§793 Oversight and Accountability of Federal Disaster Expenditures

Summary

The Administrator can set aside up to 1 percent of the total money given to a federal agency for a mission assignment as oversight funds. That money stays available until it is spent. Oversight funds can pay for checking and auditing spending, making sure management and controls are working, reviewing contracts, investigating fraud, and doing fraud-prevention work with other government and contractor partners. The funds can also pay for required oversight plans and yearly reports. Agencies can do oversight themselves or hire contractors, and when possible the agency inspector general should do evaluations and audits. If an agency gets oversight funds for a fiscal year, the agency head must make a plan for the next year that uses a risk assessment to pick activities and gives a schedule with expected completion dates. Each year the agency must send a consolidated report to the Administrator and the proper congressional committees showing how the funds were used and what results were found. Oversight funds = the money set aside under the 1 percent rule for these oversight activities.