OIG is conducting an ongoing audit related to air carrier flight delays and cancellations, originally announced on February 21, 2023. Due to the breadth of data collected by both the Federal Aviation Administration and the Bureau of Transportation Statistics (BTS) on flight delays and cancellations, we are adjusting our audit to focus on the reliability of the flight delay and cancellation data collected by BTS. Our revised audit objective is to assess the controls BTS has in place to ensure the completeness and accuracy of on-time performance and reported causes data.

The Federal Information Security Modernization Act of 2014 (FISMA) requires Federal agencies to implement information security programs. The act also requires agencies to conduct annual independent reviews to determine the effectiveness of their programs and report the reviews’ results to the Office of Management and Budget (OMB). We have contracted with CliftonLarsonAllen LLP, an independent public accounting firm, to conduct the review of the Department of Transportation’s (DOT) information security program for fiscal year 2024, subject to our oversight.

For fiscal year 2022, the Department of Transportation (DOT) reported approximately $61.6 billion in payments for programs and activities susceptible to significant improper payments and estimated about $756 million in improper payments. The Payment Integrity Information Act of 2019 (PIIA) requires Federal agencies to identify, report, and reduce improper payments in their programs and activities. PIIA also requires annual reports by inspectors general on their agencies’ compliance. The Office of Management and Budget (OMB) issues guidance that agencies must follow to implement PIIA.

As the air travel industry began to respond and recover from the effects of the COVID-19 pandemic, it experienced an increase in flight delays and cancellations as well as consumer requests for airline ticket refunds. In the early months of the pandemic, many passengers were reluctant to travel and sought airline ticket refunds, even if their flights were operating as scheduled. Airlines had trouble processing the significant volume of refund requests in a timely manner and were initially reluctant to provide the required refunds.

The Office of Inspector General has identified 10 top management challenges for the Department of Transportation (DOT) for fiscal year 2024. When issued, this report and the Department’s response will be incorporated into DOT’s Annual Financial Report, as required by law.

In May 2023, eight members of Congress expressed concerns with fraud related to freight-hauling, including stolen truck loads and brokerage fraud schemes. Their letter asked us to consider establishing a permanent task force for investigating, referring, and prosecuting cases of freight, household goods moving, ransom, and double-brokering fraud in coordination with the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration (FMCSA) and the Department of Justice (DOJ). Our Office of Investigations has a long and successful history of partnering with FMCSA and the U.S.

What We Looked At
We queried and downloaded 93 single audit reports prepared by non-Federal auditors and submitted to the Federal Audit Clearinghouse between April 1, 2023, and June 30, 2023, to identify significant findings related to programs directly funded by the Department of Transportation (DOT).

In December 2022, Congress passed the James M. Inhofe National Defense Authorization Act (NDAA) for fiscal year 2023 requiring the Maritime Administrator to establish within the United States Merchant Marine Academy Sexual Assault Prevention and Response Program an information management system to track and maintain, in such a manner that patterns can be reasonably identified, information regarding sexual assault or sexual harassment claims involving cadets and other Academy personnel.

The Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act (IIJA) invested about $660 billion in funding for new and existing DOT programs—more than twice the amount in the previous 5-year authorization law. In 2022, DOT established a goal to hire 1,400 employees in its surface transportation Operating Administrations (OA) to respond to identified IIJA-related needs between fiscal years 2022 and 2026.