Federal Reports

The OIG investigated an allegation that a Bureau of Land Management (BLM) law enforcement supervisor was involved in an outside business venture in violation of Federal ethics regulations and U.S. Department of the Interior (DOI) policies. We also investigated whether the law enforcement supervisor and a subordinate special agent participated in the business activity while on duty and whether the law enforcement supervisor showed preferential treatment toward the special agent. We found the law enforcement supervisor participated in outside activity and employment with three entities, one of which was a prohibited source under Federal regulations and did not seek prior approval from his supervisor and an ethics official as required. The law enforcement supervisor also received financial reimbursements and payments for training services he provided for two of the entities, which violated Federal law, and did not report any of that income on his financial disclosure forms as required by Federal ethics regulations.Finally, the law enforcement supervisor claimed official work hours from the BLM on days when he had been providing training to these entities in his personal capacity.We found no evidence that the subordinate special agent participated in outside activity that violated Federal regulations or DOI policy, or that the law enforcement supervisor showed preferential treatment toward the special agent. The law enforcement supervisor left the Department during our investigation. We referred this matter to the U.S. Attorney’s Office, which declined prosecution.

The OIG investigated allegations that a former U.S. Bureau of Reclamation (BOR) employee made personal purchases with his Government travel card (GTC) while he was in an absent without leave (AWOL) employment status.We confirmed the former employee used his GTC to pay his rent and car insurance and attempted to use his GTC to withdraw cash and pay his cell phone bill while AWOL. Our investigation also found the BOR lacked policy to ensure AWOL employees’ GTC accounts are suspended or cancelled.The employee was removed from Federal service. The local District Attorney’s Office charged the employee with unauthorized use of a financial transaction device and there is an active warrant for his arrest.

The agreed-upon procedures review of AmeriCorps grant funds awarded to the Delaware Governor’s Commission on Community and Volunteer Service (DGCCVS), and two subgrantees, Division of Parks and Recreation and Reading Assist Institute, identified questioned Federal costs of $11,463, questioned match costs of $46,380, questioned education awards and interest forbearance of $8,721 and compliance findings. The costs tested were incurred between April 1, 2016, and March 31, 2018. Most of the questioned costs identified were associated with (1) food and beverages that were not adequately disclosed in the budget, and (2) full-term members who were changed to less than full-time without required DGCCVS approvals.DGCCVS concurred with most of the compliance findings but generally disagreed with the recommended amount of questioned costs. CNCS management concurred with most of the recommendations and stated it will resolve the questioned costs during audit resolution.

This evaluation had two objectives: (1) to describe the range of homestay models that Peace Corps posts were implementing and better understand their advantages and challenges; and (2) to assess the impact of homestay requirements on Volunteer safety, language acquisition, integration, and health. We found that the majority (63 percent) of Peace Corps posts implemented homestay requirements during service, though the number of months required varied. Evidence from this analysis does not support the assumption that better Volunteer outcomes will be achieved in all contexts. Given the costs of administering and potential risk associated with homestay programs, posts that transition to or increase homestay requirements should rigorously monitor safety and language outcomes.