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Open Recommendations (31 total)

Small Business Subcontracting: Some Contracting Officers Face Challenges Assessing Compliance with the Good Faith Standard

GAO-24-106225
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1 Open Recommendations
Agency Affected Recommendation Status
Small Business Administration The SBA Administrator should analyze the risk of having a limited understanding of federal contractors' noncompliance with their subcontracting plans, based on current practices, and determine whether the Office of Government Contracting should conduct additional reviews. (Recommendation 11)
Open
When we confirm what actions the agency has taken in response to this recommendation, we will provide updated information.

Economic Injury Disaster Loan Program: Additional Actions Needed to Improve Communication with Applicants and Address Fraud Risks

GAO-21-589
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1 Open Recommendations
1 Priority
Agency Affected Recommendation Status
Small Business Administration
Priority Rec.
The Associate Administrator of SBA's Office of Disaster Assistance should develop a comprehensive strategy for communicating with potential and actual program applicants in the event of a disaster. Such a strategy should provide guidelines for the types of information and timing of information to be provided to program participants throughout a disaster. The types of information to be addressed in the strategy could include processing steps and time frames applicants might experience through different stages of the loan process. (Recommendation 1)
Open
SBA agreed with the recommendation and stated that the agency planned to develop a comprehensive strategy for communicating with potential and actual disaster loan applicants, which would include information such as processing steps and corresponding time frames applicants might experience through different stages of the loan process. In February 2023, SBA stated that the development of a new disaster loan application portal had been underway since early 2022. SBA stated that the new portal would include improved messaging features that permit applicants to receive immediate status updates and to submit questions to loan processing teams on a safe and secure portal versus communicating through emails. In March 2024, SBA stated that the project was a priority for the agency's Office of Capital Access and Office of Disaster Recovery and Resilience, and the agency anticipates completing the project by fiscal year 2025. GAO will continue to monitor the agency's actions to address this recommendation.

Disaster Loan Program: SBA Should Include Key Issues in Its Review of How the Program Affects Underserved Communities

GAO-24-106682
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1 Open Recommendations
Agency Affected Recommendation Status
Small Business Administration The Administrator of SBA should ensure that the Associate Administrator of the Office of Capital Access includes in the scope of SBA's internal review of the Disaster Loan Program an assessment of its lending criteria for both businesses and homeowners and an analysis of the gaps in loan outcomes among program applicants, including those in underserved communities. (Recommendation 1)
Open
When we confirm what actions the agency has taken in response to this recommendation, we will provide updated information.

Disaster Recovery: Additional Actions Needed to Identify and Address Potential Recovery Barriers

GAO-22-104039
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1 Open Recommendations
1 Priority
Agency Affected Recommendation Status
Small Business Administration
Priority Rec.
The SBA Associate Administrator of the Office of Disaster Assistance should, in coordination with the FEMA Administrator and the HUD Assistant Secretary for Community Planning and Development, develop, with input from key recovery partners, and implement an interagency plan to help ensure the availability and use of quality information that includes (1) information requirements, (2) data sources and methods, and (3) strategies for overcoming information challenges—to support federal agencies involved in disaster recovery in identifying access barriers or disparate outcomes. (Recommendation 5)
Open
In February 2024, SBA officials told us that SBA, together with FEMA and HUD, is developing an interagency plan for data collection, sharing, and analysis to identify potential equity issues. According to SBA, this interagency plan will be developed by June 2024. SBA officials also noted that they are renewing interagency agreements with FEMA and HUD to coordinate data sharing. However, to fully address the recommendation, SBA (with FEMA and HUD) would need to both develop and implement this interagency plan specifying the data needed, and sources and methods for obtaining the data. Without implementing a plan to ensure the availability of comprehensive information, programs lack a means to identify potential social and institutional barriers in their own programs and across programs.

Small Business Contracting: SBA Could Improve Oversight of Individual Waiver Requests to the Nonmanufacturer Rule

GAO-24-106196
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2 Open Recommendations
Agency Affected Recommendation Status
Small Business Administration The SBA Administrator should ensure that the Associate Administrator for the Office of Government Contracting & Business Development develops policies and procedures to regularly review the accuracy of entries in its electronic waiver log, including the final status of each NMR waiver request. (Recommendation 1)
Open
When we confirm what actions the agency has taken in response to this recommendation, we will provide updated information.
Small Business Administration The SBA Administrator should ensure that the Associate Administrator for the Office of Government Contracting & Business Development develops policies and procedures for management review of NMR waiver request decisions. (Recommendation 2)
Open
When we confirm what actions the agency has taken in response to this recommendation, we will provide updated information.

Disaster Recovery: Additional Actions Needed to Identify and Address Potential Recovery Barriers

GAO-22-104039
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1 Open Recommendations
1 Priority
Agency Affected Recommendation Status
Small Business Administration
Priority Rec.
The SBA Associate Administrator of the Office of Disaster Assistance should coordinate with the FEMA Administrator and the HUD Assistant Secretary for Community Planning and Development to design and establish routine processes to be used within and across federal recovery programs to address identified access barriers and disparate outcomes on an ongoing basis. (Recommendation 6)
Open
In February 2024, SBA officials told us that SBA, together with FEMA and HUD, is developing an interagency plan that includes a description of routine processes that they will use to address any equity issues they identify. According to SBA, this interagency plan will be developed by June 2024. For its part, SBA officials told us that to help reduce access barriers in rural communities, they implemented the Disaster Assistance for Rural Communities Act in June 2023, which simplified the process for SBA disaster declaration in rural communities. SBA officials also told us that they established Portable Loan Outreach Centers to enable recovery teams to deploy to low-capacity theaters of operation after a disaster. However, to fully implement this recommendation, SBA needs to provide evidence it has designed and institutionalized routine processes within and across federal recovery programs to address identified access barriers and disparate outcomes on an ongoing basis. Without routine processes, disaster recovery programs lack a mechanism to ensure they can address any potential access barriers or disparate outcomes they might identify, particularly if those barriers or disparate outcomes arise from the interaction between or among programs.

Restaurant Revitalization Fund: Opportunities Exist to Improve Oversight

GAO-22-105442
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1 Open Recommendations
Agency Affected Recommendation Status
Small Business Administration The Associate Administrator for the Office of Capital Access should conduct and document an assessment of the RRF pre-award controls and address or mitigate deficiencies. (Recommendation 1)
Open
In July 2023, SBA said it will use the results of the RRF post-award reviews to inform the effectiveness of the pre-award controls and apply lessons learned to future emergency programs. In April 2024, SBA stated it had completed about 25 percent of the post-award reviews and planned to finish all post-award reviews by the end of fiscal year 2025. Subsequently, in fiscal year 2026, SBA plans to evaluate the pre-award controls using the results of the post-award reviews. SBA will provide GAO with a copy of this assessment when it is complete. This recommendation will remain open until SBA provides documentation of its assessment of the pre-award controls.

Small Business Administration: Procedures for Reporting on Veteran-Owned Businesses Need Improvement

GAO-24-106071
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1 Open Recommendations
Agency Affected Recommendation Status
Small Business Administration The Administrator of SBA should ensure that the Associate Administrator of SBA's Office of Veterans Business Development develop and implement policies and procedures for ensuring VBOCs' full compliance with quarterly year-end reporting requirements. (Recommendation 1)
Open
When we confirm what actions the agency has taken in response to this recommendation, we will provide updated information.

Restaurant Revitalization Fund: Opportunities Exist to Improve Oversight

GAO-22-105442
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1 Open Recommendations
Agency Affected Recommendation Status
Small Business Administration The Associate Administrator for the Office of Capital Access should assess how the design of RRF pre-award controls may have adversely affected applicants from U.S. territories, and identify and document steps to mitigate this issue for future programs. (Recommendation 2)
Open
In January 2023, SBA stated that it would offer to participate in a government-wide dialogue to address systemic weaknesses related to IRS and territories' tax validation systems. In April 2024, SBA officials said they maintained this position and opposed using taxpayer funds to conduct such an assessment because the challenges with IRS and territory tax transcript processing are government-wide in nature and well-documented. This recommendation will remain open until SBA (1) assesses how the design of RRF pre-award controls may have adversely affected applicants from U.S. territories, and (2) documents steps to mitigate this issue for future programs.
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