Programs of five agencies that GAO reviewed fell short of standards in customer service set by law and administrative guidance, with all five meeting only one such guideline, providing customers with opportunities to submit feedback—but even three of them did not have formal mechanisms for reviewing those comments and complaints.
GAO reviewed the customer service standards at Customs and Border Protection, Forest Service, Federal Student Aid, the National Park Service, and two services in the Veterans Benefits Administration—disability compensation and Veterans’ Group Life Insurance. Of the key elements of effective customer service standards in the GPRA Modernization Act of 2010 and several executive orders that focused on providing greater accountability, oversight, and transparency: only CBP has standards that are easily and publicly available; only FSA has standards that include performance measures; and only FSA and the two VA programs have standards that include targets or goals for performance.
GAO noted that “providing customer service has been a long-standing challenge for federal agencies” that has been the target of numerous initiatives, most recently OMB’s listing of it as a cross-agency priority goal in the administration’s management agenda. It said the agencies all agreed with its recommendations.
The report is here: http://www.gao.gov/products/GAO-15-84
