Improved Internal Controls Are Needed To Better Assure That Obligations Will Not Be Backdated

Gao ID: AFMD-84-14 November 9, 1983

GAO reviewed 85 Department of Defense (DOD) activities to determine whether existing internal controls adequately preclude the backdating of obligations against expired appropriations.

GAO found that, although there was virtually no evidence of backdated obligation transactions at the activities reviewed, a number of internal control weaknesses need to be corrected to provide reasonable assurance that backdating does not occur. GAO noted that effective controls are needed to provide an audit trail enabling management and audit personnel to verify whether obligation transactions were finalized before the appropriation expired.

Recommendations

Our recommendations from this work are listed below with a Contact for more information. Status will change from "In process" to "Open," "Closed - implemented," or "Closed - not implemented" based on our follow up work.

Director: John F. Simonette Team: General Accounting Office: Accounting and Financial Management Division Phone: (202) 275-9489


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