Federal Reports

This report contains information about recommendations from the OIG's audits, evaluations, reviews, and other reports that the OIG had not closed as of the specified date because it had not determined that the Department of Justice (DOJ) or a non-DOJ federal agency had fully implemented them. The list omits information that DOJ determined to be limited official use or classified, and therefore unsuitable for public release.The status of each recommendation was accurate as of the specified date and is subject to change. Specifically, a recommendation identified as not closed as of the specified date may subsequently have been closed.

The VA Office of Inspector General (OIG) conducted this review to assess the oversight and stewardship of funds by the VA Black Hills Health Care System in South Dakota and to identify potential cost efficiencies in carrying out its functions. The review assessed the following financial activities and administrative processes to determine whether the healthcare system had appropriate oversight and controls in place: open obligations oversight. purchase card use, inventory and supply management, and pharmacy operations.The review team identified several opportunities for improvement:• The healthcare system did not properly manage open obligations as required, risking funds not being used in the year they were appropriated.• It did not always process purchase card transactions in compliance with VA policy, consider the most appropriate purchasing mechanism, or leverage its purchasing power through using competitively priced contracts. It also did not maintain an accurate, up-to-date VA Form 0242 for all cardholders.• While inventory managers provided oversight to maintain stock levels for expendable supply items, the effectiveness and efficiency of inventory management could be improved by ensuring conversion factors, stock levels, and inventory values are recorded correctly in the Generic Inventory Package.• The healthcare system could improve pharmacy efficiency by narrowing the gap between the facility’s observed drug costs and expected drug costs, bringing the turnover rates closer to the VHA recommended level, and avoiding end-of-year purchases.The OIG made seven recommendations to the healthcare system director. The recommendations address issues that, if left unattended, may eventually interfere with effective financial efficiency practices and the strong stewardship of VA resources.

An audit of the purchase and travel card programs of the Denali Commission to assess the level of risk of illegal, improper, or erroneous purchases and payments through the Commission’s charge card programs during the period reviewed.

The Office of the Inspector General conducted an audit to determine the effectiveness of endpoint protection on Tennessee Valley Authority’s (TVA) desktops and laptops. We found several areas of TVA’s endpoint protection program to be generally effective; however, we identified two issues that should be addressed by TVA management to further increase the effectiveness. Specifically, we found (1) TVA does not require endpoint protection for all network connections and (2) gaps in TVA policy, procedures, and internal controls. TVA management agreed with our recommendations.

What We Looked AtTwo fatal crashes involving Boeing 737 MAX 8 aircraft in 2018 and 2019 drew widespread attention to the Federal Aviation Administration's (FAA) oversight and certification practices, including the Agency's process for establishing pilot training requirements for the aircraft. The Chairmen and Ranking Members of the House Committee on Transportation and Infrastructure and its Subcommittee on Aviation requested that we review domestic and international pilot training standards related to commercial passenger aircraft. Our audit objectives were to (1) evaluate FAA's process for establishing pilot training requirements for U.S. and foreign air carriers operating U.S.-certificated large passenger aircraft and (2) review international civil aviation authorities' requirements for air carrier pilot training regarding the use of flight deck automation. We focused on FAA's role in setting training requirements as the certificating authority for Boeing aircraft and its efforts to enhance upset prevention and recovery training.What We FoundWhile each country is responsible for setting its own pilot training requirements, FAA has the opportunity to inform other countries' requirements through increased transparency and oversight. For example, FAA provides aircraft-specific guidance to air carriers and other organizations when developing training programs. However, the guidance does not clearly state the level of experience FAA assumed pilots would have--which is significant given that the skills and average experience of pilots can vary between countries. In addition, FAA has worked with international civil aviation authorities to provide guidance on air carrier pilots' use of flight deck automation. This includes conducting outreach and training internationally on specific flight scenarios and leading an ongoing international working group to develop new international standards and guidance on pilots' use of automation. Nevertheless, our survey of international civil aviation authorities found that countries' requirements regarding the use of flight deck automation varied.Our RecommendationsFAA concurred with our four recommendations to enhance the Agency's transparency and oversight to better inform international pilot training requirements and proposed appropriate planned actions and completion dates.