Assessment of the Federal Voting Assistance Program Implementation of the Military and Overseas Voting Empowerment (MOVE) Act (DODIG-2-12-123)

We conducted this assessment in conjunction with our responsibilities under 10 U.S.C. Section 1566, and in accordance with provisions of the Inspector General Act of 1978 as amended. As indicated, the FVAP is a major multidimensional program impacting numerous Federal, state, and local agencies and jurisdictions, and is subject to repetitive examination and reporting by various Federal oversight organizations. These oversight reports have focused on program compliance with law or regulation and assessed program effectiveness. Collectively, the reports form a substantial body of work to which senior public officials and those charged with governance can refer in shaping their decisions and actions. The IG Act of 1978 requires DoDIG to avoid duplication by coordinating with the GAO, other Federal IGs, Military Service IGs, and other Federal entities. To avoid duplication and repetition-and accomplish the DoDIG mission-we used a continuous assessment methodology consistent with routine multi-organizational oversight of complex programs impacting entities and jurisdictions worldwide. The methodology includes on-going: analysis of previous and on-going oversight activity and reporting, risk assessment based on data reliability and management control, dialog with senior public officials and stakeholders at all levels, active consideration of stakeholder feedback, and separate reporting focused on individual program elements. Our most recent voting-related report, issued earlier this year, Assessment of Voting Assistance Programs for Calendar Year 2011 (Report No. DoDIG-2012-068, March 30, 2012), focused on the voting assistance programs of the Army, Navy, Air Force, and Marine Corps, as reported by their Inspectors General. This report focuses on: the sufficiency of survey data used to manage and assess voting assistance program effectiveness; compliance with the MOVE Act requirement to establish a voting assistance office on every military installation worldwide. The objectives of our assessment were to determine whether voting assistance programs carried out under the Uniformed and Overseas Absentee Voting Act (UOCAVA), as amended, and subsequently modified by the Military and Overseas Voter Empowerment (MOVE) Act: complied with the law and DoD implementing instructions, were effective in meeting the law's intent.