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Open Recommendations

Nuclear Waste Cleanup: Adopting Leading Practices Could Strengthen DOE's Engagement with Stakeholders and Governments
GAO-24-106014
Sep 09, 2024
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3 Open Recommendations
Agency Affected Recommendation Status
Office of Environmental Management The Senior Advisor for the Office of Environmental Management should conduct and document an objective evaluation of the operation and effectiveness of EM's SSABs, including evaluating challenges related to the recruitment and appointment of board members, representation, and board attendance and member turnover. (Recommendation 1)
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When we confirm what actions the agency has taken in response to this recommendation, we will provide updated information.
Office of Environmental Management The Senior Advisor for the Office of Environmental Management should develop and use a national framework that defines EM's strategy for engagement with stakeholders and governments across the EM complex and that incorporates elements of leading practices for engagement. (Recommendation 2)
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When we confirm what actions the agency has taken in response to this recommendation, we will provide updated information.
Office of Environmental Management The Senior Advisor for the Office of Environmental Management, in coordination with EM site leadership, should develop engagement plans at the site or regional level that institutionalize expectations for how to engage stakeholders and governments with a cohesive voice and incorporate elements of leading practices for engagement. (Recommendation 3)
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When we confirm what actions the agency has taken in response to this recommendation, we will provide updated information.

Federal Oil and Gas Royalties: Opportunities Exist to Improve Interior's Compliance Program
GAO-24-103676
Sep 06, 2024
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14 Open Recommendations
Agency Affected Recommendation Status
Office of Natural Resources Revenue The Director of ONRR should assess the benefits of incorporating randomly selected compliance activities into its workplans, including the resources necessary to conduct the appropriate number of random compliance activities, to validate its risk models. (Recommendation 1)
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When we confirm what actions the agency has taken in response to this recommendation, we will provide updated information.
Office of Natural Resources Revenue The Director of ONRR should consider adding related violation data to already closed cases in OMT to better assure ONRR has complete data on violations in its current compliance data system. (Recommendation 2)
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When we confirm what actions the agency has taken in response to this recommendation, we will provide updated information.
Office of Natural Resources Revenue The Director of ONRR should consider examining how to better link compliance royalty collections with the associated violation. (Recommendation 3)
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When we confirm what actions the agency has taken in response to this recommendation, we will provide updated information.
Office of Natural Resources Revenue The Director of ONRR should assess the need to develop a consistent and complete dataset from ONRR's multiple compliance data systems to better analyze historical compliance performance and inform its compliance strategy. (Recommendation 4)
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When we confirm what actions the agency has taken in response to this recommendation, we will provide updated information.
Office of Natural Resources Revenue The Director of ONRR should consider how to better assure that it will have a consistent and complete compliance dataset should OMT be replaced, including an assessment of migrating key compliance data to its future compliance data system. (Recommendation 5)
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When we confirm what actions the agency has taken in response to this recommendation, we will provide updated information.
Office of Natural Resources Revenue The Director of ONRR should reiterate its existing policy for using PAD numbers—for example, through additional training—to ONRR staff about how payments resulting from compliance activities are to be recorded in accordance with existing policies (i.e., PAD number). (Recommendation 6)
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When we confirm what actions the agency has taken in response to this recommendation, we will provide updated information.

Clean Water: Revolving Fund Grant Formula Could Better Reflect Infrastructure Needs, and EPA Could Improve Needs Estimate
GAO-24-106251
Aug 19, 2024
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4 Open Recommendations
Agency Affected Recommendation Status
Congress Congress should consider revising the allotment formula for the Clean Water SRF program to clearly align with the program's goals and requiring EPA to periodically calculate allotment percentages using the most recent data. For example, in developing a new formula, Congress should consider the types of variables, weights, and data sources used in the expert panel's formula in this report. (Matter for Consideration 1)
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When we confirm what actions the agency has taken in response to this recommendation, we will provide updated information.
Environmental Protection Agency The Administrator of EPA should ensure that the Director of the Office of Wastewater Management directly collects data on centralized clean water infrastructure needs from a sample of small communities, using an approach that is consistent with Office of Management and Budget survey guidance. (Recommendation 1)
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When we confirm what actions the agency has taken in response to this recommendation, we will provide updated information.
Environmental Protection Agency The Administrator of EPA should ensure that the Director of the Office of Wastewater Management provides guidance to states to submit estimates of large communities' centralized clean water infrastructure needs for a minimum time frame, such as 5 years. (Recommendation 2)
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When we confirm what actions the agency has taken in response to this recommendation, we will provide updated information.
Environmental Protection Agency The Administrator of EPA should ensure that the Director of the Office of Wastewater Management works with states that did not report any needs in one or more of the noncentralized clean water infrastructure need categories to use cost estimating tools and state-specific approaches to assess these needs for the next Clean Watersheds Needs Survey. (Recommendation 3)
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When we confirm what actions the agency has taken in response to this recommendation, we will provide updated information.

Forest Service: Fully Following Leading Practices for Agency Reforms Would Strengthen Prescribed Fire Program
GAO-24-106239
Jul 08, 2024
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4 Open Recommendations
Agency Affected Recommendation Status
Forest Service The Chief of the Forest Service should ensure the agency develops outcome-oriented goals and establishes performance measures to help assess the effectiveness of its hazardous fuels program, including its prescribed fire activities, in reducing wildfire risk. (Recommendation 1)
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When we confirm what actions the agency has taken in response to this recommendation, we will provide updated information.
Forest Service The Chief of the Forest Service should ensure the agency develops and implements a strategic workforce plan for its prescribed fire program. (Recommendation 2)
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When we confirm what actions the agency has taken in response to this recommendation, we will provide updated information.
Forest Service The Chief of the Forest Service should ensure the agency develops an implementation plan for its prescribed fire program reform efforts with key milestones and deliverables, and tracks implementation progress. (Recommendation 3)
Open
When we confirm what actions the agency has taken in response to this recommendation, we will provide updated information.
Forest Service The Chief of the Forest Service should ensure the agency assesses the appropriate level of resources needed to maintain day-to-day management of its prescribed fire program reform efforts, and takes steps accordingly. (Recommendation 4)
Open
When we confirm what actions the agency has taken in response to this recommendation, we will provide updated information.
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