GAO and DHS OIG tell House panel DHS faces management, cybersecurity and disaster-aid weaknesses; FEMA added to GAO high-risk list

Witnesses for the Government Accountability Office and the Department of Homeland Security Office of Inspector General told the House Homeland Security Subcommittee on Oversight, Investigations, and Accountability that the department continues to face systemic management, information-technology and cybersecurity problems and that federal disaster assistance needs major reform.

Chris Curry, director of Homeland Security and Justice at the Government Accountability Office, told the panel that GAO currently has 459 open recommendations for DHS and has identified about $19,000,000,000 in potential financial savings if DHS implements those changes. “Right now, there's 459 open recommendations that we have to the department,” Curry said, adding that 37 are high-priority recommendations that span IT procurement, financial management and disaster assistance.

The GAO witness described two high-risk areas tied to the committee’s jurisdiction: weaknesses…