Status of Social Security Field Office Space Needs
HRD-81-64: Published: Mar 24, 1981. Publicly Released: Mar 24, 1981.
Additional Materials:
- Full Report:
Contact:
GAO testified before two congressional subcommittees on problems the Social Security Administration (SSA) was having with the General Services Administration (GSA) in obtaining adequate field office space in a timely manner. During the hearings, GAO was requested to continue looking into this matter. GAO agreed to furnish information on the number of SSA field office space requests satisfied by GSA during fiscal year (FY) 1980 and the change in the number of requests outstanding between the beginning and end of the FY. In addition, since questions arose about the feasibility of delegating leasing authority to the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) to handle SSA space needs, GAO agreed to obtain information from two agencies that had been delegated leasing authority and provide some further perspectives based on actual experience.
According to SSA data, at the beginning of FY 1980, 392 of a total of 446 backlogged SSA space requests were identified. Although GSA significantly reduced the SSA priority list of field office requests, it did not keep pace in handling new requests for field office space received from SSA. On the basis of experience with SSA and testimony at the hearings, GSA should have expected about 200 of the total 244 new requests it received for field office space from SSA during the year. In addition, GSA did not make progress in reducing the overall backlog. According to SSA, the performance of GSA in FY 1980 was not satisfactory. SSA, HHS, and GSA did not agree on when a space request should be considered completed. SSA and HHS officials view a space request as unsatisfied and pending until the office is occupied. However, a GSA official said that a space request is considered completed when the lease is awarded even though occupancy is delayed. A recent SSA study of pending space requests found that the average time a space action was pending at GSA ranged from 367 to 801 days. Even with the variances in the data obtained, GAO concluded that the variances do not preclude using the data as an indicator of the overall performance of GSA.
Jan 19, 2021
-
Federal Rulemaking:
Selected EPA and HHS Regulatory Analyses Met Several Best Practices, but CMS Should Take Steps to Strengthen Its AnalysesGAO-21-151: Published: Dec 17, 2020. Publicly Released: Jan 19, 2021.
Jan 13, 2021
-
Department of Energy Contracting:
Improvements Needed to Ensure DOE Assesses Its Full Range of Contracting Fraud RisksGAO-21-44: Published: Jan 13, 2021. Publicly Released: Jan 13, 2021.
Dec 16, 2020
-
Data Governance:
Agencies Made Progress in Establishing Governance, but Need to Address Key MilestonesGAO-21-152: Published: Dec 16, 2020. Publicly Released: Dec 16, 2020.
Dec 9, 2020
-
2020 Census:
The Bureau Concluded Field Work but Uncertainty about Data Quality, Accuracy, and Protection RemainsGAO-21-206R: Published: Dec 9, 2020. Publicly Released: Dec 9, 2020.
Dec 3, 2020
-
2020 Census:
Census Bureau Needs to Assess Data Quality Concerns Stemming from Recent Design ChangesGAO-21-142: Published: Dec 3, 2020. Publicly Released: Dec 3, 2020. -
2020 Census:
Census Bureau Needs to Ensure Transparency over Data QualityGAO-21-262T: Published: Dec 3, 2020. Publicly Released: Dec 3, 2020.
Nov 30, 2020
-
Federal Buying Power:
OMB Can Further Advance Category Management Initiative by Focusing on Requirements, Data, and TrainingGAO-21-40: Published: Nov 30, 2020. Publicly Released: Nov 30, 2020.
Nov 24, 2020
-
Disaster Response:
Agencies Should Assess Contracting Workforce Needs and Purchase Card Fraud RiskGAO-21-42: Published: Nov 24, 2020. Publicly Released: Nov 24, 2020.
Nov 23, 2020
-
Federal Contracting:
Actions Needed to Improve Department of Labor's Enforcement of Service Worker Wage ProtectionsGAO-21-11: Published: Oct 29, 2020. Publicly Released: Nov 23, 2020.
Nov 18, 2020
-
Federal Telework:
Key Practices That Can Help Ensure the Success of Telework ProgramsGAO-21-238T: Published: Nov 18, 2020. Publicly Released: Nov 18, 2020.
Looking for more? Browse all our products here