Federal Reports

Why We Did This Report

The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency Office of Inspector General initiated this project to describe the lessons we have identified from select EPA OIG and U.S. Government Accountability Office, or GAO, oversight reports to help inform the EPA’s future efforts to prepare for and respond to natural disasters.

Summary of Findings

We reviewed 26 EPA OIG and GAO reports that include findings related to the EPA’s prior disaster response actions. From those, we identified seven programmatic themes: (1)interagency and external stakeholder cooperation, (2) risk communication to the public,(3)data collection and characterization of risks, (4) policy development, (5) resource limitation, (6)contract management, and (7) resilience of contaminated sites and infrastructure. These themes had lessons that may allow the EPA to be better prepared for and respond to a natural disaster in the future. These reports made 79 recommendations to the EPA. Although we did not evaluate the timeliness or quality of the EPA’s corrective actions to these recommendations, it is imperative that the EPA implement recommendations that could provide a more efficient and effective response to future natural disasters.

The audit objectives were to determine whether program funds were managed in accordance with the ARC and Federal grant requirements.

This report presents the results of our audit of U.S. Postal Service’s financial controls and safeguarding assets at selected retail units.

The Postal Service operates approximately 31,000 retail units that provide services to customers nationwide. Retail unit employees are required to adhere to policies and procedures regarding financial reporting and the safeguarding of assets. All retail units must report their financial activity to Accounting Services daily, and retail unit management is responsible for the security of accountable items. Controls over these processes are essential for ensuring financial information is reliable and assets are protected. During a prior audit, we identified potential security matters and financial control issues at selected retail locations. As a result, we visited 10 additional retail units to determine compliance with policies and procedures and whether issues were remediated.

What We Did

Our objective was to determine compliance with policies and procedures regarding financial controls and safeguarding assets at selected Postal Service retail units. Specifically, we interviewed Postal Service management and retail associates, observed the safeguarding of assets, reviewed Postal Service (PS) Form 1412 supporting documentation, and inventoried arrow keys present at the retail units.

This review examines whether medical facilities in VISN 12 (the VA Great Lakes Health Care System covering parts of Illinois, Indiana, Michigan, and Wisconsin) correctly identified veterans eligible for community care, informed them of their care options, and delivered timely care.

The OIG found that during the first quarter of fiscal year 2024, VISN 12 did not consistently offer veterans required information about care options for direct VA or community care. Schedulers also did not always accurately determine a veteran’s eligibility for community care, inform veterans of their eligibility, or correctly process requests for care and appointments. These deficiencies occurred primarily because schedulers lacked the means to identify all available appointments within or outside VISN 12. Another factor was uneven VHA guidance, requiring schedulers to check all eligibility criteria for new patients but only wait times for established patients.

VISN 12 did not reliably provide timely care to veterans during the review period. From scheduling to appointment took on average 44 days for community care (the goal is 30 days) and 35 days for care within VA (with goals of 20 or 28 days depending on the type of care). VISN 12 also had about 250 consults, including both types of care, that had not been completed for a year. These delays risked some veterans not receiving care when needed.

The VISN 12 director concurred with the OIG’s four recommendations to improve the community care program. The OIG is also conducting two national follow-up reviews: the first examines how VISNs determine eligibility and inform veterans of care options and the second compares the timeliness of care received at VA with community care. Because these national audits will include recommendations beyond VISN 12, no national recommendations related to these concerns are offered in this report.

Improved Documentation and Guidance Can Help Strengthen Corporation Finance’s Disclosure Review Program, Report No. 586

The OIG found that the U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC) effectively uses operating experience (OpE) information to inspect Emergency Diesel Generators (EDGs) at operating nuclear power plants. However, the agency could strengthen the Reactor OpE Program by updating guidance and assessing the program, and ensuring the EDG Technical Review Group (TRG) members know their roles and responsibilities.
Currently, the guidance provided in Office Instruction LIC-401, Office of Nuclear Reactor Regulation (NRR) Reactor Operating Experience, and NRR’s Operating Experience Staff Handbook is outdated. In addition, the NRC does not have an assessment process for the Reactor OpE Program. Assessing the Reactor OpE Program periodically could help staff and management determine whether the program meets its objectives and staff are using relevant guidance to process OpE information. Moreover, the NRC lacks policies and procedures for the EDG TRGs, which may lead to inconsistent practices, reduced productivity, and missed opportunities to disposition EDG-related OpE information.
The OIG makes seven recommendations to strengthen the Reactor Operating Experience Program implementation process.