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The use of our criteria to evaluate approaches to Social Security reform highlights the trade-offs that exist between efforts to achieve solvency for the OASDI trust funds and efforts to maintain adequate retirement income for current and future beneficiaries. The models illustrate some of the options and trade-offs th... | Social Security is an important social insurance program affecting virtually every American family. It represents a foundation of the nation's retirement income system and provides millions of Americans with disability insurance and survivors' benefits. Over the long term, as the baby boom generation retires, Social Se... |
The idea that communication services should be available “so far as possible, to all the people of the United States” has been a goal of telecommunications regulation since Congress enacted the Communications Act of 1934. In particular, although Lifeline was created in the mid-1980s to promote wireline telephone subscr... | Created in the mid-1980s, FCC's Lifeline provides discounts to eligible low-income households for home or wireless telephone and, as of December 2016, broadband service. Lifeline reimburses telephone companies that offer discounts through the USF, which in turn is generally supported by consumers by means of a fee char... |
In response to concerns about the nation’s dependence on imported oil, Congress enacted the RFS program as part of the Energy Policy Act of 2005. This initial RFS required that a minimum of 4 billion gallons of biofuels be used in 2006, rising to 7.5 billion gallons by 2012. Two years later, the Energy Independence and... | The RFS generally mandates that domestic transportation fuels be blended with increasing volumes of biofuels through 2022, with the goals of reducing greenhouse gas emissions and expanding the nation's renewable fuels sector while reducing reliance on imported oil. Annual targets for the volumes of biofuels to be blend... |
As shore-based units located along the nation’s coasts and interior waterways, the Coast Guard’s 188 multimission stations conduct a wide range of operations, from rescuing mariners in distress to patrolling ports against acts of terrorism. The stations are involved in all Coast Guard programs, including search and res... | For years, the Coast Guard has conducted search and rescue operations from its network of stations along the nation's coasts and waterways. In 2001, reviews of station operations found that station readiness--the ability to execute mission requirements in keeping with standards--was in decline. The Coast Guard began ad... |
Today we are at a key crossroad. In the next few decades, the nation will be struggling with a large and growing structural deficit. At the same time, however, weapons programs are commanding larger budgets as DOD undertakes increasingly ambitious efforts to transform its ability to address current and potential future... | In the past 5 years, DOD has doubled its planned investments in weapons systems, but this huge increase has not been accompanied by more stability, better outcomes, or more buying power for the acquisition dollar. Rather than showing appreciable improvement, programs are experiencing recurring problems with cost overru... |
The IMF, an organization of 186 countries, provides surveillance, lending, and technical assistance to its member countries. IMF surveillance involves the monitoring of economic and financial developments and the provision of policy advice, with key aims including financial crisis prevention. The IMF also lends to coun... | The International Monetary Fund (IMF) has significantly increased its total committed lending to countries from about $3.5 billion in August 2008 to about $170.4 billion in August 2009, as countries have been severely affected by the global economic crisis. IMF-supported programs are intended to help countries overcome... |
Deepwater is the largest and most complex procurement project in the Coast Guard’s history. The acquisition is scheduled to occur over a 30-year period at a projected cost of $17 billion. It includes the modernization and replacement of an aging fleet of over 90 cutters and 200 aircraft used for missions that generally... | The Coast Guard's Deepwater program, the largest acquisition program in its history, involves modernizing or replacing ships, aircraft, and communications equipment. The Coast Guard awarded the Deepwater contract to Integrated Coast Guard Systems (ICGS) in June 2002. The Coast Guard estimates the program will cost $17 ... |
To obtain a patent, inventors—or more usually their attorneys or agents— submit an application to USPTO that fully discloses and clearly describes one or more distinct innovative features of the proposed invention and pay a filing fee to begin the examination process. USPTO evaluates the application for completeness, c... | The U.S. Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO) helps protect U.S. competitiveness by granting patents for new ideas and innovations. Increases in the volume and complexity of patent applications have extended the time for processing them. Concerns continue about the agency's efforts to attract and retain qualified patent... |
Human trafficking generally involves the use of force, fraud, or coercion to enslave individuals in situations that are exploitative and often illegal and dangerous. Since 2001, the U.S. government has contributed approximately $447 million worldwide to foreign governments, NGOs, and international organizations—such as... | Human trafficking--a worldwide crime involving the exploitation of men, women, and children for others' financial gain--is a violation of human rights. Victims are often lured or abducted and forced to work in involuntary servitude. Since 2001, the U.S. government has provided about $447 million to combat global human ... |
The federal government holds in trust about 55 million acres of land for tribes and individual Native Americans, most of it on or near reservations. Sixty percent of the 2 million Native Americans live on trust lands or in the surrounding counties. Reservations range in size from the Navajo Reservation, the largest, wi... | Pursuant to a congressional request, GAO reviewed the homeownership opportunities for Native Americans on trust lands through private, conventional lending, focusing on: (1) the number of conventional home purchase loans private lenders made to Native Americans on trust lands; (2) the major barriers to conventional hom... |
The origination, securitization, and servicing of mortgage loans involve multiple entities. In recent years, originating lenders generally have sold or assigned their interest in loans to other financial institutions to securitize the mortgages. Through securitization, the purchasers of these mortgages then package the... | This testimony discusses our work on mortgage servicing issues. With record numbers of borrowers in default and delinquent on their loans, mortgage servicers--entities that manage home mortgage loans--are initiating large numbers of foreclosures throughout the country. As of December 2010, an estimated 4.6 percent of t... |
The Social Security Act was enacted in 1935 during the Great Depression as a social insurance program to provide an income foundation upon which individuals could build for their retirement years. In 1956, the DI program was added to Social Security to provide income to disabled workers. Over the years, the three main ... | Pursuant to a congressional request, GAO discussed raising the retirement age for social security benefits, focusing on: (1) how raising the retirement ages could affect social security's long-term solvency and the U.S. economy; (2) how the labor market for older workers might respond to these changes; and (3) the poss... |
The Kennedy Center opened in 1971 and is located on 17 acres along the Potomac River in Washington, D.C. The Center houses four major theaters and several smaller theaters, five public halls or galleries, educational facilities, rehearsal spaces, offices, and meeting rooms in about 1.1 million square feet of space. The... | Since fiscal year 1995, the John F. Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts (Center) has been responsible and received federal funding for implementing capital improvement projects and operations and maintenance activities. The Kennedy Center's Comprehensive Building Plan identifies capital projects needed to renovate t... |
Since the creation of the SSN, the number of federal agencies and others that rely on it has grown beyond the original intended purpose, in part because a number of federal laws authorize or require SSN use. Additionally, the advent of computerized records further increased reliance on SSNs. This growth in use and avai... | The Social Security number (SSN) was created in 1936 to track workers' earnings and eligibility for Social Security benefits. Because SSNs are unique identifiers and do not change, the numbers provide a convenient and efficient way to manage records. Government agencies are taking some steps to safeguard the number, bu... |
The Office of Personnel Management (OPM) is tasked with providing human resources, leadership, and support to federal agencies to manage their human capital functions. For OPM to effectively perform this role, executive branch agencies are required to report information on their civilian employees to OPM and ensure tha... | OPM is tasked with supporting federal agencies' human capital management activities, which includes ensuring that agencies have the data needed to make staffing and resource decisions to support their missions. The EHRI system is OPM's primary data warehouse to support these efforts. The payroll database—one of the fou... |
The four-seat EA-6B Prowler aircraft conducts missions for all services. The AEA mission is focused on protecting U.S. aircraft and ground forces by disabling enemy electronic capabilities. The EA-6B performs this mission with a complement of electronic receivers and jammers, referred to as its electronic suite, which ... | The EA-6B has conducted airborne electronic attack for all services since 1996. In 2002, the Department of Defense (DOD) completed an analysis of alternatives for the EA-6B that concluded the inventory would be insufficient to meet the DOD's needs beyond 2009. Since then, the services have embarked on separate acquisit... |
For more than a decade, rapid increases in the use of computer technology, both at work and in the home, have changed the way Americans work and communicate. As of September 2001, 174 million people—66 percent of the U.S. population—were using computers in their homes, schools, libraries, and work. In the workplace, 65... | Over the past decade, there has been a technological revolution in the workplace as businesses have increasingly turned to computer technology the primary tool to communicate, conduct research, and store information. Also during this time, concern has grown among private sector employers that their computer resources m... |
The population of individuals with limited English proficiency in the United States has grown dramatically in recent years. The 2000 Census shows that the number of people reporting that they do not speak English well or very well grew by 65 percent, from 6.7 million in 1990 to almost 11 million in 2000. The data also ... | Questions have been raised about whether parents with limited English proficiency are having difficulty accessing child care and early education programs for their children. Research suggests that quality early care experiences can greatly improve the school readiness of young children. GAO was asked to provide informa... |
In 1990, we designated DOE program and contract management as an area at high risk of fraud, waste, abuse, and mismanagement. In January 2009, to recognize progress made at DOE’s Office of Science, we narrowed the focus of the high-risk designation to two DOE program elements—NNSA and the Office of Environmental Manage... | NNSA conducts enriched uranium activities—including producing components for nuclear warheads—at the Y-12 National Security Complex in Tennessee. NNSA has identified key shortcomings in the Y-12 plant's current uranium operations, including rising costs due to the facility's age. In 2004, NNSA decided to build a new fa... |
The operation of U.S. embassies and consulates requires basic administrative support services for overseas personnel, such as building maintenance, vehicle operations, and travel services, among others. Traditionally, these services were provided by State. In 1955, State established the Shared Administrative Support Pr... | Costs for overseas posts' administrative support services have risen nearly 30 percent since fiscal year 2001, reaching about $1 billion in 2003. These costs are distributed among 50 agencies through the International Cooperative Administrative Support Services (ICASS) system, which was designed to reduce costs and pro... |
The 2001 Nuclear Posture Review envisioned that the New Triad would include the majority of current and planned conventional strike capabilities, as well as a family of unique global strike capabilities, to address the new security risks faced by the United States. Current global strike assets could include long-range ... | To increase the range of options available to the President, the Department of Defense (DOD) is taking steps to develop a portfolio of capabilities, referred to as global strike, to rapidly plan and deliver limited duration and extended range precision strikes against highly valued assets. GAO was asked to assess (1) w... |
Defense, like the rest of the government and the private sector, is relying on technology to make itself more efficient. The Department is depending more and more on high-performance computers linked together in a vast collection of networks, many of which are themselves connected to the worldwide Internet. Hackers hav... | GAO discussed information security procedures at the Department of Defense (DOD). GAO noted that: (1) as many as 250,000 DOD computer systems were attacked in 1995; (2) hackers successfully penetrate DOD computer systems 65 percent of the time; (3) hackers attack DOD computer systems to steal and destroy sensitive data... |
In regulating dual-use exports, the Commerce Department’s BIS faces the challenge of weighing various U.S. interests, which can be divergent or even competing, so U.S. companies can compete globally while minimizing the risk of controlled dual-use items falling into the wrong hands. Under the authority granted in the E... | In regulating exports of dual-use items, which have both commercial and military applications, the Department of Commerce's Bureau of Industry and Security (BIS) seeks to allow U.S. companies to compete globally while minimizing the risk of items falling into the wrong hands. In so doing, BIS faces the challenge of wei... |
The 1988 Justice policy on fugitive apprehension, which is still in effect, (1) designates FBI, DEA, and USMS’ apprehension responsibilities, (2) establishes specific conditions for exceptions to these responsibilities, and (3) identifies the types of fugitives that the agencies are responsible for pursuing. Generally,... | Pursuant to a congressional request, GAO reviewed the Department of Justice's 1988 federal fugitive apprehension policy, focusing on interagency coordination problems and agencies' efforts to address those problems. GAO found that: (1) officials from all federal agencies involved in fugitive apprehension stated that th... |
Technology development partnerships are key elements of the technology transfer program of each NNSA laboratory and production facility. NNSA laboratory and facility managers told us that they have primarily used the following types of partnerships: CRADAs: An NNSA laboratory or production facility and private partner(... | Congress enacted the National Competitiveness Technology Transfer Act to encourage federal laboratories operated by contractors to enter into cooperative research and development agreements (CRADA) with businesses, universities, and other private partners. This act was designed to improve the United States' competitive... |
Although the Cold War has ended, the threat of foreign espionage to the nation still exists from a variety of countries, and recent revelations of intelligence activities against the United States involving Russia, China, and South Korea have raised concerns that such activities are on the increase. The Department of E... | Pursuant to a congressional request, GAO provided information on the Department of Energy's (DOE) controls over foreign visitors to its three nuclear weapons laboratories, focusing on DOE's: (1) procedures for reviewing the backgrounds of foreign visitors and for controlling the dissemination of sensitive information t... |
The Coast Guard is a multimission, maritime military service within DHS. The Coast Guard’s responsibilities fall into two general categories—those related to homeland security missions, such as port security and vessel escort, and those related to the Coast Guard’s traditional missions, such as search and rescue and po... | The Deepwater Program includes efforts to build or modernize ships and aircraft and to procure other capabilities. After a series of project failures, the Coast Guard announced in 2007 that it was taking over the systems integrator role from Integrated Coast Guard Systems (ICGS). At the same time, a $24.2 billion progr... |
Aviation-related activities contribute to local air pollution and produce greenhouse gases that cause climate change. Aircraft account for about 70 to 80 percent of aviation emissions, producing emissions that mainly affect air quality below 3,000 feet and increase greenhouse gases at higher altitudes. At ground level,... | Collaboration between the federal government and the aviation industry has led to reductions in aviation emissions, but growing air traffic has partially offset these reductions. The Federal Aviation Administration (FAA), together with the National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA), the Environmental Protecti... |
Originally established as the Sky Marshal program in the 1970s to counter hijackers, the Aviation and Transportation Security Act expanded FAMS’s mission and workforce in response to the September 11, 2001, terrorist attacks and mandated the deployment of federal air marshals on high- security risk flights. Within the ... | By deploying armed air marshals onboard selected flights, the Federal Air Marshal Service (FAMS), a component of the Transportation Security Administration (TSA), plays a key role in helping to protect approximately 29,000 domestic and international flights operated daily by U.S. air carriers. GAO was asked to examine ... |
Shortly after the September 11, 2001, terrorist attacks, Congress passed, and the President signed into law, the Aviation and Transportation Security Act, which established TSA and gave the agency responsibility for securing all modes of transportation, including the nation’s civil aviation system, which includes domes... | International flights bound for the United States continue to be targets of terrorist activity, as demonstrated by the October 2010 discovery of explosive devices in air cargo packages bound for the United States from Yemen. The Transportation Security Administration (TSA) is responsible for securing the nation's civil... |
During the energy boom of the early 1980s, BLM found that it could not handle the case processing workload associated with a growing number of applications for oil and gas leases. The bureau recognized that to keep up with increased demand, it needed to automate its manual records and case processing activities. Theref... | Pursuant to a congressional request, GAO discussed the Bureau of Land Management's (BLM) Automated Land and Mineral Record System project, also known as the ALMRS/Modernization, focusing on: (1) the history of the project; (2) the results of GAO's reviews, including the key reasons for problems; and (3) where GAO belie... |
Over the last 10 years, DOD prime contract and total subcontract dollar awards have increased. From 1993 to 2002, DOD prime contract dollars increased almost 15 percent, from $136.8 billion to $157.1 billion. As shown in table 1, total subcontract dollars awarded by DOD contractors increased more than 40 percent, from ... | More small businesses are turning to subcontracting as a way to participate in the federal government's $250 billion procurement program. DOD, accounting for about two-thirds of federal procurements, has a critical role in providing opportunities to small businesses through subcontracting programs such as the Test Prog... |
As part of our audit of the fiscal years 2003 and 2002 CFS, we evaluated Treasury’s financial reporting procedures and related internal control. In our report, which is included in the fiscal year 2003 Financial Report of the United States Government, we reported material deficiencies relating to Treasury’s financial r... | For the past 7 years, since the first audit of the consolidated financial statements of the U.S. government (CFS), certain material weaknesses in internal control and financial reporting have resulted in conditions that have prevented GAO from expressing an opinion on the CFS. Specifically, GAO has reported that the fe... |
The TANF block grant was created by the Personal Responsibility and Work Opportunity Reconciliation Act of 1996 (PRWORA) and was designed to give states the flexibility to provide both traditional welfare cash assistance benefits as well as a variety of other benefits and services to meet the needs of low-income famili... | The $16.5 billion TANF block grant, created in 1996, is one of the key federal funding streams targeted to assist low-income families. While the block grant provides states with a fixed amount of federal dollars annually, it also includes state MOE requirements, which require states to maintain a significant portion of... |
The Improper Payments Information Act of 2002 (IPIA)—as amended by the Improper Payments Elimination and Recovery Act of 2010 (IPERA) and the Improper Payments Elimination and Recovery Improvement Act of 2012 (IPERIA)—requires federal executive branch agencies to (1) review all programs and activities, (2) identify tho... | Over the past decade, GAO has issued numerous reports and testimonies highlighting improper payment issues across the federal government as well as at specific agencies. The Improper Payments Information Act of 2002, as amended by the Improper Payments Elimination and Recovery Act of 2010 and the Improper Payments Elim... |
Paid preparers aid taxpayers in the completion of their tax returns for a fee. They range from licensed professionals, such as attorneys, certified public accountants, and enrolled agents, to those lacking formal training who complete tax returns part-time. Paid preparers authorized to represent taxpayers in matters be... | Over 55 percent of the nearly 130 million taxpayers in tax year 2001 used a paid tax preparer. However, using a preparer may not assure that taxpayers pay the least amount due. Last year, GAO estimated that as many as 2 million taxpayers overpaid their 1998 taxes by $945 million because they failed to itemize deduction... |
More than 14,000 different types of commodities are imported into the United States, involving more than 15 million separate shipments or transactions each year. In 1992 and 1993, U.S. imports were valued at $532.7 billion and $580.5 billion, respectively. Customs has the primary responsibility for processing imports t... | Pursuant to a congressional request, GAO reviewed the importation of eight classifications of commodities in fiscal year 1992, focusing on why unit values for identical types of imported commodities varied. GAO found that: (1) unit values for identical imports varied widely because of overly broad commodity classificat... |
Military ranges and training areas are used primarily to test weapon systems and train military forces. Required facilities include air ranges for air-to-air, air-to-ground, drop zone, and electronic combat training; live-fire ranges for artillery, armor, small arms, and munitions training; ground maneuver ranges to co... | DOD faces growing challenges in carrying out realistic training at installations and training ranges--land, air, and sea--because of encroachment by outside factors. These include urban growth, competition for radio frequencies or airspace, air or noise pollution, unexploded ordnance and munition components, endangered... |
Pursuant to the Homeland Security Act of 2002, as amended, DHS has responsibility for the protection of the nation’s critical infrastructure. Within DHS, the Office of Infrastructure Protection is responsible for critical infrastructure protection and resilience and leads the coordinated national effort to mitigate ris... | In October 2012, Hurricane Sandy caused widespread damage across multiple states and affected millions of people. Threats to critical infrastructure are not limited to natural disasters, as demonstrated by the terrorist attacks of September 11, 2001. Originally developed by DHS in 2006, and consistent with the Implemen... |
Since 2004, Congress has authorized over $8 billion for medical countermeasure procurement. The Project BioShield Act of 2004 authorized the appropriation of $5.6 billion to be available from fiscal year 2004 through fiscal year 2013 for the Project BioShield Special Reserve The act Fund, and funds totaling this amount... | Public health emergencies, such as the 2001 anthrax attacks and the 2009 H1N1 influenza pandemic, raise concerns about the nation's vulnerability to threats from CBRN agents and new or reemerging infectious diseases, such as pandemic influenza. HHS is the federal agency primarily responsible for identifying medical cou... |
Our analysis illustrates one of the difficult choices facing the Congress in crafting comprehensive DB pension reform legislation, including the controversial issues surrounding the legal status of CB plans, and particularly CB conversions. The current confusion concerning CB plans is largely a consequence of the prese... | The nation's private defined benefit (DB) pension system, a key contributor to the financial security of millions of Americans, is in long-term decline. Since 1980, the number of active participants in Pension Benefit Guaranty Corporation (PBGC) insured single employer DB plans has dropped from 27.3 percent of all nati... |
Assisted living is usually viewed as a residential care setting for persons who can no longer live independently and who require some supervision or help with activities of daily living (ADL) but may not need the level of skilled care provided in a nursing home. It is promoted by assisted living advocates as a long-ter... | Pursuant to a congressional request, GAO discussed quality-of-care and consumer protection issues in assisted living facilities in California, Florida, Ohio, and Oregon, focusing on: (1) residents' needs and the services provided in assisted living facilities; (2) the extent to which facilities provide consumers with s... |
SEC was created in 1934 to protect investors and maintain the integrity of the securities market. To accomplish its mission, the agency established four strategic goals: (1) to enforce compliance with federal securities laws, (2) to sustain an effective and flexible regulatory environment, (3) to encourage and promote ... | The Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) and Commodity Futures Trading Commission (CFTC) impose penalties, disgorgements, and restitution on proven and alleged violators of the securities and futures laws, respectively. GAO has issued a number of previous reports on agency collection efforts and made numerous recom... |
Geothermal energy is literally the heat of the earth. This heat is abnormally high where hot and molten rocks exist at shallow depths below the earth’s surface. Water, brines, and steam circulating within these hot rocks are collectively referred to as geothermal resources. Geothermal resources often rise naturally to ... | The Energy Policy Act of 2005 (Act) contains provisions that address challenges to developing geothermal resources, including the high risk and uncertainty of developing geothermal power plants, lack of sufficient transmission capacity, and delays in federal leasing. Among the provisions are means to simplify federal r... |
FAA’s mission is to provide a safe and efficient airspace system. As part of this mission, the agency uses airport system planning to better understand the interrelationship of airports at the national, state, and regional levels. FAA guidance states that the overall goals of airport system planning are to ensure that ... | The Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) predicts that the national airspace system will become increasingly congested over time, imposing costs of delay on passengers and regions. While transforming the current air-traffic control system to the Next Generation Air Transportation System (NextGen) may provide additiona... |
In passing the Federal Mine Safety and Health Act of 1977 (the “Mine Act”), Congress gave much of the responsibility for ensuring the safety and health of mine workers to MSHA. Under the stringent requirements of the Mine Act, MSHA must protect the health and safety of miners by thoroughly inspecting each underground c... | The Chairman, Subcommittee on Labor, HHS and Education, Senate Committee on Appropriations, asked GAO to submit a statement for the record highlighting findings from our 2003 report on how well the Department of Labor's Mine Safety and Health Administration (MSHA) oversees its process for reviewing and approving critic... |
CBP has divided geographic responsibility for the southwest border among nine Border Patrol sectors, as shown in figure 1 (see app. II for general information about Border Patrol sectors). Each sector has a varying number of stations, with agents responsible for patrolling within defined geographic areas. Within these ... | Within DHS, U.S. Customs and Border Protection's (CBP) Border Patrol has primary responsibility for securing the border between ports of entry, and reported that with its 18,500 agents it apprehended over 327,000 illegal entrants at the southwest border in fiscal year 2011. Across Border Patrol's nine southwest border ... |
In the absence of generally accepted standards, individual states decide how they will do market analysis and perform market conduct examinations. While all states do market analysis in some form, few have established formal programs that look at companies in a consistent and routine manner. States also have no general... | This testimony provides information on two important tools state insurance regulators use to oversee the market activities of insurance companies--market analysis and market conduct examinations. Market analysis is generallly done in the state insurance departments. It consists of gathering and integrating information ... |
The performance of passenger and checked baggage screeners in detecting threat objects at the nation’s airports has been a long-standing concern. In 1978, screeners failed to detect 13 percent of the potentially dangerous objects that Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) agents carried through airport screening checkp... | The screening of airport passengers and their checked baggage is a critical component in securing our nation's commercial aviation system. Since May 2003, GAO has issued six products related to screener training and performance. This report updates the information presented in the prior products and incorporates result... |
The Smithsonian Institution was founded in 1846 and is the world’s largest museum and research complex, consisting of 19 museums and galleries, the National Zoological Park, and nine research facilities. Of the 137 million artifacts, works of art, and specimens in the Smithsonian’s collections, about 126 million are he... | The National Museum of the American Indian Act of 1989 (NMAI Act), as amended in 1996, generally requires the Smithsonian Institution to inventory and identify the origins of its Indian human remains and objects placed with them (funerary objects) and repatriate them to culturally affiliated Indian tribes upon request.... |
EPA is required by the Clean Air Act to conduct reviews of the National Ambient Air Quality Standards (NAAQS) for the six criteria pollutants, including particulate matter, every 5 years. The overarching purpose of such reviews is to determine whether the current standards are sufficient to protect public health and we... | A large body of scientific evidence links exposure to particulate matter--a widespread form of air pollution--to serious health problems, including asthma and premature death. Under the Clean Air Act, the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) periodically reviews the appropriate air quality level at which to set nation... |
benefit package, largely designed in 1965, provides virtually no coverage. In 1996, almost one third of beneficiaries had employer- sponsored health coverage, as retirees, that included drug benefits. More than 10 percent of beneficiaries received coverage through Medicaid or other public programs. To protect against d... | Pursuant to a congressional request, GAO discussed options for increasing Medicare beneficiaries' access to prescription drugs, focusing on the: (1) factors contributing to the growth in prescription drug spending and efforts to control that growth; and (2) design and implementation issues to be considered regarding pr... |
Several actions—both by the Service and the Congress—led us to remove the Service’s transformation efforts and long-term outlook from our high- risk list. In 2001, we made this designation because the Service’s financial outlook had deteriorated significantly. The Service had a projected deficit of $2 billion to $3 bil... | When GAO originally placed the U.S. Postal Service's (the Service) transformation efforts and long-term outlook on its high-risk list in early 2001, it was to focus urgent attention on the Service's deteriorating financial situation. Aggressive action was needed, particularly in cutting costs, improving productivity, a... |
The Social Security Act of 1935 authorized the Social Security Administration (SSA) to establish a record-keeping system to manage the Social Security program, which resulted in the creation of the SSN. Through a process known as “enumeration,” unique numbers are created for every person as a work and retirement benefi... | Since its creation, the Social Security number (SSN) has evolved beyond its intended purpose to become the identifier of choice for public and private sector entities, and it is now used for myriad non-Social Security purposes. This is significant because a person's SSN, along with name and date of birth, are the key p... |
For many years, federal agencies have been encouraged to use information technology to improve their communications with the public and to increase participation in the rulemaking process. One of the recommendations of the National Performance Review in September 1993 was to “se information technology and other techniq... | The E-Government Act of 2002 requires regulatory agencies, to the extent practicable, to ensure there is a Web site the public can use to comment on the numerous proposed regulations that affect them. To accomplish this, the Office of Management and Budget named the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) as the managing... |
Beginning in the 1940s, the Soviet Union undertook a massive program to produce nuclear weapons. To support this program, a network of facilities was built, with most of the major ones located in Russia. Ten closed, or “secret,” cities were built to house workers at the major sites. In the quest to produce nuclear weap... | Pursuant to a congressional request, GAO provided information on U.S. and international efforts to address nuclear safety and environmental problems in the former Soviet Union. GAO found that: (1) the former Soviet Union has at least 221 nuclear facilities operating, 99 of which are located in Russia; (2) as many as 20... |
The central Appalachian coal region plays a large part in supplying the country with its energy needs. Specifically, in 2008, West Virginia and Kentucky were the second- and third-largest coal-producing states in the nation—behind Wyoming—and accounted for more than 76 percent of the coal produced from surface mines in... | Surface mining for coal in Appalachia has generated opposition because rock and dirt from mountaintops is often removed and placed in nearby valleys and streams. The Office of Surface Mining Reclamation and Enforcement (OSM) in the Department of the Interior and states with approved programs regulate these mines under ... |
To help protect against threats to federal systems, FISMA sets forth a comprehensive framework for ensuring the effectiveness of information security controls over information resources that support federal operations and assets. This framework creates a cycle of risk management activities necessary for an effective se... | FISMA requires the Comptroller General to periodically report to Congress on agency implementation of the act's provisions. To this end, this report summarizes GAO's evaluation of the extent to which agencies have implemented the requirements of FISMA, including the adequacy and effectiveness of agency information secu... |
To determine the extent to which the current system of appointing Reserve Bank directors effectively ensures that they are elected without discrimination on the basis of race, creed, color, sex, or national origin, and that, for some directors, they are elected with due but not exclusive consideration to the interests ... | Events surrounding the 2007 financial crisis raised questions about the governance of the 12 Federal Reserve Banks (Reserve Banks), particularly the boards of directors' roles in activities related to supervision and regulation. The Dodd-Frank Wall Street Reform and Consumer Protection Act required GAO to review the go... |
The major goals of medical tort laws are to (1) deter poor quality health care, (2) compensate the victims of negligent acts, and (3) penalize negligent providers. The system operates under the assumption that negligent behavior can be controlled and corrected by the hospitals and physicians themselves. It relies prima... | Pursuant to a congressional request, GAO reviewed the types of medical liability costs that affect hospitals and physicians, and whether existing studies include these costs in their estimates of hospital and physician liability expenses. GAO found that: (1) in general, hospitals' and physicians' medical liability cost... |
Information security is a critical consideration for any organization that depends on information systems and computer networks to carry out its mission or business. It is especially important for government agencies, where maintaining the public’s trust is essential. The dramatic expansion in computer interconnectivit... | The Internal Revenue Service (IRS) relies extensively on computerized systems to carry out its demanding responsibilities to collect taxes (about $2.7 trillion in fiscal years 2008 and 2007), process tax returns, and enforce the nation's tax laws. Effective information security controls are essential to protect financi... |
The Army and Marine Corps maintain organic depot maintenance capabilities that are designed to retain, at a minimum, a ready, controlled source of technical competence and resources to meet military requirements. In fiscal year 2008, DOD budgeted about $5.6 billion for the five Army and two Marine Corps maintenance dep... | The Army and Marine Corps maintenance depots provide critical support to ongoing military operations in Iraq and Afghanistan and are heavily involved in efforts to reset the force. The Department of Defense (DOD) has an interest in ensuring that the depots remain operationally effective, efficient, and capable of meeti... |
In 1974, DOD requested congressional approval to target its reenlistment bonus program toward critical specialties where it was experiencing staffing shortfalls. Before 1974, the military had provided a $2,000 reenlistment bonus for all servicemembers willing to reenlist. During that year, DOD raised concerns that the ... | Because of the recent growth in DOD's Selective Reenlistment Bonus Program, the House Appropriations Committee asked GAO to determine (1) the extent to which the services have followed their criteria for managing their programs and (2) whether DOD has provided adequate guidance for and oversight of the program. The Nav... |
Federal regulations and EEOC policy require federal agencies to report certain EEO complaint-related data annually to EEOC. Agencies report these data on EEOC form 462, Annual Federal Equal Employment Opportunity Statistical Report of Discrimination Complaints. EEOC compiles the data from the agencies for publication i... | GAO reviewed certain discrepancies in the complaint data that the Postal Service reported to the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) and the need for the Service to take additional steps to ensure that such data are complete, accurate, and reliable. GAO noted that: (1) in GAO's limited analyses of the data t... |
The No Child Left Behind Act of 2001, which reauthorized the Elementary and Secondary Education Act (ESEA), is designed to improve the education of all students and the quality of teachers. NCLBA requires that all teachers of “core academic subjects”—defined to mean English, reading or language arts, mathematics, scien... | During the 2001-2002 school year, more than 400,000 special education teachers provided instructional services to approximately 6 million students with disabilities in U.S. schools. Two federal laws contain teacher qualification requirements that apply to special education teachers: the No Child Left Behind Act (NCLBA)... |
Federal agencies’ management responsibilities for their financial statements include, among other things, preparing the financial statements in conformity with GAAP and establishing and maintaining internal controls over financial reporting. Auditors of these financial statements are required to plan and perform their ... | GAO continues to have concerns about restatements to federal agencies' previously issued financial statements. During fiscal year 2005, at least 7 of the 24 Chief Financial Officers (CFO) Act agencies restated certain of their fiscal year 2004 financial statements to correct misstatements. To study this trend, GAO revi... |
Pursuant to Homeland Security Presidential Directive 6, the Attorney General established TSC in September 2003 to consolidate the government’s approach to terrorism screening and provide for the appropriate and lawful use of terrorist information in screening processes. TSC’s consolidated watch list is the U.S. governm... | The Federal Bureau of Investigation's (FBI) Terrorist Screening Center (TSC) maintains a consolidated watch list of known or appropriately suspected terrorists and sends records from the list to agencies to support terrorism-related screening. This testimony discusses (1) standards for including individuals on the list... |
The Social Security Administration (SSA) operates the Disability Insurance (DI) and Supplemental Security Income (SSI) programs—the nation’s two largest federal programs providing cash benefits to people with disabilities. From 1985 through 1994, the number of working-age DI and SSI beneficiaries (aged 18 to 64) increa... | Pursuant to a congressional request, GAO identified: (1) key private-sector practices to return disabled workers to the workplace; and (2) other countries' return-to-work strategies for workers with disabilities. GAO found that: (1) U.S. private-sector and foreign return-to-work programs emphasize early intervention to... |
IHS, an agency within the Department of Health and Human Services, is responsible for providing federal health services to an estimated 1.5 million American Indians and Alaska Natives. In fiscal year 1998, IHS received appropriations of about $1.8 billion to provide these services, with about $291 million of this amoun... | Pursuant to a legislative requirement, GAO reviewed the impact of individual Indian Health Service (IHS) contracts, focusing on the: (1) extent to which Alaska Native communities contract directly with IHS to manage their own health care services; and (2) effects these contracts are having on costs and the availability... |
IRS’ 10,000 customer service representatives are located at 25 call sites around the country. In 1999, IRS began operating this network as a single call center providing round-the-clock service. Managing the network in this way enabled IRS to route calls from three separate toll-free lines—one each for questions about ... | Each year, the Internal Revenue Service (IRS) determines the staffing level for its toll-free telephone customer service operations. GAO found that IRS lacks a long-term telephone customer service goal that reflects the needs of taxpayers and the costs and benefits of meeting that goal. Rather, IRS annually determines ... |
Mobilization is the process of assembling and organizing personnel and equipment, activating or federalizing units and members of the National Guard and Reserves for active duty, and bringing the armed forces to a state of readiness for war or other national emergency. It is a complex undertaking that requires constant... | The Department of Defense (DOD) has six reserve components: the Army Reserve, the Army National Guard, the Air Force Reserve, the Air National Guard, the Naval Reserve, and the Marine Corps Reserve. DOD's use of Reserve and National Guard forces increased dramatically following the events of September 11, 2001, and on ... |
According to USPS data, in fiscal year 2013, USPS delivered mail to a network of more than 150 million delivery points, including 133 million delivery points served by more than 230,000 career carriers that comprised almost half of the career workforce. In addition, USPS employed more than 75,000 non-career carriers wh... | USPS is expected to provide prompt, reliable and efficient nationwide service while remaining self-supporting, but it is facing serious fiscal challenges with insufficient revenues to cover its expenses. Mail delivery is USPS's largest cost area, totaling about $30 billion annually. Although USPS lacks authority to mak... |
FAA currently employs almost 20,000 employees to operate and manage the nation’s air traffic control system. Most of these employees (about 15,250) are air traffic control specialists, or controllers, who are responsible for controlling the takeoff, landing, and ground movement of planes and are assigned to field facil... | In fiscal year 2001, the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) spent more than $15 million to move air traffic controllers and their managers to new permanent duty locations. FAA classifies the funds that it spends for these moves as permanent change of station (PCS) benefits. In 1998, as part of a broader effort to re... |
Created by the Deputy Secretary of Defense in January 2006, JIEDDO is responsible for leading, advocating, and coordinating all DOD actions in support of the combatant commanders’ and their respective joint task forces’ efforts to defeat IEDs as weapons of strategic influence. Prior DOD efforts to defeat IEDs included ... | Over $18 billion has been appropriated to the Joint Improvised Explosive Device (IED) Defeat Organization (JIEDDO) to address the improvised explosive device (IED) threat, and there is widespread consensus that this threat will continue to be influential in future conflicts. DOD established the Joint Improvised Explosi... |
Mortgage lenders keep the loans they originate in the primary market or sell them in the secondary, or resale, markets. In turn, purchasers of mortgage loans in the secondary markets either hold the loans in their own portfolios or, most often, pool together a group of loans to back MBS that are sold to investors or he... | The Government National Mortgage Association, commonly known as Ginnie Mae, is a wholly owned government corporation that guarantees mortgage-backed securities (MBS) backed by pools of federally insured or guaranteed mortgage loans. The agency supports federal housing programs by facilitating the securitization of loan... |
If done correctly, investments in IT have the potential to make organizations more efficient in fulfilling their missions. For example, we recently reported that Defense officials stated that an IT system supporting military logistics has improved the organization’s performance by providing real-time information about ... | Federal agencies plan to spend at least $82 billion on IT in fiscal year 2014. However, prior IT expenditures have often produced disappointing results. Thus, OMB has called for agencies to deliver investments in smaller parts or increments. In 2010, it called for IT investments to deliver capabilities every 12 months ... |
In 1968, in recognition of the increasing amount of flood damage, the lack of readily available insurance for property owners, and the cost to the taxpayer for flood-related disaster relief, the Congress enacted the National Flood Insurance Act (P.L. 90-448) that created the National Flood Insurance Program. Since its ... | Floods have been, and continue to be, the most destructive natural hazard in terms of economic loss to the nation. The National Flood Insurance Program is a key component of the federal government's efforts to minimize the damage and financial impact of floods. The program identifies flood-prone areas of the country, m... |
A generally accepted evaluation criterion is that any comparative study of private and public prisons should be based upon the selection and analysis of similar facilities. For example, the private and public prisons selected for comparison should be as similar as possible regarding design and capacity, security level,... | GAO reviewed several studies that compared privatized and public correctional facilities in terms of operational costs and quality of service. GAO found that: (1) five studies comparing operational costs or quality of service at private and public correctional facilities in California, Tennessee, Washington, Texas, and... |
USPS’s financial condition deteriorated in fiscal year 2008. According to USPS, this was due largely to declines in the economy—particularly in the financial and housing sectors—that were reflected in a 4.5 percent decline in total mail volumes and flattened revenues despite rate increases. In addition, fuel prices inc... | When Congress passed the Postal Accountability and Enhancement Act in December 2006, the U.S. Postal Service (USPS) had just completed fiscal year 2006 with its largest mail volume ever--213 billion pieces of mail and a net income of $900 million. Two years later, USPS's mail volume dropped almost 5 percent--the larges... |
According to the Trade Promotion Coordinating Committee (TPCC), one of the greatest obstacles to increased U.S. exports faced by SMEs is the lack of sufficient working capital. Working capital is used to finance the manufacture or purchase of goods and services. Eximbank and SBA have programs designed to increase the a... | Pursuant to a congressional request, GAO reviewed the current government programs that provide export working capital for small- and medium-sized enterprises (SME), focusing on: (1) federal and state approaches for providing export working capital; (2) federal efforts to harmonize the export working capital programs of... |
CDC issues recommendations for clinicians to follow in order to prevent and control HAIs. CDC issues these recommendations in the form of evidence-based guidelines and other informal communications, such as clinical reminders, which are generally recognized as authoritative interpretations of the current scientific kno... | Recent outbreaks of blood-borne pathogens--specifically hepatitis B and C--that were linked to a specific health care facility or clinician have resulted when clinicians use unsafe injection practices. Such infections can have serious long-term consequences for patients, including cirrhosis or liver cancer. Of the know... |
The existing federal-aid highway formula is the vehicle for distributing billions of dollars annually for highway construction and repair and related activities to the 50 states, the District of Columbia, and Puerto Rico (hereafter called the states, unless otherwise noted). Since the mid-1980s, a number of organizatio... | Pursuant to a legislative requirement, GAO reviewed the formula for distributing federal highway funds, focusing on the: (1) relevancy of the data used for the formula; (2) major funding objectives implicit in the formula; and (3) implications of alternative formula factors for achieving these objectives. GAO found tha... |
DOD reported on the potential threats that insiders could pose in April 2000 when the department issued an integrated process team report with 59 recommendations for action to mitigate insider threats to DOD information systems. After the unauthorized, massive disclosures of classified information in 2010, Congress req... | Since 2010, the United States has suffered grave damage to national security and an increased risk to the lives of U.S. personnel due to unauthorized disclosures of classified information by individuals with authorized access to defense information systems. Congress and the President have issued requirements for struct... |
This work was done in conjunction with a separate review of the Port Security Grant Program. See GAO-12-47. and Training. However, since its creation in April 2007, FEMA’s GPD has been responsible for the program management of DHS’s preparedness grants. GPD consolidated the grant business operations, systems, training,... | From fiscal years 2002 through 2011, the Department of Homeland Securitys (DHS) Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) distributed approximately $20.3 billion to four grant programs: the State Homeland Security Program, Urban Areas Security Initiative, Port Security Grant Program, and Transit Security Grant Progra... |
DOD has been unable to prepare auditable information for department- wide financial statements as required by the Government Management Reform Act of 1994. The National Defense Authorization Act (NDAA) for Fiscal Year 2010 requires that DOD develop and maintain the Financial Improvement and Audit Readiness (FIAR) Plan,... | DOD continues to work toward achieving auditability of its financial statements. As part of that effort, the Navy in March 2013 asserted audit readiness of its military payroll activity, which represents a significant portion of its expenditures. Based on its examination, an IPA found that the Navy's assertion, which f... |
It is perfectly legal for U.S. persons to hold money offshore. Taxpayers may hold foreign accounts and credit cards for a number of legitimate reasons. For example, taxpayers may have worked or traveled overseas extensively or inherited money from a foreign relative. As shown in figure 1, although holding money offshor... | Much offshore financial activity by individual U.S. taxpayers is not illegal, but numerous schemes have been devised to hide the true ownership of funds held offshore and income moving between the United States and offshore jurisdictions. In recent years, GAO has reported on several aspects of offshore financial activi... |
The federal government lacks a clear picture of the volume of discrimination and whistleblowing reprisal cases involving federal employees. The lack of a complete accounting of cases is in part a by- product of the complexity of the redress system for federal employees and the different ways in which case data are repo... | Federal employees who report waste, fraud, and abuse shouldn't have to fear discrimination and retaliation. Despite laws designed to protect whistleblowers, some have experienced or believed that they have experienced reprisals. Proposed legislation--the Notification and Federal Employee Antidiscrimination and Retaliat... |
Federal agencies owned more than 446,000 non-tactical vehicles in fiscal year 2015, according to the Federal Fleet Report. Five departments owned approximately 89 percent of these vehicles, as shown in Table 1. Agencies acquire vehicles through purchase or lease and are responsible for making decisions about the number... | Federal agencies spent about $3.4 billion in fiscal year 2015 to keep and operate almost 450,000 federally owned vehicles. Each federal agency is responsible for determining utilization criteria and assessing vehicle utilization. GAO was asked to describe federally owned vehicles and examine federal processes for asses... |
DHS has made progress in implementing its acquisition, information technology, financial, and human capital management functions, but continues to face obstacles and weaknesses in these functions that could hinder the department’s transformation and implementation efforts. For example, DHS has faced challenges in imple... | Since 2003, GAO has designated implementing and transforming the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) as high risk because DHS had to transform 22 agencies--several with significant management challenges--into one department, and failure to effectively address its mission and management risks could have serious conseq... |
Given the consequences of a severe influenza pandemic, in 2006, GAO developed a strategy for our work that would help support Congress’s decision making and oversight related to pandemic planning. Our strategy was built on a large body of work spanning two decades, including reviews of government responses to prior dis... | As the current H1N1 outbreak underscores, an influenza pandemic remains a real threat to our nation. Over the past 3 years, GAO conducted a body of work, consisting of 12 reports and 4 testimonies, to help the nation better prepare for a possible pandemic. In February 2009, GAO synthesized the results of most of this w... |
General and flag officers’ quarters are government-provided quarters for military officers with the rank of brigadier general or rear admiral (lower half) (O-7) and above. The services have a total of 685 general and flag officer quarters, of which 372, or about 54 percent, are considered historic as table 1 below show... | Recent cost increases in renovation projects to general and flag officer quarters raised questions about the services' management of the programs. GAO was asked to determine (1) how actual costs of renovation projects for general and flag officer housing compare to service budget estimates provided to Congress and (2) ... |
FDA’s overall mission is to protect the public from selected domestic or imported foods, drugs, cosmetics, biological products, and medical devices and from products that make fraudulent or misleading claims that might threaten public health and safety. On matters relating to its import operations, FDA’s Office of Regu... | Pursuant to a congressional request, GAO reviewed the Food and Drug Administration's (FDA) progress in implementing its Operational and Administrative System for Import Support (OASIS), focusing on systems development areas that need improvement. GAO found that: (1) although some improvements have been made to import o... |
While the U.S. government supports a wide variety of programs and activities for global food security, it lacks comprehensive data on funding. We found that it is difficult to readily determine the full extent of such programs and activities and to estimate precisely the total amount of funding that the U.S. government... | Global hunger continues to worsen despite world leaders' 1996 pledge--reaffirmed in 2000 and 2009--to halve hunger by 2015. To reverse this trend, in 2009 major donor countries pledged about $22.7 billion in a 3-year commitment to agriculture and food security in developing countries, of which $3.5 billion is the U.S. ... |
USCIS has reduced TNCs from about 8 percent for the period June 2004 through March 2007 to about 2.6 percent in fiscal year 2009. As shown in figure 1, in fiscal year 2009, about 2.6 percent or over 211,000 of newly hired employees received either a SSA or USCIS TNC, including about 0.3 percent who were determined to b... | This testimony discusses the E-Verify program, which provides employers a tool for verifying an employee's authorization to work in the United States. The opportunity for employment is one of the most powerful magnets attracting immigrants to the United States. According to the Pew Hispanic Center, as of March 2010, ap... |
NIH funds extramural research primarily through grants. In 2015, NIH funded approximately 50,000 research projects, totaling over $22 billion to research organizations, through grants and cooperative agreements for extramural research. Of the six types of organizations conducting extramural research, NIH provided appro... | NIH spent over $23 billion to support extramural research in 2015, including $6.3 billion for indirect costs, which are costs not directly attributable to a specific research project or function, such as utilities expenses, for grants and cooperative agreements. NIH relies on designated cognizant agencies to design ade... |
The Fair Housing Act is the most comprehensive of the federal statutes that prohibit discrimination in the rental and sale of housing. Passed in 1968 and amended in 1988, the Act prohibits discrimination on the basis of color, family status, handicap, national origin, race, religion, and sex. It applies to a number of ... | Each year, the Department of Housing and Urban Development's (HUD) Office of Fair Housing and Equal Opportunity (FHEO) and related state and local Fair Housing Assistance Program (FHAP) agencies receive and investigate several thousand complaints of housing discrimination. These activities, including required conciliat... |
In May 2007, the Army issued a solicitation for body armor designs to replenish stocks and to protect against future threats by developing the next generation (X level) of protection. According to Army officials, the solicitation would result in contracts that the Army would use for sustainment of protective plate stoc... | The Army has issued soldiers in Iraq and Afghanistan personal body armor, comprising an outer protective vest and ceramic plate inserts. GAO observed Preliminary Design Model testing of new plate designs, which resulted in the Army's awarding contracts in September 2008 valued at a total of over $8 billion to vendors o... |
Biomonitoring—one technique for assessing people’s exposure to chemicals—involves measuring the concentration of chemicals or their by- products in human specimens, such as blood or urine. Biomonitoring has been used to monitor certain workers’ lead exposure for many decades. More recently, advances in analytic methods... | Biomonitoring, which measures chemicals in people's tissues or body fluids, has shown that the U.S. population is widely exposed to chemicals used in everyday products. Some of these have the potential to cause cancer or birth defects. Moreover, children may be more vulnerable to harm from these chemicals than adults. ... |
Fusion is the energy source that powers the sun and stars. Fusion occurs when the nuclei of two light atoms collide with sufficient energy to overcome their natural repulsive forces and fuse together. Scientists are currently using deuterium and tritium—two hydrogen isotopes—for this reaction. When the nuclei of the tw... | ITER is an international research facility being built in France to demonstrate the feasibility of fusion energy. Fusion occurs when the nuclei of two light atoms collide and fuse together at high temperatures, which results in the release of large amounts of energy. The United States has committed to providing about 9... |
Scientists, industry officials, and land managers are recognizing that invasive species are one of the most serious, yet least appreciated, environmental threats of the 21st century. Expanding global trade and travel with countries such as Russia, China, and South Africa have resulted in rapid increases in the rate of ... | Invasive species--harmful, nonnative plants, animals, and microorganisms--are widespread throughout the United States, causing billions of dollars of damage annually to crops, rangelands, and waterways. An important part of pest control is quick action to eradicate or contain a potentially damaging invasive species. Fe... |
Subsets and Splits
Short Government Reports Sample
Retrieves short reports or summaries from the training dataset, which helps identify potentially incomplete or truncated entries that might need data quality improvement.
Short Government Reports Filtering
Retrieves short reports from the training dataset, providing basic filtering but offering limited analytical value beyond simple length constraints.