Lack of Action on Proposals To Resolve Longstanding Problems in Investigations of Federal Employees

Following a December 1977 report on proposals to resolve problems in investigations of Federal employees, recommendations were made to Congress and the Office of Personnel Management (OPM) which showed that the authority for investigations is out of date and has been eroded by more recent laws and court decisions. OPM does not have adequate classification criteria for agencies to determine the proper investigation. The national agency check with inquiry investigation is inadequate for employees with sensitive duties and too extensive for most employees. OPM has inadequate controls for disseminating information to protect individual rights. Concern has been expressed about the lack of action taken to resolve the problems identified.

Even though GAO, Congress, and OPM agree that the current investigation program has serious problems, few improvements have been made. OPM does not plan to make significant changes to the existing program unless it is directed to do so and is provided the needed resources. This follow-up reemphasized the failure of the current program to adequately protect either the Government or individual rights.

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.

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