Financial Management: Poor Internal Controls Expose Department of Education to Improper Payments
Abstract
On July 24, 2001, we testified before your subcommittee on our ongoing review of the Department of Education's payment processes and how the existing internal control weaknesses we have noted thus far make the department vulnerable to, and in some cases have resulted in, improper payments. This letter briefly summarizes our testimony and formalizes specific recommendations made to the Secretary of Education in our testimony. We performed our work from August 2000 through July 2001, in accordance with generally accepted government auditing standards as well as with investigative standards established by the President's Council on Integrity and Efficiency. It is critical that Education management give top priority to improving internal control to minimize the agency's vulnerability to improper payments. The Secretary's actions to respond to issues related to using third party drafts and purchase cards are important first steps. At the same time, there are other important steps that need to be taken to minimize the department's exposure to improper Pell Grants and purchase card disbursements. The following are our recommendations thus far to address the key findings that are discussed in our testimony. We may have additional recommendations after we complete our work later this fall.
Document Details
- Document Type
- Technical Report
- Publication Date
- Sep 01, 2001
- Accession Number
- ADA395819
Entities
Organizations
- United States Government Accountability Office