DHS Components Averaged $434 Million Annually in AUO Payments from Fiscal Years 2008 through 2013, Mostly for Border Patrol Agents

DHS components paid an average of $434 million in AUO per year from  fiscal years 2008 through 2013—the last full year of available data.Across DHS, annual AUO expenditures increased from $307 million in  fiscal year 2008 to $512 million in fiscal year 2013, or an increase of  approximately $205 million. Overall, from fiscal year 2008 through fiscal  year 2013, the average annual AUO payment per employee increased by  about 31 percent, or from about $13,000 in fiscal year 2008 to about  $17,000 in fiscal year 2013, as shown in figure 4. Specifically,  some DHS component-level policies are not consistent with certain  provisions of federal regulations or guidance. In addition, components  have not regularly followed their AUO policies and procedures,  contributing to significant and widespread AUO administration and  oversight deficiencies across the department. DHS components’ AUO policies and procedures reflect inconsistent  approaches to implementing and applying federal AUO regulations and  guidance. DHS  issued two memorandums, one calling for components to suspend AUO  for certain employees and one requiring components using AUO to  develop and submit corrective action plans to improve AUO  administration. Developing and executing a  department-wide oversight mechanism to ensure components implement  AUO appropriately on a sustained basis, and in accordance with law and  regulation, could better position DHS to monitor components’ progress  remediating AUO deficiencies. The flexibility of AUO, however, requires  the department and components to provide rigorous oversight of the use  of AUO—including careful and consistent review of hours claimed and  employee eligibility, among other things, so that AUO is appropriately  used. In addition, by DHS reporting annually to Congress on the  extent to which DHS components have made progress in remediating  AUO implementation deficiencies, including information from annual third- party AUO audits or other department AUO oversight efforts, Congress  could have reasonable assurance that DHS components have sustained  effective and appropriate use of AUO in accordance with law and  regulation. Matter for Congressional Consideration

To ensure that DHS components have sustained effective and  appropriate use of AUO in accordance with law and regulation, Congress  should consider requiring DHS to report annually to Congress on the use  of AUO within the department, including the extent to which DHS  components have made progress remediating AUO implementation  deficiencies and information from annual third-party AUO audits or other  department AUO oversight efforts. Recommendation for Executive Action

To better position DHS to monitor components’ progress remediating  AUO deficiencies, we recommend that the Secretary of DHS develop and  execute a department-wide oversight mechanism to ensure components  implement AUO appropriately on a sustained basis, and in accordance  with law and regulation. How much has the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) spent on  administratively uncontrollable overtime (AUO) pay from fiscal year  2008 through March 2014? To what extent have DHS components implemented AUO  appropriately? Specifically, these components included U.S. Customs and Border  Protection (CBP), U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE),  National Protection and Program Directorate (NPPD), U.S. Citizenship  and Immigration Services (USCIS), U.S. Secret Service (USSS), and the  Office of the Chief Security Officer (OCSO).
Why GAO Did This Study

DHS had approximately 29,000 employees earning AUO, a type of premium pay intended to compensate eligible employees for substantial amounts of irregular, unscheduled overtime. DHS components' use of AUO has been a long-standing issue since at least 2007, when reviews identified the inappropriate use of AUO in DHS. GAO was asked to review DHS components' use and implementation of AUO.
This report addresses, among other things, how much DHS spent on AUO from fiscal year 2008 through March 2014 (the most current data available) and the extent to which DHS components implemented AUO appropriately. GAO analyzed AUO payments data from components that have regularly used AUO, which included U.S. Customs and Border Protection, U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement, U.S. Secret Service, National Protection and Programs Directorate, U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services, and Office of the Chief Security Officer. When calculating annual averages, GAO used the last full fiscal year of available data (2013). GAO also analyzed component AUO policies and procedures to assess compliance with federal regulations and guidance.

What GAO Found

Department of Homeland Security (DHS) components spent $512 million on administratively uncontrollable overtime (AUO) payments in fiscal year 2013 and $255 million through March 2014, mostly on Border Patrol agents. DHS's AUO expenditures increased from fiscal years 2008 through 2013, in part because of higher payments per earner. The average annual AUO payment per employee increased by about 31 percent, or from about $13,000 to about $17,000 from fiscal years 2008 through 2013, as shown in the figure below.
Some DHS component policies are not consistent with certain provisions of federal regulations or guidance, and components have not regularly followed their respective AUO policies and procedures, contributing to widespread AUO administration and oversight deficiencies. For example, components have not consistently reviewed hours claimed and employee eligibility for AUO. In response, in 2014, DHS issued two memorandums. One required the suspension of AUO for certain employees. The other required components to submit plans to address deficiencies, which most DHS components have done. DHS also plans to issue a department-wide AUO directive and to monitor component implementation of corrective actions through its ongoing human resource office assessments every 3 to 4 years, among other things. However, this monitoring is too general and infrequent to effectively monitor or evaluate DHS components' progress. Given the department's long-standing and widespread AUO administration and oversight deficiencies, developing and executing a department-wide oversight mechanism to ensure components implement AUO appropriately on a sustained basis, and in accordance with law and regulation, could better position DHS to monitor components' progress remediating AUO deficiencies. Further, DHS's reporting annually to Congress on the extent to which DHS components have made progress in remediating AUO implementation deficiencies could provide Congress with reasonable assurance that DHS components have sustained effective and appropriate use of AUO in accordance with law and regulation.

What GAO Recommends

GAO recommends that DHS develop and execute a department-wide mechanism to ensure components implement AUO appropriately. Congress should consider requiring DHS to report annually on components' progress remediating AUO implementation deficiencies. DHS concurred with the recommendation.