Report Contents
What OIG Inspected
OIG inspected the executive direction, policy and program implementation, resource management, and information management operations of Embassy Ottawa. The inspection included Consulates General Calgary, Halifax, Montreal, Quebec City, Toronto, and Vancouver, and Consulate Winnipeg.
What OIG Recommends
OIG made 27 recommendations: 26 to Embassy Ottawa and 1 to the Bureau of Information Resource Management. In its comments on the draft report, the Department concurred with 25 recommendations and disagreed with 2 recommendations. OIG considers 26 recommendations resolved and 1 recommendation unresolved. The Department’s response to each recommendation, and OIG’s reply, can be found in the Recommendations section of this report. The Department’s formal responses are reprinted in their entirety in Appendix B.
What OIG Found
- Mission Canada’s leadership team generally modeled the Department of State’s leadership principles, and the Ambassador and Deputy Chief of Mission emphasized diversity and inclusion.
- The mission’s Political and Economic Sections collaborated to advance most Integrated Country Strategy and Department priorities, with the exception of countering malign People’s Republic of China activities and Arctic issues.
- Mission Canada’s Consular Sections continued to meet high demand for U.S. passports and Consular Reports of Birth Abroad within standards and were addressing a backlog in nonimmigrant visa services.
- The mission had consular issues related to space and line of sight, file storage, passport adjudication audits, and fraud prevention.
- Seismic assessments had not been conducted on all Consulate General Vancouver facilities, as required. Additionally, mission wide, the motor vehicle, property management, contracting officer’s representative, and housing programs did not fully comply with Department standards.
- The mission had information management issues related to information security practices, standard operating documentation, network cabling, and records management.
- Spotlight on Success: Mission Canada added a floating holiday to advance its diversity, equity, inclusion, and accessibility goal.
- Spotlight on Success: Consulates General Calgary, Halifax, Montreal, Quebec City, Toronto, and Vancouver used contractors for after-hours calls, reducing the burden on duty officers.
Report Terms
Report Recommendations
Embassy Ottawa should implement a First- and Second-Tour program that complies with Department standards.
Embassy Ottawa should implement procedures to improve working group relationships and collaboration on Integrated Country Strategy and Department priorities related to the Arctic and countering malign People’s Republic of China activities in Canada.
Embassy Ottawa should implement clearance procedures for reporting on Integrated Country Strategy priorities in accordance with Department standards.
Embassy Ottawa should include all required documents in its public diplomacy grants files in accordance with Department standards.
Embassy Ottawa, in coordination with the Bureau of Overseas Buildings Operations, should bring all consular spaces into compliance with Department standards.
Embassy Ottawa should bring its consular file storage into compliance with Department standards.
Embassy Ottawa should conduct audits of passport adjudications in accordance with Department standards.
Embassy Ottawa should create a fraud prevention strategy for Consulate General Montreal in accordance with Department standards.
Embassy Ottawa, in coordination with the Bureau of Overseas Buildings Operations, should perform seismic evaluations of residential and nonresidential properties at Consulate General Vancouver, in accordance with Department standards.
Embassy Ottawa should comply with all Department Motor Vehicle Safety Management Program standards for incidental drivers under chief of mission authority.
Embassy Ottawa should use the Integrated Logistics Management System to account for all expendable property in accordance with Department standards.
Embassy Ottawa should bring its contracting officer’s representative program into compliance with Department standards.
Embassy Ottawa should bring its living quarters allowance leasing program into compliance with Department standards.
Embassy Ottawa should submit its hotel and restaurant reports to the Bureau of Administration’s Office of Allowances, in accordance with Department standards.
Embassy Ottawa, in coordination with the Bureaus of Western Hemisphere Affairs and the Comptroller and Global Financial Services, should reprogram additional Diplomatic Engagement-funded Information Management positions to International Cooperative Administrative Support Services-funded positions, in accordance with Department standards, so funds of up to $243,993 over 3 years per position can be put to better use.
Embassy Ottawa should bring its cashiering operations into compliance with Department standards.
Embassy Ottawa should submit its education allowance surveys in accordance with Department standards.
Embassy Ottawa should complete all information systems security officer responsibilities in accordance with Department standards.
Embassy Ottawa should create and maintain standard operating procedures for unclassified and classified computer operations and support at Consulates General Halifax and Quebec City.
The Bureau of Information Resource Management, in coordination with Embassy Ottawa, should configure SharePoint permissions to comply with Department standards at Mission Canada.
Embassy Ottawa should require its local Information Technology Configuration Control Board to comply with Department standards.
Embassy Ottawa should bring the network cabling at Consulates General Halifax and Toronto into compliance with Department standards.
Embassy Ottawa should limit access to the Consulate General Montreal’s Information Systems Center in accordance with Department standards.
Embassy Ottawa, in coordination with the Bureau of Overseas Buildings Operations, should bring the mail screening facility at Consulate General Vancouver into compliance with Department standards.
Embassy Ottawa should implement standard operating procedures and maintenance log records for Consulate General Montreal’s telephone system.
Embassy Ottawa should relocate the telecommunications demarcation point outside the limited access main telephone frame room at Consulate General Toronto.
Embassy Ottawa should implement a records management program that complies with Department standards.