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Priority Open Recommendations: Office of Science and Technology Policy

GAO-23-106571 Published: May 10, 2023. Publicly Released: May 17, 2023.
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Fast Facts

Each year, we make more than 1,000 recommendations to help the federal government save money, address issues on our High Risk List, and significantly improve government operations.

This letter to the Office of Science and Technology Policy (OSTP) outlines 7 open recommendations that it should prioritize. For example, we recommended that OSTP work with other agencies to improve how they collaborate—such as by defining common goals and agreeing on roles and responsibilities—on federal science and technology issues.

OSTP implemented 1 recommendation we identified as a priority last year.

We regularly update priority recommendations here.

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Highlights

What GAO Found

In July 2022, GAO identified 8 priority recommendations for the Office of Science and Technology Policy (OSTP). Since then, OSTP has implemented 1 of those recommendations by, among other things, taking actions to implement leading practices that enhance and sustain collaboration.

In May 2023, GAO reiterated the remaining 7 priority recommendations, which involve the following areas:

  • strengthening interagency collaboration.
  • managing climate risks.
  • tracking progress toward national goals.

OSTP's continued attention to these issues could lead to significant improvements in government operations.

Why GAO Did This Study

Priority open recommendations are the GAO recommendations that warrant priority attention from heads of key departments or agencies because their implementation could save large amounts of money; improve congressional and/or executive branch decision-making on major issues; eliminate mismanagement, fraud, and abuse; or ensure that programs comply with laws and funds are legally spent, among other benefits. Since 2015 GAO has sent letters to selected agencies to highlight the importance of implementing such recommendations.

For more information, contact John Neumann at (202) 512-6888 or neumannj@gao.gov.

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