FEDERAL MARITIME COMMISSION

800 North Capitol Street, N.W.

Washington, DC 20573 

Inspector General 

MEMORANDUM 

DATE: February 28, 2013

TO: Chairman Richard A. Lidinsky, Jr. 

Commissioner Mario Cordero 

Commissioner William P. Doyle 

Commissioner Rebecca F. Dye 

Commissioner Michael A. Khouri 

FROM: /Dana Rooney-Fisher/ 

Interim Inspector General 

SUBJECT: The Federal Maritime Commission’s Compliance with the Improper Payments 

Elimination and Recovery Act of 2010 

 

Dear Chairman Lidinsky and Commissioners: 

In accordance with Sec.3(b) of Public Law 111-204, Improper Payments Elimination and 

Recovery Act of 2010 (hereafter referred to as IPERA), this letter communicates the results of my 

determination of the Federal Maritime Commission (FMC) compliance with applicable 

provisions of the IPERA. This letter covers the FMC’s Fiscal Year (FY) 2012 activities. 

In short, I have determined that the FMC is compliant with the IPERA and applicable guidance, 

as further described below and that during my review nothing came to my attention that indicates 

the agency is susceptible to significant improper payments. 

Section 3(a)(3) of the IPERA defines “compliance’’ as follows: 

The agency — 

(A) has published an annual financial statement for the most recent fiscal year and posted 

that report and any accompanying materials required under guidance of the Office of 

Management and Budget (OMB) on the agency website; 

(B) if required, has conducted a program specific risk assessment for each program or 

activity that conforms with section 2(a) the Improper Payments Information Act of 

2002 (31 U.S.C. 3321 note); and 
2 

(C) if required, publishes improper payments estimates for all programs and activities 

identified under section 2(b) of the Improper Payments Information Act of 2002 (31 

U.S.C. 3321 note) in the accompanying materials to the annual financial statement; 

(D) publishes programmatic corrective action plans prepared under section 2(c) of the 

Improper Payments Information Act of 2002 (31 U.S.C. 3321 note) that the agency 

may have in the accompanying materials to the annual financial statement. 

OMB issued guidancei

 for Inspectors General to aid in their review of agencies’ compliance with 

IPERA. Specifically, the guidance defines compliance to mean that the agency has: 

• Published a Performance Accountability Report (PAR) or AFR for the most recent FY 

and posted that report and any accompanying materials required by OMB on the agency 

website; 

• Conducted a program specific risk assessment for each program or activity that conforms 

with Section 3321 of Title 31 U.S.C (if required); 

• Published improper payment estimates for all programs and activities identifies as 

susceptible to significant improper payments under its risk assessment (if required); 

• Published programmatic corrective action plans in the PAR or AFR (if required); 

• Published, and has met, annual reduction targets for each program assessed to be at risk 

and measured for improper payments; 

• Reported a gross improper payment rate of less than 10 percent for each program and 

activity for which an improper payment estimate was obtained and published in the PAR 

or AFR; and 

• Reported information on its efforts to recapture improper payments.” 

Based on OMB’s definition of compliance, as described above, I have determined that the FMC 

is compliant. The agency has published an annual financial statement for the most recent FY and 

posted that report and any accompanying materials as required by OMB on the agency website 

(http://www.fmc.gov). FMC concluded and reported in its PAR that it has not identified any 

program that constitutes a high risk for improper payments and considers all of its payments to 

be low risk. The agency is not required to publish improper payment estimates, corrective action 

plans, or reduction targets. Further, during my review of relevant prior year data (expenditures 

and accounts receivable due from the public), nothing came to my attention that indicates the 

agency is susceptible to significant improper payments. 

If you have questions or comments, please contact me on (202)523-5258. 

 

i

 See OMB Memorandum M-11-16, dated April 14, 2011, Issuance of Revised Parts I and II to Appendix C of OMB 

Circular A-123.