Open Recommendations Dashboard - Glossary & FAQs | Office of Personnel Management

Defined below are a few terms to help you better understand OIG recommendations as well as frequently asked questions.

Open Recommendation

A recommendation is opened on the date the Office of Inspector General (OIG) issues a report.

Resolved Recommendation

A recommendation is resolved once the auditee and the OIG agree on the step(s) necessary to address the recommendation, the responsible official, and date by which the actions will be completed.

Closed Recommendation

A recommendation is closed after the auditee has taken the agreed upon corrective action and provides the OIG with sufficient supporting evidence to demonstrate that the action was taken.

Unique Recommendation

Some recommendations can be rolled forward from a previous report, if corrective action has not been completed between the initial report and the new one. A recommendation is unique if it has not been issued in a prior report.

Priority Recommendations

Priority open recommendations are a specific category required and defined by The Council of the Inspectors General on Integrity and Efficiency (CIGIE) as follows:
- A priority recommendation is “one that the OIG believes that, when implemented, will have the most benefit or impact to the agency’s mission, operations, programs, or funds. Factors an OIG may consider when designating an open recommendation with a priority status include: monetary impact; reduction to waste, fraud, abuse, or misconduct; impact on program efficiency and effectiveness; impact on health, safety, national security, or the economy; current value to policy makers; and the recommendation’s relationship to a high-profile area such as OIG top management challenges, agency strategic priorities, CIGIE top challenges, Congressional interest, and global or national emergencies.”
CIGIE asked each OIG to identify their top three priority recommendations for designation as such on Oversight.gov.

SAR Reporting Period

Under the Inspector General Act of 1978, as amended (IG Act), Federal Inspectors General are required to submit Semiannual Reports to Congress describing the offices’ activities and accomplishments during the six-month periods ending on March 31 and September 30 of each year.
The Open Recommendation Dashboard SAR Reporting Period filter fulfils the IG Act requirements under 5 U.S.C. § 405(b)(2) and 5 U.S.C. § 405(b)(3) which directs OIGs to identify significant recommendations described in pervious semiannual reports on which corrective action has not been completed by the end of the current reporting period.

How do I use the SAR Reporting Period filter?

Below is a list of the SAR reporting periods available on the Open Recommendations Dashboard:
- SAR 69: 10/1/2022 – 3/31/2023
- SAR 68: 4/1/2022 – 9/30/2022
- SAR 67: 10/1/2021 – 3/31/2022
Selecting a SAR Reporting Period will display open recommendations older than six months as of the end of the reporting period (March 31st or September 30th).

Frequently Used Abbreviations