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Open Recommendations (71 total)

Advanced Manufacturing: Innovation Institutes Have Demonstrated Initial Accomplishments, but Challenges Remain in Measuring Performance and Ensuring Sustainability

GAO-19-409
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1 Open Recommendations
Agency Affected Recommendation Status
Department of Commerce The Secretary of Commerce should direct the National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST) Director to work with other sponsoring federal agencies to develop and implement network-wide performance goals for the Manufacturing USA program with measurable targets and time frames. (Recommendation 1)
Open
Commerce partially concurred with this recommendation according to its response to our report. Commerce stated that it lacks the legal authority to compel action by other federal agencies. We recognize that Commerce does not have management authority over other the institutes sponsored by other agencies. We believe our report sufficiently characterizes the development of network-wide performance goals, targets, and time frames as a collaborative effort between Commerce and sponsoring agencies that is in keeping with Commerce's network-wide coordination functions under the RAMI Act as amended. Moreover, our recommendation specifically pertained to developing performance goals for the Manufacturing USA program, not individual institutes. Further, as stated in our report, GAO's prior work has shown that systems of performance measures benefit from certain key practices, such as creating a hierarchy that breaks down broad, long-term goals and objectives into more specific, near-term performance goals with measurable targets and time frames. Our recommendation was designed to ensure that the Manufacturing USA program performance measurement structure that Commerce has already worked with the other sponsoring agencies to develop more fully aligns with these key practices. According to an August 2023 update from NIST, the interagency working team working on the triennial Manufacturing USA Strategic Plan has agreed to work on developing and implementing network-wide performance goals for the Manufacturing USA program. The team agreed to adapt the NIST-developed framework, including new strategic objectives for the program, as a first step toward strengthening network-wide performance measures. According to NIST's update, the framework, first developed for Commerce-sponsored institutes, leverages GAO recommendations, and links network-wide performance measures to network-wide performance goals, Manufacturing USA strategic objectives and program goals, and the program's statutory purposes. The participating sponsoring agencies also agreed to consider network-wide measurable targets and time frames. According to a NIST official, the interagency consensus described above has been incorporated into the draft triennial strategic plan, which is under review as of March 2024. We will provide a further update when we receive additional information from the agency.

Economic and Commercial Diplomacy: State and Commerce Could Build on Efforts to Improve Coordination and Effectiveness

GAO-22-105860
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1 Open Recommendations
Agency Affected Recommendation Status
Department of Commerce The Secretary of State and the Secretary of Commerce should ensure their agencies indicate a method to evaluate outcomes or a way to track or monitor progress toward goals for the program in their guidance cables for the Deal Team Initiative. (Recommendation 5)
Open
The Department of Commerce provided an action plan in January 2023 indicating its readiness to assist the Department of State in applying best practices in identifying performance measures and will continue to engage State at the working level on determining performance measures that will help State assess and report on its collaborative measures under the Deal Team Initiative (DTI) program, consistent with but not necessarily duplicative of Department of Commerce metrics. Action supporting the Department of State issuance of guidance cables addressing performance measures is expected to be completed no later than Q4 FY 2023. As of April 2023, we continue to monitor Commerce's actions in response to this recommendation.

2010 Census: Census Bureau Has Made Progress on Schedule and Operational Control Tools, but Needs to Prioritize Remaining System Requirements

GAO-10-59
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1 Open Recommendations
Agency Affected Recommendation Status
Department of Commerce To improve the Bureau's use of its master schedule to manage the 2020 decennial census, the Secretary of Commerce should require the Director of the U.S. Census Bureau to include estimates of the resources, such as labor, materials, and overhead costs, in the 2020 integrated schedule for each activity as the schedule is built, and prepare to carry out other steps as necessary to conduct systematic schedule risk analyses on the 2020 schedule.
Open
Commerce neither agreed nor disagreed with this recommendation. Regarding GAO's 2013 assessment of the Bureau's schedule (GAO-14-59), Bureau officials stated that they hoped to begin identifying the resources needed for each activity in their schedules by early 2014. Bureau officials announced they had completed the 2020 Census schedule in July 2016, and have since periodically described their intent to link resources to activities within their schedules. However, as of May 2018, the Bureau had not taken these steps. Senior Bureau officials stated that it would require additional staffing in order to plan for and implement this recommendation. In July 2018 (GAO-18-589) we reported again on the status of the Bureau's scheduling, stating that when the Bureau has resource loaded its schedule, it will be able to use the schedule more effectively as a management tool. The Bureau took steps toward assigning resources to its master activity schedule for the 2020 Census, but effectively ran out of time to do so. Assigning resources to large complex schedules is easier to do early in the schedule development process, as we recommended the Bureau do in 2009 for its 2020 Census schedule. As of March 2024, this recommendation remains open. To implement this recommendation the Bureau will need to develop its 2030 schedule with the appropriate resources linked to it.

Commerce Working Capital Fund: Policy and Performance Measure Enhancements Could Help Strengthen Management

GAO-23-104624
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1 Open Recommendations
Agency Affected Recommendation Status
Department of Commerce Commerce's Chief Financial Officer/Assistant Secretary for Administration should coordinate with OSFM and WCF service providers to create and document a process to regularly review the results of WCF performance measures. (Recommendation 4)
Open
In its comments on our report, Commerce agreed with this recommendation. In June 2023, Commerce stated that the Office of the Secretary Financial Management (OSFM) plans to work with Commerce's Performance Office to document a process to regularly review Working Capital Fund (WCF) performance measures. OSFM also plans to communicate the results of those measures to WCF service providers and customers. Commerce expects to complete these actions by December 2023. When we confirm what actions Commerce has taken in response to this recommendation, we will provide updated information.

2020 Census: Actions Needed to Improve Census Bureau's Process for Working with Governments to Build Address List

GAO-20-17
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1 Open Recommendations
Agency Affected Recommendation Status
Department of Commerce The Secretary of Commerce should ensure that the Director of the Census Bureau uses the Bureau's data on hard-to-count areas to inform geographic activities such as: targeting LUCA outreach to tribal, state, and local governments; planning additional rounds of in-office address canvassing; and providing feedback to tribal, state, and local governments on gaps in their respective address data. (Recommendation 7)
Open
Commerce agreed with this recommendation. In its April 2020 action plan, the Bureau indicated that it would give participants access to the Bureau's data on hard-to-count areas so that participants could prioritize their address list review efforts. In December 2022, Bureau officials described a series of tools they were working on that would enable the Bureau and participants to better see the geography where address improvement activity may be most needed. They also described a research plan they would work on later in the decade for locating and enumerating historically undercounted populations, which they expected would help address this recommendation. In February 2023, they informed us that they target the related data analysis to be completed by September 2024; and in March 2024, confirmed that they will use the hard-to-count information in their forthcoming data-driven coverage-based approach for LUCA. In order to fully implement this recommendation, the Bureau will need to demonstrate later in the decennial cycle how it is using its data on hard-to-count areas to improve targeting of outreach to governments, planning other address-improvement activity, and providing feedback to governments.

2020 Census: Office Managers' Perspectives on Recent Operations Would Strengthen Planning for 2030

GAO-21-104071
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1 Open Recommendations
Agency Affected Recommendation Status
Department of Commerce The Secretary of Commerce and the Director of the U.S. Census Bureau should use relevant data from our 2020 survey of area census office managers to inform planning decisions for the 2030 Census. (Recommendation 1)
Open
Commerce agreed with our recommendation. The Bureau indicated in its December 2021 action plan that it will review and analyze data we reported (see GAO-21-105237) with other available data, and that it plans to release an analysis of these data sources by September 30, 2024. In March 2024, Bureau officials confirmed they plan to release their related analysis by September 2024. In order to implement this recommendation, the Bureau will need to be able to demonstrate that this planned analysis took place and informed subsequent planning decisions for the 2030 Census.

IT Modernization: Census Bureau Needs Reliable Cost and Schedule Estimates

GAO-24-105979
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1 Open Recommendations
Agency Affected Recommendation Status
Department of Commerce The Secretary of Commerce should direct the Director of the Census Bureau to ensure that the CEDSCI program develops reliable cost estimates using best practices described in GAO's Cost Estimating and Assessment Guide, in particular those practices related to the comprehensive and credible characteristics. (Recommendation 2)
Open
When we confirm what actions the agency has taken in response to this recommendation, we will provide updated information.

Advanced Manufacturing: Innovation Institutes Have Demonstrated Initial Accomplishments, but Challenges Remain in Measuring Performance and Ensuring Sustainability

GAO-19-409
Show
1 Open Recommendations
Agency Affected Recommendation Status
Department of Commerce The Secretary of Commerce should direct the NIST Director to work with other sponsoring federal agencies to ensure that the Manufacturing USA network-wide performance measures are directly aligned with the network-wide performance goals, the Manufacturing USA strategic objectives and program goals, and the statutory purposes of the Revitalize American Manufacturing and Innovation (RAMI) Act. (Recommendation 2)
Open
Commerce partially concurred with this recommendation according to its response to our report. In March 2020, Commerce stated that it supported the alignment of performance measures with performance goals only for Commerce-sponsored institutes because the other institutes (at the time of our report) were authorized under authorities other than the RAMI Act and were sponsored by agencies other than Commerce. We recognize that Commerce does not have management authority over other the institutes sponsored by other agencies. We believe our report sufficiently characterized the effort to align the network-wide performance measures with network-wide performance goals and Manufacturing USA program goals as a collaborative effort between Commerce and sponsoring agencies that is in keeping with Commerce's coordination functions under the RAMI Act, as amended. GAO's prior work has shown that systems of performance measures benefit from certain key practices, such as creating a hierarchy that breaks down broad, long-term goals and objectives into more specific, near-term performance goals with measurable targets and time frames. Our recommendation was designed to ensure that the Manufacturing USA program performance measurement structure that Commerce has already worked with the other sponsoring agencies to develop more fully aligns with these key practices. According to an August 2023 update from NIST, the interagency working team working on the triennial Manufacturing USA Strategic Plan has agreed to work on developing and implementing network-wide performance goals for the Manufacturing USA program. The team agreed to adapt the NIST-developed framework, including new strategic objectives for the program, as a first step toward strengthening network-wide performance measures. According to NIST's update, the framework, first developed for Commerce-sponsored institutes, leverages GAO recommendations, and links network-wide performance measures to network-wide performance goals, Manufacturing USA strategic objectives and program goals, and the program's statutory purposes. The participating sponsoring agencies also agreed to consider network-wide measurable targets and time frames. According to a NIST official, the interagency consensus described above has been incorporated into the draft triennial strategic plan, which is under review as of March 2024. We will provide a further update when we receive additional information from the agency.

Economic and Commercial Diplomacy: State and Commerce Could Build on Efforts to Improve Coordination and Effectiveness

GAO-22-105860
Show
1 Open Recommendations
Agency Affected Recommendation Status
Department of Commerce The Secretary of State and the Secretary of Commerce should ensure their agencies specify how Embassy Deal Teams should identify and coordinate the use of dozens of U.S. government programs supporting U.S. commercial interests overseas in their guidance cables for the Deal Team Initiative. (Recommendation 6)
Open
As of April 2023, we continue to monitor Commerce's actions in response to this recommendation.

SEC Conflict Minerals Rule: Companies Face Continuing Challenges in Determining Whether Their Conflict Minerals Benefit Armed Groups

GAO-16-805
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1 Open Recommendations
1 Priority
Agency Affected Recommendation Status
Department of Commerce
Priority Rec.
To improve the effectiveness of the SEC's conflict minerals disclosure rule, the Secretary of Commerce should submit to the appropriate congressional committees a plan outlining steps that Commerce will take, with associated time frames, to (1) assess the accuracy of the independent private sector audits (IPSA) and other due diligence processes described under section 13(p) of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934; (2) develop recommendations for the process used to carry out such audits, including ways to improve the accuracy of the audits and establish standards of best practices for such audits; and (3) acquire the necessary knowledge, skills, and abilities to carry out these responsibilities.
Open
Commerce agreed with this recommendation. In response to this recommendation, Commerce indicated in an October 25, 2016 letter to GAO that it has developed a three-step approach which parallels the three distinct elements of the recommendation. To fully implement this recommendation, Commerce needs to submit the said three-step plan, including associated timeframes for their completion, to the appropriate congressional committees. Section 1502 of the Dodd-Frank Act defines "appropriate committees" to mean the Committee on Appropriations, the Committee on Foreign Affairs, the Committee on Ways and Means, and the Committee on Financial Services of the House of Representatives; and the Committee on Appropriations, the Committee on Foreign Relations, the Committee on Finance, and the Committee on Banking, Housing, and Urban Affairs of the Senate. In a January 2018 email, a Commerce official indicated to GAO that the agency had reviewed the 19 IPSA audits filed by companies in 2016, and the agency plans to complete a review of the 16 IPSA audits filed in 2017 by the end of FY 2018. However, the official noted that the "Department will not undertake the development of recommendations and best practices while the SEC is revising its rule." Commerce cited SEC staff's recent updated guidance and ongoing reviews of the conflict minerals rule, among other things, as their primary reason. However, the SEC staff's updated guidance also clarified that the guidance "does not express any legal conclusion on the rule" and is "subject to any further action that may be taken by the Commission." Therefore, the rule is still in effect, according to SEC staff. We requested a status update in October 2019 and Commerce responded: "In National Association of Manufacturers v. United States SEC, 2017 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 135732 (2017), the District Court for the District of Columbia declared an element of the relevant SEC rule unconstitutional, necessitating that the SEC determine how that decision affects overall implementation of the Conflict Minerals rule. Until the SEC completes its deliberative process, makes such determination, and implements any necessary revisions to the rule, the Department does not intend to undertake additional work under Section 1502 of the Dodd-Frank Wall Street Reform and Consumer Protection Act with regard to the assessment of the accuracy of the audits and other due diligence processes or recommendations regarding the audits. After which point, the Department will assess how the SEC determination and any revisions to the rule affect the Department's plans for implementing GAO's recommendation." The team confirmed that the SEC did not make the aforementioned revisions to the rule in 2020 for Commerce to consider implementing GAO's recommendation. We contacted Commerce in early 2021 to ask about the status of the recommendation. Commerce responded on March 10, 2021 and stated that the Department has not assessed the Independent Private Sector Audits (IPSAs) submitted to the SEC in 2018, 2019, or 2020, and cannot confirm how many IPSAs were submitted in each of those years. Commerce officials reiterated that when the SEC takes action regarding the relevant regulations, the Department will assess how the SEC action affects the Department's plans for implementing the Secretary's responsibilities under Section 1502 and the GAO recommendation. On March 4, 2022, Commerce responded to our request for an update and reported that there has been no change in the status of the agency's response to the recommendation. On February 21, 2023, Commerce responded to our request for an update, stating that there once again has been no change in the status of the agency's response to the recommendation.
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