31 U.S.C. § 3516: Reports consolidation

With the concurrence of the Director of the Office of Management and Budget, the head of an executive agency may adjust the frequency and due dates of, and consolidate into an annual report to the President, the Director of the Office of Management and Budget, and Congress any statutorily required reports described in paragraph (2). Such a consolidated report shall be submitted to the President, the Director of the Office of Management and Budget, and to appropriate committees and subcommittees of Congress not later than 150 days after the end of the agency’s fiscal year. Any report by an agency to Congress, the Office of Management and Budget, or the President under section 1116, this chapter, and chapters 9, 33, 37, 75, and 91. The biennial financial management improvement plan by the Secretary of Defense under section 2222 1 of title 10. 1 See References in Text note below. The annual report of the Attorney General under section 522 of title 28 . determines that inclusion of that report will enhance the usefulness of the reported information to decision makers; and consults in advance of inclusion of that report with the Committee on Governmental Affairs of the Senate, the Committee on Government Reform of the House of Representatives, and any other committee of Congress having jurisdiction with respect to the report proposed for inclusion. A report under subsection (a) that incorporates the agency’s program performance report under section 1116 shall be referred to as a performance and accountability report. A report under subsection (a) that does not incorporate the agency’s program performance report under section 1116 shall contain a summary of the most significant portions of the agency’s program performance report, including the agency’s success in achieving key performance goals for the applicable year. A report under subsection (a) shall include a statement prepared by the agency’s inspector general that summarizes what the inspector general considers to be the most serious management and performance challenges facing the agency and briefly assesses the agency’s progress in addressing those challenges. The inspector general shall provide such statement to the agency head at least 30 days before the due date of the report under subsection (a). The agency head may comment on the inspector general’s statement, but may not modify the statement. A report under subsection (a) shall include a transmittal letter from the agency head containing, in addition to any other content, an assessment by the agency head of the completeness and reliability of the performance and financial data used in the report. The assessment shall describe any material inadequacies in the completeness and reliability of the data, and the actions the agency can take and is taking to resolve such inadequacies. shall for each fiscal year submit a performance and accountability report under subsection (a) that incorporates the program performance report under section 1116 of this title for the Department of Homeland Security; shall include in each performance and accountability report an audit opinion of the Department’s internal controls over its financial reporting; and reflect the most recent homeland security strategy developed pursuant to section 874(b)(2) of the Homeland Security Act of 2002; and permit assessment, by the Congress and by managers within the Department, of the Department’s performance in executing such strategy. “This Act may be cited as the ‘DHS Audit Requirement Target Act of 2012’ or the ‘DART Act’. the term ‘Department’ means the Department of Homeland Security; the term ‘financial management systems’ has the meaning given that term under section 806 of the Federal Financial Management Improvement Act of 1996 ( 31 U.S.C. 3512 note); the term ‘Secretary’ means the Secretary of Homeland Security; and the term ‘unqualified opinion’ mean an unqualified opinion within the meaning given that term under generally accepted auditing standards. In order to ensure compliance with the Department of Homeland Security Financial Accountability Act ( Public Law 108–330 ; 118 Stat. 1275 ) [see Short Title of 2004 Amendment note set out under section 101 of Title 6 , Domestic Security], and the amendments made by that Act, the Secretary shall take the necessary steps to ensure that the full set of consolidated financial statements of the Department for the fiscal year ending September 30, 2013 , and each fiscal year thereafter, are ready in a timely manner and in preparation for an audit as part of preparing the performance and accountability reports required under section 3516(f) of title 31 , United States Code, (including submitting the reports not later than November 15, 2013 , and each year thereafter) in order to obtain an unqualified opinion on the full set of financial statements for the fiscal year. to obtain an unqualified opinion on the full set of financial statements, which shall discuss plans and resources needed to meet the deadlines under subsection (b); that addresses how the Department will eliminate material weaknesses and significant deficiencies in internal controls over financial reporting and provides deadlines for the elimination of such weaknesses and deficiencies; and to modernize the financial management systems of the Department, including timelines, goals, alternatives, and costs of the plan, which shall include consideration of alternative approaches, including modernizing the existing financial management systems and associated financial controls of the Department and establishing new financial management systems and associated financial controls.” The Secretary of Homeland Security shall include audit opinions in performance and accountability reports under section 3516(f) of title 31 , United States Code, as amended by subsection (a), only for fiscal years after fiscal year 2005. The Secretary of Homeland Security shall include in the performance and accountability report for fiscal year 2005 submitted by the Secretary under section 3516(f) of title 31 , United States Code, an assertion of the internal controls that apply to financial reporting by the Department of Homeland Security.” existing law imposes numerous financial and performance management reporting requirements on agencies; these separate requirements can cause duplication of effort on the part of agencies and result in uncoordinated reports containing information in a form that is not completely useful to Congress; and pilot projects conducted by agencies under the direction of the Office of Management and Budget demonstrate that single consolidated reports providing an analysis of verifiable financial and performance management information produce more useful reports with greater efficiency. to authorize and encourage the consolidation of financial and performance management reports; to provide financial and performance management information in a more meaningful and useful format for Congress, the President, and the public; to improve the quality of agency financial and performance management information; and to enhance coordination and efficiency on the part of agencies in reporting financial and performance management information.”