§10711 Audits

Summary

The Institute must have its accounts checked every year by independent certified public accountants using normal professional audit rules. The audits must happen where the Institute keeps its records. The auditors must be allowed to see all books, records, reports, files, and other items needed to check the accounts, and they must be able to verify balances and securities held by depositories, fiscal agents, and custodians. A copy of the annual audit must be sent to the Government Accountability Office and kept available for the public at the Institute’s main office during business hours. If Federal money helps pay any part of the Institute’s operations in a fiscal year, the Government Accountability Office may also audit those financial transactions under the rules set by the Comptroller General. The GAO gets the same access to records, which must remain with the Institute for three years from when they are first kept (the GAO can require a longer time under section 3523(c) of title 31). The Institute must also make sure each recipient of its funds has an annual fiscal audit, keep those audit reports for at least five years at its main office, send copies to the Comptroller General, and let the Comptroller General inspect recipient records about the use of Institute funds.