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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: "Personnel qualifications"

4 publications with a total of 14 open recommendations
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Homeland Security Acquisitions: DHS Has Opportunities to Improve Its Component Acquisition Oversight
GAO-21-77, Oct 20, 2020
Director: Marie A. Mak
Phone: (202) 512-4841

4 open recommendations
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Recommendation: The Under Secretary for Management should ensure that the Office of Program Accountability and Risk Management and component heads execute the Component Acquisition Executive nomination and designation process consistently, as described in its guidance. This should include nominating and designating Component Acquisition Executives to oversee all acquisition programs. (Recommendation 1)

Agency: Department of Homeland Security
Status: Open

Comments: When we confirm what actions the agency has taken in response to this recommendation, we will provide updated information.
Recommendation: The Under Secretary for Management should ensure that the Component Acquisition Executives that are responsible for oversight of acquisition programs comply with Department of Homeland Security direction to complete Component Acquisition Executive support staffing plans. (Recommendation 2)

Agency: Department of Homeland Security
Status: Open

Comments: When we confirm what actions the agency has taken in response to this recommendation, we will provide updated information.
Recommendation: The Under Secretary for Management should identify, in policy or guidance, the expertise that constitutes critical acquisition positions for effective Component Acquisition Executive oversight. (Recommendation 3)

Agency: Department of Homeland Security
Status: Open

Comments: When we confirm what actions the agency has taken in response to this recommendation, we will provide updated information.
Recommendation: The Under Secretary for Management should direct the Office of Program Accountability and Risk Management to establish a time frame for completing its assessment of the Investment Evaluation, Submission, and Tracking (INVEST) system data fields for which the Component Acquisition Executive certification is necessary, based on current use and reporting requirements, and take appropriate actions based on the results. (Recommendation 4)

Agency: Department of Homeland Security
Status: Open

Comments: When we confirm what actions the agency has taken in response to this recommendation, we will provide updated information.
FEMA Disaster Workforce: Actions Needed to Address Deployment and Staff Development Challenges
GAO-20-360, May 4, 2020
Director: Christopher Currie
Phone: (404) 679-1875

3 open recommendations
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Recommendation: The FEMA Administrator should develop a plan—with time frames and milestones and input from field leadership—to address identified challenges that have hindered FEMA's ability to provide reliable and complete information to field leaders and managers about staff knowledge, skills, and abilities. (Recommendation 1)

Agency: Department of Homeland Security: Directorate of Emergency Preparedness and Response: Federal Emergency Management Agency
Status: Open

Comments: DHS concurred with our recommendation. In its agency comment letter, the department noted that FEMA plans to engage field leaders on enhancements to its coach-and-evaluator program to develop a plan to address identified challenges. DHS also reported that FEMA plans to increase training offerings and align its curriculum so that FEMA Qualification System status matches workforce capability. DHS anticipates completion by March 31, 2021.
Recommendation: The FEMA Administrator should develop mechanisms, including collecting relevant data, to assess how effectively FEMA's disaster workforce was deployed to meet mission needs in the field. (Recommendation 2)

Agency: Department of Homeland Security: Directorate of Emergency Preparedness and Response: Federal Emergency Management Agency
Status: Open

Comments: DHS concurred with our recommendation. In its agency comment letter, the department reported that FEMA plans to convene subject matter experts to develop mechanisms that demonstrate how effectively FEMA's disaster workforce deploys to meet mission needs in the field. Expected completion is March 31, 2021.
Recommendation: The FEMA Administrator should create a staff development program for FEMA's disaster workforce that, at a minimum, addresses access to training, delivery of on-the-job training and mentoring, use of performance evaluations, and consistent developmental opportunities regardless of deployment status. (Recommendation 3)

Agency: Department of Homeland Security: Directorate of Emergency Preparedness and Response: Federal Emergency Management Agency
Status: Open

Comments: DHS concurred with our recommendation. In its agency comment letter, the department stated that FEMA is working to finalize and implement some staff development initiatives we described in our report, such as the FEMA Deployment Performance Evaluation Directive, which will provide guidance on performance reviews for deployed staff. DHS anticipates that FEMA's efforts to implement will be completed by March 31, 2021.
Federal Chief Information Security Officers: Opportunities Exist to Improve Roles and Address Challenges to Authority
GAO-16-686, Aug 26, 2016
Director: Gregory C. Wilshusen
Phone: (202) 512-6244

6 open recommendations
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Recommendation: To assist CISOs in carrying out their responsibilities, the Director of OMB should issue guidance for agencies' implementation of the FISMA 2014 requirements to ensure that (1) senior agency officials carry out information security responsibilities and (2) agency personnel are held accountable for complying with the agency-wide information security program. This guidance should clarify the role of the agency CISO with respect to these requirements, as well as implementing the other elements of an agency-wide information security program, taking into account the challenges identified in this report.

Agency: Executive Office of the President: Office of Management and Budget
Status: Open

Comments: The Office of Management and Budget (OMB) partially concurred with this recommendation, but does not intend to directly issue guidance as recommended. As of June 2020, OMB has not provided sufficient evidence that it has implemented this recommendation. We will continue to monitor OMB's implementation of this recommendation.
Recommendation: To ensure that the role of the SISO is defined in department policy in accordance with FISMA 2014, the Secretary of Defense should define the SISO's role in department policy for ensuring that the department has procedures for incident detection, response, and reporting.

Agency: Department of Defense
Status: Open

Comments: In response to our report, DOD partially concurred with our recommendation; however, DOD subsequently concurred with the recommendation and is taking steps to implement it. The department stated that the issuance of an updated Cyber Incident Handling guidance is on track to be completed and coordinated in the third quarter of fiscal year 2018. As of June 2020, it has not yet provided sufficient evidence that it has implemented the recommendation. When we confirm what actions DOD has taken, we will provide updated information.
Recommendation: To ensure that the role of the CISO is defined in department policy in accordance with FISMA 2014, the Secretary of State should define the CISO's role in department policy for ensuring that the department has procedures for incident detection, response, and reporting.

Agency: Department of State
Status: Open

Comments: The Department of State (State) concurred with this recommendation. However, as of June 2020, the department has not yet provided sufficient evidence that it has implemented the recommendation. When we receive additional evidence from State, we will review it to determine whether the department has addressed the recommendation.
Recommendation: To ensure that the role of the CISO is defined in department policy in accordance with FISMA 2014, the Secretary of Transportation should define the CISO's role in department policy for ensuring that subordinate security plans are documented for the department's information systems.

Agency: Department of Transportation
Status: Open

Comments: The Department of Transportation (DOT) concurred with the recommendation and is currently updating its Cybersecurity Policy. The Department plans to be complete by June 29, 2019. As of June 2020, the department has not yet provided sufficient evidence that it has implemented the recommendation. Upon receiving additional evidence from DOT, we will review it to determine whether the department has addressed the recommendation.
Recommendation: To ensure that the role of the CISO is defined in department policy in accordance with FISMA 2014, the Secretary of Transportation should define the CISO's role in department policy for ensuring that security controls are tested periodically.

Agency: Department of Transportation
Status: Open

Comments: The Department of Transportation (DOT) concurred with the recommendation and is currently updating its Cybersecurity Policy. The Department plans to be complete by June 29, 2019. As of June 2020, the department has not yet provided sufficient evidence that it has implemented the recommendation. Upon receiving additional evidence from DOT, we will review it to determine whether the department has addressed the recommendation.
Recommendation: To ensure that the role of the SAISO is defined in agency policy in accordance with FISMA 2014, the Administrator of the National Aeronautics and Space Administration should define the SAISO's role in agency policy for oversight of security for information systems that are operated by contractors on the agency's behalf.

Agency: National Aeronautics and Space Administration
Status: Open

Comments: The National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) concurred with our recommendation. As of June 2020, NASA stated that the agency is working to update the relevant policy to address this recommendation, but the update is taking longer than expected; NASA expects the policy to be updated and the review process to be completed by November 30, 2020. We will examine the evidence when NASA provides it.
Human Capital: Critical Skills and Competency Assessments Should Help Guide DOD Civilian Workforce Decisions
GAO-13-188, Jan 17, 2013
Director: Farrell, Brenda S
Phone: (202) 512-3604

1 open recommendations
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Recommendation: To help ensure the department maintains its critical skills and competencies, when planning for and implementing future civilian workforce actions, the Secretary of Defense should direct the Under Secretary of Defense for Personnel and Readiness to involve functional community managers and to the extent possible, use information from gap assessments of its critical skills and competencies as they are completed to make informed decisions for possible future reductions or justify the size of the force that it has.

Agency: Department of Defense
Status: Open

Comments: As of September 2017, the Associate Director, Total Force Requirements & Sourcing Policies; OUSD(P&R), stated that the Department has taken some actions and that there are ongoing efforts in this area. As of November 2019, DOD has taken no further action. We will continue to monitor DOD's progress in implementing this recommendation.