FEDE U.S. Government Accountability Office · Audits audits
This product is also designated as B-338717, Sept 15, 2026. The Economy Act provides authority for intra- and interagency transactions between agencies and major organizational units of agencies. The Act broadly applies to federal entities for the procurement of a wide variety of goods and services. However, the Economy Act does not authorize an agency to circumvent statutory limitations on its use of appropriated funds. An agency may only procure goods and services under the Economy Act that it is already authorized to procure, and Economy Act transactions must comply with the Act’s requirements, as well as general appropriations law principles, such as the purpose statute, the bona fide n.
FEDE U.S. Government Accountability Office · Audits audits
What GAO Found Each year, the Department of Housing and Urban Development’s (HUD) Federal Housing Administration (FHA) insures billions of dollars in mortgages for multifamily properties through a variety of programs. HUD’s section 542(c) program provides FHA insurance for loans on affordable multifamily properties that are originated, underwritten, and serviced by housing finance agencies (HFA). The program is also known as the risk-sharing program because HUD and HFAs share the risk of loss on the loans. From fiscal years 2016 through 2025, HFAs underwrote over $12 billion (adjusted for inflation) in FHA-insured multifamily loans under the program. These loans helped finance 776 projects..
FEDE U.S. Government Accountability Office · Audits audits
What GAO Found Under federal law, insurance plans offered in health insurance exchanges—known as qualified health plans (QHP)—may cover abortion services consistent with federal and state laws. Based on federal law applicable in 2026, QHPs are prohibited from using federal funds, such as income-based tax credits, to help pay for abortion services except where the pregnancy is the result of rape or incest, or the life of the pregnant woman would be endangered unless an abortion is performed. GAO refers to services that do not meet that exception as “non-excepted abortion services.” In 2026, federal data show 26 percent of QHPs (1,719 of 6,655) in the 50 states and District of Columbia covere.
FEDE U.S. Government Accountability Office · Audits audits
What GAO Found GAO’s review of payroll data found that federal agencies’ use of paid administrative leave increased by 435 percent from 2023 to 2025. GAO estimates federal agencies in our review spent $9.5 billion in salary costs on paid administrative leave in 2025, a sixfold increase from 2023. In 2025, the Office of Personnel Management (OPM) directed agencies to use paid administrative leave to support the deferred resignation program, which generally allowed federal employees to be placed on leave until they resigned or retired by September 30, 2025. Using program assumptions and internal time and attendance data provided by payroll service providers, GAO calculated about $6.7 billion..
FEDE U.S. Government Accountability Office · Audits audits
What GAO Found GAO’s audit of the fiscal year 2025 consolidated financial statements of the U.S. government (CFS) identified control deficiencies in the processes the Department of the Treasury used to prepare the CFS. These control deficiencies contributed to material weaknesses in internal control that involve the federal government’s inability to adequately account for intragovernmental activity and balances between federal entities; reasonably assure that the consolidated financial statements are (1) consistent with the underlying audited entities’ financial statements, (2) properly balanced, and (3) in accordance with U.S. generally accepted accounting principles (U.S. GAAP); and reaso.
FEDE U.S. Government Accountability Office · Audits audits
What GAO Found Chronic facility issues disrupted teaching and learning in schools nationwide in school year 2024-25, according to GAO’s nationwide survey of districts. GAO estimates that nearly one in five districts (19 percent) canceled school that year due to a facilities issue. These cancellations affected an estimated 2 million students, who lost an estimated 3.5 million days of learning as a result. Top reasons districts canceled school included plumbing emergencies and extreme classroom temperatures. One district GAO visited canceled school after classroom temperatures reached 110 degrees. GAO also estimates that nearly half of districts (47 percent) had chronic facility issues that o.
CABI U.S. Government Accountability Office · Audits audits
What GAO Found The National Register of Historic Places is the nation’s official list of historic places worthy of preservation. The National Park Service (NPS) administers the National Register in cooperation with states and Tribes. Each state has established a State Historic Preservation Officer (SHPO) whose responsibilities include identifying and nominating eligible properties to the National Register. Additionally, Tribes may elect to establish a Tribal Historic Preservation Officer (THPO). Officials from SHPO offices GAO interviewed identified a number of challenges with the National Register process, including that some key NPS guidance documents were outdated and did not have inform.
FEDE U.S. Government Accountability Office · Audits audits
Why GAO Did This Study From September 2026 through December 2026, GAO is seeking input and feedback on this exposure draft from all interested parties. Please use this link [email protected] to provide us with comments on the guide. Federal agencies spend billions of dollars each year buying commercially available off-the-shelf (COTS) products. When agencies want to buy a COTS product, first they need to determine whether a vendor’s product is right for them. One way that agencies assess a product is by conducting testing and evaluation (T&E). Agencies can then use the results of the T&E to inform their purchasing decisions. Prior GAO work has identified problems with how agencies con.
FEDE U.S. Government Accountability Office · Audits audits
What GAO Found Federal buildings often contain special use spaces like meeting rooms and conference centers, some of which may be shared across agencies. Agencies varied in how they shared these spaces in the selected General Services Administration (GSA)-owned and -leased buildings GAO visited. Interviewees, including officials from federal tenant agencies in those selected buildings, said that sharing these spaces can provide benefits, including: access to useful spaces their agency might not otherwise have, reduced costs and more efficient use of space (e.g., agencies do not need to lease or construct individual spaces), and increased collaboration between agencies. However, interviewees.
CABI U.S. Government Accountability Office · Audits audits
What GAO Found Personal protective equipment (PPE)—such as masks and gloves—helps minimize exposure to hazards, including illnesses. In response to the COVID-19 pandemic (March 2020–May 2023), the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) and the Department of Transportation (DOT) expedited the transportation of PPE by air and helped mitigate supply chain challenges. FEMA. From March through June 2020, FEMA conducted Project Airbridge, in which FEMA paid for the air transportation of PPE from overseas to the U.S. to reduce shipment times. FEMA funded 437 flights to transport approximately 1.2 billion PPE items, primarily gloves, masks, and gowns. DOT. DOT used selected legal authorities to.
FEDE U.S. Government Accountability Office · Audits audits
What GAO Found The U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) has taken few actions to enhance the resilience of farms and forests to the climate-related risks of diseases and pests, and funding and staffing supporting those actions have decreased.In late 2023, USDA officials told GAO that the risks of diseases and pests had not been fully integrated into the department’s climate resilience planning at all levels and that USDA planned to do so in the future. At that time, USDA provided limited information and technical assistance on individual diseases and pests to farmers and land managers. For example, USDA’s Climate Hubs provided some support for research on the effects of climate change on s.
FEDE U.S. Government Accountability Office · Audits audits
What GAO Found GAO found that the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) —a component within the Department of Homeland Security (DHS)— partially followed leading practices for risk assessment and information quality during the development, operation, and maintenance of the National Risk Index (NRI). The figure below lists these practices. FEMA took steps to define and disseminate information about the purpose and scope of the NRI and provided additional information on the methodologies and data used to inform the index. However, FEMA did not consider what information users (e.g., emergency managers) would need to tangibly apply NRI results when making decisions about how to reduce risk.
