Office of the Inspector General Semiannual Report to Congress (NUREG-1415, Vol. 24, No. 1)

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• Publication Information
• A Message from the Inspector General

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Publication Information

Date Published: October 2011
Reporting Period: April 1, 2011 – September 30, 2011

Office of the Inspector General
U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission
Washington, DC 20555

Availability Notice

A Message from the Inspector General

I am pleased to present this Semiannual Report to Congress on the activities and accomplishments of the Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC) Office of the Inspector General (OIG) from April 1, 2011, to September 30, 2011.

Our work reflects the legislative mandate of the Inspector General Act, which is to identify and prevent fraud, waste, and abuse through the conduct of audits and investigations relating to NRC programs and operations. The audits and investigations highlighted in this report demonstrate our commitment to ensuring integrity and efficiency in NRC's programs and operations.

NRC continues to perform its critical agency functions to ensure the safe and secure civilian use of byproduct, source, and special nuclear materials. During this reporting period, NRC OIG continued its focus on critical agency operations to include NRC's oversight of independent spent fuel storage installations, master materials licensees, and tritium production at commercial nuclear power plants. Our efforts to work with NRC to identify risks and vulnerabilities early on affords the agency the opportunity to take any necessary corrective action.

During this semiannual period, we issued 11 performance audit reports and analyzed 11 contract audit reports. As a result of this work, OIG made a number of recommendations to improve the effective and efficient operation of NRC's safety, security, and corporate management programs. OIG also opened 30 investigations, and completed 33 cases. Five of the open cases were referred to the Department of Justice, and 19 allegations were referred to NRC management for action.

NRC OIG remains committed to the integrity, efficiency, and effectiveness of NRC programs and operations. The audits, investigations, and other activities highlighted in this report demonstrate that ongoing commitment. I would like to acknowledge our auditors, investigators, and support staff for their superior work and commitment to the mission of our office.

Finally, the success of NRC OIG would not be possible without the collaborative efforts between my staff and agency staff to address OIG findings and to timely implement the corrective actions recommended by my office. I wish to thank these staff for their dedication and support, and I look forward to their continued cooperation as we work together to ensure the integrity of agency operations.

Hubert T. Bell
Inspector General