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.
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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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Recommendation: To help ensure that any future decisions by FCC regarding its efforts under the Communications Act of 1934 are based on comprehensive analysis, the FCC should, as part of its future annual video competition reports, analyze how the ongoing evolution in the video programming market affects competition in the related market for set-top boxes and devices, including how this evolution affects the extent to which consumer choice for devices to access MVPD content remains a relevant aspect of the competitive environment. (Recommendation 1)
Agency: Federal Communications Commission Status: Open
Comments: As of January 2020, FCC officials said they are taking steps to implement this recommendation and hope to do so by October 2020.
Recommendation: The Chairman of the FCC should establish quantifiable goals and related measures--performance indicators, targets, and timeframes--for its enforcement program and annually publish the results to demonstrate the performance of this program and improve transparency regarding FCC's enforcement priorities. (Recommendation 1)
Agency: Federal Communications Commission Status: Open
Comments: In 2018, FCC included quantifiable goals and related measures for its enforcement program in FCC's Fiscal Year 2019 Performance Plan, which is included in FCC's Fiscal Year 2019 Budget Estimate to Congress. FCC plans to publish the results in its Fiscal Year 2019 Performance Report. FCC expects to release this report in March 2020.
Recommendation: The Chairman of the FCC should establish, and make publically available, a communications strategy outlining the agency's enforcement program for external stakeholders, to improve engagement with the telecommunications community on the purposes, objectives, and processes the Enforcement Bureau employs to achieve its mission. (Recommendation 2)
Agency: Federal Communications Commission Status: Open
Comments: As of April 2019, FCC has yet to take action on this recommendation.
Recommendation: Congress should consider whether FCC's excess fees (approximately $66 million through fiscal year 2011) should be appropriated for FCC's use, or, if not, what the disposition of these funds should be, and whether to change FCC's annual appropriations language to permit reconciliation of excess collections or to govern FCC's handling of any future excess collections.
Agency: Congress Status: Open
Comments: As of fiscal year 2019, FCC's annual appropriations continued to prohibit the use of any excess fees from the current year or previous years.
