In a memorandum dated March 12, 2007, ATF responded to the OIG request for formal comments on the draft report. In addition, as noted above, in a memorandum dated March 23, 2007, the Office of the Deputy Attorney General concurred with the report’s four recommendations on behalf of the Department.

Summary of the ATF Response. ATF expressed support for the OIG efforts to ensure that Department violent crime task forces coordinate their law enforcement efforts. ATF strongly agreed that collaboration and coordination among the Department’s law enforcement components are critical to officer safety and to the efficient use of limited resources. ATF also agreed to work with the Department and other law enforcement components to implement improvements to the coordination process and to coordinate individual task force investigations.

OIG Analysis. ATF’s willingness to work with the Department and to coordinate with the other law enforcement components is consistent with the findings and recommendations in our report.