Federal Reports

This report presents a summary of the results of our self-initiated audits assessing the efficiency of selected processes at three selected retail units in the Massachusetts-Rhode Island (MA-RI) District (Project Number 22-188). These retail units include Fort Point Station, Woburn Post Office, and Norwood Post Office in the MA-RI District of the Atlantic Area. We previously issued interim reports1 to district management for each of these retail units regarding the conditions we identified.

This report presents a summary of the results of our self-initiated audits assessing mail delivery, customer service, and property conditions at six select delivery units in the Delaware–Pennsylvania 2 District in the Atlantic Area. These delivery units included the Germantown, Logan, and North Philadelphia Stations in Philadelphia, PA; and the Marshallton Branch, Edgemoor Branch, and Lancaster Avenue Station in Wilmington, DE.

Enforcement Investigations: Measures of Timeliness Showed SomeImprovement But Enforcement Can Better Communicate Capabilities forExpediting Investigations and Improve Internal Processes, Report No. 576

What We Looked AtWe queried and downloaded 74 single audit reports prepared by non-Federal auditors and submitted to the Federal Audit Clearinghouse between July 1, 2022, and September 30, 2022, to identify significant findings related to programs directly funded by the Department of Transportation (DOT). What We FoundWe found that reports contained a range of findings that impacted DOT programs. The auditors reported 17 incidents of significant noncompliance with Federal guidelines related to 13 grantees that require prompt action from DOT’s Operating Administrations (OA). Seven of these were repeat findings related to six grantees. The auditors also identified questioned costs totaling $3,546,767 for four grantees. Of this amount, $1,250,359 was related to the State of Rhode Island, and $1,350,319 was related to the Capital Area Transit System Baton Rouge, LA. Additionally, we identified nonmonetary findings that caused qualified opinions for the Chippewa Cree Tribe, the Government of Guam, the State of Illinois, the Klawock Cooperative Association, the City of Creswell, OR, and the Commonwealth Ports Authority of the Northern Marina Islands. RecommendationsWe recommend that DOT coordinate with the impacted OAs to develop corrective action plans to resolve and close the current and repeat findings identified in this report. We also recommend that DOT determine the allowability of the questioned transactions and recover $3,546,767, if applicable.

A civil settlement agreement was finalized between the United States Department of Justice and an Amtrak contractor on February 14, 2023. The contractor agreed to pay Amtrak $54,567 out of retainage held by Amtrak and an additional $9,822 to the United States for overbilling overhead rates above the maximum allowed for work performed on the New Jersey High Speed Rail Improvement Program from 2013 to 2017. Separate from the civil settlement agreement, the contractor also paid Amtrak $10,561 for overbilling overhead rates on the same project during the period from 2018 to 2020.