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Recommendations Database

GAO’s recommendations database contains report recommendations that still need to be addressed. GAO’s priority recommendations are those that we believe warrant priority attention. We sent letters to the heads of key departments and agencies, urging them to continue focusing on these issues. Below you can search only priority recommendations, or search all recommendations.

Our recommendations help congressional and agency leaders prepare for appropriations and oversight activities, as well as help improve government operations. Moreover, when implemented, some of our priority recommendations can save large amounts of money, help Congress make decisions on major issues, and substantially improve or transform major government programs or agencies, among other benefits.

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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Subject Term: "Federal research"

2 publications with a total of 7 open recommendations

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Federal Research: Additional Actions Needed to Improve Licensing of Patented Laboratory Inventions
GAO-18-327, Jun 19, 2018

Director: John Neumann
Phone: (202) 512-3841

4 open recommendations

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Recommendation: The Secretary of Commerce should instruct NIST to fully report the range of challenges in federal patent licensing, such as those outlined in this report, by, for example, leveraging its survey of practices at federal technology transfer offices, past Federal Laboratory Consortium studies, and agency reports and including that information in its summary reports to Congress. (Recommendation 1)

Agency: Department of Commerce
Status: Open

Comments: According to the Department of Commerce, NIST actions in response to the recommendation are in process. In August 2020, Commerce officials stated that the next annual report to the President and Congress was in the review process and is expected to be published this fall.

Recommendation: The Secretary of Commerce should instruct NIST to clarify the link between establishing patent license financial terms and the goal of promoting commercial use, through appropriate means, such as the upcoming rule-making process and updating relevant guidance. (Recommendation 2)

Agency: Department of Commerce
Status: Open

Comments: According to the Department of Commerce, NIST actions in response to the recommendation are in process and the purpose of licensing royalties will be addressed through a related initiative. The expected completion date for this action has been revised to November 2020.

Recommendation: The Secretary of Commerce should instruct NIST to facilitate formal information sharing among the agencies to provide federal labs with information on financial terms in comparable patent licenses, as appropriate. (Recommendation 3)

Agency: Department of Commerce
Status: Open

Comments: According to the Department of Commerce, NIST actions in response to the recommendation are in process. The actions to address it have been discussed by the Interagency Workgroup for Technology Transfer and the FLC, including adding a licensing guide and community of practice for licensing terms to the FLC website. In August 2020, Commerce stated that the expected completion date for this action has been revised to September 2020.

Recommendation: The Secretary of Defense should ensure that the agency or its labs document processes for establishing license financial terms, while maintaining flexibility to tailor the specific financial terms of each license. (Recommendation 4)

Agency: Department of Defense
Status: Open

Comments: DOD officials stated that DoDI 5538.08, which would require military departments and defense agencies to instruct their laboratories to document their licensing processes as appropriate, is in the review process as of August 2020.

Animal Use in Federal Research: Agencies Share Information, but Reporting and Data Quality Could Be Strengthened
GAO-18-459, May 31, 2018

Director: Steve Morris
Phone: (202) 512-3841

3 open recommendations

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Recommendation: The Administrator of APHIS should develop a timeline for (1) defining birds that are not bred for research and that are covered by the Animal Welfare Act, and (2) requiring that research facilities report to APHIS their use of birds covered by the act. (Recommendation 1)

Agency: Department of Agriculture: Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service
Status: Open

Comments: According to APHIS officials, the agency developed a timeline and a work plan for an Advance Notice of Proposed Rule Making (ANPRM) to define "bred for use in research" as it applies to birds (as well as to rats and mice) under the Animal Welfare Act and submitted it to USDA officials on July 18, 2019. However, as of October 2019, USDA had not established a date to publish the ANPRM and had instead placed it on the department's long-term regulatory agenda. We will continue to monitor USDA's efforts and provide updated information when it becomes available.

Recommendation: The Administrator of APHIS should instruct federal agencies to report their use of animals covered by the Animal Welfare Act in federal facilities located outside of the United States. (Recommendation 2)

Agency: Department of Agriculture: Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service
Status: Open

Comments: USDA disagreed with this recommendation for several reasons. For example, USDA stated that the absence of an exclusion to the requirements of the Animal Welfare Act or its regulations for federal research located outside of the United States does not create a requirement to collect information about such facilities' use of animals. In October 2019, APHIS officials said the agency continues to disagree with the recommendation. However, we have no reason to believe that such facilities should be excluded under the Act, and we continue to believe that the Administrator of APHIS should instruct federal agencies to report their use of animals in activities covered by the Animal Welfare Act in federal facilities located outside of the United States. We will continue to monitor any actions taken by APHIS to address this recommendation and provide updated information when it becomes available.

Recommendation: In developing the definition of field studies, the Administrator of APHIS should provide research facilities with clear criteria for identifying field studies that are covered by the Animal Welfare Act's regulations and that facilities should report to APHIS as well as field studies that facilities should not report. (Recommendation 3)

Agency: Department of Agriculture: Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service
Status: Open

Comments: In its comments on our draft report, USDA stated that APHIS agreed to issue a guidance document by December 31, 2018. According to APHIS officials, the agency prepared a draft guidance document entitled "Research Involving Free-Living Wild Species" for departmental review in April 2019. As of October 2019, APHIS was in the process of reviewing comments from the department. We will continue to monitor APHIS and USDA's actions to implement the recommendation.