Semiannual Report: October 1, 2011 - March 31, 2012

This is a publication by GAO's Inspector General that concerns internal GAO operations. In accordance with Section 5 of the Government Accountability Office Act of 2008 (GAO Act), this is the Office of the Inspector General (OIG) semiannual report for the 6-month period ending March 31, 2012.

During this period, we have continued in our efforts to meet our statutory mandate to promote economy, efficiency, and effectiveness at GAO. For example, the OIG continued to provide reasonable assurance that our quality control framework of policies and procedures related to generally accepted government auditing standards and the Council of the Inspectors General on Integrity and Efficiency (CIGIE) standards are suitably designed and operating effectively. Further, the OIG completed an internal inspection of the OIG’s system of quality control for the work completed during the fiscal year that ended September 30, 2010. In addition, we completed a review of the closed investigations case files for fiscal years 2010 and 2011 in an effort to determine the level of conformity with the standards adopted in the Council of the Inspectors General on Integrity and Efficiency Quality Standards for Investigations. The results of the internal inspection and review concluded that, for the periods indicated, the OIG generally complied with prescribed quality standards for audit, inspection, and investigative work performed during fiscal years 2010 and 2011.

We have continued our efforts to strengthen our quality control system through a number of actions taken or in progress in response to recommendations resulting from the internal inspection and review. Due to the increasing number and nature of complaints, we hired a criminal investigator to fill a new Assistant Inspector General for Investigations (AIGI) position. The AIGI is responsible for overseeing the OIG hotline complaint process and independently planning and conducting investigations of allegations of fraud, abuse, and other deficiencies relating to GAO. In addition, the AIGI is responsible for continuing our efforts to strengthen our system of quality control for investigations. Actions planned and taken by the AIGI regarding OIG hotline and investigative functions include reviewing and revising the policies and procedures manual for investigations to help ensure compliance with applicable CIGIE standards; establishing investigative and case-specific goals, objectives, and priorities; and exploring shared services options for implementing an automated case management system for records and evidence management.