GAO report: agencies have not identified how programs support drug control strategy

The Office of National Drug Control Policy (ONDCP), and the Departments of Health and Human Services (HHS), and Education have failed to clearly define how their grant programs support the National Drug Control Strategy’s goals, according to a study by the U.S. Government Accountability Office (GAO).

The departments manage federal grant programs that can be used to support drug prevention activities in schools and are required to monitor grantees’ compliance with grant requirements. ONDCP directs agencies to report how these performance measures relate to the strategy’s goals.

The GAO discovered performance measures for several programs did not relate to drug prevention, while other measures did not link directly to the strategy’s prevention goals. Some performance measures were not reported.

ONDCP, for example, failed to report performance measures or document how the Drug-Free Communities Support program contributed to the strategy.

In addition, approximately $10 million in grants from the School Climate Transformation Grant program could more fully provide performance information.

GAO recommends the heads of ONDCP, HHS, and the Department of Education work to report performance measures, clarify how grants contribute to the strategic goals, collect and report performance information for the grants, and determine how the State Opioid Response program contributes to prevention goals.