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Open Recommendations

Watershed Dams: Better Program Management Would Improve Safety
GAO-25-107404
Jul 17, 2025
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4 Open Recommendations
Agency Affected Recommendation Status
Natural Resources Conservation Service The Administrator of NRCS should develop mechanisms to consistently implement NRCS's policies and procedures for monitoring project sponsors' compliance with operation and maintenance requirements for watershed dams. These mechanisms should provide direction for (1) reviewing operation and maintenance agreements made between NRCS and sponsors; (2) monitoring formal dam inspections; and (3) investigating sponsors' potential violations of operation and maintenance requirements. (Recommendation 1)
Open
When we confirm what actions the agency has taken in response to this recommendation, we will provide updated information.
Natural Resources Conservation Service The Administrator of NRCS should develop a quality assurance plan and guidance for state and district offices for collecting and verifying key information in NRCS's dams database. (Recommendation 2)
Open
When we confirm what actions the agency has taken in response to this recommendation, we will provide updated information.
Natural Resources Conservation Service The Administrator of NRCS should develop a mechanism to communicate key information about REHAB funding opportunities to project sponsors, including information related to available funding (such as cost share requirements), eligibility, and types of projects to be funded. (Recommendation 3)
Open
When we confirm what actions the agency has taken in response to this recommendation, we will provide updated information.
Natural Resources Conservation Service The Administrator of NRCS should develop guidance for NRCS state offices to document the rationale for their decisions to advance applications to NRCS headquarters for funding. (Recommendation 4)
Open
When we confirm what actions the agency has taken in response to this recommendation, we will provide updated information.

Future-Years Energy Program: DOE Should Complete Required Reporting to Help Ensure Transparency in Spending
GAO-25-107646
Jul 08, 2025
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3 Open Recommendations
Agency Affected Recommendation Status
Department of Energy The Secretary of Energy should provide complete information that addresses all legal requirements as part of DOE's FYEP submission to Congress and should identify and report on any factors affecting the department's ability to report on unmet requirements. (Recommendation 1)
Open
When we confirm what actions the agency has taken in response to this recommendation, we will provide updated information.
Department of Energy The Secretary of Energy should develop and issue a strategic plan that outlines the department's priorities for the following 4 years and informs the development of DOE's FYEP. (Recommendation 2)
Open
When we confirm what actions the agency has taken in response to this recommendation, we will provide updated information.
Department of Energy The Secretary of Energy should formalize and implement a PPBE process to develop DOE's FYEP. (Recommendation 3)
Open
When we confirm what actions the agency has taken in response to this recommendation, we will provide updated information.

Nuclear Waste Cleanup: DOE Needs to Improve Contractor Oversight at the Waste Isolation Pilot Plant
GAO-25-107333
Jun 24, 2025
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3 Open Recommendations
Agency Affected Recommendation Status
Department of Energy The Assistant Secretary of Environmental Management should direct Carlsbad Field Office site officials to ensure that the M&O contractor establishes and documents timelines to correct identified data validation issues in FIMS. (Recommendation 1)
Open
When we confirm what actions the agency has taken in response to this recommendation, we will provide updated information.
Department of Energy The Assistant Secretary of Environmental Management should monitor whether recent improvements in data collection at WIPP allow the site to accurately capture FIMS asset-level annual required maintenance costs, as required in DOE Order 430.1C. (Recommendation 2)
Open
When we confirm what actions the agency has taken in response to this recommendation, we will provide updated information.
Department of Energy The Assistant Secretary of Environmental Management should ensure the Carlsbad Field Office consistently uses available oversight tools, such as the performance evaluation and measurement plan and performance evaluation process, to incentivize the WIPP M&O contractor to satisfy all contractual long-term site infrastructure planning requirements. (Recommendation 3)
Open
When we confirm what actions the agency has taken in response to this recommendation, we will provide updated information.

Nuclear Waste: An Integrated Disposal Plan Could Help DOE Complete Its Cleanup Mission and Save Billions
GAO-25-107109
May 29, 2025
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5 Open Recommendations
Agency Affected Recommendation Status
Department of Energy The Senior Advisor for EM should improve the quality of its LLW estimates by (1) adding headquarters oversight procedures that ensure reported waste streams are comprehensive in representing remaining cleanup at DOE sites; and (2) assessing the quality of waste estimates in the BLDD using available information, such as the previous years' actual disposal data, and using the results of this assessment to inform additional improvements. (Recommendation 1)
Open
When we confirm what actions the agency has taken in response to this recommendation, we will provide updated information.
Department of Energy The Senior Advisor for EM should update guidance for the BLDD to clarify site reporting responsibilities. Such clarifications include that LLW estimates should encompass waste beyond the current cleanup contract and how sites should report waste streams facing significant uncertainty about the scope of cleanup (e.g., related to final disposal decisions, barriers to disposal). (Recommendation 2)
Open
When we confirm what actions the agency has taken in response to this recommendation, we will provide updated information.
Department of Energy The Senior Advisor for EM should develop complex-wide analyses, including optimization models, that identify optimal disposal pathways and schedules for its radioactive waste and analyze strategic alternatives to current disposal plans. (Recommendation 3)
Open
When we confirm what actions the agency has taken in response to this recommendation, we will provide updated information.
Department of Energy The Senior Advisor for EM should develop a nationwide, integrated radioactive waste disposal plan that includes an assessment of strategic alternatives and modeling, and addresses complex-wide disposal issues, such as waste with no disposal pathway. EM should share this integrated plan with key stakeholders—such as state and federal regulators at cleanup sites and disposal facilities—and incorporate their feedback as appropriate. (Recommendation 4)
Open
When we confirm what actions the agency has taken in response to this recommendation, we will provide updated information.
Department of Energy The Senior Advisor for EM should leverage the results of radioactive waste disposal optimization analyses and integrated planning to identify specific opportunities to optimize radioactive waste disposal by addressing regulatory constraints and create a forum for regulators from cleanup sites and disposal facilities to holistically negotiate implementing these opportunities. (Recommendation 5)
Open
When we confirm what actions the agency has taken in response to this recommendation, we will provide updated information.
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