Bureau of Indian Education: Improved Oversight of Schools' COVID-19 Spending is Needed
Fast Facts
The Bureau of Indian Education and its schools used $1.5 billion in federal COVID-19 relief funds to
Give students laptops and resources for distance learning
Buy COVID tests and supplies
The bureau monitors schools' COVID spending in several ways, such as reviewing financial reports and collecting financial information from school visits.
The bureau's policy calls for additional oversight of schools at high risk for financial mismanagement, but its staff and procedures aren't sufficient to complete it. We recommended, among other things, that the bureau increase its staff capacity to effectively monitor these schools.
Highlights
What GAO Found
The Bureau of Indian Education (BIE) and its schools used federal COVID-19 relief funds mainly to support distance learning and prevent the spread of COVID-19 in schools. For example, BIE spent nearly $60 million of its COVID funds on IT and broadband supports for schools, including student laptops and Wi-Fi equipment for distance learning. Similarly, nearly all of the 70 BIE schools that responded to GAO's survey reported prioritizing their COVID funds for laptops and tablets and for personal protective equipment, cleaning supplies, and COVID tests. Schools generally reported that BIE offered regular guidance and support for spending COVID funds.
BIE uses several processes to monitor schools' COVID spending, including reviewing schools' single audit reports, overseeing schools at high risk of financial mismanagement, and monitoring schools' purchase card use for fraud and misuse. However, GAO found that due to insufficient controls, BIE staff did not consistently follow these processes, which limited accountability for use of COVID funds. For example, a little over a quarter of required fiscal year 2021 single audit reports for schools and Tribes that received BIE grant funds were late or not submitted as of November 2023. But BIE did not follow agency standard procedures for applying or increasing financial conditions for 19 of the 28 grantees that failed to submit a timely single audit report that year. Without timely single audit reports, BIE lacks vital information for overseeing schools' financial management. Further, BIE did not conduct sufficient oversight of high-risk schools' COVID spending and lacked the staff capacity to complete all required monitoring. Such oversight is critical for helping schools correct errors and avoid them in the future. Finally, GAO found that for BIE-operated schools, nearly half of COVID fund spending with purchase cards between March 2020 and August 2022 involved elevated risk transactions according to agency data (see figure). Examples of elevated risk transactions include the purchase of gift cards or multiple purchases at the same merchant within a certain number of days that total more than the single purchase limit. However, BIE did not provide evidence that it had investigated these transactions for fraud or misuse.
Bureau of Indian Education Schools' COVID Fund Spending with Purchase Cards, March 2020 to August 2022
In addition, GAO found that BIE staff did not consistently use the required tool or procedures for tracking and investigating suspicious transactions. Without addressing these gaps in its oversight of schools' COVID spending, BIE cannot ensure that schools will use remaining COVID funds appropriately to provide students the support they need.
Why GAO Did This Study
Many of BIE's 183 schools are located in remote tribal lands that faced extraordinary challenges during the COVID-19 pandemic and continue to experience ongoing effects. Congress appropriated about $1.5 billion to help BIE and its schools respond to the pandemic. GAO reviewed the use of COVID-19 relief funds by schools and BIE as part of GAO's responsibilities under the CARES Act.
This report examines how BIE and schools spent their COVID funds and BIE's guidance to schools on fund use, and the extent to which BIE oversees schools' fund use. GAO surveyed a generalizable sample of 85 BIE schools, with 70 schools responding, to collect information on their use of COVID funds and the extent to which BIE provided them guidance on spending. GAO also analyzed agency data on BIE schools' purchase card activity; reviewed relevant federal statutes, regulations, and agency policies and procedures for overseeing school COVID spending; and interviewed BIE and school officials.
Recommendations
GAO is making four recommendations to BIE to establish controls to ensure staff consistently follow agency procedures when schools do not submit timely single audit reports, document and report on COVID fund monitoring of high-risk schools, build capacity for fiscal monitoring of high-risk schools, and consistently use the required tool and procedures for monitoring school purchase card transactions. The agency agreed with the recommendations.
Recommendations for Executive Action
| Agency Affected | Recommendation | Status |
|---|---|---|
| Bureau of Indian Education | The Director of BIE should establish controls to ensure that staff consistently follow agency standard procedures when schools and other BIE grantees do not submit timely single audit reports. (Recommendation 1) |
BIE agreed with this recommendation. The agency plans to review controls to ensure staff consistently follow agency standard procedures when BIE grantees do not submit single audit reports in a timely way. We will monitor the agency's efforts to implement this recommendation.
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| Bureau of Indian Education | The Director of BIE should establish controls to ensure staff document their monitoring of high-risk schools' COVID spending and consistently report whether schools followed agency requirements for using these funds. (Recommendation 2) |
BIE agreed with this recommendation and stated that it began taking steps to address it. Specifically, BIE is updating the school monitoring checklist and initiating the process to revise the monitoring handbook to reflect COVID spending. BIE officials said they plan to take additional steps-such as informing staff of these changes and reporting to schools the results of monitoring COVID spending-and they anticipate implementing this recommendation by August 2024. We are encouraged by these initial steps and will monitor the agency's progress in completing them.
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| Bureau of Indian Education | The Director of BIE should update its strategic workforce plan to build its capacity to conduct all annual fiscal reviews of schools that are designated as high risk, as required by its policy. (Recommendation 3) |
BIE agreed with this recommendation and identified actions it has begun taking to address it. For example, BIE is undertaking efforts to research, draft and implement a comprehensive Strategic Workforce Plan that will include its fiscal workforce review. They expect to complete the Plan by September 2025. We will monitor BIE's actions to complete this effort.
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| Bureau of Indian Education | The Director of BIE should work with BIA to establish controls to ensure that BIE staff responsible for monitoring purchase card activity at BIE-operated schools consistently use Interior's required monitoring tool and procedures. (Recommendation 4) |
BIE agreed with this recommendation and stated that BIA's Office of the Chief Financial Officer, with BIE staff input, is implementing significant revisions to the Purchase Card Program Policies. The revised policies require an online monthly statement review and approval process. The on-line system provides reports for monitoring and oversight of purchase card activity. As BIA improves these policies, BIE will ensure its continued compliance with Interior and BIA policies. We will monitor BIE's efforts to address this recommendation.
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