GAO’s recommendations database contains report recommendations that still need to be addressed.
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As of October 25, 2020, there are 4812 open recommendations, of which 473 are priority recommendations. Recommendations remain open until they are designated as Closed-implemented or Closed-not implemented.
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Recommendation: The Assistant Secretary of Labor for the Employee Benefits Security Administration should evaluate whether targeted oversight in response to information received is effective for ensuring compliance with MH/SU parity requirements. If this evaluation determines the current targeted oversight approach results in significant program risks, the Employee Benefits Security Administration should develop a plan to more effectively enforce MH/SU parity requirements and if necessary seek additional oversight authority, as warranted. (Recommendation 1)
Agency: Department of Labor: Employee Benefits Security Administration Status: Open
Comments: DOL agreed with this recommendation. In February 2020, DOL reported that its Employee Benefits Security Administration plans to evaluate its targeted approach to MH/SU parity enforcement. When we confirm what actions DOL has taken in response to this recommendation, we will provide updated information.
Recommendation: The Assistant Secretary of Labor for the Employee Benefits Security Administration (EBSA) should 1. create and implement a policy for standard posting requirements regarding comments and their identity information, particularly for duplicate comments; 2. clearly communicate this policy to the public on the EBSA website; and 3. evaluate the duplicative practice of replicating rulemaking dockets on the EBSA website, to either discontinue the practice or include a reference to Regulations.gov and explanation of how the pages relate to one another. (Recommendation 4)
Agency: Department of Labor: Employee Benefits Security Administration Status: Open
Comments: EBSA concurred with the recommendation. In September 2019, EBSA stated that it will develop a written policy regarding posting of comments, including that of duplicate comments. This information will be available on their website. Additionally, EBSA will post a reference to Regulations.gov as part of each Notice of Proposed Rulemaking (NPRM) webpage that includes public comments together with an explanation of its relation to Regulations.gov as a means to access public comments on EBSA's rulemaking initiatives. EBSA officials did not provide a date by which these actions will be implemented. Additionally, while EBSA noted that internal and external users prefer the agency's current practice of replicating rulemaking dockets, the agency did not provide evidence that a formal evaluation had been conducted, and did not identify plans to do so. As a result, at this time our recommendation to EBSA remains open.
