State Department

Controlling Access to Headquarters Facilities Gao ID: NSIAD-88-196BR June 29, 1988

Pursuant to a congressional request, GAO provided information regarding the Department of State's issuance of building passes to nondepartmentmental employees.

GAO found that State: (1) lacked a formal policy or criteria for granting and issuing passes; (2) cited employee morale, convenience, and access to building services to justify employee family passes; (3) routinely issued passes to personnel at a nearby Navy command to allow access to its cafeteria; (4) incurred recurring, high expenses because security checks and updates required substantial staff time; and (5) unnecessarily increased the risk of security breakdown by issuing the passes. GAO also found that State, in reviewing its building-pass policies and practices, determined that it would: (1) no longer issue passes to retired employees or Navy personnel; (2) restrict family-member passes to employees' spouses and to normal business hours; and (3) publish its eligibility requirements for building passes.



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