Semiannual Report to Congress, October 1, 2000 – March 31, 2001
OTHER OIG ACTIVITIES
Briefings and Training Activities
OIG personnel regularly offer their expertise to Department components and
to the governmental community and serve as instructors for various training
activities. For example, during this reporting period:
- OIG investigators conducted 61 Integrity Awareness Briefings for Department employees
throughout the country. These briefings are designed to educate employees about
the misuse of a public official’s position for personal gain and to deter
employees from committing such offenses. The briefings reached more than 1,750
employees with a message highlighting the devastating effect corruption has on
both the employee and the agency.
- Audit continued to monitor the
Department’s critical automation initiatives to enhance automated data processing
operations. Auditors attended briefings by INS, DEA, FBI, and EOUSA senior
management to monitor their use of automation resources. Audit staff also
attended meetings of the Department Chief Information Officers Council, whose
objectives are to improve the Department’s use of IT to perform the Department’s
core missions and ensure IT resources are properly managed.
- The AIGI
participated as an instructor at the Department’s Adverse Actions Seminar at the
National Advocacy Center in Columbia, South Carolina; a seminar hosted by the
USMS Witness Security Division in Annapolis, Maryland, on the handling of USMS
funds in the Witness Security Program; and an FBI Public Corruption In-Service
Training program at the FBI Academy in Quantico, Virginia, for approximately 35
agents from the FBI, INS, Customs Service, local police, and OIG Southwest Border
offices.
- An OIG special agent, at the request of the Office of
Overseas Prosecutorial Development, Assistance and Training (OPDAT), traveled to
Budapest, Hungary, to train investigators and police officials from the Budapest
law enforcement community on developing public corruption cases and teambuilding.
Also at the request of OPDAT, a second OIG special agent traveled to the Republic
of Georgia to assist in an evaluation of its prison system.
- A special
agent from the Chicago Field Office assisted the Inspector General Academy (IGA)
at the Federal Law Enforcement Training Center (FLETC) in developing and
presenting its Undercover Operations Training Program. The agent developed
presentations covering such topics as Department undercover guidelines, the
psychological impact of undercover work, and the challenges of undercover work.
The special agent-in-charge of the OIG’s Fraud Detection Office assisted the IGA
at FLETC in developing the curriculum of its Contract and Grant Fraud Training
course for investigators in the IG community.
- Inspections participated
in the Department’s Security Programs Managers Training series. Inspections
staff provided technical assistance and discussed personnel security issues that
surfaced during the OIG inspection of the Department’s Contractor Personnel
Security Program. This training session was a direct result of the OIG
inspection. (See page 29 for more information.)
Task Forces, Working Groups, and Committees
In addition to the
important work it conducts within the Department, the OIG participates in
cooperative endeavors with other entities. Noteworthy activities during this
reporting period are described below.
- The San Diego Field Office
participates, along with the FBI, DEA, U.S. Customs Office of Internal Affairs,
and Internal Revenue Service, in the San Diego Border Corruption Task Force that
investigates allegations of corruption against federal law enforcement officials.
Currently there are 26 ongoing BCTF investigations, 13 of which were initially
reported to the OIG’s San Diego Field Office.
- Investigations staff
participated in a Department task force that developed the 2001 Department of
Justice Guidelines Regarding the Use of Confidential Informants. Investigations
staff also participated in the Weapons Carriage Task Force, which is organized by
the Federal Aviation Administration and is attempting to establish standards and
regulations by which armed law enforcement personnel with a need to board public
aircraft can be identified on a national basis.
- Audit is a member and
attended meetings of the Intelligence Community Inspector General Forum,
Information Assurance Working Group (IAWG). The IAWG serves as the Intelligence
Community IG Forum’s principal mechanism to provide information sharing and
coordination on information assurance oversight projects and related initiatives.
During this reporting period, the group hosted speakers who discussed topics that
included computer crimes, the Defense Criminal Investigative Service Computer
Intrusion Program, and legal issues in information operations.
- Audit
participates in the Department’s Information Technology Security Officers Working
Group, a forum for Department security personnel to learn about the latest in
security vulnerabilities, technologies, and solutions.
- Audit also
participates in the Department’s Financial Statement Working Group meetings.
These meetings provide continuing guidance to Department components on the
compilation of consolidated and component financial statements.
- As part
of the Federal Audit Executive Committee’s Financial Statement Audit Network,
Audit participates in the interagency group that is revising the GAO’s Financial
Audit Manual for use by the IG community.
- Inspections participates in
the Department’s Research Council, which informs the Attorney General and Deputy
Attorney General of current law enforcement research projects, and in the OIG
community’s Misconduct in Research Working Group. During this reporting period,
the working group completed its review of a government-wide executive policy
addressing research misconduct.
- The Office of General Counsel served
on the Attorney General’s Committee on the Department of Justice Deadly Force
Policy. The Office of the Deputy Attorney General is reviewing the
recommendations made by this working group to clarify the current policy and make
it more useful to Department law enforcement personnel.
- The National
Archives and Records Administration (NARA) asked the OIG to participate in its
review of records management. Inspections coordinated this activity and arranged
for OIG staff to participate in a focus group to provide input on current
recordkeeping and records uses, particularly electronic records, within the OIG
and Department. NARA will use this information to evaluate the effectiveness of
its records program and to assess needed changes.
Legislation and Regulations
The IG Act directs the OIG to
review proposed legislation and regulations relating to the programs and
operations of the Department. Although the Department’s Office of Legislative
Affairs reviews all proposed or enacted legislation that could affect the
Department’s activities, the OIG independently reviews proposed legislation that
affects it or legislation that relates to waste, fraud, or abuse in the
Department’s programs or operations. During this reporting period, the OIG
reviewed a variety of legislation, including a bill that formally established an
OIG Criminal Investigator Academy and a Forensic Laboratory to perform forensic
services for OIG investigations.
President’s Council on Integrity and Efficiency Activities
The PCIE consists of the 28
Presidentially appointed IGs in the federal government. OIG staff participate in
a variety of PCIE activities and serve on numerous PCIE committees and subgroups.
During this reporting period, the Deputy IG served on the PCIE working group that
drafted a proposed strategic plan for the PCIE. The General Counsel represented
the PCIE on an inter-agency working group that addressed the implementation of
the Administrative Disputes Resolution (ADR) Act, particularly relating to issues
of confidentiality and access to records of ADR proceedings. The General Counsel
also worked on new privacy rules of interest to the PCIE that relate to health
care providers.
Audit staff attend regular meetings of the PCIE OIG GPRA
Coordinators’ Interest Group; this group addresses issues of consistency when the
OIG deals with Congress, OMB, and the GAO on GPRA issues. Audit staff also attend
meetings of the PCIE Information Technology (IT) Roundtable. During this
reporting period, the PCIE IT Roundtable surveyed OIG information technology
resources and clarified the IG requirements for GISRA, which requires IGs to
submit to Congress a report disclosing any activity relating to the collection of
data about individuals who access a department’s or agency’s Internet site. Audit
also is participating in the Infrastructure Protection audits sponsored by the
PCIE.
The Investigations AIG (AIGI) is a member of the PCIE
Investigations Advisory Subcommittee. The Subcommittee advises the Investigations
Committee of the PCIE on matters of policy, training, and practices relating to
OIG investigations. During this reporting period, the AIGI and Deputy AIGI
attended the PCIE’s Annual Association of Directors of Investigations Conference.
The conference focused on “addressing the challenges of the 21st century” in both
the OIG and law enforcement communities.
Also during this reporting
period, Inspections staff participated in the PCIE Inspection and Evaluation
Council meetings. These meetings have addressed training initiatives for the
Inspection and Evaluation community and future proposals for joint PCIE/ECIE
(Executive Council on Integrity and Efficiency) projects.