A r c h i v e d I n f o r m a t i o n

   FOR RELEASE                           Contact:  Rodger D. Murphey    June 15, 1994                                      (202) 401-0774

ED INSPECTOR GENERAL APPLAUDS REINVENTION EFFORTS

U.S. Education Department Inspector General James B. Thomas Jr., in his semiannual report to Congress, said recent efforts to reinvent government "to make programs work better and cost less" parallel his office's responsibilities.

Thomas said that while monitoring compliance with laws and regulations remains critical, his office exists "to help agency managers make agency programs serve the people they are intended to serve more effectively, more efficiently, and more economically.

"The last several months have witnessed the beginning of a change in the way the federal government conducts its business," Thomas said. "The impact of this reinvention effort is reverberating throughout the federal establishment and certainly throughout the Inspector General community, where making government work better and cost less has always been the principal focus of Inspectors General efforts."

To better serve the needs of department managers, the Office of Inspector General (OIG) issued two papers in the reporting period related to reauthorization of the Elementary and Secondary Education Act. They look at how incentives might improve the Chapter 1 program and at Impact Aid funding, providing "issues to consider," Thomas said, rather than formal recommendations.

The OIG also responded to a draft General Accounting Office report, "Regulatory Flexibility in Schools," and offered comments on a House of Representatives proposal (H.R. 6) that would amend General Education Provisions Act requirements related to audits.

The report, covering the period October 1, 1993 to March 31, 1994, also describes significant OIG audits and investigations. OIG audits resulted in $19.1 million in questioned and unsupported costs and $59.6 million in recommendations for better use of funds. During the six-month reporting period, OIG investigations resulted in 50 indictments and 65 convictions of persons or entities charged with fraud or other criminal violations relating to department programs and operations. Recoveries resulting from OIG audit and investigative activities totaled $8.3 million.

The semiannual report is required by the Inspector General Act of 1978 (P.L. 95-452), as amended. Copies may be obtained by writing Semiannual Report to Congress, U.S. Department of Education, Office of Inspector General, 400 Maryland Ave., S.W., Washington D.C. 20202-1510.