Federal Reports

While conducting our annual audit of the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development’s (HUD or Department) compliance with the Payment Integrity and Information Act, HUD’s Office of the Chief Financial Officer (OCFO) informed my office that the Department will once again be unable to estimate improper payments for the Office of Public and Indian Housing’s Tenant-Based Rental Assistance (PIH-TBRA) program and the Office of Multifamily Housing Programs’ Project-Based Rental Assistance (PBRA) program for fiscal year (FY) 2023. These are the two largest program expenditures in HUD's portfolio, totaling $45.3 billion in FY 23, or 67.5 percent of HUD's total expenditures.

For our audit of the Department's multifactor authentication (MFA) for its high value assets (HVA), our objective was to determine whether the Department has implemented MFA for its HVAs in accordance with zero trust architecture (ZTA) principles. To address this objective, we determined the extent to which four selected bureaus had implemented MFA for their HVAs in accordance with Office of Management and Budget requirements. The four selected bureaus were the Bureau of Economic Analysis (BEA), the U.S. Census Bureau (Census), the National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST), and the National Telecommunications and Information Administration (NTIA).We were able to exploit a weak MFA implementation to gain access to one NTIA system through a simulated phishing attack. We also found that none of the five selected HVAs had fully implemented all three OMB requirements: 1. phishing-resistant MFA, 2. application-layer MFA, and 3. modern password policies.Specifically, we found: I. NTIA Did Not Implement Adequate MFA to Protect an HVA Against Phishing AttacksII. Selected Bureaus Had Not Fully Implemented MFA for Their HVAs in Accordance with ZTA Principles

This interim report presents the results of our self-initiated audit of delivery operations and property conditions at the New Brighton Carrier Annex in Saint Paul, MN . The New Brighton Carrier Annex is in the Minnesota-North Dakota District of the Central Area and services ZIP Code 55112. This ZIP Code serves about 46,721 people in an urban area.Our objective was to evaluate mail delivery operations and property conditions at the New Brighton Carrier Annex in Saint Paul, MN.

This interim report presents the results of our self-initiated audit of delivery operations and property conditions at the Apple Valley Branch in Saint Paul, MN. The Apple Valley Branch is in the Minnesota-North Dakota District of the Central Area and services ZIP Code 55124. This ZIP Code serves about 56,297 people in a predominantly urban area.Our objective was to evaluate mail delivery operations and property conditions at the Apple Valley Branch in Saint Paul, MN.

This audit report shows Kearney found that the FCC made significant progress during the scope period covered by the audit. However, improvements were needed. In the attached audit report, dated January 22, 2024, Kearney noted five findings and 12 recommendations.