S. 45 and S. 738 Helium Fund Audits

GAO suggested changes in S. 45, the Helium Reform and Deficit Reduction Act of 1995, and S. 738, the Helium Act of 1995, in order to eliminate the duplication of financial statement audits already performed under the Chief Financial Officers (CFO) Act. GAO noted that: (1) Interior's Office of Inspector General (OIG) has performed audits of the Bureau of Mines' financial transactions, including the Helium Fund, since fiscal year 1992; (2) the Inspector General's January 1995 audit report for fiscal years 1993 and 1994 concluded that the Bureau's principal financial statements were reliable in all material respects and the internal control structure provided reasonable assurance that any losses of assets or misstatements in financial information would be detected; (3) although Interior intends to submit audit reports which include detailed information on the Helium Fund, it is not required to report Fund activities after passage of the proposed legislation; and (4) Interior should prepare the Helium Fund's financial statement information in either a stand-alone format or in a consolidated report format to eliminate the duplication of audits performed under the CFO Act.