The Contact-Handled Transuranic Waste Characterization Capabilities at the Idaho National Laboratory
Department's Implementation of the Strategic: Integrated Procurement Enterprise System - Security Planning
The Department of Energy's Uranium Leasing Program was established by the Atomic
Energy Act of 1954 to develop a supply of domestic uranium to meet the nation's defense
needs. Pursuant to the Act, the Program leases tracts of land to private sector entities for
the purpose of mining uranium ore. According to Department officials, one purpose of
the Program is to obtain a fair monetary return to the Government. The Program is
administered by the Department's Office of Legacy Management through a contractor.
The uranium leases issued by the Department include two types of royalty payments: an
annual royalty and a production royalty. The annual royalty is a flat rate and is paid to
the Department whether production has occurred or not. The production royalty is based
on a calculation of the value of the uranium ore that was produced by the mine.
The Department leased tracts of Federal land located in southwestern Colorado to various
private sector companies. The most recent 1 O-year lease period was from 1996 to 2006,
during which time the Department leased 13 active tracts of land. Industry interest in
production recently increased due to higher uranium prices. Accordingly, in July 2007,
the Department issued a final Programmatic Environmental Assessment on the upcoming
1 O-year lease period, in which it selected an "Expanded Alternative" that will result in the
activation of 38 tracts of land. If production occurred on all 38 tracts, the Department
estimated royalties could total $1 8 million a year. Since the Department is planning to
issue new leases with the potential for increased royalties stemming from the Program's
upcoming expansion, we initiated this audit to determine if the Department was
effectively administering its Uranium Leasing Program.
Energy Act of 1954 to develop a supply of domestic uranium to meet the nation's defense
needs. Pursuant to the Act, the Program leases tracts of land to private sector entities for
the purpose of mining uranium ore. According to Department officials, one purpose of
the Program is to obtain a fair monetary return to the Government. The Program is
administered by the Department's Office of Legacy Management through a contractor.
The uranium leases issued by the Department include two types of royalty payments: an
annual royalty and a production royalty. The annual royalty is a flat rate and is paid to
the Department whether production has occurred or not. The production royalty is based
on a calculation of the value of the uranium ore that was produced by the mine.
The Department leased tracts of Federal land located in southwestern Colorado to various
private sector companies. The most recent 1 O-year lease period was from 1996 to 2006,
during which time the Department leased 13 active tracts of land. Industry interest in
production recently increased due to higher uranium prices. Accordingly, in July 2007,
the Department issued a final Programmatic Environmental Assessment on the upcoming
1 O-year lease period, in which it selected an "Expanded Alternative" that will result in the
activation of 38 tracts of land. If production occurred on all 38 tracts, the Department
estimated royalties could total $1 8 million a year. Since the Department is planning to
issue new leases with the potential for increased royalties stemming from the Program's
upcoming expansion, we initiated this audit to determine if the Department was
effectively administering its Uranium Leasing Program.
Management Controls over the Department of Energy's Uranium Leasing Program, OAS-M-08-05
The Department of Energy operates numerous interconnected computer networks and systems to help accon~plishit s strategic missions in the areas of energy, defense, science, and the environment. These systems are frequently subjected to sophisticated ...
The Department of Energy operates numerous interconnected computer networks and
systems to help accon~plishit s strategic missions in the areas of energy, defense, science,
and the environment. These systems are frequently subjected to sophisticated cyber
attacks that could potentially affect the Department's ability to carry out its mission.
During Fiscal Year 2006, the Department experienced 132 incidents of sufficient severity
to require reporting to law enforcement, an increase of 22 percent over the prior year.
These statistics, troubling as they may be, are not unique to the Department; they are, in
fact, reflective of a trend in cyber attacks throughout the government.
The Federal Information Security Management Act of 2002 requires each agency to
implement procedures for detecting, reporting and responding to cyber security incidents,
including notifying and consulting with the Department of Homeland Security's Federal
Computer Incident Response Center, law enforcement agencies, and Inspectors General.
To meet this requirement and counter the threat posed by cyber attacks, the Department
has established incident reporting mechanisms and various cyber security incident
response and analysis capabilities to prevent, detect, respond, and recover from cyber
security incidents. Given the prevalence of cyber security attacks on Federal information
systems, we initiated an audit to determine if the Department had developed an integrated
and effective cyber security incident management program.
systems to help accon~plishit s strategic missions in the areas of energy, defense, science,
and the environment. These systems are frequently subjected to sophisticated cyber
attacks that could potentially affect the Department's ability to carry out its mission.
During Fiscal Year 2006, the Department experienced 132 incidents of sufficient severity
to require reporting to law enforcement, an increase of 22 percent over the prior year.
These statistics, troubling as they may be, are not unique to the Department; they are, in
fact, reflective of a trend in cyber attacks throughout the government.
The Federal Information Security Management Act of 2002 requires each agency to
implement procedures for detecting, reporting and responding to cyber security incidents,
including notifying and consulting with the Department of Homeland Security's Federal
Computer Incident Response Center, law enforcement agencies, and Inspectors General.
To meet this requirement and counter the threat posed by cyber attacks, the Department
has established incident reporting mechanisms and various cyber security incident
response and analysis capabilities to prevent, detect, respond, and recover from cyber
security incidents. Given the prevalence of cyber security attacks on Federal information
systems, we initiated an audit to determine if the Department had developed an integrated
and effective cyber security incident management program.
The Department's Cyber Security Incident Management Program
The Department of Energy operates numerous interconnected computer networks and
systems to help accon~plishit s strategic missions in the areas of energy, defense, science,
and the environment. These systems are frequently subjected to sophisticated cyber
attacks that could potentially affect the Department's ability to carry out its mission.
During Fiscal Year 2006, the Department experienced 132 incidents of sufficient severity
to require reporting to law enforcement, an increase of 22 percent over the prior year.
These statistics, troubling as they may be, are not unique to the Department; they are, in
fact, reflective of a trend in cyber attacks throughout the government.
systems to help accon~plishit s strategic missions in the areas of energy, defense, science,
and the environment. These systems are frequently subjected to sophisticated cyber
attacks that could potentially affect the Department's ability to carry out its mission.
During Fiscal Year 2006, the Department experienced 132 incidents of sufficient severity
to require reporting to law enforcement, an increase of 22 percent over the prior year.
These statistics, troubling as they may be, are not unique to the Department; they are, in
fact, reflective of a trend in cyber attacks throughout the government.
Department of Energy's Receipt of Royalty Oil
The Department of Energy's Strategic Petroleum Reserve is a critical component of this Nation's energy security strategy. Established in 1975 in the aftermath of the oil
embargo, the Reserve is one of the primary means of assuring U.S. energy stability and security in the event of a petroleum production or import disruption.
The Department of Interior operates a Royalty-in-Kind program designed to handle oil collected from private production platform operators in the Gulf of Mexico as royalties to the Federal Government. Through a Memorandum of Understanding between the Department of Energy and the Department of Interior, a portion of the royalty oil has been used to fill the Reserve. The Department of Interior's Mineral Management Service (MMS) transfers oil to the Department of Energy at specific oil terminal locations referred to as "market centers." MMS and the Department use contractors to both deliver and receive oil at the market centers.
Since 2002, MMS has transferred over 11 2 million barrels of royalty oil to the
Department, with an approximate value of $4.4 billion. The Department plans to use the royalty oil to increase the size of the Reserve from 727 million barrels of oil to 1 billion barrels as authorized by the Energy Policy Act of 2005.
Because of the significant value of royalty oil and the importance of the Reserve to U.S. energy security, we initiated an audit to evaluate the effectiveness of the Department of Energy's control system over the receipt of royalty oil.
embargo, the Reserve is one of the primary means of assuring U.S. energy stability and security in the event of a petroleum production or import disruption.
The Department of Interior operates a Royalty-in-Kind program designed to handle oil collected from private production platform operators in the Gulf of Mexico as royalties to the Federal Government. Through a Memorandum of Understanding between the Department of Energy and the Department of Interior, a portion of the royalty oil has been used to fill the Reserve. The Department of Interior's Mineral Management Service (MMS) transfers oil to the Department of Energy at specific oil terminal locations referred to as "market centers." MMS and the Department use contractors to both deliver and receive oil at the market centers.
Since 2002, MMS has transferred over 11 2 million barrels of royalty oil to the
Department, with an approximate value of $4.4 billion. The Department plans to use the royalty oil to increase the size of the Reserve from 727 million barrels of oil to 1 billion barrels as authorized by the Energy Policy Act of 2005.
Because of the significant value of royalty oil and the importance of the Reserve to U.S. energy security, we initiated an audit to evaluate the effectiveness of the Department of Energy's control system over the receipt of royalty oil.