GSA Is Not Effectively Managing Its Internal Space to Reflect Occupancy Changes

Why We Performed This Audit

We performed this audit as part of the GSA Office of Inspector General’s Fiscal Year 2024 Audit Plan. Our audit objective was to determine if GSA evaluated, managed, and monitored its internal space to reflect occupancy changes in accordance with applicable laws, regulations, policies, and guidance.

What We Found

GSA is not effectively managing its internal space to reflect occupancy changes. We found that GSA’s ability to manage its internal space is impaired because it lacks the accurate and reliable data necessary to determine and monitor its occupancy. Further, although GSA has established a space utilization target, it has not developed a comprehensive plan to manage its space and meet the target. Finally, we found that GSA did not comply with its own internal space management procedures for releasing space it no longer occupied.

What We Recommend

We recommend that the Acting GSA Administrator:

1. Develop and implement a consistent methodology to collect daily occupancy data and implement appropriate controls to ensure that the data produced is consistent, reliable, and accurate.
2. Develop and implement a centralized approach for managing GSA’s internal space and meeting its space utilization target.
3. Improve the management of GSA’s occupancy agreements (OAs). Specifically, GSA should:
   1. Conduct a comprehensive review of the Occupancy Agreement Space Inventory System (OASIS) and verify and validate that there are no discrepancies in the OA space reporting for GSA-occupied space.
   2. Develop a process to periodically review and verify that OAs are properly cancelled in OASIS and ensure that all notifications and supporting documents are properly tracked in OASIS in accordance with the space release process.
   3. Correct the $520,155.69 of imputed rent for the PBS space in the U.S. Department of the Interior headquarters building that GSA no longer occupies.
4. Update PBS’s Standard Operating Procedure, Release of Space Actions to reflect the current operating environment.

The Chief Administrative Officer for GSA’s Office of Administrative Services wrote that GSA agreed with the recommendations and will implement them. GSA’s written comments are included in their entirety in Appendix B.