Federal Reports

Section 487(a)(17) of the Higher Education Act of 1965, as amended (HEA), requires postsecondary schools participating in Title IV programs to annually report data, including data relevant to students’ cost of attendance and financial aid and the schools’ graduation rates, to the U.S. Department of Education’s (Department) Integrated Postsecondary Education Data System (IPEDS) to the satisfaction of the Secretary. The objective of our inspection was to determine whether Joliet Junior College (JJC) reported verifiable data to IPEDS for the 2021–2022 reporting period. We found that JJC did not always report verifiable data to IPEDS for the 2021–2022 reporting period. The total amount of grant and scholarship aid that JJC students received for the 2021–2022 reporting period and the number of full-time undergraduate students who were enrolled in the fall of 2021 and seeking their first postsecondary certificate or degree that the school reported to IPEDS were not verifiable. In addition, the number of students who were full-time undergraduate students who began attending the school during academic year 2019–2020, were seeking their first postsecondary certificate or degree, and completed their program of study by the end of academic year 2021–2022 (150 percent of the normal time) that JJC reported to IPEDS were not verifiable. While not all reported financial aid and program completion data were verifiable, the average tuition and fees, books and supplies, room and board, and other expenses charged to full-time undergraduate students who were seeking their first certificate or degree that the school reported to IPEDS for the 2021–2022 reporting period were verifiable. JJC did not always report verifiable data to IPEDS because it did not update and implement procedures for collecting, consolidating, assessing the reliability of, and reporting data to IPEDS. 

We performed an audit of the costs billed to the Tennessee Valley Authority (TVA) by Johnson Service Group, Inc. (JSG) under Contract No. TVA‑04012020‑125806 for noncraft staff augmentation services.  Our audit objective was to determine if the costs billed to TVA by JSG were in accordance with the contract’s terms.  Our audit scope included about $32.5 million in costs billed to TVA from June 26, 2024, to March 11, 2025. 

In summary, we determined the costs billed by JSG generally complied with the contract except for a net overbilling of $3,288 in travel costs.  We also determined that TVA inadvertently credited an invoice instead of issuing a payment, resulting in an underpayment of $1,700.  In addition, TVA’s hiring managers provided approval for costs to be billed by JSG, which were not in accordance with the contract’s terms. Specifically, TVA could have saved $30,765 if TVA hiring managers had not allowed and/or approved reimbursement for (1) travel instead of temporary living allowances (TLA) for temporary assignments at one location exceeding 90 days, (2) excessive TLA rates, and (3) ineligible or excessive travel costs.

Why We Did This Report

The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency Office of Inspector General received an allegation of whistleblower reprisal under 41 U.S.C. § 4712 from a former employee of an EPA grantee. The complainant alleged that she was terminated in December 2023 in retaliation for making several disclosures regarding potential grant fraud and gross mismanagement of an EPA grant or subgrant.

Summary of Findings

The investigation determined that the complainant made at least five separate protected disclosures to tribal employees, including the COO and CEO. We found that these protected disclosures were contributing factors in the complainant’s termination. We also determined that the tribe cannot demonstrate by clear and convincing evidence that it would have terminated the complainant in the absence of her protected disclosures. As such, we substantiated the complainant’s retaliation allegations.