The DHS inspector general has found that none of 43 reimbursable work arrangements it examined—which provide for goods or services to be provided by another agency or another component within that department—had been passed through the required level of review.
It was assessing compliance with a January 2015 order requiring components to have a certified acquisition official review RWAs to ensure they are being issued properly prior to obligating funds. Not only was that not done in the contracts the auditors examined, worth $88 million in total, but 70 percent of them “did not include enough information for a CAO to make an informed decision” even if they had been reviewed.
The main reason, it said, was that DHS did not ensure components updated their policies and procedures to reflect the new requirements.
DHS spent $12.5 billion on such agreements in 2014, it added.
It said management agreed with its recommendations and has begun carrying out corrective actions.
