Open Recommendations

OIG recommends that the Bureau of Administration issue guidance and training to Contracting Officers that includes the proper interpretation of subcontracting plan requirements and exemptions, in accordance with Federal Acquisition Regulation 19.702(b)(1-4) and Department of State Acquisition Regulation 619.000(b).

OIG recommends that the Bureau of Administration develop and implement a process for achieving the goals, objectives, and timeframes for individual subcontracting report reviews, as prescribed in Federal Acquisition Regulation 19.705-6(f)(1)(2), Department of State Acquisition Manual 619.705-6, and supplemental guidance. At a minimum, this should include identifying and reporting to management contractors that fail to submit required reports.

OIG recommends that the Bureau of Administration develop and implement standard operating procedures describing the post-award responsibilities of Contracting Officers to comply with Federal Acquisition Regulation 19.705-6. At a minimum, the procedures should include regular reporting from the Small Business Technical Liaison to Contracting Officers and management officials in the Bureau of Administration, Office of Global Acquisitions, Acquisitions Management Directorate.

OIG recommends that the Bureau of Administration develop and implement standard operating procedures describing Contracting Officers' responsibilities to (1) determine contractors' good faith efforts to comply with their small business subcontracting plans and (2) take action to address a contractor's failure to make a good faith effort to comply with the requirements in Federal Acquisition Regulation 19.705-7.

OIG recommends that the Bureau of Administration develop and implement standard operating procedures describing Contracting Officers' responsibilities to comply with the contractor past performance evaluation requirements in Federal Acquisition Regulation 42.1502. At a minimum, the procedures should include timely and accurate assessments of contractors' small business subcontracting plan performance in the Contracting Performance Assessment Reporting System.

We recommend that NPS develop servicewide guidance to aid National Park Service staff when determining whether National Park Service cost estimating personnel and contracted architect and engineer firms should be required to conduct site visits when developing construction estimates.

We recommend that NPS develop a method to track and monitor independent government cost estimate accuracy for Great American Outdoors Act Legacy Restoration Fund construction projects and develop a process to evaluate trends that lead to inaccurate estimates, to include the types of construction projects.

The OIG recommended the under secretary for health make sure the Office of Integrated Veteran Care, in coordination with VHA’s chief operating officer and the Veterans Integrated Service Networks evaluate its Veteran Self-Scheduling training and identify improvements if they are needed.

The OIG recommended the under secretary for health make sure the Office of Integrated Veteran Care, in coordination with VHA’s chief operating officer and the Veterans Integrated Service Networks make certain that staff who are involved in the Veteran Self-Scheduling process are trained on how to assess eligibility for the scheduling option, communicate key information to veterans on the option, and conduct appropriate consult follow-up procedures.

The OIG recommended the under secretary for health make sure the Office of Integrated Veteran Care, in coordination with VHA’s chief operating officer and the Veterans Integrated Service Networks ensure all guidance related to the Veteran Self-Scheduling process is clear, consistent, and disseminated to all VA medical facilities.

The OIG recommended the under secretary for health make sure the Office of Integrated Veteran Care, in coordination with VHA’s chief operating officer and the Veterans Integrated Service Networks, establish a mechanism to effectively track and monitor each VA medical facility’s challenges with implementation of the Veteran Self-Scheduling process and then develop a plan to address reported issues.

The OIG recommended the under secretary for health make sure the Office of Integrated Veteran Care, in coordination with VHA’s chief operating officer and the Veterans Integrated Service Networks, develop best practices and lessons learned for implementing the Veteran Self-Scheduling process and disseminate them to all VA medical facilities.

The OIG recommended the under secretary for health make sure the Office of Integrated Veteran Care, in coordination with VHA’s chief operating officer and the Veterans Integrated Service Networks, develop controls to ensure VA medical facility staff have the tools in place to identify instances of potential inappropriate processing or inappropriate use of Veteran Self-Scheduling consults.

The OIG recommended the under secretary for health make sure the Office of Integrated Veteran Care, in coordination with VHA’s chief operating officer and the Veterans Integrated Service Networks, direct facilities to conduct routine reviews of Veteran Self-Scheduling consults to identify potential inappropriate processing or use of the Veteran Self-Scheduling option and notify VHA’s Office of Integrated Veteran Care of instances of inappropriate use

The OIG recommended the under secretary for health make sure the Office of Integrated Veteran Care, in coordination with VHA’s chief operating officer and the Veterans Integrated Service Networks, develop a plan to accurately assess whether the Veteran Self-Scheduling process is meeting its intended goals.

The OIG recommended the under secretary for health make sure the Office of Integrated Veteran Care, in coordination with VHAs chief operating officer and the Veterans Integrated Service Networks, direct facilities to conduct routine reviews of Veteran Self-Scheduling consults to identify potential inappropriate processing or use of the Veteran Self-Scheduling option and notify VHAs Office of Integrated Veteran Care of instances of inappropriate use.

The Montana VA Healthcare System Director assesses the timeliness of appointment setting for direct and community care referrals and ensures facility staff establish appointments within required time frames.

The Montana VA Healthcare System Director assesses the timeliness of completion of community care appointments within 90 days of requested date and acts on identified opportunities for improvement.

The Montana VA Healthcare System Director reviews consult management practices and ensures receiving staff document scheduled appointment dates for VA direct care referrals.

The Montana VA Healthcare System Director reviews appointment wait times and acts on identified opportunities for improvement.

The Montana VA Healthcare System Director ensures community care providers utilized by the system are designated as eligible in the Provider Profile Management System and acts on identified opportunities to improve the accuracy of eligibility designations.

To address the noncompliance identified, OIG adopts Premier Group's recommendations to USAID's Director, Office of Acquisition & Assistance:
Determine the allowability of $17,816 in questioned costs and recover any amount that is unallowable.

To address the noncompliance identified, OIG adopts Premier Group's recommendations to USAID's Director, Office of Acquisition & Assistance:
Require DAI Global, LLC to implement policies and procedures to
ensure that the exchange rate applied when billing USAID matches the rate used to pay employees based on the same date.

To address the noncompliance identified, OIG adopts Premier Group's recommendations to USAID's Director, Office of Acquisition & Assistance:
Require DAI Global, LLC to monitor implementation of invoicing
and exchange rate practices to ensure continued compliance with federal regulations and accuracy in billing.

We recommend that USAID/Zimbabwe determine the allowability of $101,722 in unsupported questioned costs identified on pages 14, 15, and 20 of the audit report.