[Federal Register Volume 75, Number 49 (Monday, March 15, 2010)]
[Presidential Documents]
[Pages 12119-12120]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2010-5685]


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  Federal Register / Vol. 75, No. 49 / Monday, March 15, 2010 / 
Presidential Documents  

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 Title 3--
 The President

[[Page 12119]]

                Memorandum of March 10, 2010

                
Finding And Recapturing Improper Payments

                Memorandum for the Heads of Executive Departments and 
                Agencies

                My Administration is committed to reducing payment 
                errors and eliminating waste, fraud, and abuse in 
                Federal programs--a commitment reflected in Executive 
                Order 13520 of November 20, 2009, Reducing Improper 
                Payments. Executive departments and agencies should use 
                every tool available to identify and subsequently 
                reclaim the funds associated with improper payments. 
                Thorough identification of improper payments promotes 
                accountability at executive departments and agencies; 
                it also makes the integrity of Federal spending 
                transparent to taxpayers. Reclaiming the funds 
                associated with improper payments is a critical 
                component of the proper stewardship and protection of 
                taxpayer dollars, and it underscores that waste, fraud, 
                and abuse by entities receiving Federal payments will 
                not be tolerated.

                Today, to further intensify efforts to reclaim improper 
                payments, my Administration is expanding the use of 
                ``Payment Recapture Audits,'' which have proven to be 
                effective mechanisms for detecting and recapturing 
                payment errors. A Payment Recapture Audit is a process 
                of identifying improper payments paid to contractors or 
                other entities whereby highly skilled accounting 
                specialists and fraud examiners use state-of-the-art 
                tools and technology to examine payment records and 
                uncover such problems as duplicate payments, payments 
                for services not rendered, overpayments, and fictitious 
                vendors. (A Payment Recapture Audit as used in this 
                memorandum shall have the same meaning as the term 
                ``recovery audit'' as defined in Appendix C to Office 
                of Management and Budget Circular A-123.) One approach 
                that has worked effectively is using professional and 
                specialized auditors on a contingency basis, with their 
                compensation tied to the identification of misspent 
                funds.

                Therefore, I hereby direct executive departments and 
                agencies to expand their use of Payment Recapture 
                Audits, to the extent permitted by law and where cost-
                effective. The Director of the Office of Management and 
                Budget (OMB) shall develop guidance within 90 days of 
                the date of this memorandum on actions executive 
                departments and agencies must take to carry out the 
                requirements of this memorandum. The guidance may 
                require additional actions and strategies designed to 
                improve the recapture of improper payments, including, 
                as appropriate, agency-specific targets for increasing 
                recoveries. The Director of the OMB shall further 
                coordinate with the Council for Inspectors General on 
                Integrity and Efficiency to identify an appropriate 
                process for obtaining review by Inspectors General of 
                the effectiveness of agency efforts under this 
                memorandum. The agencies' expanded use of Payment 
                Recapture Audits does not preclude Offices of 
                Inspectors General from performing any activities to 
                identify and prevent improper payments.

                Nothing in this memorandum shall be construed to 
                require the disclosure of classified information, law 
                enforcement sensitive information, or other information 
                that must be protected in the interests of national 
                security.

                This memorandum is not intended to, and does not, 
                create any right or benefit, substantive or procedural, 
                enforceable at law or in equity by any party against 
                the United States, its departments, agencies, or 
                entities, its officers, employees, or agents, or any 
                other person.

[[Page 12120]]

                The Director of the OMB is hereby authorized and 
                directed to publish this memorandum in the Federal 
                Register.
                
                
                    (Presidential Sig.)

                THE WHITE HOUSE,

                    WASHINGTON, March 10, 2010

[FR Doc. 2010-5685
Filed 3-12-10; 8:45 am]
Billing code 3110-01-P