Risk Assessment of DOT’s Grant Closeout Process

Enacted in January 2016, the Grants Oversight and New Efficiency Act requires Federal agencies to report to Congress and the Department of Health and Human Services on open grant and cooperative agreement awards whose periods of performance have been expired for at least 2 years, and take appropriate action to close them. The act also requires the Inspector General of each agency with over $500 million in annual grant funding, such as the Department of Transportation (DOT), to conduct a risk assessment to determine whether an audit or review of the agency’s grant close-out process is warranted.   Our risk assessment of DOT’s grant closeout process did not detect a level of risk that warrants an audit or review of the process at this time. However, we will continue to monitor this area and may conduct future audits as appropriate.