H.R. 2909, A Bill To Establish an Office of Inspector General Within the United States Postal Service

Testimony was given on H.R. 2909, which would establish an office of the Inspector General in the U.S. Postal Service. GAO strongly supported the passage of the Inspector General Act of 1978 and other legislation that have created Inspectors General in major departments and agencies. GAO believes that it would help to ensure that high-level attention is given to promoting economy, efficiency, and effectiveness and to combat fraud, waste, and abuse in federal programs and operations. GAO also believes that such legislation would ensure that both Congress and agency heads would receive independent assessments of and information on problems in federal programs and operations for which they are accountable or have oversight responsibility. The creation of an Inspector General in accordance with H.R. 2909 would provide the Postal Service with an official with greater independence than the Chief Postal Inspector now has, and H.R. 2909 would strengthen accountability by making detailed information on postal audit and investigative results available to the Board of Governors, Congress, and the public semiannually.