FEDE U.S. Government Accountability Office · Audits audits
What GAO Found The National Nuclear Security Administration (NNSA) has traditionally used a single, all-encompassing management and operating (M&O) contract at each of its sites to acquire work performed, including to subcontract for construction services. Beginning in 2014, NNSA introduced individual contract line item numbers (line items) to some contracts to increase the visibility of specific efforts. Line items capture information about separately identifiable goods and services that the government seeks to acquire within the scope of the overall contract. Since introducing individual contract line items in 2014, NNSA has minimally used line items to separate contract deliverables, esp.
FEDE U.S. Government Accountability Office · Audits audits
What GAO Found As part of the federal government’s efforts to support Tribes and tribal members’ health and to help prevent disease, an Indian Health Service (IHS) program provides Tribes with technical and financial assistance to build drinking water and wastewater infrastructure in tribal communities. Through this program, IHS staff work closely with Tribes to identify their needs and design and build water projects. Several U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) and U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) programs also provide assistance for tribal water projects, and the three agencies often work together and with Tribes. Selected Agencies’ Funding for Tribal Water Projects, Fiscal Ye.
FEDE U.S. Government Accountability Office · Audits audits
What GAO Found Section 889 of the John S. McCain National Defense Authorization Act for Fiscal Year 2019 prohibits federal agencies from procuring covered telecommunications and surveillance equipment and services from five specific Chinese companies (and their affiliates or subsidiaries) or awarding contracts to companies that use such equipment and services. Following implementation in fiscal year 2019, agencies reduced spending with the five companies through fiscal year 2025 with no spending in three of those fiscal years. As of March 2026, GAO found that nearly 90 percent of companies with active government contracts in fiscal year 2025 represented publicly that they do not use equipme.
FEDE U.S. Government Accountability Office · Audits audits
What GAO Found The General Services Administration (GSA) owns and leases thousands of office buildings, which are used by federal employees and the public. The Architectural Barriers Act of 1968 (ABA) requires that certain GSA office buildings be accessible to individuals with physical disabilities. According to GSA officials and documentation, GSA reviews alteration, leasing, and construction projects throughout the design process for compliance with its ABA Accessibility Standard. The U.S. Access Board (Board), an independent federal agency, enforces the ABA by addressing complaints of potential violations of applicable ABA standards. The Board generally relies on complaints rather than i.
FEDE U.S. Government Accountability Office · Audits audits
What GAO Found Many countries, including the U.S., are experiencing an increase in both the number and the proportion of older adults in their populations. According to the World Health Organization, the share of the global population aged 60 and over is expected to more than double from one billion in 2020 to 2.1 billion by 2050. As countries experiencing population aging take steps to address the domestic effects, experts told GAO that global population aging may also affect the U.S. GAO identified three broad U.S. foreign policy interests that may be affected by aging abroad: national security, economic competitiveness, and global health and humanitarian assistance (see figure). Effects..
FEDE U.S. Government Accountability Office · Audits audits
What GAO Found The Federal Assets Sale and Transfer Act of 2016 (FASTA) established a temporary process to reduce the inventory of federal civilian real property and the time it takes to dispose of such property. FASTA created the Public Buildings Reform Board (Board) to recommend properties for disposal for approval in each of several rounds. Once approved, the General Services Administration (GSA) takes a primary role in implementation. FASTA also established a fund to help with disposal costs. The last year of FASTA implementation is underway, with two approved rounds—2019 and 2025—and a final round expected to be released before the Board ceases operations in December 2026. As of August.
FEDE U.S. Government Accountability Office · Audits audits
What GAO Found The Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) has identified electromagnetic spectrum-related threats, including spoofing and jamming, to the National Airspace System (NAS) and international flight routes. However, FAA has not completed risk and mitigation assessments, and updated security documentation needed to address these threats. Additionally, FAA did not have a defined, real-time monitoring and detection capability for all spectrum-related threats. Without comprehensive risk and mitigation assessments, complete security documentation, and real-time monitoring capabilities, FAA may not have sufficient information to identify, prioritize, and respond to evolving spectrum-rel.
FEDE U.S. Government Accountability Office · Audits audits
What GAO Found Federal support for economic development is fragmented. GAO identified 140 federal economic development programs administered by 13 agencies. GAO surveyed these programs, 131 of which reported total obligations of about $60 billion in fiscal year 2024. Further, these programs overlap. To assess overlap, GAO reviewed four selected Economic Development Administration (EDA) programs and 29 selected economic development programs administered by other federal agencies. All 29 programs overlapped with at least one of the EDA programs in at least one of three aspects—activities, beneficiaries, or purpose. Further, 20 programs overlapped with at least one of the EDA programs in all t.
FEDE U.S. Government Accountability Office · Audits audits
What GAO Found Unpaid household work includes domestic tasks, such as cooking and cleaning, as well as caregiving. Studies show that supplementing Gross Domestic Product (GDP) with the value of unpaid household work can provide a better understanding of the U.S. economy than GDP alone. For example, the decline in economic output during the COVID-19 recession was smaller when this value was included. Unpaid household work is not included in GDP because it takes place outside of formal market transactions and requires additional resources to calculate. According to economists GAO interviewed, valuing unpaid work can help inform policies that affect caregivers, such as policies intended to imp.
FEDE U.S. Government Accountability Office · Audits audits
What GAO Found The Department of Homeland Security (DHS) Office of Inspector General (OIG) has not ensured timely investigations of whistleblower retaliation complaints. OIG took over 3 years to investigate the majority (39 of 73) of the cases it opened and closed in fiscal years 2018 through 2025. OIG officials told GAO that case complexity and limited staff affected some case time frames, and that they have focused more on investigation quality and thoroughness than timeliness. While OIG policy requires timely review of whistleblower retaliation complaints, OIG has not defined this objective in specific, measurable terms; evaluated timeliness; or implemented other mechanisms to help enhan.
FEDE U.S. Government Accountability Office · Audits audits
What GAO Found In February 2025, the President issued an executive order that called for agencies to consult with the U.S. DOGE Service (also known as the Department of Government Efficiency) to review and terminate grants within 30 days of the executive order to reduce spending. Department of Homeland Security (DHS) officials told GAO that they followed directions from the Secretary of Homeland Security in 2025 to determine which grants to terminate. DHS took several actions during fiscal year 2025 to implement the Secretary’s grant review guidance. For example: DHS paused the disbursement of all obligated grant funding in February 2025. With approval from the Secretary, four DHS component.
FEDE U.S. Government Accountability Office · Audits audits
What GAO Found The 988 Suicide and Crisis Lifeline (988 Lifeline) is managed on behalf of the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) by a network administrator who oversees the day-to-day operations and ensures that the nearly 220 local crisis contact centers are compliant with the organization’s cybersecurity requirements. HHS partially implemented oversight activities related to cybersecurity for the 988 Lifeline. Specifically, HHS defined oversight roles and responsibilities to monitor cybersecurity control implementation. However, HHS did not include all key HHS-defined cybersecurity control areas in the 988 Lifeline cooperative agreement with its network administrator or for the.
