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Department of State
U.S. Agency for Global Media
Embassy Ankara should document and preserve ambassadorial email communication in accordance with Department standards.
Embassy Ankara should require that Mission Turkey Emergency Action Committees review and report on decision points when these committees meet.
The Bureau of European and Eurasian Affairs, in coordination with the Bureau of Consular Affairs and the Bureau of Human Resources, should establish a consular/staff aide rotational position.
The Bureau of Near Eastern Affairs, in coordination with Embassy Ankara, should incorporate independent monitoring into all its high-risk Syria Transition Assistance Response Team-related programs implemented from Turkey.
The Bureau of Near Eastern Affairs, in coordination with the Bureau of Administration, should reduce the Department's processing times for vetting potential assistance recipients and program personnel to conform with the Quadrennial Diplomatic and Development Review mandate to standardize Department and U.S. Agency for International Development risk management and mitigation.
Embassy Ankara should designate the Deputy Chief of Mission to have general oversight of the Embassy Branch Office, including authority to designate an on-site officer in charge of the Embassy Branch Office whenever temporary duty personnel are present.
Embassy Ankara should establish standardized decision criteria and documentation, approved by the Emergency Action Committee, for adjudicating requests to travel in southeastern Turkey.
Embassy Ankara should assign responsibility for full logistical support for official visitors to Visitors Units at the embassy and at the consulate general.
Embassy Ankara should develop a strategy to advance the Integrated Country Strategy's economic goals through outreach, engagement, and reporting.
Embassy Ankara should develop a country program plan to use grants to achieve mission strategic goals, including roles, responsibilities, and training for mission Public Affairs Sections.
The Bureau of European and Eurasian Affairs, in coordination with the Bureau of Human Resources, should bring the rank of the Istanbul Cultural Affairs Officer into compliance with the National Security Decision Directive 38 process that created the position and the corresponding position standards.
Embassy Ankara, in coordination with the Bureau of International Information Programs, should terminate the American Corner designation of spaces in Bursa, Erzurum, and Izmir.
Embassy Ankara should track and measure Mission Turkey Public Diplomacy activities using the mandated Mission Activities Tracking database.
Embassy Ankara should designate primary and back-up consular officers to support Adana's special consular services.
Embassy Ankara, in coordination with the Bureau of Consular Affairs, should eliminate the current backlog of immigrant visa cases.
Embassy Ankara should require Consulate General Istanbul to rewrite the position descriptions for the three members of the Istanbul treaty trader and treaty investor group and submit the rewritten position descriptions to the Frankfurt Regional Support Center for classification.
The Bureau of Consular Affairs, in coordination with Embassy Ankara, the Bureau of Overseas Buildings Operations, and the Bureau of Diplomatic Security, should conduct a cost-benefit analysis to determine the future of the Consular Agency in Izmir and a need to identify a replacement property prior to the expiration of the existing lease on February 28, 2017.
Embassy Ankara should update its Merit Based Compensation Handbook.
Embassy Ankara should pay Prompt Payment Act interest fees on late payments.
Embassy Ankara should instruct Consulate General Istanbul to discontinue transferring employees’ personal payments through official bank accounts.
Embassy Ankara should require Consulate Adana to discontinue providing accommodation exchange services.
Embassy Ankara should bring all Mission Turkey residences into compliance with Post Occupational Safety Health standards.
Embassy Ankara should require Consulate General Istanbul to complete all required residential security surveys.
Embassy Ankara should require all Mission Turkey motor pools to comply with the Department’s Motor Vehicle Safety Management Program policy on vehicle operator duty limits.
Embassy Ankara should require all mission Contracting Officer’s Representatives to maintain required files.
Embassy Ankara should require Consulate Adana to establish internal controls to bring procurement files into compliance with Federal Acquisition Regulations and Department requirements.
Embassy Ankara should require Consulate General Istanbul to assign the designated billing office function to its Financial Management Office.
Embassy Ankara should require Consulate General Istanbul and Consulate Adana to establish standard operating procedures to maintain separation of duties among staff members in procurement and property.
Embassy Ankara should require offices to manage records in accordance with Department standards.
Embassy Ankara should require mission sections to use the State Messaging and Archive Retrieval Toolset application to archive email and other official electronic correspondence.
Embassy Montevideo should comply with Department guidance and preserve record correspondence by using the record email system.
Embassy Montevideo should issue travel authorizations that comply with Department regulations.
OIG recommends that the Bureau of Administration establish a Strategic Sourcing Council to implement strategic sourcing program activities.
OIG recommends that the Department of State Strategic Sourcing Council (Recommendation 1) develop a charter for the Council that identifies members, roles, responsibilities, and operations.
OIG recommends that the Bureau of Administration, in coordination with the Strategic Sourcing Council (Recommendation 1), develop and implement a policy to establish overall Department of State-wide strategic sourcing program goals and objectives by fiscal year.
OIG recommends that the Bureau of Administration, in coordination with the Strategic Sourcing Council (Recommendation 1), develop and implement procedures to establish goals and objectives for strategic sourcing initiatives that are currently in place.
OIG recommends that the Bureau of Administration, in coordination with the Strategic Sourcing Council (Recommendation 1), develop and implement procedures to establish goals and objectives for the implementation of the identified potential strategic sourcing initiatives that are not currently in place.
OIG recommends that the Bureau of Administration, in coordination with the Strategic Sourcing Council (Recommendation 1), develop and implement a process to establish performance measures for strategic sourcing initiatives.
OIG recommends that the Bureau of Administration, in coordination with the Strategic Sourcing Council (Recommendation 1), establish a communication plan for the strategic sourcing program.
OIG recommends that the Bureau of Administration, in coordination with the Strategic Sourcing Council (Recommendation 1), formally establish the strategic sourcing program in the Foreign Affairs Manual and/or the Foreign Affairs Handbook.
OIG recommends that the Bureau of Administration, in coordination with the Strategic Sourcing Council (Recommendation 1), develop and implement an OpenNet site for personnel to obtain information regarding current and future strategic sourcing initiatives.
OIG recommends that the Bureau of Administration, in coordination with the Strategic Sourcing Council (Recommendation 1), develop and implement a process to track bureau and office compliance with Department requirements to use strategic sourcing initiatives.
OIG recommends that the Bureau of Administration, in coordination with the Strategic Sourcing Council (Recommendation 1), develop and implement controls to prohibit users from ordering office supplies from vendors other than the approved Federal Strategic Sourcing Initiative office supply vendors without obtaining a valid waiver.
OIG recommends that the International Boundary and Water Commission, United States and Mexico, U.S. Section, implement encryption for its personally identifiable information stored on its shared drives and network to comply with National Institute of Standards and Technology, Special Publication 800-53, rev. 4, requirements.
OIG recommends that the International Boundary and Water Commission, United States and Mexico, U.S. Section, issue a Systems of Records Notice that addresses the privacy information collected, as required by the Privacy Act.
Sensitive Information Redacted
Embassy Tegucigalpa should use record emails and provide relevant training to reporting officers.
Embassy Tegucigalpa, in coordination with the Bureau of International Narcotics and Law Enforcement Affairs, should provide the appropriate staff to supervise and manage International Narcotics and Law Enforcement Affairs operations.
Embassy Tegucigalpa should include required documentation in International Narcotics and Law Enforcement program files, in accordance with Department guidelines.
Embassy Tegucigalpa should conduct risk assessments and develop monitoring plans on Federal grants awarded by its Public Affairs Section in accordance with Department guidelines.
Embassy Tegucigalpa should implement a duty officer program that includes Management Section oversight and an up-to-date duty officer guide.
Embassy Tegucigalpa, in coordination with the Bureau of the Comptroller and Global Financial Services, should reconcile the outstanding travel vouchers, including initiating collection action for individual travelers’ indebtedness.
Embassy Tegucigalpa should require authorizing officials to approve mission staff requests for overtime in advance.
The Bureau of Information Resource Management, in coordination with Embassy Tegucigalpa, should complete the installation of the private branch exchange system.
Embassy Tegucigalpa should install an emergency shower in the mail screening facility.
OIG recommends that the Bureau of Administration, Office of Logistics Management, Office of Acquisitions Management modify the quality assurance surveillance plan for the Phoenix Air Group contract (SAQMMA15C0022) to include a methodology to measure and document contractor performance in accordance with the Federal Acquisition Regulation and Department of State policies.
OIG recommends that the Bureau of Medical Services establish and implement controls to adequately segregate activities related to authority, custody, and accounting for aeromedical biocontainment evacuation contracts.
OIG recommends that the Bureau of Medical Services develop and implement a method to adequately track and report the use of emergency funds related to the Ebola appropriation and other emergency funds appropriated by Congress.
OIG recommends the Bureau of Medical Services develop and implement procedures for processing invoices, billing, and collecting reimbursements for non-Department of State medical evacuations.
OIG recommends that the Bureau of Near Eastern Affairs (NEA) develop and implement a process to verify that grants officers and the grants officers representatives develop and implement monitoring plans that comply with the Federal Assistance Policy Directive, specifically subchapters 2.03-A, Risk Management; 3.01-A, Monitoring Plan; and 3.01-B, Financial Reporting. Specifically, the monitoring plans should enable NEA to obtain reasonable assurance that award recipients have adequate financial management controls in place.
OIG recommends that the Bureau of Near Eastern Affairs conduct site visits, as recommended by the Federal Assistance Policy Directive and the Federal Assistance Procedures Desk Guide, to monitor award recipients' financial activities, including reviewing the recipients' financial policies and procedures, financial management controls, and supporting documentation for a selection of expenditures, and establish a corrective action plan, if necessary.
OIG recommends that the Bureau of Near Eastern Affairs (a) determine whether questioned costs of $1.5 million identified in this report are allowable and supported and (b) recover any costs determined to be unallowable or unsupported.
OIG recommends that the Bureau of Near Eastern Affairs review the 223 MEPI awards not selected for this audit to determine whether unallowable and unsupported costs exist in those awards and to recover any costs deemed unallowable or unsupported.
The Office of Management Policy, Rightsizing, and Innovation, in coordination with the Bureau of Overseas Buildings Operations and the Bureau of Diplomatic Security, should establish a mandatory training requirement on armored vehicle safe-driving techniques for all overseas professional chauffeurs and incidental drivers who operate such vehicles.
The Bureau of International Narcotics and Law Enforcement Affairs should establish and track all training requirements for program officers and financial management analysts.
OIG recommends that the Bureau of Near Eastern Affairs develop Performance Work Statements for task orders SAQMMA15F0567 and SAQMMA15F1245 that comply with requirements identified in Federal Acquisition Regulation 37.602, “Performance Work Statement,” and Foreign Affairs Handbook Volume 14-2, Subchapter H-340, “The Performance Work Statement,” and provide the revised Performance Work Statements to the Bureau of Administration, Office of Logistics Management, Office of Acquisitions Management, for incorporation and implementation via task order modifications.
OIG recommends that the Bureau of Near Eastern Affairs develop and implement a Quality Assurance Surveillance Plan in accordance with Federal Acquisition Regulation 46.4, “Government Contract Quality Assurance,” and the revised Performance Work Statements, to guide oversight of all ongoing and future revitalization, transition, and sustainment requirements for task orders SAQMMA15F0567 and SAQMMA15F1245.
OIG recommends that the Bureau of Administration, Office of Logistics Management, Office of Acquisitions Management properly assign all Assistant Contracting Officer's Representatives via a delegation memorandum to conduct oversight activities at the Union III Compound for Operations and Maintenance Support Service task orders SAQMMA15F0567 and SAQMMA15F1245, in accordance with the Foreign Affairs Handbook.
OIG recommends that the Bureau of Near Eastern Affairs develop and implement a process to validate, at a minimum on a quarterly basis, that oversight personnel perform and document in the contract files all required oversight tasks in accordance with Federal regulations, Department policies, and their delegation memoranda.
OIG recommends that the Bureau of Near Eastern Affairs, in coordination with the Department of Defense, identify requirements for task orders SAQMMA15F0567 and SAQMMA15F1245 and milestone dates for completion, and communicate the defined requirements to the Bureau of Administration, Office of Logistics Management, Office of Acquisitions Management by the established milestone dates.
OIG recommends that the Bureau of Administration, Office of Logistics Management, Office of Acquisitions Management promptly definitize task orders SAQMMA15F0567 and SAQMMA15F1245 for the Union III Compound once defined requirements are obtained from the Bureau of Near Eastern Affairs.
OIG recommends that the Bureau of Administration, Office of Logistics Management, Office of Acquisitions Management develop and implement a process to ensure undefinitized task orders are definitized within 180 days after the date of the letter contract or before completion of 40 percent of the work to be performed, whichever occurs first, as required by the Federal Acquisition Regulation. This process should include a method for tracking elapsed time frames on undefinitized contract actions.
OIG recommends that the Bureau of Administration, Office of Logistics Management, Office of Acquisitions Management recover $381,658 of unallowable fees invoiced and paid under the Department of Defense-funded task order SAQMMA15F1245 to PAE Government Services, Inc., and return the funds to the Department of Defense.
OIG recommends that the Bureau of Administration, Office of Logistics Management, Office of Acquisitions Management recover $122,341 of unallowable fees invoiced and paid under the Department of Defense-funded Baghdad Life Support Services task order SAQMMA15F1246 to PAE Government Services, Inc., and return the funds to the Department of Defense.
OIG recommends that the Bureau of Administration, Office of Logistics Management, Office of Acquisitions Management develop and implement a process to ensure that Department offices performing invoice reviews, including the Contract Management Office within the Bureau of Near Eastern Affairs, are provided timely notification of undefinitized task order awards and subsequent definitization actions.
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Note: The information includes all open recommendations from reports that were issued October 1, 2014. Potential Monetary Benefits values are as stated in reports—subsequent Department and USAGM management decisions and actions may result in different values.
