The Office of Inspector General (OIG) of the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation (FDIC) issued its report on Conflicts of Interest in the Acquisition Process.
Employees’ adherence to principles of ethical conduct, to include not holding financial interests that conflict with duties and avoiding actions creating the appearance of violations of ethical standards, helps ensure public confidence and integrity of the Federal Government. Media reports in October and December 2022 regarding financial conflicts of interest of senior government officials included reference to three FDIC employees. Subsequently, the OIG received a Congressional request on February 28, 2023, to conduct a review of conflicts of interest at the FDIC and the effectiveness of existing rules and laws to prevent such conflicts.
Our office conducted an evaluation to determine the extent to which the FDIC has processes and procedures to identify, analyze, respond to, and monitor for conflicts of interest of FDIC employees engaged in the acquisition process.
We found the FDIC has processes and procedures to identify, analyze, respond to, and monitor for conflicts of interest in the acquisition process. However, improvements are needed to strengthen internal controls for conflicts of interest in the acquisition planning and approval processes. We also found that the FDIC could strengthen employee knowledge of ethics laws and regulations through specialized acquisition-related training. Additionally, we determined the FDIC could enhance its approach to confidential financial disclosure reviews by updating guidance and training.
The report contains eight recommendations intended to improve the FDIC’s internal controls related to conflicts of interest in the acquisition process and enhance its financial disclosure review program. The FDIC concurred with all recommendations and plans to complete corrective actions by August 31, 2025.