[Final Audit Report on Department of the Interior Compliance With Limitations on Lobbying Activities (No. 95-I-457) ]
[From the U.S. Government Printing Office, www.gpo.gov]
Report No. 95-I-457
Title: Final Audit Report on Department of the Interior Compliance
With Limitations on Lobbying Activities (No. 95-I-457)
Date: February 10, 1995
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United States Department of the Interior
OFFICE OF INSPECTOR GENERAL
Washington, D.C. 20240
March 14, 1995
MEMORANDUM
TO: The Secretary
FROM: Acting Inspector General
SUBJECT SUMMARY: Final Audit Report for Your Information - "Department of
the Interior Compliance With Limitations on Lobbying
Activities" (No. 95-I-457)
DISCUSSION: We concluded that the Department of the Interior was in substantial
compliance with the antilobbying provisions of Section 1352 of the United States Code
and that the Section's requirements as implemented by the Department were effective.
We also found that the Department complied with the Congressional reporting
requirements for lobbying activities in a timely manner.
/s/ Joyce N. Fleischman
Joyce N. Fleischman
Attachment
Prepared by: Marvin Pierce
Extension: 208-4252
E-IN-MOA-023-94
United States Department of the Interior
OFFICE OF INSPECTOR GENERAL
Headquarters Audits
1550 Wilson Boulevard
Suite 401
February 10, 1995
MEMORANDUM AUDIT REPORT
To: Assistant Secretary - Policy, Management and Budget
From: Acting Assistant Inspector General for Audits
Subject: Final Audit Report on Department of the Interior Compliance With
Limitations on Lobbying Activities (No. 95-I-457)
INTRODUCTION
In accordance with Section 1352 of the United States Code (31 U.S.C. 1352 (d)(l)),
the Office of Inspector General has reviewed Department of the Interior compliance
with and the effectiveness of the requirements imposed by the Section and the
Department's antilobbying guidance. The objectives of the audit were to determine
whether the Department complied with Section 1352 and to evaluate the
effectiveness of the Section's requirements for certification and disclosure of lobbying
activities. We concluded that overall the Department has substantially complied with
the Section's requirements and that the requirements as implemented by the
Department were effective.
BACKGROUND
Section 319 of Public Law 101-121, enacted on October 23, 1989, amended Title 31
of the United States Code by adding Section 1352, "Limitation on Use of
Appropriated Funds to Influence Certain Federal Contracting and Financial
Transactions." Section 1352 prohibits the use of appropriated funds by the recipient
of a Federal contract, grant, cooperative agreement, or loan to pay any person for
influencing or attempting to influence an officer or employee of any agency, a
member of the Congress, an officer or employee of the Congress, or an employee
of a member of the Congress in connection with certain types of Federal
transactions. The Department of the Interior requires each person who requests or
receives a contract or a cooperative agreement exceeding $100,000 or a loan over
$150,000 from the Department to certify compliance with this antilobbying provision
with a signed certification, Form DI 1963, "Certification Regarding Lobbying."
Subpart 3.808 of the Federal Acquisition Regulation (48 CFR 1) requires the
provision at 52.203-11, "Certification and Disclosure Regarding Payments to
Influence Certain Federal Transactions," to be included in all solicitations for
contracts expected to exceed $100,000 and clause 52.203-12, "Limitation on Payments
to Influence Certain Federal Transactions," to be included in all solicitations and
contracts expected to exceed $100,000.
Any person who requests or receives a Federal contract, grant, or cooperative
agreement exceeding $100,000 or loan exceeding $150,000 who uses nonappropriated
funds for lobbying activities is required to disclose those activities by filing Standard
Form LLL, "Disclosure of Lobbying Activities," with the Department. The
Department is required to collect and compile any information contained in Standard
Form LLL disclosing lobbying activities paid for by any nonappropriated funds
during the 6-month periods ending March 31 and September 30 of each year and to
report the information to the Secretary of the Senate and the Clerk of the House of
Representatives on May 31 and November 30 for the applicable reporting periods.
Title 31, Section 1352(d)(1), of the United States Code requires that the Inspector
General submit to the Congress annually an evaluation of the Department's
compliance with and the effectiveness of the requirements imposed by Section 1352.
SCOPE OF AUDIT
To accomplish our audit, we reviewed 486 contracts, grants, and cooperative
agreements each totaling more than $100,000 that were awarded from April 1, 1993,
through March 31, 1994. We did not review loans over $150,000 because such
transactions occur infrequently within the Department and none of the audit sites
selected for review had recorded loan transactions that exceeded this amount.
This compliance and performance audit was conducted from July through November
1994 at various Departmental and bureau offices (see Appendix 1). The review was
made, as applicable, in accordance with the "Government Auditing Standards," issued
by the Comptroller General of the United States. Accordingly, we included such
tests of records and other auditing procedures that were considered necessary under
the circumstances. As a part of our review, we evaluated the Departmental system
of internal controls for certification and disclosure of lobbying activities. Although
we determined that the existing controls were adequate, we identified a few instances
where the bureaus did not adhere to prescribed procedures and Departmental
guidance.
We also reviewed the Department's Annual Statement and Report, required by the
Federal Managers' Financial Integrity Act, for fiscal year 1993 and noted that the
existence of incomplete and inaccurate data in the Interior Procurement Data System
was reported as a material internal control weakness. Because of this weakness, we
used additional sources, including the Federal Assistance Award Data System and
internal bureau procurement logs, to select our audit samples.
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PRIOR AUDIT COVERAGE
Our prior report entitled "Department of the Interior Compliance With Limitations
on Lobbying Activities" (No. 94-I-474), issued on March 31, 1994, concluded that the
Department was not in compliance with Section 1352 of the United States Code
because (1) 22 percent of the contract, grant, and cooperative agreement files
reviewed did not contain the required antilobbying certifications and (2)
Congressional reporting requirements were not met in a timely manner. The three
recommendations in the report have been implemented.
RESULTS OF AUDIT
We concluded that the Department of the Interior was in substantial compliance with
the antilobbying provisions of Section 1352 of the United States Code and that the
Section's requirements as implemented by the Department were effective. We found
that the required certifications or contract clauses were included in 468 (96 percent)
of the 486 contract, grant, and cooperative agreement files we reviewed (see
Appendix 2). We also found that the Department complied with the Congressional
reporting requirements for lobbying activities in a timely manner.
Certification Requirements
We found that the bureaus had incorporated the required antilobbying provision
52.203.11 or clause 52.203-12 in 264 (96 percent) of the 274 contract files we
reviewed. We also found that 204 (96 percent) of the 212 grant and cooperative
agreement files contained the required Form DI 1963. This compliance rate
represents a substantial improvement since our last audit, which found that only 78
percent of the contracts, grants, and cooperative agreements reviewed were in
compliance.
Each of the offices where instances of noncompliance were identified had controls
and procedures for ensuring compliance with requirements concerning lobbying.
Most of the exceptions we noted were isolated instances except for those at the
National Park Service's National Capital Region, where 5 of 18 contracts were not
in compliance, and the Office of Territorial and International Affairs, where 3 of 15
grants were not in compliance. Officials at those two offices indicated that corrective
action would be taken to ensure future compliance with Section 1352 requirements.
In addition, the bureaus took action during the audit to obtain Forms DI 1963 or to
incorporate the required certifications for the 18 contracts, grants, and cooperative
agreements that were not in compliance (see Appendix 2).
3
Congressional Reporting Requirements
We found that the Department had complied with the Congressional reporting
requirements for lobbying activities in a timely manner. Title 31, Section
1352(a)(6)(A), of the United States Code requires each agency to report information
concerning disclosures of lobbying activities paid for with nonappropriated funds by
May 31 and November 30 of each year for the 6-month reporting periods ending
March 31 and September 30, respectively. The required Departmental reports to the
Congress were dated May 26 and November 29, 1994, respectively.
Effectiveness of Section 1352
We believe that the primary mechanism for preventing the use of appropriated funds
for lobbying activities by recipients of Federal contracts, grants, cooperative
agreements, and loans is to adequately inform all recipients of the Federal
antilobbying provisions. As discussed in the Certification Requirements section of
this report, we found that the Department adequately provided such antilobbying
information in its contracts, grants, and cooperative agreements. We also
determined that there were no HOTLINE allegations or referrals to the Office of
Inspector General concerning prohibited lobbying activities during our audit period.
In addition, we found that procurement personnel at the offices visited during our
audit were unaware of any circumstances regarding the use of Federal appropriated
funds for lobbying activities.
Based on our conclusion that the Department is in substantial compliance with
Section 1352 and our determination that no instances of noncompliance with the
Section's requirements were reported, we believe that the requirements of Section
1352 as implemented by the Department were effective.
Since this report does not contain any recommendations, no response to the report
is required.
/s/ Judy Harrison for
Marvin Pierce
cc: Assistant Secretary - Territorial and International Affairs
Commissioner, Bureau of Reclamation
Deputy to the Assistant Secretary - Operations,
Bureau of Indian Affairs
Director, Bureau of Land Management
Director, Office of Surface Mining Reclamation
and Enforcement
Director, National Park Service
4
Director, Minerals Management Service
Director, U.S. Bureau of Mines
Director, U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service
Director, U.S. Geological Survey
Director, Office of Acquisition and Property Management
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APPENDIX 1
Page 1 of 2
OFFICES VISITED
Office Location
Bureau of Indian Affairs
Procurement and Contracts Branch Sacramento, California
Bureau of Land Management
Washington Branch of Procurements Washington, D.C.
Denver Service Center,
Branch of Procurement Lakewood, Colorado
Branch of Information Resource Acquisition Lakewood, Colorado
Bureau of Reclamation
Acquisition and Assistance Division Sacramento, California
Administrative Service Center, Acquisition
and Property Management Branch Lakewood, Colorado
Minerals Management Service
Procurement and Property Management Division Herndon, Virginia
Western Administrative Service Center,
Procurement and Contracts Branch Golden, Colorado
National Park Service
Contracting and Procurement Division Washington, D.C.
Harpers Ferry Center Harpers Ferry, West Virginia
National Capital Regional Office Washington, D.C.
Mid-Atlantic Regional Office Philadelphia, Pennsylvania
Denver Service Center,
Contract Administration Division Lakewood, Colorado
Rocky Mountain Regional Office Lakewood, Colorado
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APPENDIX 1
Page 2 of 2
Office of Policy, Management and Budget
Office of Acquisition and Property
Management Washington, D.C.
Office of Administrative Services,
Branch of Acquisition Services Washington, D.C.
Office of Surface Mining Reclamation and Enforcement
Office of Acquisition and Property Management Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania
Western Support Center,
Administrative Services Division Denver, Colorado
Program Support Division Denver, Colorado
Office of Territorial and International Affairs
Division of Budget and Grants Management Washington, D.C.
U.S. Bureau of Mines
Branch of Procurement Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania
Branch of Procurement Lakewood, Colorado
U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service
Division of Contracting and General Services Arlington, Virginia
Division of Contracting and General Services,
Region 6 Lakewood, Colorado
Construction Contracting Office,
Denver Service Center Lakewood, Colorado
U.S. Geological Survey
Office of Procurement and Contracts Reston, Virginia
Procurement and Contracts Branch Lakewood, Colorado
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APPENDIX 2
SUMMARY OF CONTRACTS, COOPERATIVE AGREEMENTS,
AND GRANTS REVIEWED FOR COMPLIANCE WITH
LIMITATIONS ON LOBBYING ACTIVITIES
Cooperative
, Total Actions, Contracts, Agreements/Grants
Not in, Not in, Not in,
Bureau, Reviewed, Compliance, Reviewed, Compliance, Reviewed,
Compliance
,,,,,,
Bureau of Indian Affairs, 6, 0, 0, 0, 6, 0
Bureau of Land Management, 23, 0, 23, 0, 0, 0
Bureau of Reclamation, 44, 1, 34, 0, 10, 1
Minerals Management Service, 40, 0, 25, 0, 15, 0
National Park Service, 158, 9, 76, 7, 82, 2
Office of Policy, Management
and Budget, 15, 1, 14, 1, 1, 0
Office of Surface Mining
Reclamation and Enforcement, 26, 1, 15, 1, 11, 0
Office of Territorial and
International Affairs, 15, 3, 0, 0, 15, 3
U.S. Bureau of Mines, 18, 0, 14, 0, 4, 0
U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, 81, 3, 24, 1, 57, 2
U.S. Geological Survey, 60, 0, 49, 0, 11, 0
,,,,,,
Total , 486, 18, 274, 10, 212, 8
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U.S. GOVERNMENT PRINTING OFFICE: 1995 301-126/00040
ILLEGAL OR WASTEFUL ACTIVITIES
SHOULD BE REPORTED TO
THE OFFICE OF INSPECTOR GENERAL BY:
Sending written documents to: Calling:
Within the Continental United States
U.S. Department of the Interior Our 24-hour
Office of Inspector General Telephone HOTLINE
P.O. Box 1593 1-800-424-5081 or
Arlington, Virginia 22210 (703) 235-9399
TDD for the hearing impaired
(703) 235-9403 or
1-800-354-0996
Outside the Continental United States
Caribbean Area
U.S. Department of the Interior (809) 774-8300
Office of Inspector General
Caribbean Region
Federal Building & Courthouse
Veterans Drive, Room 207
St. Thomas, Virgin Islands 00802
North Pacific Region
U.S. Department of the Interior (700) 550-7279 or
Office of Inspector General COMM 9-011-671-472-7279
North Pacific Region
238 Archbishop F.C. Flores Street
Suite 807, PDN Building
Agana, Guam 96910
Toll Free Numbers
1-800-424-5081
TDD 1-800-354-0996
FTS/Commercial Numbers
703-235-9399
TDD 703-235-9403
HOTLINE
P.O. BOX 1593
Arlington, Virginia 22210