Government Accountability Office
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In a study destined to produce big headlines, the Government Accountability Office finds thousands of federal employees are taking prolonged periods of administrative leave. In the past three years, more than 50,000 employees were on paid leave for up to three months. But for most federal employees, paid time off amounts to about a day per year. Chris Mihm, managing director for Strategic Issues at GAO, joined Tom Temin on the Federal Drive to discuss what they found.
October 24, 2014 -
Congressional Republicans probe for answers following a GAO report that the government spent nearly $3.1 billion in paid administrative leave over a recent 3-year period. While most employees took such leave for a week or less, 263 spent a year or longer on paid administrative leave.
October 21, 2014 -
The Government Accountability Office says the Citizenship and Immigration Services directorate should reevaluate USIS to determine if it's indeed a responsible contractor in light of allegations of defrauding the government and an investigation by the Justice Department on those charges.
October 21, 2014 -
The Government Accountability Office says the Citizenship and Immigration Services directorate should reevaluate USIS to determine if it's indeed a responsible contractor in light of allegations of defrauding the government and an investigation by the Justice Department on those charges.
October 20, 2014 -
Customs and Border Protection is up to about $2.5 billion in spending on equipment to provide a firewall against materials terrorists could use to make weapons of mass destruction. They spend a lot less than that to make sure the equipment -- and the operators -- are doing the job. David Maurer is Director of Homeland Security and Justice Issues at the Government Accountability Office. On In Depth with Francis Rose, he explained how CBP can make the most out of its covert operations budget.
October 20, 2014 -
Big programs at DoD continue to overspend their budgets and blow past their schedules because of unrealistic requirements and rosy cost projections. As part of our special report, The Missing Pieces of Procurement Reform, several acquisition experts pointed out that DoD acquisition is one of the most studied problems in the history of government.
October 16, 2014 -
Federal agencies are forgetting to save their work to help with future acquisition projects. The Government Accountability Office looks at 28 different contracts to see if market research is helping them make better procurement decisions. Tim Dinapoli is director of acquisition and sourcing management issues at the GAO. On In Depth with Francis Rose, he said the agencies do the market research, but aren't saving it to use in future projects.
October 10, 2014 -
The drone fleet at Customs and Border Protection isn't big, but the law states that very strict oversight from the Homeland Security Department and CBP is important. Rebecca Gambler is director of Homeland Security and Justice Issues at the Government Accountability Office. On In Depth with Francis Rose, she said Congress mandated a look at CBP's drone program.
October 07, 2014 -
Federal agencies are not using performance data to make better management decisions. The GPRA Modernization Act of 2010 required agencies to do that, and to document how they do it. The Government Accountability Office keeps score of which agencies actually use that information, and only two agencies are showing any improvement. Chris Mihm is Managing Director for Strategic Issues at the GAO. On In Depth with Francis Rose, he broke down the scores on performance data at your agency.
September 29, 2014 -
Nov. 15 is the deadline for the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services to patch up the cybersecurity holes in the Healthcare.gov website. The Government Accountability Office offered 22 technical recommendations to the agency last week. Those problems appear just as the website nears its first birthday. Raj Sharma is co-founder and CEO of the Censeo Consulting Group. On the In Depth with Francis Rose Industry Chatter segment, he shared some ways to predict, and fix, longstanding problems with large federal IT projects like Healthcare.gov.
September 25, 2014 -
SRA loses its bid protest of the HHS award for cloud email services to InfoReliance. GAO says HHS' evaluation factors were reasonable and properly considered.
September 25, 2014 -
The F-22 Raptor made its combat debut against the Islamic State in Syria this week. The F-22 project cost about $70 billion over a decade. The Pentagon expects the F-35 Joint Strike Fighter to be combat-ready in four years, and it's already the most expensive weapon system in Defense Department history. Cary Russell, director of Defense Capabilities and Management Issues at the Government Accountability Office, estimates the cost of running the F-35 Joint Strike Fighter. He told In Depth with Francis Rose after DoD activates the F-35 for combat, the cost could reach about $1 trillion.
September 24, 2014 -
The Homeland Security Department is out of sync with the General Services Administration and their plan to consolidate DHS headquarters. Poor planning is causing cost overruns and delays, and the construction project still has another 12 years to go. David Maurer is Director of Homeland Security and Justice Issues at the Government Accountability Office. He testified before the House Homeland Security Subcommittee on Oversight and Management Efficiency about the progress on the $4.5 billion project, and shared his insight on In Depth with Francis Rose.
September 22, 2014 -
Open enrollment for health care insurance through the federal exchange is coming around again. Congress, among others, is wondering if the exchange and its website HealthCare.gov are secure. The Government Accountability Office took a look. It found some issues. Greg Wilshusen is the information security issues at GAO. He testified last week about what auditors say need to be done. He joined Tom Temin on the Federal Drive with details.
September 22, 2014 -
House Homeland Security Committee lawmakers and GAO highlighted funding shortfalls and a need to update plans. Meanwhile, Senate Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs majority issued a report detailing why its research shows Congress should make the DHS headquarters consolidation project a priority.
September 22, 2014