USDA Again Failed to Comply With Federal Law With the Result Over $6 Billion in Improper Payments Made In 2013

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Roger A. McEowen

The Office of Inspector General (OIG) has released a 2013 fiscal year audit report of the United States Department of Agriculture (USDA) that is run by Secretary Tom Vilsack.  The purpose of the audit was to determine if the USDA was complying with the Improper Payment Information Act (IPIA) of 2002 (as amended in 2010).  The audit found non-compliance with three of the seven IPIA requirements.  The audit identified "high-risk" USDA programs - those programs that are at an elevated risk for waste, fraud and abuse.  Sixteen of these programs were identified, including the Food and Nutrition Service and the school breakfast and lunch programs.  For fiscal year 2013, the OIG's audit revealed that USDA reported that these high-risk programs resulted in 6.2 billion in improper payments.  The OIG's audit also determined that Secretary Vilsack's USDA, with respect to fiscal year 2013, had failed to comply with the IPIA for three years in a row. 

 

 

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