Reports
Search reports, investigative results, and agency plansShowing 1 - 10 of 72 results
Department of Education OIG
Higher Education Emergency Relief Fund Reporting Requirements
The objective of our inspection was to determine (1) whether selected institutions receiving funds under the Institutional Portion of Higher Education Emergency Relief Fund (HEERF) met public reporting requirements and (2) the reported usage of the Institutional Portion of HEERF by selected institutions.We determined that 81 of the 100 institutions included in our sample complied with Institutional Portion reporting requirements.We were unable to locate Institutional Portion reports anywhere on the websites associated with 19 of the 100 (19 percent) institutions included in our sample.
Department of Education OIG
The Department’s Implementation of CARES Act Flexibilities to TEACH Grant Service Obligations
The objective of our review was to evaluate the Department of Education’s plans and processes to ensure Teacher Education Assistance for College and Higher Education (TEACH) grantees receive full-time credit toward their service obligations for part-time and temporarily interrupted service due to Coronavirus Disease 2019 (COVID-19). We found weaknesses in FSA’s development and implementation of plans and processes to ensure TEACH grantees receive full-time credit towards their service obligations for part-time or temporarily interrupted service due to COVID-19. Additionally, we found that FSA...
Department of the Interior OIG
The Bureaus of Indian Affairs and Indian Education Have the Opportunity To Implement Additional Controls To Prevent or Detect Multi-dipping of Pandemic Response Funds
We recommended the BIA and the BIE implement controls designed to prevent or detect instances of multi-dipping of pandemic response funds.
Department of Education OIG
Assessment of the Department’s Reconstitution Plans Following COVID-19
The objective of our inspection was to assess the U.S. Department of Education’s (Department) plans and procedures for returning employees to the federal office in the wake of the coronavirus pandemic, including what existing guidance the Department considered when developing its plans and procedures. We found that the Department generally incorporated available guidance, which was intended to provide for a safe and gradual return to federal offices, in its Workplace Reconstitution Transition Plan (Reconstitution Plan). However, we noted that the Department’s Reconstitution Plan does not...
Department of Veterans Affairs OIG
Deficiencies in COVID-19 Screening and Facility Response for a Patient Who Died at the Michael E. DeBakey VA Medical Center in Houston, Texas
The VA Office of Inspector General (OIG) conducted a healthcare inspection regarding allegations of incompletely screening for COVID-19 and treatment of a patient with serious mental illness who presented for same-day care at the Michael E. DeBakey VA Medical Center (facility).The OIG substantiated that facility staff did not complete the patient’s COVID-19 temperature screening.The OIG substantiated that facility staff failed to medically manage the patient with COVID-19 symptoms, sent the patient to the drive-through testing area without medical evaluation, and did not isolate the patient...
Department of Education OIG
Federal Student Aid’s Performance Measures and Indicators for Returning Borrowers to Repayment
The inspection sought to determine whether the Federal Student Aid office (FSA) established performance measures and indicators for returning borrowers to repayment. We found that FSA needed to establish effective performance measures and indicators to evaluate its performance for returning borrowers to repayment. Although FSA and the Office of the Undersecretary established operational and strategic objectives and operational goals for returning borrowers to repayment, they were not written in specific and measurable terms. In addition, although FSA identified several data metrics as...
Department of Education OIG
Federal Student Aid’s Suspension of Involuntary Collection in Response to the Coronavirus Pandemic
The objective of our review was to evaluate the results of Federal Student Aid’s (FSA) process for suspending involuntary collection and refunding payments involuntarily collected on defaulted Department-held loans in response to the Coronavirus pandemic.We found that FSA suspended administrative wage garnishments and the U.S. Department of Treasury (Treasury) offsets for over 96 percent of the borrowers that FSA collected payments for within 90 days of March 13, 2020, the start of the suspension period. However, as of October 23, 2020, we found that FSA continued to receive administrative...
Pandemic Response Accountability Committee
Increasing Transparency into COVID-19 Spending
The objective of this review was to identify specific gaps in transparency in award data for federal assistance spending in response to COVID-19. We looked at 51,000 awards worth $347 billion that supported the pandemic response (as of June 15, 2021). The report includes three findings, including we found more than 15,400 awards worth $33 billion with meaningless descriptions that make it difficult to know how COVID-19 relief money was used. The report includes five recommendations to help improve the transparency into COVID-19 relief spending.