Department of the Interior

At the request of the Bureau of Reclamation (USBR), we audited Cooperative Agreement No. R16AC00087 between the USBR and the Panoche Drainage District. This agreement was awarded under the statutory authority of the San Luis Act of 1960 (Pub. L. No. 86-488 § 5) to fund operation and maintenance of...

We completed our work for the second part of our series evaluating the U.S. Bureau of Reclamation’s (USBR’s) operational and technical practices for protecting hydropower dams categorized as critical infrastructure from emerging cyber threats. The second part of this evaluation was limited to...

The OIG investigated allegations that an oil and gas company failed to comply with Federal regulations and to pay royalties associated with tribal leases. We substantiated the allegations and found the company failed to accurately report and pay gas royalties in 2014 for seven leases located on the...

The OIG investigated allegations that a Bureau of Land Management (BLM) employee shared proprietary contract information, accepted bribes, and had improper relationships with Government contractors. We found the employee socialized with Government contractors on a regular basis, which had the...

The OIG investigated allegations that officials from the Bureau of Reclamation (USBR) and the U.S. Department of the Interior, Office of the Solicitor (SOL), obstructed an administrative inquiry into alleged sexual misconduct by a USBR official. The complainant alleged that USBR and SOL officials...

The OIG audited the costs claimed by the State of Florida’s Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission under grants awarded by the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service (FWS) through the Wildlife and Sport Fish Restoration Program. The audit included claims totaling approximately $121 million on 100 grants...

The OIG investigated allegations that counterfeit purchase requests for high value electronic goods, appearing to have been sent by officials in the U.S. Department of the Interior Office of Acquisition and Property Management (PAM), had been sent to small businesses throughout the United States.We...

The OIG investigated allegations that Georgie Russell, Chief Financial Officer for the Chippewa Cree Construction Company (C-4), embezzled funds from C-4 and Dry Forks Farm, a tribally owned business. We also investigated allegations that Russell submitted false quarterly financial reports to the U...

The OIG investigated allegations that a National Park Service (NPS) superintendent mismanaged donated funds by depositing them into his personal checking account.We found that the superintendent violated Federal law and NPS policy when he deposited $500 donated yearly to the park into his personal...

The OIG investigated allegations that approximately $30,000 in checks issued erroneously by the Office of the Special Trustee for American Indians (OST) in the name of a deceased tribal member had been fraudulently negotiated after his death.We found that the decedent’s son received the checks...