Review of Selected Agencies' Intergovernmental Personnel Act Assignments

In response to a congressional request, GAO reviewed 436 assignments made under the Intergovernmental Personnel Act of 1970 (IPA) that were on file at the Departments of Health and Human Services, Commerce, and the Interior, and at the Environmental Protection Agency. GAO was asked to determine whether agencies were paying a greater share of IPA assignment costs than the benefits warranted and whether assignments benefited the Federal Government or the agency paying for the service.

In the opinion of GAO, 66 of the 436 assignments did not have appropriate cost-sharing arrangements. For 20 of the 66 assignments, the agencies paid a greater share of the costs than warranted by the benefits. The other 46 assignments were considered questionable because they were not consistent with the IPA or with regulations and policies set by the Office of Personnel Management (OPM). OPM program officials were provided with information about the questionable assignments, and OPM officials agreed to take appropriate corrective actions and advise GAO of the results if the assignments were found to be improper.