Management of Seized Assets and Evidence by the
Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives

Audit Report 06-37
September 2006
Office of the Inspector General


Appendix II
Statement on Compliance with
Laws and Regulations


We audited ATF’s management of seized assets and evidence. We conducted fieldwork at headquarters offices of ATF, ATF’s Asset Forfeiture and Seized Property Branch, the Department of Justice’s AFMS, and at several ATF field division offices. We performed fieldwork between July 2005 and June 2006.

We conducted our audit in accordance with the generally accepted Government Auditing Standards. In connection with the audit, as required by the Standards, we reviewed procedures, activities, records, and seized assets and evidence to obtain reasonable assurance that the ATF Asset Forfeiture and Seized Property Branch and ATF’s field divisions complied with federal laws, regulations, and DOJ policies and procedures that apply to seized assets and evidence that, if not complied with, in our judgment, could have a material effect on management of seized assets and evidence. Compliance with laws and regulations relating to seized assets and evidence is the responsibility of the ATF’s Asset Forfeiture and Seized Property Branch and ATF’s field divisions.

Our audit included examining, on a test basis, evidence about compliance with applicable federal laws, regulations, and DOJ policies and procedures contained in the relevant portions of:

  • H.R. 5005 (An Act to establish the Department of Homeland Security, and for other purposes)
  • 18 U.S.C. § 842
  • 18 U.S.C. § 922
  • 18 U.S.C. § 981
  • 18 U.S.C. § 982
  • 18 U.S.C. § 983
  • 18 U.S.C. § 2342
  • 21 U.S.C. § 881
  • 26 U.S.C. § 5842
  • 26 U.S.C. § 5861
  • 26 U.S.C. § 5872
  • 28 U.S.C. § 524
  • 28 C.F.R. § 0.111(i)
  • Executive Order 12656
  • DOJ Asset Forfeiture Policy Manual, January 2005
  • Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives’ Order 3400.1B, July 2005
  • Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives’ Brief 3400.13
  • Memorandum from the Associate Deputy Attorney General directing participation by all DOJ organizations to transition to the new integrated asset forfeiture system, September 1990
  • Memorandum of Understanding between DOJ and the Department of the Treasury for the management and disposition of property seized for forfeiture by ATF, January 2003

Except for instances of non-compliance identified in the Findings and Recommendations section of this report, ATF’s Asset Forfeiture and Seized Property Branch and ATF’s field divisions were in compliance with the relevant portions of the specific laws, regulations, and DOJ policies and procedures previously named.



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