Premium Pay: Weak Controls Resulted in Noncompliance with the Law Enforcement Availability Pay Act

Objective

This report addresses the extent to which GAO's Forensic Audits and Investigative Service (FAIS) had effective controls to ensure compliance with the Law Enforcement Availability Pay (LEAP) Act requirements for receiving LEAP.

What OIG Found

Availability pay is a type of premium pay that is paid to criminal investigators required to perform, or be available to perform, investigative activities outside of normal business hours based on the needs of the agency. OIG found that FAIS did not have effective policy and procedures to ensure compliance with LEAP Act requirements. Procedures designed to support annual certifications and to ensure agents were meeting the substantial hours requirement were discontinued or did not exist. As a result, FAIS lacked assurance that unscheduled duty hours were sufficient and certifications were made in compliance with legal and regulatory requirements.

GAO agreed with the issues we identified and stated that it had implemented all corrective actions we suggested. It also stated that annual certifications for LEAP will be supported in fiscal year 2016 when time and attendance system enhancements are finalized. We believe that once the enhancements are in place, GAO will have adequately addressed our findings. Therefore, we are not making recommendations.