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GAO’s Congressional ProtocolsCongressionalRequestsCongressional requests for GAO work should be madein writing by a Member and addressed to theComptroller General. Members and their staffs areencouraged to consult with GAO officials in developingrequests for GAO work. GAO will do work without awritten request only if the work involves limited technicalassistance that can be completed within 5 staff days,such as providing briefings on prior work or readilyavailable information. GAO does not generally provideothers with copies of request letters. Rather, GAO willrefer any person who wants a copy of a request letter tothe Member who submitted the request. However, incases where the request letter includes authorization foran agency to release to GAO otherwise restrictedinformation, for example, taxpayer return information,GAO may provide the agency with a copy of the requestletter.For requests that involve work on programs or activitiesrelating to the internal operations of the Congress—theSenate, House, or both—GAO will work with therequester to seek bipartisan and/or bicameral supportfor such requests from either (1) the senior leaders ofthe Senate and/or House or (2) the Chairs and RankingMembers of the Senate and/or House committee(s) ofjurisdiction over the congressional program or activity.When it is not possible to obtain bicameral or bipartisansupport, GAO will work with the requester to notify theother House or party of the request before it commits todo the work.Given relevant legal and other considerations ofteninvolved in work involving multilateral organizations,GAO may need the signatures of a Chair or RankingMember of a committee or subcommittee of jurisdiction.These organizations include the United Nations, theWorld Bank, and the International Monetary Fund.Page 11GAO-17-767G GAO’s Congressional Protocols

GAO’s Congressional ProtocolsGAO does not conduct studies, reviews, evaluations, oraudits of state or local programs or activities that aresolely within the purview of states or local governmentswhere there is no connection to federal matters. GAOdoes review certain state and local activities andprograms that are (1) carried out in furtherance offederal law, such as environmental programs orinsurance regulation or (2) funded by federal programs,such as Medicaid, transportation, or education. Whenappropriate, GAO may consult with state and localauditors regarding their work on these matters. Inaddition, to assist the Congress and its committees indeveloping federal legislation, reexamining the federalrole, or gauging federal performance, GAO sometimesreviews the practices of the states to ascertain “bestpractices” or lessons learned in dealing with particularissues.When GAO receives a request from a Member ofCongress that focuses on a major activity or programthat is solely or largely centered in a specific geographicarea that is represented by Members beyond thoserequesting the work, GAO may advise the Membersrepresenting that geographic area of the timing, scope,and methodology of the work. After advising therequester, GAO may brief such Members shortly beforethe final report is publicly released on the findings,conclusions, and recommendations, without providing acopy of the report before its public release.GAO provides comments on legislative bills when (1)requested to do so by a committee or Member ofCongress, (2) GAO’s authority or responsibilities wouldbe affected by the bill’s passage, or (3) GAO hasinformation that would be useful to committees orMembers in considering or modifying the bill. Incommenting on proposed legislation, GAO’s objective isto identify likely program changes if the bill is enacted orthe impact of such changes on a specific program.Page 12GAO-17-767G GAO’s Congressional Protocols

GAO’s Congressional ProtocolsWhen GAO receives a request that could includeanalysis of a legislative proposal introduced by otherMembers, in the resulting report, it may notify the keybill sponsors. GAO may meet with the key sponsorsduring the fact-finding phase to obtain a betterunderstanding of the purpose and objectives of the bill.After advising the requester, GAO may brief keysponsors shortly before the final report is publiclyreleased on the results of its analysis, including itsfindings, conclusions, and recommendations as theyrelate to the legislative proposal. In these instances,GAO will not provide a copy of the report before it ispublicly available.In limited circumstances, GAO may be unable to do therequested work solely on behalf of a singlecongressional requester. These circumstances involvesituations in which the request addresses an importantissue that has broad interest to multiple committees orthe Congress as a whole.Commitment toCongressionalRequestersGAO will provide to all Members who request work,generally within 10 business days of receipt, a letteracknowledging the receipt of the request and eitheraccepting or declining it. This letter may be augmentedby a verbal communication. When a request isaccepted, GAO will provide the requester an estimate ofwhen the job is likely to be staffed (e.g., immediately,within a few weeks, within several months, or at a futuredate to be determined). When a request is declined,GAO will provide the requester the rationale fordeclining the work (e.g., the requested work is outsideGAO’s scope of authority, GAO already has ongoingwork requested by another Member addressing theissue, or resource constraints limit GAO’s ability torespond to a Member’s request). GAO will, whereappropriate, suggest alternatives to meet therequester’s needs. In consideration of its past practicePage 13GAO-17-767G GAO’s Congressional Protocols

GAO’s Congressional Protocolsfor requests from GAO’s oversight committees—SenateHomeland Security and Governmental Affairs andHouse Oversight and Government Reform—GAO willsend a copy of the acceptance letter to either the Chair(if the Ranking Member submitted the request), or theRanking Member (if the Chair submitted the request), ofthose committees.Congressional requesters should not expect GAO toproceed with the request or provide additional servicesuntil GAO has informed each requester that it willaccept the request. When Members submitindependent requests on the same issue and GAO hasnot accepted the requests, GAO will consult with theMembers and their staffs and will merge requests only ifthe requesters agree. Otherwise, GAO will conduct onebody of work and issue separate products. In limitedcircumstances, however, GAO will work with therequesters to merge multiple requests it receivesrelating to a major event, such as a natural disaster oraccident.After accepting the request, GAO will initiate a meetingwith the requester’s staff generally within 20 businessdays after the engagement is initiated to gain a betterunderstanding of the requester’s need for informationand the nature of the research questions. During thismeeting, GAO will discuss its ability to respond withinthe desired time frame. GAO will advise the requesterthat, as the original requester, only he or she canapprove co-requesters.Once the requester and GAO have agreed to proceedwith the request, GAO will provide the following to therequester: A letter, after the engagement design is completed,confirming agreements reached. The letter willPage 14GAO-17-767G GAO’s Congressional Protocols

GAO’s Congressional Protocolsinclude an estimated timeframe for when the draftproduct will be sent to the agency for comment. Periodic status briefings; notification of anysignificant changed circumstances affecting thescope of work or related time frames for completingthe work (e.g., availability, reliability, or access torecords, data, or sources of information); andbriefing(s) on the preliminary and final results of thework. GAO officials will make every effort toschedule its briefings to accommodate theschedules of the Congress and their staff. Formandates, GAO prefers, but does not require,bipartisan briefings, whenever possible andpracticable.If GAO plans to produce a written product, it will do thefollowing: GAO will notify the requester of the date it will sendthe draft product to the agency for comment andoffer the requester an opportunity to receive a copyof the draft for informational purposes when theagency receives the draft. For products that containnational security or sensitive information, GAO willalso advise the requester when the agency hascompleted its classification or sensitivity review. By law, when a draft product generated under GAO’slegislative authority and not begun because of arequest is sent to the agency, the Senate HomelandSecurity and Governmental Affairs and HouseOversight and Government Reform Committeesmay request a copy. GAO will advise thesecommittees when such drafts are sent to the agencyfor comment.4431 U.S.C. § 718 (b)(2)(B).Page 15GAO-17-767G GAO’s Congressional Protocols

GAO’s Congressional Protocols Allow the requester an option to restrict the publicrelease of a product for up to 30 calendar days afterthe date the product is issued. This restriction doesnot preclude the requester from sharing the productwith other Members.Restricting a report can make its contents unavailablebefore a hearing where the requester plans to use thereport’s contents. In these cases, after consulting with the requester,GAO will reserve the right to allow committeemembers who are part of the hearing to review aphysical copy of the report but not keep it, providedthe information reviewed is not shared publicly untilit is otherwise released. GAO will also release a restricted report, afternotifying the requester, if its contents are released ormade available to the public or if either body of theCongress is considering related legislation.Commitment toCo-RequestersIf any Member is interested in becoming a co-requesterof GAO work, GAO will refer the Member to the originalrequester. If the original requester agrees, the Membercan then become a co-requester any time prior to aproduct’s issuance. GAO will extend the samecommitments to co-requesters as the original requester(see Commitment to Congressional Requesters).However, the co-requester cannot approve additionalco-requesters or restrict the timing of the public releaseof the product.Notification ofOngoing WorkFor any ongoing work—except for classified work andinvestigations—GAO will disclose, if asked (e.g., byMembers, congressional staff, agencies, or the press)the source of the request and the project’s objectives,Page 16GAO-17-767G GAO’s Congressional Protocols

GAO’s Congressional Protocolsscope, and methodology. Additionally, all congressionaloffices have, through the Senate and House intranetconnections to GAO, access to the background and keyresearch questions for active GAO assignments, exceptfor those cases where the reporting of such work wouldresult in disclosing classified or other sensitiveinformation. Active assignments are those that havebeen staffed.Agency CommentsAs required by generally accepted government auditingstandards, GAO will give agencies and other directlyaffected parties the opportunity to comment on a draftproduct to which they are a party. The substance ofthose comments will be published in the product alongwith GAO’s assessment. Also, at the end of datacollection and analysis, GAO will hold an exitconference with agency officials to (1) validate thefactual accuracy of data gathered and (2) discuss theimplications that flow from the data.GAO prefers written comments on its products but willaccept oral comments. Although GAO may give anagency or other affected party up to 30 calendar days tocomment, GAO may attempt to obtain comments inshorter time frames, depending on the needs of therequester and the complexity of the issues involved. Inrare cases, the Comptroller General may grant anextension beyond 30 calendar days if the agency showsthat an extension is necessary and will likely result in amore accurate product.5GAO will not provide an opportunity to comment incases where: (1) disclosure of an investigation’s resultscould pose risks to individuals and their confidentiality;(2) premature disclosure of information could531 U.S.C. §718 (b)(1).Page 17GAO-17-767G GAO’s Congressional Protocols

GAO’s Congressional Protocolscompromise the results of the work; or (3) productslargely reflect prior GAO work.Withdrawal ofRequesterSponsorshipIf requesters or co-requesters decide to withdraw theirsupport of GAO work that will not result in a writtenproduct, they may do so at any time. If a written producthas been planned, the requesters or co-requestersmust advise GAO of their withdrawal before the productis issued. Their withdrawal will not result in thetermination of a product if GAO has expendedsignificant resources and/or the product is in the publicinterest. GAO will, under these circumstances, issue aproduct as if it were undertaken on the ComptrollerGeneral’s initiative. The product may be addressed tocommittees of jurisdiction or the affected agency. Theseproducts will be publicly released like all others.Product ReleaseAll products will have a targeted issuance date that willbe set after GAO has received all agency comments.6GAO will then communicate this targeted issuance dateto the requester and keep the requester apprised of anypotential changes. GAO will accommodate requests forrestrictions on the release of congressionally requestedwork for up to 30 days after the issuance date. GAO willgrant extensions beyond the agreed upon release dateonly in limited cases (e.g., a change in the date of ahearing related to the product). GAO, after consultingwith the requester, will reserve the right to briefinterested committees and subcommittees on the thrustof the report if they are holding a hearing or marking uplegislation relating to the subject matter of the report.After consultation with the requester, GAO may publiclyrelease restricted reports, draft reports, or, on rare6Agencies typically take four weeks to provide comments inresponse to a GAO report.Page 18GAO-17-767G GAO’s Congressional Protocols

GAO’s Congressional Protocolsoccasions, the results of ongoing congressionallyrequested work if the contents of the work or productare released or made available to the public (i.e.,leaked) or if either body of Congress is consideringrelated, pending legislation.Requests forTestimonyRequests for GAO testimony should be made by acommittee or subcommittee Chair in writing. GAO willstrive to respond to all congressional requests fortestimony. However, GAO will decline an invitation totestify when (1) it cannot produce a testimony thatconforms to its core values and standards or (2) thesubstance of the GAO testimony would be newinformation developed for another requester who wantsto restrict the information until its public release. Incases of multiple requests for testimony involving thesame subject matter, GAO will testify on the date of thefirst hearing held and will be available to testify at anysubsequent hearings. For testimony based on newwork, regardless of whether it is a preliminary or finalproduct, GAO will, consistent with professional auditingstandards, obtain the views of agency officials beforethe written testimony is completed to (1) validate theaccuracy of data gathered and (2) discuss theimplications that flow from the data. GAO will distributeits written testimony in accordance with the rules of theSenate or House, including the committees’ rules, andbe available to brief the majority and the minority onmaterial facts, major findings, and conclusions includedin the testimony.Access to AuditDocumentationGAO will grant Members, upon their written request,access to its audit documentation at GAO offices or willprovide copies of selected audit documentation after aproduct has been made publicly available. Specifically,if a member has placed a hold on an issued product,upon the requesting Member(s)’ written request, GAOPage 19GAO-17-767G GAO’s Congressional Protocols

GAO’s Congressional Protocolsmay grant requesting Members access to specific,selected audit documentation. Until the product hasbeen made publicly available, GAO will not providecopies of the audit documentation. After a product hasbeen made publicly available, upon a Member’s writtenrequest, GAO will grant Members access to its auditdocumentation at GAO’s offices or will provide copies ofselected documentation. In both cases, this access issubject to legal and privacy considerations, such asthose concerning taxpayer return information andprotected banking information.Detailees to theCongressBy law,7 GAO staff can be assigned on detail only tocongressional committees, not to leadership orpersonal offices. GAO staff may not engage in partisanactivities or discussions. Committee requests for GAOdetailees should be made in writing and be for specificpurposes for a period not to exceed 1 year. All detaileesmust be approved by the Comptroller General in amanner consistent with the applicable rules and policiesof the Senate or House.Press PolicyIn response to media inquiries about ongoing work,GAO will provide information only about the objectives,scope, and methodology of an assignment; the name ofthe requester; and the expected completion date. GAOwill refer inquiries for any additional information to therequester. As a professional courtesy, GAO will informthe requester of substantive media inquiries during anongoing assignment. Once a product is publiclyreleased, GAO staff with expertise in the subject matterwill answer questions from the media. On-camerainterviews for television news programs are done onlyon request and only when GAO deems them731 U.S.C. §734.Page 20GAO-17-767G GAO’s Congressional Protocols

GAO’s Congressional Protocolsappropriate for public understanding of the facts,findings, conclusions, and recommendations of GAOproducts. GAO’s policy is that senior executives with thebroadest knowledge of a completed assignment dosuch interviews. If asked to participate in press briefingssponsored by the requester, GAO will provide support ifthe press briefing is held in Washington, D.C. In suchinstances, GAO will provide knowledgeable staff withthe understanding that they are present only to answerquestions about the specifics of released GAOproducts. Although GAO does not generally hold pressconferences or issue press releases about products, itdoes advise the media and the public of the release ofGAO products via the Internet and other venues.InvestigationsGAO’s Forensic Audits and Investigative Service team(1) investigates referrals and congressional requestsconcerning specific allegations of federal fraud, waste,abuse, or misconduct and (2) conducts specific projectsthat require special investigative techniques. It is GAO’spolicy to conduct investigations according toinvestigative standards established by the Council ofthe Inspectors General on Integrity and Efficiency(CIGIE) as adapted for GAO’s work. CIGIE standardsplace upon GAO and its investigators the responsibilityto ensure that (1) investigations are conducted bypersonnel who collectively possess the requiredknowledge, skills, and abilities to perform theinvestigations; (2) judgments made in collecting andanalyzing evidence and communicating results areimpartial; and (3) due professional care (e.g.,thoroughness, appropriate use of investigativetechniques, impartiality, objectivity, due respect forindividual rights and privacy, and timeliness) isexercised. GAO’s congressional policies and protocolsapply to investigative work conducted by GAO’sForensic Audits and Investigative Service

Page 1 GAO-17-767G GAO's Congressional Protocols 441 G St. N.W. Washington, D.C. 20548 July 17, 2017 Leret This document describes protocols governing GAO's work for the Congress. Designed in consultation with Congress, the Protocols, as originally issued in 2000 and updated in 2004, have been effective in allowing