Open Recommendations

Designate a dedicated entity to manage the process of assessing SNAP fraud risks, consistent with the leading practices in GAO’s Fraud Risk Management Framework. This entity should have clearly defined and documented responsibilities and authority, including managing fraud risk assessments and facilitating communication among stakeholders regarding SNAP fraud-related issues.

Comprehensively assess SNAP fraud risks in adherence with leading practices identified in GAO’s Fraud Risk Management Framework.

Document the fraud risk profile for SNAP, incorporating fraud risks determined from OIG Recommendation 2 activities, in adherence with applicable leading practices identified in GAO’s Fraud Risk Management Framework.

Design and implement an antifraud strategy for SNAP based on a fraud risk profile (see OIG Recommendation 3, above) consistent with leading practices as provided in GAO’s Fraud Risk Management Framework.

USAID/Pakistan determine the allowability of $479,381 in ineligible questioned costs detailed on pages 27 to 39 of the audit report and recover any amount that is unallowable.

USAID/Pakistan determine the allowability of $1,049,901 in ineligible questioned costs detailed on pages 50 to 57 of the audit report and recover any amount that is unallowable.

Rec. 1.a: The DoD OIG recommended that the Assistant Secretary of the Army (Manpower and Reserve Affairs) update the Integrated Personnel and Pay System-Army, in coordination with the Office of the Deputy Chief of Staff, G-1, Functional Management Division Director, to cumulatively track the amount of parental leave remaining per qualifying event.

Rec. 1.b: The DoD OIG recommended that the Assistant Secretary of the Army (Manpower and Reserve Affairs) develop procedures to perform periodic reviews of, or coordinate with the Office of the Deputy Chief of Staff, G-1, Functional Management Division Director, to develop internal controls in the Integrated Personnel and Pay System-Army to ensure that Service members do not take unallowable parental leave increments or leave without an approved exception after the 1-year period following a qualifying event.

Rec. 2: The DoD OIG recommended that the Chief of Naval Personnel confirm whether a control exists in the Navy Standard Integrated Personnel System to ensure that Service members do not take parental leave after the 1-year period following a qualifying event without an approved exception. If no control exists, the Chief of Naval Personnel should perform periodic reviews of, or coordinate with the Office of the Naval Chief Information Officer, to develop internal controls in the Navy Standard Integrated Personnel System to ensure Service member compliance.

Rec. 3.a: The DoD OIG recommend that the Assistant Secretary of the Air Force (Manpower and Reserve Affairs) update LeaveWeb or develop and implement an internal control in the replacement system, MyLeave, in coordination with the Deputy Assistant Secretary (Business Systems and Technology), Chief Information Office, to cumulatively track the amount of parental leave remaining per qualifying event.

We recommend that the Assistant Secretary of the Air Force (Manpower and Reserve Affairs) develop procedures to perform periodic reviews of, or coordinate with the Deputy Assistant Secretary (Business Systems and Technology), Chief Information Office, to develop internal controls in, LeaveWeb or the replacement system, MyLeave, to ensure that Service members do not take unallowable parental leave increments, leave exceeding the allotted amount, or leave after the 1-year period following a qualifying event without an approved exception.

Rec. 4.a: The DoD OIG recommended that the Deputy Commandant for Marine Corps Manpower and Reserve Affairs:a. Update Marine Online to cumulatively track the amount of parental leave remaining per qualifying event for use by commanders and Service members.

We recommend that the Deputy Commandant for Marine Corps Manpower and Reserve Affair develop procedures to perform periodic reviews of, or develop internal controls in, Marine Online to ensure that Service members do not take unallowable parental leave increments.

Rec. 5.a: The DoD OIG recommended that the Space Force Deputy Chief of Space Operations for Human Capital coordinate with the Assistant Secretary of the Air Force (Manpower and Reserve Affairs) to address Recommendation 3.a or develop Space Force-specific processes to cumulatively track the amount of parental leave remaining per qualifying event.

Rec. 5.b: The DoD OIG recommended that the Space Force Deputy Chief of Space Operations for Human Capital coordinate with the Assistant Secretary of the Air Force (Manpower and Reserve Affairs) to address Recommendation 3.b or develop Space Force-specific reviews or automated processes to ensure that Service members do not take unallowable parental leave increments, leave exceeding the allotted amount, or leave after the 1-year period following a qualifying event without an approved exception.

Assess whether the Information Technology Profile and Information Technology Risk Examination work programs used by Reserve Bank examiners address emerging information technology and cybersecurity risks and, based on this assessment, provide supplemental guidance and customize the Information Technology Profile and Information Technology Risk Examination work programs for System-led examinations as needed.

Establish a process to periodically assess whether the Information Technology Profile and Information Technology Risk Examination work programs used by Reserve Bank examiners, including the Board’s customized guidance, address current material risks in the information technology and cybersecurity environment and update the Information Technology Profile and Information Technology Risk Examination work programs as needed.

Clarify accountability for defining systemwide community banking organization information technology and cybersecurity training requirements.

Develop information technology and cybersecurity training guidance that describes expectations for generalist examiners conducting community banking organization information technology examinations, including expectations for on-the-job training and expectations following the completion of the community banking organization Examiner Commissioning Program.

Clarify in guidance the expectations for updating and reaffirming responses in Information Technology Profiles and retaining Information Technology Profiles for each information technology examination in the appropriate system of record, and expectations for assessing ongoing compliance.

Ensure the program clarifies and defines requirements for pain management teams in the new Veterans Health Administration Directive 1151, Pain Management and Opioid Safety.

Establish means to periodically validate the status information of facilities pain management teams.

Require the program and the chief operating officer to assess and ensure corrective actions are taken to address each medical facilitys lack of progress in achieving compliance with the requirement to have a pain management team as mandated by the Jason Simcakoski Memorial and Promise Act.

Facility leaders ensure all veterans and visitors, including those who require mobility assistance, have safe and accessible pathways to clinical areas during elevator repairs.

Facility leaders ensure staff complete and document preventive maintenance for medical equipment.

Determine the allowability of $300,245 ($15,786 in questioned ineligible
costs and $284,459 in cost share contribution shortfall amounts) on pages 24 to 26 of the audit report and recover any amount that is unallowable.

Verify that Appleseeds Academy corrects the two instances of material
noncompliance detailed on pages 22 and 23 of the audit report.

We recommend that the OGP Associate Administrator strengthen the PMRD’s policies and procedures to: more clearly define the PMR scoring system and its relevance to the PMR report findings and recommendations; clearly identify the findings and recommendations in the PMR report, including whether corrective action is required to address each finding; and ensure all required corrective actions are included in a CAP and implemented.

We recommend that the OGP Associate Administrator perform training and oversight to ensure proper administration and closeout of CAPs.

The Chief Information Officer should ensure that non-tax paper forms requiring one or more signatures are digitally converted and integrated with e-Signature Services capability by the established time frames.

The Chief Information Officer should ensure that the DMAF project application representative and DIRA project facilitator work together to reconcile and validate risk assessment documentation between DMAF project releases.

The Chief Privacy Officer should review the 1,334 individual taxpayer accounts and if warranted, take appropriate actions to place the data breach indicator on tax accounts and mail notification letters to additional taxpayers affected by the data breach.

The Chief Privacy Officer should continue working to identify all individual and business taxpayers impacted by the unauthorized disclosure. If warranted, take appropriate actions to place the data breach indicator on tax accounts and mail notification letters to additional taxpayers affected by the data breach.

Update review procedures to ensure accurate responses to Office of Management and Budget (OMB) payment integrity data call prompts, compliance with the Payment Integrity Information Act of 2019, and that information is complete, accurate, and consistent before the final submission of the OMB payment integrity data call; and further refine reviews of published information on PaymentAccuracy.gov.

Maintain the Employment and Training Administration’s current focus on increasing technical assistance and funding to states to improve improper payment reduction strategies to reduce the improper payments estimate rate below the 10 percent threshold.

Update the Employment and Training Administration’s policies and procedures over the reporting of Federal Pandemic unemployment Compensation, Pandemic Emergency Unemployment Compensation, and Pandemic Unemployment Assistance information to include outlays after the expiration of the programs, until such time as the outlays are no longer greater than the statutory threshold.

District leaders and the Evanston, La Crosse, and Milwaukee Vet Center Directors collaborate with the support VA medical facility to determine reasons for noncompliance with staff participation on the mental health executive council, take action as indicated, and monitor compliance.

District leaders and the Evanston, Gary Area, La Crosse, and Milwaukee Vet Center Directors determine reasons for noncompliance with completing four hours of external clinical
consultation for clinically complex cases per month, ensure a process is implemented, and monitor compliance.

District leaders and the Gary Area Vet Center Director determine reasons for noncompliance with Vet Center Director review of 10 percent of active client records monthly for each counselors caseload, ensure completion, and monitor compliance.

District leaders and the Gary Area, La Crosse, and Milwaukee Vet Center Directors determine reasons for noncompliance with employees completing select trainings in the required time frame, ensure completion, and monitor compliance.

District leaders and the Evanston, Gary Area, and Milwaukee Vet Center Directors determine reasons for noncompliance with completion of an outreach plan with all required strategic
components, ensure completion, and monitor compliance.

District leaders and the La Crosse Vet Center Director determine reasons for noncompliance with monthly automated external defibrillator inspections, ensure completion, and monitor compliance.

District leaders determine reasons why the closing of the Milwaukee Vet Center resulted in multiple communication failures, and ensure all clients are notified of the new location, the Vet Center Call Center has accurate information, and websites include correct location and phone number information.

The Readjustment Counseling Service Chief Officer considers developing written guidance for vet center closure and temporary relocation processes including oversight responsibilities.

We recommend that FNS continue to carry out the plan described in its S&EMP in order to publish IP and UP estimates for FNS SFSP in the accompanying materials to future annual financial statements, which includes PaymentAccuracy.gov. In the meantime, we recommend that FNS evaluate if some payments should be considered unknown payments by devising a method to determine the amount of potential IPs and report these as UPs until the above-mentioned methodology has been finalized. If FNS is unable to devise a method to do this, we recommend that this is disclosed in PaymentAccuracy.gov.
For each year of non-compliance…

We recommend FNS continue its efforts to develop an improved estimate that considers meal counting errors in the publication of a complete improper payment rates for the FNS CACFP-FDCH program and update its S&EMP to consider payments that have not been determined as either proper or improper during their analysis, as unknown payments.
For each year of non-compliance:
FNS should provide information for SFSP describing the actions that the agency will take to come into compliance. This information should be published on PaymentAccuracy.gov and serve as the plan for what FNS will submit to the appropriate authorizing and appropriations committees…

We recommend USDA and FSA update its policies and procedures over the reporting of expiring programs to identify and report root causes of improper payments in order to formulate corrective actions that are focused on the core issues that are under the control of the agency.

FSA: We recommend that management take the following actions to ensure compliance with the Payment Integrity Information Act of 2019:
• Maintain a focus on continuous improvement in the development and implementation of new mitigation strategies (e.g., examination of existing controls in place and the implementation of more effective controls) to decrease IP and UP rates to a tolerable rate each year. If a program’s IP and UP rate does not improve or increases, take sufficient steps to identify root causes and implement appropriate corrective action that will reduce the rates year over year until the rate is below 10%…

FNS: We recommend that the agency work with OCFO in taking the following actions to ensure compliance with the Payment Integrity Information Act of 2019:
• Maintain a focus on continuous improvement in the development and implementation of new mitigation strategies (e.g., examination of existing controls in place and the implementation of more effective controls) to decrease IP and UP rates to a tolerable rate each year. If a program’s IP and UP rate does not improve or increases, take sufficient steps to identify root causes and implement appropriate corrective action that will reduce the rates year over year until…

FSA: We recommend that the agency work with OCFO in taking the following actions to ensure compliance with the Payment Integrity Information Act of 2019:
• Improve processes and efforts to evaluate the effectiveness of corrective actions to assist in the reduction of the improper payments estimate rate below the 10% threshold
• Develop and monitor agency-level corrective actions corresponding to the identified root causes of improper payments
• Conduct ongoing monitoring of the state-level corrective actions and ensure that these corrective actions are being implemented
• Continue working with states to identify state-specific corrective action plans and ensure that…