Department of Energy

This fact sheet provides information on the management of Energy Department (DOE) property by the 20 major contractors involved in defense-related activities. GAO focuses on (1) the amount of missing property being reported to DOE by these contractors in their most recent property inventory reports, (2) the extent to which DOE has approved contractors' property management systems, and (3) examples of weaknesses reported in the most recent DOE review of the contractors' property management systems.

GAO found that: (1) the contractors have reported missing property totalling about $74.2 million in their most recent property inventory reports to DOE; (2) a higher amount of property may be missing than has been reported by the contractors; (3) some contractors have conducted only partial inventories; (4) of the 20 property management systems reviewed, 7 were approved by DOE as of January 31, 1994, 7 were conditionally approved, 5 remained unapproved, and one was disapproved; and (5) some DOE recommendations are aimed at fixing significant problems, such as scheduling items for surplus sale while new similar items are being purchased from vendors, and reviewing inventory reports that significantly overstate the value and volume of contractor's property.