AUDITING FOR SAFEGUARDS PERFORMANCE*

Department of Energy (DOE) Orders and draft orders for nuclear material control and accountability (MC&A) address a complete MC&A program for all DOE contractors processing, using, or storing nuclear materials. Performance is a significant element of the DOE requirements for good MC&A. MC&A programs must address how well the contractor implements the various elements of the program including performance monitoring and testing. The contractor needs to measure and audit this performance in preparation for oversight auditing performed by the DOE audit teams and any other outside audits performed by government agencies. The oversight audit teams also have to measure and audit the performance level of the contractor to assure that the MC&A programs comply with the performance requirements. This paper discusses several ways the contractor and the DOE auditors can address the task of auditing for performance.