Book a Demo!
CoCalc Logo Icon
StoreFeaturesDocsShareSupportNewsAboutPoliciesSign UpSign In
Download
29547 views
1
2
3
4
5
United States General Accounting Office
6
Internal Control
7
GAO
8
9
10
Exposure Draft
11
12
December 2000
13
14
15
16
Maintaining Effective Control Over Employee Time and Attendance
17
Reporting
18
19
20
GAO01186G
21
22
Abbreviations
23
24
25
INTRODUCTION
26
In recent years significant changes in work place habits and
27
technological advances have affected the manner in which time and
28
attendance (T&A) reporting is accomplished. For example, more
29
flexible work schedules and places, and the trend in government to
30
streamline operations have provided a major impetus for changes in
31
T&A systems. However, perhaps the most significant influence on
32
these changes is advancing technology and the increased use of
33
automation. The Government Paperwork Elimination Act (GPEA)
34
encourages the movement toward paperless applications and the use
35
of electronic signatures. Although GPEA focuses on electronic
36
systems regarding information obtained from and provided to sources
37
outside the government, it provides an additional impetus to
38
agencies to seek further applications of paperless systems and use
39
of electronic signatures.
40
Trends toward increased automation and workplace flexibility
41
have changed the operating environment. However, the need for good
42
internal control continues to exist. To keep abreast of the
43
changes, especially those in automation, we have revised this
44
document to emphasize the attention that should remain regarding
45
effective internal control in T&A systems. This document offers
46
suggestions for taking advantage of the advancements in automated
47
T&A systems and updates the previous guidance to incorporate
48
guidance offered in response to agency requests.1
49
As advancing technologies continue, managers have greater
50
flexibility in designing and implementing T&A systems best
51
suited for their agencies. In designing and implementing new
52
T&A systems or components of existing systems, management
53
should strive for costbeneficial systems and related internal
54
control.
55
The traditional work schedule followed by civilian employees
56
differs from those generally followed by members on active duty of
57
the armed services. Because traditional work schedules influence
58
internal control in T&A systems, this document contains two
59
major parts, the first dealing with civilian employees who are
60
expected to be "working," usually during certain times and the
61
second part dealing with members of the active duty armed services
62
who are expected to be in a "duty status" and thus on call 24 hours
63
a day. Part I, civilian employees, provides guidance for civilian
64
employees, and part II, military service members, provides guidance
65
for military service members. Employees who are paid regardless of
66
their presence or absence and who do not accrue leave under 5
67
U.S.C. 6301 et seq. (e.g., certain political appointees) are exempt
68
from the provisions of this document.2
69
Questions on or interpretations of any material in this document
70
may be submitted to the Managing Director, Financial Management and
71
Assurance, U.S. General Accounting Office, 441 G Street NW,
72
Washington, DC 20548.
73
1
74
When issued in final, this document will replace our 1996
75
revision to Title 6, "Pay, Leave, and Allowances," of the GAO
76
PolicyandProceduresManualforGuidanceofFederalAgencies.
77
2
78
See Comptroller General Decision B123698 (May 10, 1978).
79
(BLANK)
80
81
82
PART I: CIVILIAN EMPLOYEES
83
84
INTERNAL CONTROL OBJECTIVES IN T&A SYSTEMS
85
The primary objective of a T&A system is to ensure that
86
hours worked, hours in pay status, and hours absent are properly
87
reported. Reliable data are important to accurately compute and
88
account for computed pay, leave, and allowances. To achieve this
89
objective, management should have in place an internal control
90
system that provides reasonable assurance that (1) T&A
91
transactions are properly authorized and approved and (2) T&A
92
data are completely and accurately recorded and retained.
93
94
T&A Transactions Are Properly Authorized and Approved
95
The nature and extent of T&A transaction approvals and
96
controls can vary among T&A systems. Fully automated systems,
97
for example, may require fewer approvals than manual systems
98
because of automated edits and controls, and the use of automated
99
signatures. Nevertheless, the nature and extent of T&A
100
approvals must be such that management has assurance that
101
supervisors or other officials know they are accountable for the
102
approvals of an employee's work time and absences. This helps
103
ensure that accurate T&A information is recorded and reported
104
for the purposes of computing pay and allowances.
105
Primary responsibility for authorizing and approving T&A
106
transactions rests with the employee's supervisor, who approves the
107
employee's T&A reports. Timekeepers3 and supervisors must be
108
aware of the work time and absence of employees for whom they are
109
responsible to ensure the reliability of T&A data. To the
110
extent practical, changes to an employee's normal work schedule
111
should generally be approved prior to the change actually
112
occurring. Unanticipated changes should be reviewed for approval or
113
disapproval as soon as reasonably possible.
114
115
116
T&A Data Are Complete and Accurate
117
Because most federal civilian employees are paid on an hourly
118
basis (or fractions of an hour) and earn and charge leave on that
119
basis, a complete and accurate record of the time an employee works
120
must be retained as an official agency record available for review
121
or inspection. To provide a basis for pay, leave, and benefits, the
122
records must include aggregate hours of regular time, other time
123
(e.g., overtime, credit hours, or compensatory time), and leave.4
124
To help ensure accuracy, the completed records must be reviewed and
125
approved by the supervisor (or other equivalent official). In an
126
automated environment, system edits and other automated tests
127
can
128
3
129
The traditional T&A system normally involved a timekeeper
130
who was responsible for assisting supervisors in recording and
131
verifying employees' work time and absences. New T&A systems
132
can reduce or even eliminate timekeepers' duties and shift the
133
responsibilities to employees or supervisors. Regardless of the
134
changes made, recording accurate T&A information remains the
135
primary control objective.
136
4
137
Traditionally, daily arrival and departure times were required
138
to be recorded. Although it is not required that daily records be
139
maintained, agency management may choose to do so by using
140
signin/signout sheets or other means.
141
assist the supervisor in his or her review and verify that
142
recorded work time is accurate and allowable.
143
144
145
146
RELIANCE ON INTERNAL CONTROLS IN A T&A SYSTEM
147
As T&A systems evolve toward increasingly automated methods
148
of recording and reporting employee work and leave times, it is
149
important to implement and maintain a welldefined system that
150
provides management with the confidence that controls are working
151
as designed. This can be done by:
152
153
154
155
Having a welldefined organizational structure and flow of
156
T&A data with clearly written policies and procedures setting
157
forth the responsibilities of employees, timekeepers (if
158
applicable), and supervisors regarding recording, examining, and
159
approving T&A transactions.
160
161
162
163
Effectively applying available technology and concepts to
164
achieve efficient and effective T&A system processes in
165
accordance with applicable requirements and the environment in
166
which the agency operates.
167
168
169
170
Having the ability to record payroll costs by
171
appropriation, organizational code, and work activity to facilitate
172
application of required cost accounting for financial and program
173
management.
174
175
176
177
Reviewing and testing all aspects of the T&A systems'
178
processing procedures and controls in sufficient scope, depth, and
179
frequency to provide reasonable assurance that key procedures and
180
controls are working and effective and that data integrity is
181
maintained.
182
183
184
Agencies' T&A systems are subject to periodic review under
185
the Federal Managers' Financial Integrity Act of 1982 (FMFIA) (31
186
U.S.C. 3512(c), (d)).5
187
RECORDING AND MAINTAINING COMPLETE AND ACCURATE T&A
188
RECORDS
189
190
191
Required T&A Information
192
The following T&A information and documentation should be
193
recorded and maintained for each employee for each pay period:
194
1. employee name and unique identifying number (e.g., a social
195
security number),
196
197
5StandardsforInternalControlintheFederalGovernment(GAO/AIMD0021.3.1)
198
was revised in November 1999, and is available on the Internet, GAO
199
home page (www.gao.gov) under "Other Publications." It is also
200
available in hard copy by calling (202) 5126000 or at the U.S.
201
General Accounting Office, 700 4th Street NW, Room 1100,
202
Washington, D.C. In addition, the Office of Management and Budget
203
(OMB) requirements for evaluating financial systems and controls
204
are in OMB Circular A123, InternalControlSystems(June 1995)and OMB
205
Circular A127, FinancialManagementSystems(July 1993). These OMB and
206
GAO issuances establish the criteria and rules for assessing and
207
reporting annually on the status of agency systems and
208
controls.
209
210
211
2.
212
pay period number or dates,
213
214
215
3.
216
hours worked,
217
218
219
4.
220
hours of premium pay, by type, to which the employee is
221
entitled,
222
223
224
5.
225
dates and number of hours of leave (by type), credit
226
hours, and compensatory hours earned and used,6
227
228
229
6.
230
evidence of approval by an authorized official (usually
231
the supervisor),
232
233
234
7.
235
any required supporting documentation or records for
236
absences, and
237
238
239
8.
240
other information agencies believe necessary.
241
242
243
A T&A record containing all required data elements can be
244
(1) a manually completed hard copy document, (2) an automated file
245
retained electronically, or (3) a combination of automated and
246
manual records. The T&A information can be obtained using a
247
number of different methods, including but not limited to
248
preprinted or designed T&A forms; other standard forms;
249
internal memorandums; emails; employee, timekeeper, or supervisor
250
notations (for example, that might result from phone
251
conversations); or other formats so long as the documents are
252
controlled and retained as the official T&A record of
253
employees. The data contained in the T&A records should be
254
linked to accounting records and provide the necessary support for
255
financial reporting and allocation of costs.
256
257
Recording T&A Data
258
Agency policy must affix accountability for recording the
259
T&A data referred to in the previous section. The data may be
260
recorded by the
261
262
263
1.
264
individual employee,
265
266
267
2.
268
timekeeper,
269
270
271
3.
272
supervisor, or
273
274
275
4.
276
a combination of the three.
277
278
279
Agency policy must assign accountability for recording and
280
maintaining T&A data referred to in the previous section. If
281
the employee is not recording his or her T&A data, the basis
282
for recording the data could be (1) the timekeeper's or
283
supervisor's observation, (2) time clocks, or other automated
284
timekeeping devices, where not prohibited by law, or (3) other
285
applicable techniques. The person recording the T&A data
286
acknowledges responsibility for the accuracy of the recorded
287
data.
288
The point at which T&A data are recorded can vary among
289
different T&A systems. For example, T&A data may be
290
recorded (1) daily, (2) when deviations occur from an individual's
291
or agency's established work schedule, or (3) at the end of the pay
292
period. Regardless of the timing of recording T&A data,
293
management must have in place a system of control techniques that
294
gives reasonable assurance that the recorded information reflects
295
time worked, leave taken, or other absences.
296
6Cumulative balances of available leave by type per employee are
297
required to be maintained on record. Agencies may maintain these
298
cumulative balances on biweekly or pay period T&A records which
299
show the available balances for the pay period ending. Examples of
300
the types of leave on such T&A records include, but are not
301
limited to, annual, sick, and family friendly leave.
302
303
304
Supplementary T&A Records
305
Supplementary T&A records, containing information not
306
previously discussed, shall be completed and maintained. Examples
307
of such records include those for establishing (1) work schedules,7
308
(2) flexiplace arrangements,8 (3) cumulative leave balances
309
available for use by type,
310
311
312
(4)
313
overtime, (5) compensatory time earned and used, (6)
314
credit hours earned and used under an alternative work schedule,
315
and (7) number of unscheduled duty hours. The records must
316
show
317
318
319
(1)
320
an employee's pay period schedules indicating planned
321
start and stop work times and hours per day for an established work
322
schedule, (2) the aggregate hours (or fractions of hours) and days
323
the employees worked regular hours, worked overtime, took leave, or
324
used earned compensatory time or credit hours, and (3) the
325
supervisor's approval. In order for the agency to properly document
326
and calculate an employee's overtime pay entitlements under 5
327
U.S.C. chapters 55 and 61 and 29 U.S.C. 201 et seq., the records
328
must distinguish between regular overtime and irregular or
329
occasional overtime.
330
331
332
333
334
Employees Temporarily Assigned to Another Agency
335
When an employee is on temporary assignment to another agency,
336
the agency to which the employee is detailed must record T&A
337
data for the employee in accordance with these requirements. It
338
must also report the information to the employee's home agency
339
promptly to facilitate disbursement of pay by the home agency.
340
341
342
Access to T&A Information
343
Access to T&A information should be limited to those
344
authorized to access the information.
345
AUTHORIZING AND APPROVING T&A TRANSACTIONS
346
347
348
349
Attestations, Verifications, and Approvals
350
This section (1) defines attestations, verifications, and
351
approvals and (2) discusses how attestations, verifications, and
352
approvals can be achieved in a manual or automated T&A system
353
environment.
354
Attestation refers to an employee affirming T&A data to be
355
true, correct, and accurate. Verification is a confirmation,
356
usually by the timekeeper or supervisor, that recorded information
357
is true, correct, and accurate to the best of his/her knowledge.
358
Approval is the supervisor's, other equivalent official's, or
359
higher level manager's agreement, ratification, or concurrence
360
to
361
(1) a planned work schedule and leave of employee or (2) actual
362
T&A data. Such approvals represent that the actual work
363
schedule recorded by the employee or timekeeper is to the best
364
of
365
7
366
Federal agencies can allow employees to vary their daily arrival
367
and departure times and, under some options, to vary the length of
368
their workday or workweek. In all cases, fulltime employees are
369
required to work or otherwise account for 80 hours each biweekly
370
pay period (5 U.S.C. 6120 et seq.).
371
8
372
See Office of Personnel Management's (OPM) Memorandum for
373
Personnel Directors on the subject of Alternative Workplace
374
Arrangements, October 21, 1993.
375
the approving official's knowledge true, correct, and accurate,
376
and in accordance with applicable laws, regulations, and legal
377
decisions. The approving official acknowledges awareness and
378
understanding of his/her responsibility when approving T&A
379
data.
380
The evidence of attestations, verifications, and approvals will
381
of necessity differ between manual and automated systems. In manual
382
systems, attestations, verifications, and approvals are usually
383
shown by a signature or initial of an individual on a hard copy
384
document. In automated systems, they are represented by what can be
385
referred to generically as electronic signatures.9 There are many
386
types of electronic signature technologies offering different
387
degrees of confidence, control, and security. In selecting and/or
388
developing, and implementing a particular electronic signature
389
technology for an automated T&A application, management must
390
assess the risks associated with the loss, misuse, or compromise of
391
the electronic T&A information and signatures compared to the
392
benefits, costs, and effort associated with selecting and/or
393
developing and managing the automated systems and electronic
394
signatures.10 See the appendix for a further explanation about
395
electronic signatures and GAO's review of such applications.
396
397
Authorizing an Employee's Work Schedule
398
When (1) an employee's work schedule differs from the agencywide
399
schedule established by management or (2) reflects a flexible work
400
program, an employee's work schedule should be approved by the
401
supervisor or the official most knowledgeable of the employee's
402
schedule in advance of the period when the plan takes effect. If
403
the schedule is not approved in advance, the plan should be
404
approved as soon after the start of the pay period as possible.
405
Approval must be granted for overtime before the work has been
406
performed when feasible and, when not feasible, as soon as possible
407
after the work has been performed. Care must be taken to
408
distinguish between regular overtime and irregular overtime or
409
occasional overtime (or compensatory time in lieu of overtime,
410
where allowed) in order for the agency to properly document and
411
calculate an employee's overtime pay entitlements under 5 U.S.C.
412
chapters 55 and 61 and 29 U.S.C. 201 et seq.
413
414
415
Approval of Leave
416
Approval of leave should be made by the employee's supervisor
417
before the leave is taken. If leave is not approved in advance, it
418
should be reviewed for approval or disapproval as soon as
419
reasonably possible after taken.
420
9
421
The GPEA defines "electronic signature" as a method of signing
422
an electronic message that (1) identifies and authenticates a
423
particular person as the source of the electronic message and (2)
424
indicates such person's approval of the information contained in
425
the message.
426
10
427
GPEA requires agencies to comply with the guidance issued by OMB
428
regarding automated systems that maintain electronic information as
429
a substitute for paper and use of electronic signatures. OMB issued
430
the guidance in Memorandum M0010, dated April 25, 2000. A 29page
431
attachment to the memorandum contains the details of the guidance.
432
Also, as part of the OMB guidance, the Department of Justice was
433
charged with developing practical guidance on legal considerations
434
related to agencies' use of electronic filing and record keeping.
435
The department issued LegalConsiderationsinDesigningandImplementing
436
ElectronicProcesses:AGuideforFederalAgenciesin November 2000.
437
438
439
Attestation and Verification by Employees and Timekeepers
440
The employee and timekeeper, if any, are not required to attest
441
or verify T&A reports and related documents. However, if
442
management requires such attestations and/or verifications, they
443
should be performed as close to the end of the pay period as
444
possible. When not possible until after the end of the pay period,
445
a copy of the T&A report and related documents, when
446
applicable, should be provided to the employee promptly for
447
attestation and to the timekeeper promptly for verification. The
448
employee and/or timekeeper should promptly disclose any
449
discrepancies to the supervisor. The supervisor should promptly
450
resolve such discrepancies.
451
452
453
Approval of T&A Reports and Related Records
454
All T&A reports and related supporting documents (e.g.,
455
overtime pay authorizations) must be reviewed and approved by an
456
authorized official. Review and approval should be made by the
457
official, normally the immediate supervisor, most knowledgeable of
458
the time worked and absence of the employee involved. Approval of
459
T&A reports and related documents should be based on personal
460
observation, work output, timekeeper verification, checking data
461
against other independent sources, reliance on other controls, or a
462
combination of these methods.
463
The official most knowledgeable of the time worked should
464
approve any overtime or compensatory time. Care should be taken (1)
465
to ensure that the overtime was approved, preferably in advance,
466
and (2) that the amount and type of overtime (regular or
467
irregular), credit hours, and compensatory time is accurately
468
recorded.
469
If practical, T&A data must be approved at the end of the
470
last day of the pay period or later. When this is not feasible
471
because of payroll processing requirements to meet established
472
paydays, T&A data must be prepared and approved as close to the
473
end of the pay period as possible to still allow processing of the
474
payroll by payday.
475
476
477
Adjustment or Corrections After the T&A Period Ends
478
Adjustments or corrections required because of changes after
479
T&A data were approved must be made in the payroll system and
480
reflected in pay for the pay period to which the changes apply,
481
when possible. When not possible, adjustments must be made as soon
482
after discovery as practical. Any changes must be approved by an
483
authorizing official before being entered into the payroll
484
system.
485
486
487
SelfApproval of T&A Reports
488
In general, employees may not approve their own T&A data.
489
However, the head of an agency (or designee) may authorize
490
particular individuals to approve their own T&A data in certain
491
situations or if the individual is a high level manager (such as
492
the head of a large unit within the agency). In these situations,
493
an official authorized by the agency head (or designee) must grant
494
advance authority in writing, and the agency must ensure that
495
effective controls are in place to ensure the proper reporting of
496
T&A data.
497
Exceptions to the general prohibition of employees approving
498
their own T&A data are intended to apply when it is not
499
feasible to have T&A data approved by a supervisor. These
500
exceptions include but are not necessarily limited to (1) employees
501
working alone at a remote site for long periods and (2) employees
502
based at the same duty station as their supervisors or timekeepers
503
but frequently at work sites away from the duty station. In other
504
situations when it is not practical for the supervisor to approve
505
T&A data promptly, the employee may be paid and the supervisor
506
may subsequently review and approve the data.
507
508
509
510
TRANSMITTING T&A INFORMATION TO PAYROLL
511
512
T&A information must be transmitted to the payroll system
513
for all employees or, under exceptionbased systems, for employees
514
who have changes to their normal work schedules. While the choice
515
of methods used to transmit the T&A data may be based on
516
costeffectiveness and management information needs, the system used
517
to transmit the information must protect T&A data from
518
unauthorized change or alteration and must generate a record of any
519
change made. Any change to previously attested to and approved data
520
must be reviewed by and attested to by the employee whose data was
521
changed. The changed data must also be reviewed by and approved by
522
an authorized official.
523
524
525
EXCEPTIONBASED SYSTEMS
526
Exceptionbased T&A systems, as the name implies, require pay
527
period recording of arrival and departure times only if material
528
variances11 from preestablished work schedules occur. Employees'
529
schedules are established, either through management designated
530
work schedules or by mutual agreement between employees and
531
management. When employees' arrival and departure times for a pay
532
period are established, these schedules become the basis for
533
recorded T&A data unless material variances or deviations
534
occur. As previously noted, if no material variances occur, arrival
535
and departure times and hours worked per day need not be
536
recorded.
537
Material variances or deviations must be approved by the
538
supervisor before the change occurs, if feasible, or promptly after
539
occurring, if not feasible. As part of their approval of the
540
change, supervisors or designees must verify that the dates and
541
amounts of material changes have been recorded in the appropriate
542
T&A record. However, in either case (material variance or no
543
variance) each employee's T&A record must be approved by the
544
supervisor or comparable official.
545
Several alternatives exist for recording changes to established
546
schedules. Changes can be noted by recording arrival and departure
547
times directly on an employee's time sheet, recording arrival and
548
departure times on a centrally maintained timein/timeout log used
549
by many employees, or noting the number of hours and minutes of the
550
deviation in a record that the supervisor maintains. The method
551
selected by management to record the deviations should be the most
552
efficient and effective one under the circumstances.
553
Unless otherwise designated by management, material variances or
554
deviations from an established schedule for recording purposes are
555
those that differ by 1 hour or more during a planned workday or
556
flex day. However, if leave is used, a deviation of less than 1
557
hour could be considered material. For example, if an employee
558
arrives 30 minutes late, but works 30 minutes past the planned
559
departure time, this would be considered an immaterial variation
560
and need not be recorded. On the other hand, if the employee
561
chooses to request annual or sick leave rather than to work for the
562
time absent, then a material deviation for recording purposes has
563
occurred.
564
565
566
ALTERNATIVE WORKPLACE ARRANGEMENTS
567
Alternative workplace arrangements12 involve working at
568
locations other than the traditional government office. Locations
569
of alternative workplaces are usually the employee's home or
570
telecenters.13 Although numerous benefits exist for both the agency
571
and employees participating in alternative workplaces (such as
572
employee moral and lower commuting costs), flexible workplace is a
573
management option, not an employee benefit. Employees who work at
574
alternative work sites should have a written agreement with their
575
supervisors stipulating, among other items, the period of time the
576
agreement is in effect, days in which the employee will work at the
577
alternative site, work assignments and performance, work schedule,
578
and time and attendance.
579
As a basis for approving T&A data, supervisors are required
580
to obtain reasonable assurance that employees working at remote
581
sites are working when scheduled and that T&A information
582
accurately reflects time worked and absences from scheduled tours
583
of duty. Numerous techniques are available to the supervisor to
584
obtain this assurance. For example, reviewing the work output of
585
the employee and occasional phone call or visits to the
586
employee.
587
12
588
Other terms used to refer to alternative workplace arrangements
589
or locations of work are "flexible workplace," "flexiplace," and
590
"telecommuting."
591
13
592
Telecenters are facilities away from the traditional government
593
office that are equipped with workstations, telephones, and
594
computers among other items that are shared by employees of
595
multiple agencies.
596
597
598
599
PART II: MILITARY SERVICE MEMBERS
600
601
ACTIVE MILITARY PERSONNEL
602
Active military personnel are considered to be on duty 24 hours
603
a day. Because the nature of some military assignments makes a
604
confirmation of the presence at duty stations difficult, if not
605
impossible, the recording of presence for duty and of specific
606
hours during which duty is performed each day is not required. This
607
is similar to exceptionbased T&A systems explained earlier in
608
this document. Most active duty military personnel follow
609
exceptionbased systems. However, superiors are expected to be aware
610
of the presence and absence of service members for whom they are
611
responsible. When a service member is on temporary assignment to
612
another component of the armed services or to a civilian agency,
613
the entity to which the service member is detailed must provide
614
time and attendance recording for the service member and report the
615
information to his or her home component promptly to facilitate
616
payment of basic pay and allowances by (or through) the home
617
component.
618
Absence reports must be maintained daily to indicate those
619
service members who are to be charged leave and those who are not
620
present for duty but who should be. Examples of reports that might
621
contain such data are "morning" or "day" reports, strength reports,
622
unit diaries, and other similar reports.
623
Information on absences which affect pay should be compiled each
624
pay period and be transmitted to the payroll system. Without such
625
information, the payroll system may mistakenly pay the member for
626
unauthorized pay and allowances. The following requirements for
627
review and approval must be met:
628
629
630
1.
631
Reports of such information and related supporting
632
documents must be reviewed and approved by a designated authorizing
633
official. The official must be aware of the responsibilities he or
634
she is taking regarding the accuracy of the reports.
635
636
637
2.
638
Approvals of such reports will be made at the end of the
639
last day of the pay period whenever possible. When this is not
640
possible because of payroll processing requirements to meet
641
established paydays, documents must be approved as close to the end
642
of the pay period as possible.
643
644
645
3.
646
Approval must be done in accordance with guidance found
647
in the subsection "Attestations, Verifications, and Approvals" of
648
section "Authorizing and Approving T&A Transactions" of this
649
document.
650
651
652
4.
653
Any adjustments required because of changes in reported
654
absences after the reports were approved and transmitted to the
655
payroll system must be made and reflected in the pay period to
656
which the changes apply, when possible, or when not possible,
657
adjusted as soon as possible, preferably in the next pay
658
period.
659
660
661
Any changes must be approved by the authorizing official prior
662
to being entered into the payroll system. Service members may not
663
approve their own absence reports unless prior authority to do so
664
is granted in writing by an authorized official.
665
When feasible (as in an office setting or environment),
666
costeffective, and applicable, attendance reporting and related
667
internal controls set forth in "Part I: Civilian Employees" should
668
be instituted for service members to the extent management deems
669
appropriate.
670
671
672
MILITARY RESERVISTS
673
T&A controls for military reservists depend largely on the
674
nature of the work. If they have defined work schedules and are not
675
expected to be available for duty on a roundtheclock basis, the
676
T&A requirements for civilian employees are operative and
677
should be used. If however they are employed similar to those who
678
are on active duty or are actually on active duty, then the
679
controls in the subsection "Active Military Personnel" are
680
operative and should be used.
681
682
683
684
APPENDIX I: GAO'S REVIEW OF ELECTRONIC SIGNATURES
685
APPLICATIONS
686
GAO has been asked by several federal agencies to review
687
electronic signature systems used in financial management systems
688
and to discuss how such systems should be evaluated. Because of
689
some of the unique risks associated with highly automated
690
environments, traditional data integrity techniques, such as
691
password and user identification based systems, used to
692
authenticate an individual may not provide the same degree of
693
assurance as that provided by paperbased systems. For example, in a
694
paperbased system, an individual's signature on the paper document
695
is a timetested method of showing that an individual intended to be
696
bound by the terms and conditions in the paper document. However,
697
in an electronic world, where adequate controls have not been
698
implemented, the similar approach of having an individual's name
699
appended to a data record does not provide the same assurance
700
because, for example, the terms and conditions can be changed
701
without obtaining the individual's approval of the changes
702
made.
703
When reviewing electronic signature systems, we evaluate whether
704
a system generates electronic signatures that represent an
705
individual's or an entity's intent to be bound. To do this, we
706
determine whether the electronic signature system provides
707
reasonable assurance that the signature produced by the system is
708
(1) unique to the signer, (2) under the signer's sole control,
709
(3) capable of being verified, and (4) linked to the data in
710
such a manner that, if the data are changed, the signature is
711
invalidated. Adopting these criteria facilitates our evaluation of
712
how well the electronic signature system addresses its threats and
713
helps identify vulnerabilities that may be present in the system.
714
We have also found these criteria useful since they are technology
715
neutral (can be used regardless of the technology used to produce
716
the signature) and allow for a variety of implementation methods,
717
depending of the degree of risk associated with a given
718
application.
719
When deciding on an electronic signature system for T&A
720
data, agencies should identify and/or develop and document the
721
criteria used in the selection of the signature system and how the
722
criteria and the selected system complies with the GPEA definition
723
of an electronic signature. In addition, the agency's risk
724
assessment process (as called for in the OMB guidance14) should
725
disclose the risks considered that would prevent the system from
726
successfully complying with the criteria selected by the agency.
727
Without developing the criteria that the system should meet and
728
then effectively assessing the risks, agencies could adopt
729
signature systems that will not provide the necessary data
730
integrity.15
731
(922289)
732
14 See footnote 10.
733
A recently issued GAO report (InformationSecurity:
734
SeriousandWidespreadWeaknessesPersistat FederalAgencies.
735
GAO/AIMD00295, September 6, 2000) showed that in 24 agencies,
736
physical and logical access controls were not effective in
737
preventing or detecting system intrusions or misuse. These
738
weaknesses have a significant adverse impact on the ability of
739
automated systems to ensure the necessary data integrity.
740
741
Ordering Information
742
The first copy of each GAO report is free. Additional copies of
743
reports are $2 each. A check or money order should be made out to
744
the Superintendent of Documents. VISA and MasterCard credit cards
745
are accepted, also.
746
Orders for 100 or more copies to be mailed to a single address
747
are discounted 25 percent.
748
749
Orders by mail:
750
U.S. General Accounting Office
751
P.O. Box 37050 Washington, DC 20013
752
Orders by visiting: Room 1100 700 4th St. NW (corner of 4th and
753
G Sts. NW)
754
U.S. General Accounting Office Washington, DC
755
Orders by phone: (202) 512-6000 fax: (202) 512-6061 TDD (202)
756
512-2537
757
Each day, GAO issues a list of newly available reports and
758
testimony. To receive facsimile copies of the daily list or any
759
list from the past 30 days, please call (202) 512-6000 using a
760
touchtone phone. A recorded menu will provide information on how to
761
obtain these lists.
762
Orders by Internet: For information on how to access GAO reports
763
on the Internet, send an e-mail message with "info" in the body
764
to:
765
[email protected]
766
or visit GAO's World Wide Web home page at:
767
http://www.gao.gov
768
769
770
Contact one:
771
772
773
774
To Report Fraud,
775
• Web site: http://www.gao.gov/fraudnet/fraudnet.htm
776
777
778
Waste, or Abuse in
779
780
• e-mail: [email protected]
781
1-800-424-5454 (automated answering system)
782
783
784
785
786
787
788
789