WESLACO – The federal government is investigating a possible security concern over inadequate background checks involving the distribution of green cards.

The Department of Homeland Security and Office of Inspector General audited the U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services’ use of the Electronic Immigration System twice in 2016.

The OIG said Monday they believe USCIS is planning to resume the use of the electronic system despite their ongoing investigation.

The audits, carried out in March and November of last year, found serious security concerns with how green cards were being issued; primarily with inadequate background checks.

The March audit found numerous deficiencies in the system’s capabilities and problems with interfaces that negatively affected productivity. The November audit also found serious issues with the system regarding inadequate background checks when nearly 20,000 green cards were issued in error.

The OIG said the error could be primarily due to USCIS ELIS’ technical and functional problems.

The agency said they’re reviewing into the electronic immigration system should be complete in a few months.

CHANNEL 5 NEWS filed a public information request to USCIS. We have not heard back.