OIG Semiannual Report to Congress: October 1, 2009

Audit Summary

During this reporting period, the OIG’s Audit Division issued 42 internal and external audit reports, which contained more than $5.2 million in questioned costs and made 135 recommendations for management improvement. Specifically, the Audit Division issued 20 internal audit reports of Department programs funded at more than $600 million; 22 external audit reports of contracts, grants, and other agreements funded at more than $27 million; and 59 Single Audit Act audits funded at approximately $660 million. In addition, the Audit Division issued two Notifications of Irregularities, four Management Advisory Memoranda, and seven other internal reports.

Funds Recommended to Be Put to Better Use

Audit Reports	Number of Audit Reports	Funds Recommended to Be Put to Better Use
No management decision made by beginning of period	3	$3,051,384
Issued during period	0	$0
Needing management decision during period	3	$3,051,384
Management decisions made during period: – Amounts management agreed to put to better use¹ – Amounts management disagreed to put to better use	0 0	$0 $0
No management decision at end of period	3	$3,051,384

¹ Includes instances in which management has taken action to resolve the issue and/or the matter is being closed because remedial action was taken.

Audits with Questioned Costs

Audit Reports	Number of Audit Reports	Total Questioned Costs (including unsupported costs)	Unsupported Costs
No management decision made by beginning of period	2	$5,696,286	$0
Issued during period	36¹	$9,272,172	$6,162,675
Needing management decision during period	38	$14,968,458	$6,162,675
Management decisions made during period: – Amount of disallowed costs² – Amount of costs not disallowed	32 0	$7,479,941 $0	$4,370,444 $0
No management decision at end of period	6	$7,488,517	$1,792,231

¹ Of the audit reports issued during this period with questioned costs, 23 were Single Audit Act reports.

² Includes instances in which management has taken action to resolve the issue and/or the matter is being closed because remedial action was taken.

Audits Involving Recommendations for Management Improvements

Audit Reports	Number of Audit Reports	Total Number of Management Improvements Recommended
No management decision made by beginning of period	1	1
Issued during period	69¹	238
Needing management decision during period	70	239
Management decisions made during period: – Number management agreed to implement² – Number management disagreed with	66 0	215 0
No management decision at end of period	4	24

¹ Of the audit reports issued during this period with recommendations for management improvements, 43 were Single Audit Act reports.

² Includes instances in which management has taken action to resolve the issue and/or the matter is being closed because remedial action was taken.

Quality Control

Every 3 years the OIG’s Audit Division is required by the Government Auditing Standards issued by the Comptroller General of the United States to undergo a quality control review by a separate external entity. In February 2010, the Department of Energy OIG completed its external quality control review of the OIG’s Audit Division in accordance with Government Auditing Standards and guidelines established by the Council of the Inspectors General on Integrity and Efficiency. Federal audit organizations receive a rating of pass, pass with deficiencies, or fail. The Department of Energy OIG issued a peer review rating of pass for our Audit Division, stating that the system of quality control for the OIG’s Audit Division in effect for the year ended September 30, 2009, has been suitably designed and complied with to provide reasonable assurance of performing and reporting in conformity with applicable professional standards in all material respects.

National Defense Authorization Act

OIG Reporting Required by the National Defense Authorization Act for FY 2008

The National Defense Authorization Act for FY 2008 requires all Inspectors General appointed under the IG Act to add an annex to their Semiannual Reports: 1) listing all contract audit reports issued during the reporting period containing significant audit findings, 2) briefly describing the significant audit findings in the report, and 3) specifying the amounts of costs identified in the report as unsupported, questioned, or disallowed. This Act defines significant audit findings as unsupported, questioned, or disallowed costs in excess of $10 million or other findings that the Inspector General determines to be significant. It defines contracts as a contract, an order placed under a task or delivery order contract, or a subcontract.

The OIG did not issue any audits that fit these criteria during this semiannual reporting period.

Audit Followup

OMB Circular A-50

OMB Circular A-50, Audit Followup, requires audit reports to be resolved within 6 months of the audit report issuance date. The Audit Division monitors the status of open audit reports to track the audit resolution and closure process. As of March 31, 2010, the OIG closed 116 audit reports and was monitoring the resolution process of 257 open audit reports.

Unresolved Audits

As of March 31, 2010, the following audits were over 6 months old and had no management decision or were in disagreement:

Oversight of Intergovernmental Agreements by the USMS and the Office of the Federal Detention Trustee
USMS Intergovernmental Service Agreement for Detention Facilities with the Blount County, Tennessee, Sheriff’s Office
USMS Intergovernmental Service Agreement for Detention Facilities with the Central Virginia Regional Jail
USMS Intergovernmental Service Agreement for Detention Facilities with the Cumberland County Jail, Portland, Maine
USMS Intergovernmental Service Agreement for Detention Facilities with the Hamilton County, Tennessee, Silverdale Correctional Facility
USMS Intergovernmental Service Agreement for Detention Facilities with the Western Tidewater Regional Jail, Suffolk, Virginia

Evaluation and Inspections Statistics

The chart below summarizes the Evaluation and Inspections Division’s accomplishments for the 6-month reporting period ending March 31, 2010.

E&I Workload Accomplishments	Number of Reviews
Reviews active at beginning of period	6
Reviews canceled	0
Reviews initiated	4
Final reports issued	3
Reviews active at end of reporting period	7

Unresolved Reviews

DOJ Order 2900.10, Follow-up and Resolution Policy for Inspection Recommendations by the OIG, requires reports to be resolved within 6 months of the report issuance date. As of March 31, 2010, the Evaluation and Inspections Division had one unresolved recommendation. The OIG is working with ATF to resolve the recommendation.

Investigations Statistics

The following chart summarizes the workload and accomplishments of the Investigations Division during the 6-month period ending March 31, 2010.

Source of Allegations
Hotline (telephone and mail) Other sources Total allegations received	1,159 3,513 4,672
Investigative Caseload
Investigations opened this period Investigations closed this period Investigations in progress as of 3/31/10	173 125 405
Prosecutive Actions
Criminal indictments/informations Arrests Convictions/Pleas	48 53 48
Administrative Actions
Terminations Resignations Disciplinary action	21 50 32
Monetary Results
Fines/Restitutions/Assessments/ Recoveries	$232,162

Integrity Awareness Briefings

OIG investigators conducted 65 Integrity Awareness Briefings for Department employees throughout the country. These briefings are designed to educate employees about the misuse of a public official’s position and to deter employees from committing such offenses. The briefings reached more than 4,130 employees.