Commerce Needs to Strengthen Its Improper Payment Practices and Reporting

摘要

The Office of Inspector General (OIG) initiated this audit to review the Department's compliance with Office of Management and Budget (OMB) guidance for preventing and detecting grant fraud, waste, and abuse. We targeted our review toward American Reinvestment and Recovery Act of 2009 (ARRA) funds because Department of Commerce bureaus received significant funds under ARRA and were encouraged to obligate and spend them expediently; as a result, these funds have a higher risk for waste, fraud, and abuse. In order to ensure Commerce is using the appropriate procedures to guard against, report, and recover improper payments, our audit included a review of the improper payments process. Federal agencies make more than $2 trillion in payments to individuals and a variety of other entities each year. In fiscal year 2010, improper payments made by the federal government totaled $125 billion. The President has given his administration the aggressive goal of reducing government-wide improper payments by $50 billion and recapturing under existing criteria and authorities at least $2 billion in actual improper payments by FY 2012. The Improper Payments Information Act of 2002, Pub. L. No. 107-300, was enacted to increase public trust in government spending. The act requires the head of each agency to annually review its programs, which now include ARRA grants and contracts, to identify programs or activities that are susceptible to significant improper (or erroneous) payments. The act also requires agencies to report improper payments to Congress and provide an action plan to reduce further erroneous payments.