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K-12 Education: Lessons Learned from Implementing COVID-19 Relief Funding Provisions Could Improve Future Grant Monitoring
GAO-26-107727
Feb 27, 2026
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3 Open Recommendations
Agency Affected Recommendation Status
Department of Education The Secretary of Education should develop internal written procedures to use when engaging in technical assistance to ensure staff have a common understanding of the information program managers provide to grantees when overseeing grants. (Recommendation 1)
Open
Education disagreed with this recommendation. Education noted that for some programs such as Title I, Title II, or Title V of the Elementary and Secondary Education Act (ESEA), Education program offices retain internal banks of grantee questions and answers that are continually refreshed and vetted by attorneys and senior leadership to ensure consistent technical assistance to grantees. However, as our report noted, Education officials told us they did not document procedures-such as a MOEquity technical assistance plan-for how program managers would ensure they delivered consistent information to grantees. We continue to believe that all technical assistance efforts should be guided by internal written procedures to ensure guidance is applied consistently-in line with federal oversight and performance management principles and practices that stress the importance of doing so.
Department of Education The Secretary of Education should establish procedures to ensure the quality and reliability of data collected for grants oversight and technical assistance. (Recommendation 2)
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Education disagreed with this recommendation. Education stated noted that the agency has procedures in place to ensure the quality and reliability of data collected for grant oversight, as well as a Data Governance Board and data stewards in each office. However, during the course of our review, Education did not provide us with data reliability procedures or information about procedures used to review MOEquity data. In addition, Education officials stated that they could not answer questions about what steps they took or if they followed data reliability procedures to ensure the data submitted by states were complete and accurate. Education also did not address why there were inconsistences in its MOEquity data-inconsistencies that prevent Education and us from determining whether the application of state MOEquity requirements had the intended effect of targeting the highest need school districts. Education stressed that the MOEquity data collection was particularly challenging for the department and states-as we discuss in the report-because it was an entirely new requirement. We will need to obtain the procedures Education mentions to determine if the agency addressed this recommendation.
Department of Education The Secretary of Education should develop a way to ensure that, as appropriate, staff timely identify, document, and share any lessons learned from implementing new and ongoing initiatives that may inform future grants oversight. (Recommendation 3)
Open
Education partially agreed with this recommendation. Education noted that the agency has procedures in place to document lessons learned over time. However, Education officials told us during our review that they do not have such procedures and generally have not identified a need for them. Education stated that it would consider setting up a site on an internal website for maintaining and sharing internal lessons learned. The agency noted that if lessons learned include information useful to external parties, it could share the lessons through conferences, webinars, or through other means of distribution. We encourage such efforts and will monitor any progress the agency makes on these and other relevant efforts.

Department of Education: Full Costs and Savings Estimate Needed for Reduction-in-Force and Restructuring of the Office for Civil Rights
GAO-26-108320
Feb 02, 2026
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1 Open Recommendations
Agency Affected Recommendation Status
Department of Education The Secretary of Education should estimate the full costs and savings associated with the Reduction-in-Force and reorganization actions it initiated in March 2025 and document its analysis. (Recommendation 1)
Open
The Department of Education disagreed with this recommendation. Education stated that it had rescinded the RIFs for OCR staff and taken action to return those employees to active duty, rendering the matter moot. Our report found that Education did not meet the requirement to document any potential savings or costs associated with any planned RIFs and other reductions in the workforce prior to their implementation. We also noted that 299 OCR staff initially subject to the March 2025 RIF actions were placed on administrative leave, some of whom remained on administrative leave until December 2025. Although Education has now rescinded the RIF actions, the agency incurred costs, for example, paying salaries and benefits for these staff. Given the RIFs were rescinded, thereby establishing a discrete time period, this recommendation reflects that such an analysis would be of actual, rather than potential, costs and savings. Additionally, in December 2025 while Education's RIF actions were paused, Education officials said that it remained committed to the RIF and would work to officially separate these staff in the future. Having a full, documented estimate of the costs and savings associated with a RIF, such as what occurred from March 2025 through early January 2026, would better inform any future actions Education may take in this regard. Therefore, we continue to believe that Education should conduct and document such an analysis.

Older Workers: Department of Labor Should Help State and Local Partners Share Promising Practices
GAO-26-107439
Jan 29, 2026
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1 Open Recommendations
Agency Affected Recommendation Status
Department of Labor The Secretary of Labor should ensure that the Employment and Training Administration, in coordination with Education's Rehabilitation Services Administration, facilitates information sharing among state and local partners on promising practices both to address the employment needs of older workers and to increase their awareness of job center services. (Recommendation 1)
Open
DOL agreed with this recommendation. DOL stated that it would enhance its coordination with Education to identify and share promising practices to address the employment needs of older workers and increase their awareness of job center services. We will monitor the progress of these efforts.
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