Defense Contracting: Sufficient, Reliable Information on DoD's Mentor-Protege Program Is Unavailable
Abstract
DOD'S Office of Small and Disadvantaged Business Utilization (OSADBU) is responsible for the mentor protege program. A signed mentor protege agreement for each mentor protege relationship must be submitted to OSADBU and approved before developmental assistance costs may be incurred. OSADBU has reimbursed mentors through cooperative agreements where both the government and a contractor work together to achieve a common purpose. OSADBU also approved credit agreements that were negotiated on a nonreimbursable basis. In addition, the services and the defense agencies requested OSADBU's approval of mentor protege agreements that reimbursed mentors pursuant to separate contracts or line items in DOD contracts. OSADBU is to conduct periodic performance reviews of the progress and accomplishments realized under approved mentor protege agreements. This report is one of a series we have issued on the mentor protege program. In our first report, we recommended, among other things, that DOD develop and implement adequate internal controls in the application and approval process and in the oversight of protege development. In our second report, we were not able to recommend that the pilot program be extended because sufficient information was not available to determine whether the program's purposes could be achieved or whether reauthorization and extension were warranted.
Document Details
- Document Type
- Technical Report
- Publication Date
- Mar 01, 1998
- Accession Number
- ADA340502
Entities
Organizations
- United States Government Accountability Office