Department of the Interior OIG

This report presents the results of our unannounced inspection on August 14, 2018, of passenger ferry safety at Fort Sumter National Monument, Charleston, SC. The objective of our inspection was to determine whether Fort Sumter Tours, Inc., a National Park Service (NPS) concessionaire, operated its...

This report presents the results of our unannounced inspection August 16, 2018, of passenger ferry safety aboard ferry service to Bulls Island in the Cape Romain National Wildlife Refuge, Awendaw, SC. The objective of our inspection was to determine whether Coastal Expeditions, Inc., a U.S. Fish and...

We investigated an anonymous complaint alleging that Superintendent Ed Clark of Gettysburg National Military Park (GETT) violated ethics rules by soliciting funds on behalf of the Gettysburg Foundation, a non-Government organization; accepting Foundation-funded travel to events sponsored by the...

The OIG investigated allegations that a Bureau of Land Management (BLM) manager sent pornographic images and sexually suggestive instant messages from his Government computer and personal cellphone to a subordinate employee. The complainant further alleged that the BLM manager installed cameras in...

The OIG investigated allegations that an FWS contractor falsely certified payments to the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service (FWS) under a construction contract it held in the Southeast Region and that the contractor failed to pay a subcontractor for work performed.We found no evidence that the...

We completed an evaluation to determine if the Bureau of Safety and Environmental Enforcement (BSEE) has fulfilled its responsibility to assist the oil industry’s preparation for oil spill response. Our evaluation focused on the Oil Spill Preparedness Division (OSPD).We found that while BSEE has...

We initiated this investigation based on information we received while investigating U.S. Department of the Interior (DOI) Secretary Ryan Zinke’s use of noncommercial aircraft for U.S. Government travel. This investigation focused on whether Secretary Zinke abused his position by having his family...

During an investigation into suspicious internet traffic, we identified two vulnerabilities in the USGS’ IT security posture: web-site access and open USB ports. Common methods to prevent malware incidents involve a combination of employee training (Rules of Behavior) and access controls (hardware...

During an investigation at Haskell Indian Nations University (Haskell), we found that employees of the Haskell Foundation (Foundation), a nonprofit corporation, utilize office space on the Haskell campus and manage the proceeds of grants to Haskell. We also found that Haskell and the Foundation had...

During an investigation of the use of self-bonds in coal operations, the Office of Inspector General (OIG) identified an issue with access to the Wyoming Department of Environmental Quality’s (WDEQ’s) records related to its grant from the Office of Surface Mining, Reclamation, and Enforcement (OSMRE...