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The Bureau of Land Management (BLM) Oregon State Office is preparing to conduct an audit of its Special Recreation Permit (SRP) Program for the 2011 through 2013 use seasons. The audit is being conducted through an independent contractor and should be completed by early Sept. 2014. Periodic audits are usually conducted every five years and are one of the ways the BLM can ensure a fair, equitable and consistent business environment for permit holders. The audit is also intended to make sure that the American public receives fair market value from the use of its public lands when permits are required. One facet of the audit will focus on reviewing total customer payments received by permit holders for goods and services for the use of public land authorized by an SRP. Oregon/Washington (OR/WA) BLM Recreation Lead Chris Dent said the audit benefits the public by determining whether the BLM's program is being managed correctly.“Through this audit, we will see how efficiently the program is being run and determine if there are under/over payments as a result of inaccurate fee calculations by BLM, or as a result of underreporting by permit holders who operate on OR/WA public lands," Dent said. Dent also said this isn't the first time OR/WA BLM has been audited, since the audits are required by the federal government. “Each BLM state is required to conduct periodic audits of their Special Recreation Permit Program," Dent said. “This is the second audit that will be conducted in OR/WA BLM." A letter will be sent notifying all 474 permit holders who operated during 2011, 2012, or 2013 of the audit, with a second letter going to approximately 45 permit holders, notifying them they have been selected for the audit. The initial permit holder letter will also include timeframes of the audit and information the permit holder must make available to the auditor. The selection criteria for which permit holders are audited include items like complexity of the permit, gross revenue, and past performance. At least two permit holders will be audited from seven of the ten District Offices in OR/WA BLM. The Medford and Prineville District Offices will audit approximately 15 permit holders each since they have the largest programs, and the Coos Bay District is exempted from the audit because they only issued one permit in the last three years. Each permit holder selected will be audited through either a telephone interview or field visit. A statewide summary of the commercial permit audit will be provided to each District, and made available to all permit holders and general public once the audit has been completed. Anyone with further questions about the upcoming audit can contact Chris Dent at (541) 618-2447 or chris_dent@blm.gov.