Administrative Law Judges: Allegations of Interference by the Department of the Interior

Pursuant to a congressional request, GAO determined whether: (1) there was evidence that the Department of the Interior's management actions might have compromised administrative law judges' (ALJ) decisional independence; (2) there was evidence that Interior improperly influenced an Office of Personnel Management (OPM) decision to classify eight Indian probate ALJ positions at the GS-15 grade level; and (3) reporting to officials below the agency head has created concerns among ALJ in other agencies regarding their decisional independence.