ayers
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1 Open Recommendations
Agency Recommendation Status
Department of Defense To ensure that the Defense Civilian Personnel Advisory Service (DCPAS) and DOD components are determining LQA eligibility consistently with DOD's LQA Instruction, the DSSR, and OPM compensation claim decisions, the Secretary of Defense should direct the Under Secretary of Defense for Personnel and Readiness to require the Deputy Assistant Secretary of Defense for Civilian Personnel Policy or DCPAS, as delegated, to monitor reviews of LQA eligibility determinations conducted by DOD components.
Open – Partially Addressed

DOD concurred with this action, and as of December 2023, had taken steps to improve oversight of LQA determinations by DOD components; however, it had not issued guidance that requires the Deputy Assistant Secretary of Defense for Civilian Personnel Policy or DCPAS to monitor reviews of LQA eligibility determinations by DOD components. At the direction of DCPAS, DOD components completed reviews and submitted reports of overseas allowances paid to a sampling of overseas employees for calendar years 2015-2022. According to DCPAS officials, in DOD's 2021 review of overseas allowances, no

Military Personnel: Army Needs a Requirement for Capturing Data and Clear Guidance on Use of Military for Civilian or Contractor Positions

GAO-15-349
Brenda S. Farrell
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4 Open Recommendations
Agency Recommendation Status
Department of the Army To better position the Army to determine the extent to which it is continuing to use borrowed military personnel and to enhance the Army's ability to utilize its total workforce efficiently and effectively as it moves forward, the Secretary of the Army should establish a requirement for collecting, tracking, and reporting data on the use of borrowed military personnel and provide guidance to ensure that data collected are complete and accurate; if other special duty data are included, ensure that the tool contains a method to distinguish borrowed military personnel from other special duty data.
Open

The Army concurred with our recommendation and noted that it has an existing process for oversight and reporting of the use of soldiers replacing or converting functions previously performed by contractors and planned to develop a similar policy to address oversight on soldiers replacing or converting functions previously performed by civilians. The Army stated that language in draft Army Regulation AR 570-4 will address this recommendation by incorporating guidance for the utilization of military manpower. In October 2022, the Army expected that the revision to the Army Regulation would be
Department of the Army To better position the Army to determine the extent to which it is continuing to use borrowed military personnel and to enhance the Army's ability to utilize its total workforce efficiently and effectively as it moves forward, the Secretary of the Army should issue guidance that includes procedures for tracking the amount of time soldiers are used as borrowed military personnel.
Open

The Army concurred with our recommendation and noted that it would be unreasonable to require tracking the amount of time soldiers are used as borrowed military personnel because it would be overly burdensome and that Army Regulation 570-4 allows for the use of soldiers for training purposes or for temporary functions. The Army indicated that its draft of the updated regulation limits the use of borrowed military personnel to 90 days per soldier per calendar year and as such there is no need to track the amount of time soldiers are used in this capacity. The Army also indicated that a method
Department of the Army To better position the Army to determine the extent to which it is continuing to use borrowed military personnel and to enhance the Army's ability to utilize its total workforce efficiently and effectively as it moves forward, the Secretary of the Army should revise Army Regulation 570-4 to include guidance to senior commanders for approving the use of soldiers for positions or functions outside their occupational specialty on a rotational basis for an enduring period.
Open

The Army partially concurred with our recommendation. In their comments the Army noted that it has issued guidance establishing the appropriate use of military manpower and was in the process of incorporating this guidance into Army Regulation 570-4. As of October 2022, the Army indicated that the updated regulation will provide guidance on when soldiers can be used for borrowed military personnel. Army officials expected that the updated regulation would be published by December 2022.
Department of the Army To better position the Army to determine the extent to which it is continuing to use borrowed military personnel and to enhance the Army's ability to utilize its total workforce efficiently and effectively as it moves forward, the Secretary of the Army should establish oversight mechanisms that include directing commanders to maintain records for considering the full costs of borrowed military personnel when making decisions to use these personnel, and directing the Army to review these records and full costs reported by installations and commands to help ensure that these costs are considered, documented, and reported in a uniform manner.
Open

The Army concurred with our recommendation. However, the Army noted that it already has a process requiring that a cost analysis take place. Additionally, the Army stated that the process of conducting a cost analysis should be conducted at the headquarter level and that the Army will issue policy to institute this. As of October 2022, the Army stated that updated guidance in the draft of Army Regulation 570-4 establishes a process to consider the costs of using borrowed military personnel. Army officials indicated that they expected that updated regulation would be issued by December 2022.

Medicare Part B Drugs: Action Needed to Reduce Financial Incentives to Prescribe 340B Drugs at Participating Hospitals

GAO-15-442
James Cosgrove
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1 Open Recommendations
Agency Recommendation Status
Congress To help ensure the financial sustainability of the Medicare program, protect beneficiaries from unwarranted financial burden, and address potential concerns about the appropriateness of the health care provided to Part B beneficiaries, Congress should consider eliminating the incentive to prescribe more drugs or more expensive drugs than necessary to treat Medicare Part B beneficiaries at 340B hospitals.
Open

As of March 2024, Congress had not acted on this Matter for Congressional Consideration.

Management Report: Improvements Are Needed to Enhance the Internal Revenue Service's Internal Control over Financial Reporting

GAO-15-480R
Cheryl E. Clark
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1 Open Recommendations
Agency Recommendation Status
Internal Revenue Service The Commissioner of IRS should direct the appropriate IRS officials to establish procedures to monitor whether non-IRS contractors with unescorted physical access to IRS facilities are receiving unauthorized access awareness training.
Open

During fiscal year 2021, IRS developed an SOP to establish policies and procedures for monitoring and enforcing training requirements that allow contractors to maintain unescorted access to IRS facilities. However, during our fiscal year 2023 testing, we found that some contracting officer's representatives had not completed the security awareness training forms as required. As a result, we determined that IRS had not completed its corrective actions as of September 30, 2023, and that this recommendation remains open.

Navy Force Structure: Sustainable Plan and Comprehensive Assessment Needed to Mitigate Long-Term Risks to Ships Assigned to Overseas Homeports

GAO-15-329
John Pendleton
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1 Open Recommendations
1 Priority
Agency Recommendation Status
Department of Defense
Priority Rec.
To balance combatant commanders' demands for forward presence with the Navy's needs to sustain a ready force over the long term and identify and mitigate risks consistent with Federal Standards for Internal Control, the Secretary of Defense should direct the Secretary of the Navy to, to fully implement its optimized fleet response plan, develop and implement a sustainable operational schedule for all ships homeported overseas.
Open – Partially Addressed

DOD agreed with our recommendation. As of October 2020, the Navy approved a change to the operational schedule for ships homeported in Japan and other overseas homeports and included this change in Navy guidance. The Navy also established a working group named the Naval Surface Group Western Pacific to oversee surface ship maintenance, training, and certification for ships based in Japan. To fully implement this recommendation, the Navy will need to adhere to the revised schedules. As of January 2023, a Navy official told us that ships based overseas were adhering to the Optimized Fleet

National Nuclear Security Administration: Actions Needed to Clarify Use of Contractor Assurance Systems for Oversight and Performance Evaluation

GAO-15-216
David Trimble
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1 Open Recommendations
Agency Recommendation Status
National Nuclear Security Administration To improve the internal control environment for oversight using information from CAS and develop a consistent approach to the use of information from CAS in M&O contractor oversight and performance evaluation across the nuclear security enterprise, the Administrator of NNSA should establish comprehensive NNSA policies and guidance, beyond a general framework as included in NAP-21, for using information from CAS to conduct oversight of M&O contractors, clarifying whether CAS is to cover mission-related activities, and describing how to conduct assessments of risk, CAS maturity, and the level of the contractor's past performance.
Open

We recommended that NNSA establish comprehensive policies and guidance, beyond a general framework, for using information from contractor assurance systems (CAS) to conduct oversight of management and operating (M&O) contractors, clarifying whether CAS is to cover mission-related activities and describing how to conduct assessments of risk, CAS maturity, and the level of the contractor's past performance. NNSA agreed with the recommendation and has taken an important step to revise its policy. However, NNSA needs to take additional action. Specifically, NNSA approved a revised corporate site

Telecommunications: Agencies Need Better Controls to Achieve Significant Savings on Mobile Devices and Services

GAO-15-431
Carol R. Cha
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9 Open Recommendations
Agency Recommendation Status
Department of Commerce To help the department effectively manage spending on mobile devices and services, the Secretary of Commerce should ensure a reliable department-wide inventory of mobile service contracts is developed and maintained.
Open

In January 2024, the Department of Commerce Office of the Chief Information Officer stated that the department did not have an inventory of mobile service contracts and described steps it was taking to develop one. We will continue to monitor the department's efforts.
Department of Commerce To help the department effectively manage spending on mobile devices and services, the Secretary of Commerce should ensure procedures to monitor and control spending are established department-wide. Specifically, ensure that (1) procedures include assessing devices for zero, under, and over usage; (2) personnel with authority and responsibility for performing the procedures are identified; and (3) the specific steps to be taken to perform the process are documented.
Open

In January 2024, the Department of Commerce Office of the Chief Information Officer (OCIO) stated that the department does not have documented procedures for assessing device usage. The OCIO also stated that the process is not complex enough to warrant a Standard Operating Procedure. However, as we stated in our report, an executive order on promoting efficient spending directed agencies to establish controls to ensure that they are not paying for unused or underused devices or services. In addition, internal control standards call for agencies to ensure government resources are efficiently
Department of Defense To help the department effectively manage spending on mobile devices and services, the Secretary of Defense should ensure an inventory of mobile devices and services is established department-wide (i.e., all components' devices and associated services are accounted for).
Open

While the Department of Defense has taken steps to improve its management of spending on mobile devices and services, as of April 2023, it had not implemented this recommendation. The department established a policy, in September 2018, which requires all DOD components in the United States to purchase mobile devices and services using a single department-wide contract vehicle, and the Department of the Navy's Category Management Program Office established a website for DOD components to order services provided through this contract vehicle. However, in April 2021, the Mobility Lead in DOD's
Department of the Interior To help the department effectively manage spending on mobile devices and services, the Secretary of the Interior should ensure an inventory of mobile devices and services is established department-wide (i.e., all components' devices and associated services are accounted for).
Open – Partially Addressed

The Department of the Interior has not demonstrated that it has fully implemented this recommendation. As of January 2024, the department demonstrated that only one of its components, the Bureau of Reclamation, had an inventory of mobile devices and associated services. We will continue to monitor the department's efforts to implement the recommendation.
Department of the Interior To help the department effectively manage spending on mobile devices and services, the Secretary of the Interior should ensure a reliable department-wide inventory of mobile service contracts is developed and maintained.
Open – Partially Addressed

As of January 2024, the Department of the Interior had not demonstrated that it had fully addressed this recommendation. In August 2019, the department developed an inventory of mobile service contracts. However, the department did not demonstrate that it had accounted for all of its mobile service contracts. We will continue to monitor the department's efforts to implement the recommendation.
Department of Transportation To help the department effectively manage spending on mobile devices and services, the Secretary of Transportation should ensure procedures to monitor and control spending are established department-wide. Specifically, ensure that (1) procedures include assessing devices for zero, under, and over usage; (2) personnel with authority and responsibility for performing the procedures are identified; and (3) the specific steps to be taken to perform the process are documented.
Open – Partially Addressed

As of January 2024, the Department of Transportation had partially implemented the recommendation. Specifically, the Office of the Chief Information Officer's Resource Management Office Customer and Contract Support team developed procedures for assessing mobile device usage. However, the department has not specified which of its components the procedures apply to. We will continue to monitor the department's efforts to fully implement the recommendation.
Department of the Treasury To help the department effectively manage spending on mobile devices and services, the Secretary of the Treasury should ensure an inventory of mobile devices and services is established department-wide (i.e., all components' devices and associated services are accounted for).
Open

As of January 2024, the Department of the Treasury had not implemented the recommendation. We will continue to monitor the department's efforts to implement this recommendation.
National Aeronautics and Space Administration To help the agency effectively manage spending on mobile devices and services, the Administrator of the National Aeronautics and Space Administration should ensure a complete inventory of mobile devices and associated services is established.
Open

As of January 2024, NASA had not demonstrated that it has implemented the recommendation. In June 2021, NASA's Office of the Chief Information Officer (OCIO) provided an inventory of mobile devices and services; however, the OCIO did not demonstrate that the inventory was complete. Specifically, the OCIO did not demonstrate that it had accounted for all NASA devices. We will continue to monitor NASA's efforts to implement the recommendation.
National Aeronautics and Space Administration To help the agency effectively manage spending on mobile devices and services, the Administrator of the National Aeronautics and Space Administration should ensure a reliable inventory of mobile service contracts is developed and maintained.
Open

As of January 2024, NASA had not demonstrated that it has implemented the recommendation.
Note: the list of open recommendations for the last report may continue on the next page.

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