Federal Reports

The objectives of our audit were to determine whether the Puerto Rico Department of Education (Puerto Rico DOE) provided accurate and complete displaced student count data to the U.S. Department of Education (Department) and appropriately accounted for Temporary Emergency Impact Aid for Displaced Students (Emergency Impact Aid) program funds in accordance with Federal guidelines.In our displaced student count testing, we determined that the Puerto Rico DOE reported inaccurate and unsupported displaced student count data to the Department for school year 2017–2018.We also determined that the Puerto Rico DOE generally accounted for Emergency Impact Aid program funds in accordance with Federal guidelines.

External peer review of the Farm Credit Administration Office of Inspector General's inspection and evaluation organization, conducted by the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission Office of Inspector General.

Review to determine the Commission’s compliance with Fiscal Year (FY) 2021reporting on improper payments.

Because the EPA did not follow docketing procedures, the public was not notified of the changes to the final Long-Chain Perfluoroalkyl Carboxylate and Perfluoroalkyl Sulfonate Chemical Substances Significant New Use Rule.

The VA Office of Inspector General (OIG) assessed the VA Boston Healthcare System’s stewardship and oversight of funds in fiscal year (FY) 2021 and identified potential cost efficiencies in carrying out medical center functions. The review team looked at open obligation oversight, purchase card use, inventory and supply management, and pharmacy operations.From the healthcare system’s 421 open obligations, the team selected 20 totaling $20.6 million and found half were at least 90 days past their end date, most without being reviewed to see if they were still valid and necessary, and two had residual funds totaling approximately $4,439 that should have been released from obligation and used elsewhere to support veterans.Of 36 purchase card transactions totaling $441,000, the team found 28 lacked evidence to show they were properly approved and that payments were accurate, and 25 were processed by cardholders and approving officials whose duties were not segregated as required. The team also identified 10 purchases that should have been procured through contracting but were intentionally split into multiple transactions to stay below the cardholder’s single purchase limit.The team found inaccurate entries in the inventory system that caused it to show insufficient amounts of stock on hand in more than 70 percent of tested cases. The inaccuracies result in inefficient purchasing and receiving and could adversely affect patient care.The healthcare system had a low pharmacy turnover rate, an efficiency measure. In FY 2021, the healthcare system reported a rate of 8.2 compared to the recommended 12. Low inventory turnover rates could indicate an inability to properly forecast needed drug inventories, which could adversely affect patient care.The OIG made eight recommendations to improve the stewardship of VA resources and address issues that could adversely affect patient care.

Pursuant to the VA Choice and Quality Employment Act of 2017 (VCQEA), the OIG conducted a review to identify clinical and non-clinical occupations experiencing staffing shortages within Veterans Health Administration (VHA). This is the ninth iteration of the staffing report, and the fifth evaluating facility-level data. The OIG evaluated staffing shortages by surveying VHA facilities, and compared this information to the previous four years. The OIG found that all 139 VHA facilities reported at least one severe occupational staffing shortage. The total number of reported severe shortages was 2,622. Twenty-two occupations were identified as a severe occupational staffing shortage by at least one in five facilities. Every year since 2014, the Medical Officer and Nurse occupations were reported as severe shortages. Practical Nurse was the most frequently identified clinical severe occupational staffing shortage in FY 2022, with 62 percent of facilities reporting this occupation. Custodial Worker was the most frequently reported non-clinical severe occupational shortage in FY 2022, with 69 percent of facilities reported the occupation. Medical Support Assistance was the most frequently reported Hybrid Title 38 severe occupational shortage. In FY 2022, VHA reported twenty-two percent more severe occupational staffing shortages as compared to FY 2021. FY 2022 is the first year since implementation of VCQEA reporting requirements in which the OIG did not observe a yearly decrease in the overall number of severe occupational staffing shortages; it was also the first time that facilities identified more than 90 occupations as severe shortages. The OIG again determined the ongoing need for Custodial Worker and Medical Support Assistance, noting an increase in the number of facilities identifying these occupations as severe shortages. The OIG emphasizes the importance of VHA’s continued assessment of severe occupational staffing shortages given the increases from FY 2021 to FY 2022.