Revise HUD’s Controlled Unclassified Information Policy to include the anti-gag provision.

Revise HUD’s Controlled Unclassified Information Policy to state that (a) nondisclosure forms and agreements must include the anti-gag provision as required by law and (b) confidentiality clauses in personnel settlement agreements must include the anti-gag provision if the clause restricts disclosure of any other information beyond the terms and conditions of the agreement itself.

Implement a plan to annually survey all HUD program offices to identify nondisclosure policies, forms, and agreements issued and to determine whether they include the anti-gag provision as required by WPEA and, as necessary, to take corrective action to ensure that they include the anti-gag provision.

Communicate across HUD that (a) HUD employees are required to include the anti-gag provision in nondisclosure policies, forms, and agreements applicable to HUD employees and (b) program offices should consider requiring their employees to request OGC assistance when implementing and enforcing nondisclosure policies, forms, and agreements applicable to HUD employees.

HUD’s Privacy Office should require program offices to periodically review systems in all environments (testing, development, production) for unnecessary disclosure of personally identifiable information (PII).

HUD’s Office of Administration, in coordination with OCIO, should update and communicate its PII minimization plan. The plan should include detailed procedures to regularly review and remove unnecessary PII collections in accordance with OMB Circular A-130 (IG FISMA metric 35).

Ensure that future policies and guidance developed to return HUD’s offices to normal operations include the specific criteria, metrics, and defined geographic area to be used by all offices as applicable.

Develop and implement sufficient policies and controls to ensure that (1) applicable criteria in any future guidance are met and all safety measures are sufficiently completed before returning HUD’s offices to normal operations and (2) sufficient documentation is maintained to support that the applicable criteria were met.

We recommend that HUD’s Chief Administrative Officer implement the corrective actions and internal process improvements in internal control developed as a result of the Chief Financial Officer’s investigation addressed in recommendation 1A.

We recommend that HUD’s Chief Administrative Officer provide training to responsible staff and officials to ensure that those that may be involved with negotiating any GSA rent credits, like the credits addressed in this report, identify such potential rent credit transactions and follow the corrective actions and process improvements implemented to resolve recommendation 1B.

The OIG has determined that the contents of this recommendation would not be appropriate for public disclosure and has therefore limited its distribution to selected officials.

Designate a Senior Agency Official for Records Management at the Assistant Secretary level or its equivalent.

Update and issue agency formal records policy, including detailed procedures and requirements for completing and maintaining program office and agencywide inventories of systems, records, and PII.

Update and obtain final NARA approval of all HUD records retention schedules, including the Capstone email schedule, to comply with Federal requirements, including OMB M-19-21.

Develop and approve an enterprise strategy to meet all M-19-21 electronic transition requirements.

Issue a formal policy and requirements for managing CUI.

Establish and disseminate a policy on safeguarding or prohibiting the transportation of PII records out of the office for telework purposes.

Complete the development of performance measures and establish a formal records evaluation process to measure the effectiveness and progress of the records management program.

Standardize processes and duties for all RMLOs.

Conduct a staffing resource assessment for the HUD records program and identify any skills gaps or resource needs.