FEDE U.S. Government Accountability Office · Audits audits
What GAO Found Four selected agencies—the Departments of State, Transportation, Veterans Affairs (VA), and the Small Business Administration (SBA)—varied in their efforts to implement and ensure contractor compliance with three key cloud security practices. Specifically, one agency had fully implemented all three practices for two of its systems and one agency had fully implemented the practices for one of its systems. The agencies partially implemented the practices for the remaining five systems (see figure). Agencies’ Implementation of Key Cloud Security Practices aDue to sensitivity concerns, GAO is not disclosing the names of the selected systems in this report. Systems are identified..
FEDE U.S. Government Accountability Office · Audits audits
The Big Picture The Department of Defense (DOD) military health system provides medical care to 9.4 million beneficiaries, including service members and their families around the globe. This care is delivered through over 700 medical facilities with more than 100,000 military, civilian, and contractor employees, and a vast network of private sector health care providers. DOD estimates that it will spend over $72.5 billion for the military health system in fiscal year 2027. For more than a decade, DOD has taken actions to reform its health system in response to legislative requirements and to more effectively manage the system. For example, in response to December 2016 legislation, the Defen.
FEDE U.S. Government Accountability Office · Audits audits
What GAO Found Empirical studies assessing the effects of domestic airline mergers generally found that, in the short run, consumers faced higher fares and lower service quality (e.g., on-time performance) on routes where the merger resulted in fewer competitors. For example, based on three studies that used particularly strong methodologies, fares increased between 1 and 8 percent following the merger. Other studies found mergers sometimes led to some improvements in airlines’ efficiencies (e.g., cost reductions), but challenges, such as combining workforces, sometimes reduced or eliminated anticipated gains. GAO’s analyses of airline competition metrics provide a longer-term perspective t.
FEDE Office of the Federal Register / National Archives and Records Administration · Rulemaking audits
Federal Communications Commission | Rule | In this document, the Federal Communications Commission (Commission) adopted an Order that takes steps to streamline the processes associated with the Broadband Data Collection (BDC) and the National Broadband Map and alleviates unnecessary regulatory burdens on service providers and challenge process participants. The Order aligns reporting requirements for broadband availability and subscription data, expressly declines to adopt a proposal to require satellite providers to submit additional certifications and supporting data, streamlines the Fabric challenge process, adopts a maximally- streamlined process by which the BDC system automatically re.
FEDE Office of the Federal Register / National Archives and Records Administration · Rulemaking audits
Federal Communications Commission | Proposed Rule | In this document, the Federal Communications Commission (Commission) adopted a Further Notice of Proposed Rulemaking (FNPRM) that seeks comment on eliminating outdated requirements and ways to enhance the efficiency of the Broadband Data Collection (BDC) while ensuring that the Commission continues to receive accurate, granular data. Building off the infrastructure data-based coverage restoration process established by the Commission in 2024, the FNPRM seeks comment on several approaches suggested by commenters to simplify, streamline, or otherwise reduce burdens on this coverage restoration process. The FNPRM seeks comment on several ways.
FEDE U.S. Government Accountability Office · Audits audits
What GAO Found In fiscal year 2025 FraudNet processed over 9,350 allegations and referred about 3,100 of these to various organizations for further inquiry. FraudNet also conducted over 900 queries of commercial and law enforcement databases to assist GAO audits and investigations. FraudNet Processed over 9,350 Allegations In FY 2025, FraudNet processed over 9,350 allegations received from the public, as well as government employees and contractors. Of these, FraudNet referred about 3,100 to other entities for potential action, including investigation. FraudNet referred allegations to over 60 entities, including the Offices of the Inspector General (OIG) at the Departments of Agriculture, D.
FEDE U.S. Government Accountability Office · Audits audits
What GAO Found The National Defense Authorization Act for Fiscal Year 2017 (2017 NDAA) requires the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) to develop an annual report containing 43 specific metrics to measure the effectiveness of border security. DHS reported on 40 of these metrics in its 2023 Border Security Metrics Report, which it submitted in January 2025. These 40 metrics included two that DHS first included in its 2022 report and one that it first included in its 2023 report. Of the 40 metrics, 21 generally corresponded with their 2017 NDAA definitions, while 19—including the three additional metrics—differed in scope or calculation. GAO previously reviewed DHS's Border Security Metric.
FEDE Office of the Federal Register / National Archives and Records Administration · Rulemaking audits
Labor Department, Workers' Compensation Programs Office | Proposed Rule | The Longshore and Harbor Workers' Compensation Act (LHWCA) provides compensation to employees for disability or death from injury arising out of and in the course of employment. Hearing loss claims constitute a significant portion of LHWCA claims, and determining the extent of hearing loss necessarily entails evaluating medical test results. The program statutes and regulations currently reference audiograms as the primary testing method and incorporate the American Medical Association's Guides to the Evaluation of Permanent Impairment for measuring and calculating hearing impairment. The Office of Workers' Compensati.
FEDE U.S. Government Accountability Office · Audits audits
What GAO Found In May 2025, GAO identified 12 priority recommendations for the Department of Labor (DOL). Since then, DOL has implemented two of those recommendations, bringing the total to 10 priority recommendations in June 2026. GAO is highlighting the following three areas that warrant timely and focused attention: Protecting sensitive information, Enhancing unemployment insurance (UI), and Strengthening worker safety and health protections. Addressing GAO's recommendations in these areas would better ensure effective implementation of critical protections for sensitive personal information; help the agency stabilize the UI system for future economic downturns and monitor whether states.
FEDE U.S. Government Accountability Office · Audits audits
What GAO Found Rural communities that are not currently served by drinking water or wastewater utilities (unserved communities) often face challenges addressing their drinking water or wastewater infrastructure needs. The U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) and U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) have limited data about these unserved communities but can obtain some information through their agencies’ programs and datasets. The rural unserved communities known to USDA and EPA are often in unincorporated areas and frequently have financial and other constraints that limit their ability to address their water infrastructure needs, according to agency officials. Homes Without Wastewat.
FEDE U.S. Government Accountability Office · Audits audits
What GAO Found For decades, GAO has found that the federal government does not sufficiently coordinate or integrate crosscutting activities to improve its performance or address crosscutting management weaknesses. GAO held discussions with participants including former Office of Management and Budget (OMB) political appointees and staff, former cross-agency priority (CAP) goal leaders, and subject-matter specialists in performance management from outside of government. Participants said that CAP goals (4-year outcome-oriented goals) have provided a framework for addressing crosscutting federal performance issues. However, participants in all three groups told GAO that the implementation of..
FEDE U.S. Government Accountability Office · Audits audits
What GAO Found The Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) obligated about $13.6 million for 14 renewable energy projects through hazard mitigation assistance programs from fiscal years 2022 through 2024, the most recent 3 years of available data. These projects included small-scale solar generation, such as rooftop solar panels, microgrids, or solar generators for backup power for communities or public buildings. For example, projects included solar panels for a hospital, a sheriff’s office, and a recreation center to provide backup power during outages. FEMA provided this funding through FEMA’s hazard mitigation assistance programs, which include the Hazard Mitigation Grant Program, Pr.
