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Open Recommendations (84 total)

Small Business Contracting: Actions Needed to Demonstrate and Better Review Compliance with Select Requirements for Small Business Advocates

GAO-17-675
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1 Open Recommendations
Agency Affected Recommendation Status
Department of Agriculture To address demonstrated noncompliance with section 15(k) of the Small Business Act, as amended, the Secretary of Agriculture should comply with sections 15(k)(2), (k)(15), and (k)(17) or report to Congress on why the agency has not complied, including seeking any statutory flexibilities or exceptions believed appropriate.
Open
For section 15(k)(2), related to the compensation and seniority of the person heading the OSDBU office, and for section 15(k)(15), related to collateral duties, on September 13, 2018, an agency official stated that the agency currently does not have an OSDBU director. The official stated that the agency does not have an estimate for when this would occur because the director is appointed by the White House. We will continue to monitor USDA's efforts to address this part of the recommendation. For section 15(k)(17), related to undue restriction on the ability of small businesses to compete, an agency official stated that the OSDBU is working on an internal policy which will include guidelines for action. The official stated that the estimated completion date is January 2019. We will continue to monitor USDA's efforts to address this part of the recommendation.

Thrifty Food Plan: Better Planning and Accountability Could Help Ensure Quality of Future Reevaluations

GAO-23-105450
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1 Open Recommendations
Agency Affected Recommendation Status
Department of Agriculture The Secretary of Agriculture should ensure that FNS designs, documents, and implements key internal controls related to data processing, including standards and procedures for review of the computer code used in generating the TFP Market Baskets. (Recommendation 7)
Open
USDA did not explicitly agree or disagree with this recommendation. In June 2023, USDA stated that the Food and Nutrition Service (FNS) has designed, documented, and implemented expanded internal controls related to data processing, including review of the computer code. In December 2023, USDA stated that FNS implemented these controls and described them in the "Thrifty Food Plan Cost Estimates for Alaska and Hawaii" report, published in July 2023. Specifically, according to FNS, the calculations were performed independently by two economists and data management and analysis results were compared at each step. The economists worked collaboratively to identify and resolve any inconsistencies and confirmed their final analyses yielded consistent results. However, FNS has not provided documentation of these controls or confirmed they will be used in future Thrifty Food Plan reevaluations. We will close this recommendation when we receive this documentation.

Foreign Investments in U.S. Agricultural Land: Enhancing Efforts to Collect, Track, and Share Key Information Could Better Identify National Security Risks

GAO-24-106337
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1 Open Recommendations
Agency Affected Recommendation Status
Department of Agriculture The Secretary of Agriculture should direct the Chief Operating Officer of FPAC-BC to improve its verification and monitoring of collected AFIDA data, such as reviewing and validating information throughout the AFIDA data collection process. (Recommendation 4)
Open
USDA concurred with this recommendation. As of March 2024, we have not received any additional information.

IT Modernization: USDA Needs to Improve Oversight of Farm Production and Conservation Mission Area

GAO-21-512
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1 Open Recommendations
Agency Affected Recommendation Status
Department of Agriculture The Secretary of Agriculture should ensure that the Under Secretary for Farm Production and Conservation (FPAC) directs the Business Center Chief Operating Officer to have the FPAC mission area implement the key IT workforce planning activity of developing competency and staffing requirements. (Recommendation 5)
Open
In August 2023, agency officials noted that the U.S. Department of Agriculture's Workforce Steering Committee had updated the technical competencies for its IT workforce. Subsequently the FPAC Human Resources group used the updated competencies to develop a competency assessment process. However, agency officials stated that that the assessment process was put on hold. FPAC officials noted that in August 2023 they began the process of restarting the competency assessments. We will continue to review FPAC's progress in this area.

Sustainable Aviation Fuel: Agencies Should Track Progress Toward Ambitious Federal Goals [Reissued with Revisions May 17, 2023]

GAO-23-105300
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1 Open Recommendations
Agency Affected Recommendation Status
Department of Agriculture The Secretary of Agriculture should coordinate with DOT and DOE to develop and incorporate into the Grand Challenge Roadmap performance measures that enable the agencies to evaluate their actions and the effect of policy on SAF production and communicate the extent to which SAF is poised to contribute to larger aviation greenhouse gas emissions reduction goals. (Recommendation 3)
Open
USDA agreed with, but has not fully addressed, this recommendation. As of February 2024, officials from DOT, DOE, and USDA reported they are in the process of developing metrics to track the progress of the Grand Challenge and address GAO's recommendations, which were made in March 2023. These officials reported these metrics will be included in the forthcoming Grand Challenge Implementation Framework, which will be issued after each department has approved the document, in late March 2024 at the earliest. According to the officials, these metrics will also be included in the Grand Challenge Progress Report, which will be issued after the Implementation Framework. To close the recommendation, performance measures need to be developed and incorporated into such reports that are associated with the roadmap. Incorporating performance measures could help enable the three departments better manage fragmentation by monitoring and evaluating the effectiveness of their actions and communicate and report on the extent to which sustainable aviation fuel is poised to contribute to larger aviation greenhouse gas emissions reduction goals. GAO will continue to monitor USDA's efforts regarding this recommendation.

USDA Market Facilitation Program: Stronger Adherence to Quality Guidelines Would Improve Future Economic Analyses

GAO-22-468
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1 Open Recommendations
Agency Affected Recommendation Status
Department of Agriculture The Secretary of Agriculture should ensure that the Office of the Chief Economist revises its internal review process to help ensure that USDA internal reviews of future economic analyses address the transparency of its documentation of the analyses. (Recommendation 1)
Open
In June 2022, and again in September 2023, USDA reiterated that it disagreed with our recommendations. USDA stated that the Office of the Chief Economist (OCE) conducted the analysis in accordance with USDA Information Quality Guidelines and published the data sources, methodology, and assumptions underlying the analysis in two methodology reports posted to the OCE website and in the rulemaking Cost Benefit Analysis. However, OCE's published documentation did not transparently describe, to the extent possible, the 2019 MFP baseline methodology or OCE's selection of the elasticity values used in its economic model from among the available estimates, as USDA Information Quality Guidelines require. In February 2024, USDA OCE stated that it had not revised, and did not have plans to revise, its internal review process to ensure the documentation of its analysis is transparent since the publication of GAO's report in November 2021.

Equal Employment Opportunity: Additional Actions Would Improve USDA's Collection and Reporting of Key Data

GAO-24-106791
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1 Open Recommendations
Agency Affected Recommendation Status
Department of Agriculture The Secretary of Agriculture should ensure that OASCR updates USDA's website to note which of the department's No FEAR Act reports prior to 2022 may contain inaccurate data for complaints by the basis of race or national origin because of a data input error. (Recommendation 2)
Open
As of January 2024, USDA has not implemented this recommendation.

Crop Insurance: Opportunities Exist to Improve Program Delivery and Reduce Costs

GAO-17-501
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1 Open Recommendations
1 Priority
Agency Affected Recommendation Status
Department of Agriculture
Priority Rec.
To reduce year-to-year fluctuations in the administrative and operating expense subsidies that companies receive at the crop, state, and county levels, the Secretary of Agriculture should direct the Administrator of the Risk Management Agency to consider adjusting the administrative and operating expense subsidy calculation method in a way that reduces the effects of changes in premiums caused by changes in crop prices or other factors when it renegotiates the standard reinsurance agreement.
Open
RMA stated it would take steps to implement this recommendation. According to a USDA official, to take action on this recommendation, USDA would need to renegotiate its agreement with insurance companies. As of April 2024, USDA had not taken action to implement this recommendation and it is unclear when USDA will renegotiate the agreement.

Agency Relocations: Following Leading Practices Will Better Position USDA to Mitigate the Ongoing Impacts on Its Workforce

GAO-23-104709
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1 Open Recommendations
Agency Affected Recommendation Status
Department of Agriculture The Secretary of Agriculture should expand the departmental regulation on reorganizations to more fully reflect leading practices on agency reforms, such as documenting performance measures and enhancing employee engagement. (Recommendation 1)
Open
As of August 2023, USDA was in the process of reviewing its departmental regulation on reorganization. Officials stated that they may consider the recommended expansion and incorporate changes, where applicable, when the regulation is revised. GAO will re-evaluate the status of the recommendation once the departmental regulation is finalized.

Foreign Investments in U.S. Agricultural Land: Enhancing Efforts to Collect, Track, and Share Key Information Could Better Identify National Security Risks

GAO-24-106337
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1 Open Recommendations
Agency Affected Recommendation Status
Department of Agriculture The Secretary of Agriculture should direct the Chief Operating Officer of FPAC-BC, in coordination with the Administrator of FSA, to continue data mining activities that compare AFIDA data to FSA program data to identify suspected non-filers. (Recommendation 5)
Open
USDA concurred with this recommendation. As of March 2024, we have not received any additional information.
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