CABI U.S. Government Accountability Office · Audits audits
What GAO Found The Food and Drug Administration’s (FDA) Center for Devices and Radiological Health (CDRH) administers the Third Party Review Program, a voluntary alternative review process for selected low-to-moderate risk medical devices, such as diagnostic ultrasound systems and surgical lasers. Under this program, which is intended to facilitate faster reviews, device sponsors can contract with FDA-accredited entities. These entities, known as Third Party Review Organizations (third parties), conduct the initial review of certain premarket applications, known as 510(k) submissions. These third party reviews occur prior to agency officials making the final decision about whether the devic.
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.
CABI U.S. Government Accountability Office · Audits audits
Coast Guard personnel who work near vacation destinations or in remote areas experience challenges accessing private sector housing. Implementing our prior recommendations can better position the military services to manage military housing and support service members and their families. The Big Picture Due to rising costs, Coast Guard service members, 40 percent of whom rotate to new duty stations annually, and their families find it increasingly difficult to access adequate housing. The Department of Defense (DOD) and the Coast Guard (within the Department of Homeland Security) rely on the private sector to house the majority of service members; other service members may reside in governm.
CABI U.S. Government Accountability Office · Audits audits
Sexual misconduct in the U.S. Coast Guard is a longstanding problem. Implementing our recommendations can help the Coast Guard instill a culture intolerant of sexual misconduct and communicate progress to Congress and the public. The Big Picture Sexual misconduct has been a challenge within the U.S. Coast Guard for decades. For example, in a 2020 internal investigation called “Operation Fouled Anchor,” the Coast Guard examined more than 100 allegations of sexual assault from 1990 to 2006 at the Coast Guard Academy. The investigation concluded that the academy often mishandled these cases and failed to take sufficient action to ensure a safe environment for cadets. Sexual misconduct negative.
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.
FEDE U.S. Government Accountability Office · Audits audits
What GAO Found Based on the limited procedures GAO performed to review the performance of the independent public accountant’s (IPA) audit of the Congressional Award Foundation’s financial statements for fiscal year 2025, GAO did not identify any significant issues it believes require attention. Had GAO performed additional procedures, other matters related to the performance of the audit might have come to its attention that it would have reported. The IPA provided an unmodified audit opinion on the Foundation’s financial statements for fiscal years 2025 and 2024. Specifically, the IPA found that the Foundation’s financial statements were presented fairly, in all material respects, in accor.
FEDE U.S. Government Accountability Office · Audits audits
What GAO Found The Export-Import Bank of the United States’ (EXIM) loan guarantee transactions are approved by EXIM’s Board of Directors, staff with individual delegated authority, or delegated authority lenders. The underwriting process for loan guarantee transactions approved by EXIM includes several steps, such as screening applications for completeness, reviewing for minimal eligibility requirements, and performing due diligence to assess transactions’ risks. Selected Underwriting Processes EXIM Performs for Loan Guarantees EXIM followed its underwriting guidelines but has not fully leveraged available data to identify participants with delinquent federal nontax debt. By law, a person o.
FEDE U.S. Government Accountability Office · Audits audits
What GAO Found Federal agencies disposed of over $10 billion of unneeded personal property from July 2023 through fiscal year 2025. Generally, when a federal agency determines it no longer needs an item of personal property to fulfill its mission, the agency must report the item to the General Services Administration (GSA) to be disposed of through GSA’s online Personal Property Management System (PPMS). The unneeded property reported within this study’s time frame varied across a range of characteristics, from new bandages originally worth under $1, to airplanes in usable condition originally worth over $20 million. GAO found that about 9 percent of this property was reused, meaning it was.
