Correspondence issued by the Government Accountability Office with an abstract that begins "In summary, GAO found the following:"

Correspondence issued by the General Accounting Office with an abstract that begins "GAO reviewed the proposed Service Acquisition Reform Act and found that additional training for the acquisition workforce is needed governmentwide. Agencies could improve the capacity of the acquisition workforce by focusing on such key areas as requirements, inventory, workforce strategies and plans, and progress evaluations. GAO did not examine how pay-for-performance and pay banding would apply to acquisition personnel. However, these practices are consistent with suggestions made in earlier GAO testimony."

Testimony issued by the Government Accountability Office with an abstract that begins "The Department of the Interior (Interior) is responsible for managing much of the nation's vast natural resources. Its agencies implement an array of programs intended to protect these resources for future generations while also allowing certain uses of them, such as recreation and oil and gas development. In some cases, Interior is authorized to collect royalties and fees for these uses. Over the years, GAO has reported on management challenges at Interior, which are largely characterized by the struggle to balance the demand for greater use of its resources with the need to conserve and protect them. Furthermore, given the government's long-term fiscal challenges, Interior faces difficult choices in balancing its responsibilities. This testimony highlights some of the major management challenges facing Interior today. It is based on prior GAO reports."

Other written product issued by the General Accounting Office with an abstract that begins "This is an insert to GAO's publication, Serving the Congress and the Nation, describing the role, functions, and responsibilities of GAO's Education, Workforce, and Income Security team."

Guidance issued by the General Accounting Office with an abstract that begins "This publication supersedes AIMD-21.2.7, Guaranteed Loan System Requirements: Checklist for Reviewing Systems Under the Federal Financial Management Improvement Act (Exposure Draft), August 2000. The Federal Financial Management Improvement Act requires agencies to implement and maintain financial management systems that substantially comply with federal financial management system requirements. These requirements are detailed in the guidance issued by the Joint Financial Management Improvement Program and the Office of Management and Budget. GAO issued a checklist that reflects the Joint Financial Management Improvement Program's Revised Guaranteed Loan System Requirements to help (1) agencies implement and monitor their guaranteed loan systems and (2) managers and auditors review agency guaranteed loan systems to determine if they substantially comply with act. This checklist is not required to be used to assess guaranteed loan systems. Rather, it is provided as a tool for use by experienced staff and is one in a series of documents GAO has issued to help agencies improve or maintain effective operations."

Testimony issued by the Government Accountability Office with an abstract that begins "This testimony discusses the challenges that the Department of Defense (DOD) faces in fulfilling urgent operational needs identified by our warfighters. Over the course of the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan, U.S. forces have encountered changing adversarial tactics, techniques, and procedures, which challenged DOD to quickly develop and provide new equipment and new capabilities to address evolving threats. Further, U.S. troops faced shortages of critical items, including body armor, tires, and batteries. DOD's goal is to provide solutions as quickly as possible to meet urgent warfighter needs to prevent mission failure or loss of life. To meet its urgent needs, DOD had to look beyond traditional acquisition procedures, expand the use of existing processes, and develop new processes and entities designed to be as responsive as possible to urgent warfighter requests. In addition to requests for equipment from DOD's existing stocks, warfighters have requested new capabilities, such as: technology to counter improvised explosive devices (IED); technology related to intelligence, surveillance, and reconnaissance (ISR) to provide increased situational awareness; and equipment related to command and control to enhance operations on the battlefield. In meeting urgent needs, it is important …

Correspondence issued by the Government Accountability Office with an abstract that begins "In 2003, the National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) was authorized to demonstrate enhanced use leasing (EUL) at two centers, allowing the agency to retain the proceeds from leasing out underutilized real property and to accept in-kind consideration in lieu of cash for rent. NASA selected Ames Research Center and Kennedy Space Center for the demonstration program. The agency had requested that Congress extend this authority to additional NASA centers during formulation of the NASA Authorization Act of 2005. NASA's request was not granted. Instead, Section 710 of the NASA Authorization Act of 2005 (Public Law 109-155) directed GAO to review NASA's EUL program. We examined (1) the financial impact of the EUL authority on NASA and whether EUL revenue and other financial benefits would have been realized without the authority, (2) NASA's use of the authority and whether the arrangements made under the authority would have been made in the absence of the authority, and (3) what controls are in place to ensure accountability and transparency and to protect the government. The act also directed GAO to report back to the Congress by December 30, 2006. We …

Correspondence issued by the General Accounting Office with an abstract that begins "Pursuant to a congressional request, GAO provided information on Medicare supplemental insurance (Medigap) premiums for standard plans that provide outpatient prescription drug coverage, focusing on: (1) a description of the benefits under the standard plans; and (2) average premiums, which reflect insurance company reporting practices as well as different state regulations."

Guidance issued by the General Accounting Office with an abstract that begins "This publication supersedes AIMD-10.1.23, Information Technology Investment Management: A Framework for Assessing and Improving Process Maturity (Exposure Draft), May 2000. In 2000, GAO published an exposure draft of Information Technology Investment Management: A Framework for Assessing and Improving Process Maturity (ITIM). Built around the select/control/evaluate approach described in the Clinger-Cohen Act of 1996--which establishes statutory requirements for IT management--the framework provides a method for evaluating and assessing how well an agency is selecting and managing its IT resources. The exposure draft reflected current accepted or best practices in IT investment management, as well as the reported experience of federal agencies and other organizations in creating their own investment management processes. This new version updates the exposure draft to take into account comments that GAO has received; GAO's experiences in evaluating several agencies' implementations of investment management processes and the lessons learned by these agencies; and the importance of enterprise architecture (EA) as a critical frame of reference in making IT investment decisions. Using the framework to analyze an agency's IT investment management processes provides: (1) a rigorous, standardized tool for internal and external evaluations of these processes; (2) …

Guidance issued by the General Accounting Office with an abstract that begins "This publication supersedes GAO-03-893G, Human Capital: A Guide for Assessing Strategic Training and Development Efforts in the Federal Government (Exposure Draft), July 2003. As part of our ongoing review of agencies' efforts to address their human capital challenges, we saw the need for a framework to serve as a flexible and useful guide in assessing how agencies plan, design, implement, and evaluate effective training and development programs that contribute to improved organizational performance and enhanced employee skills and competencies. This guide was developed in response to that need. GAO has used and will continue to rely on the framework presented in this guide to analyze and report on training and development issues both within specific agencies and programs as well as across the federal government. The framework outlined in this guide summarizes attributes of effective training and development programs and presents related questions concerning the components of the training and development process. This guide is intended to help managers assess an agency's training and development efforts and make it easier to determine what, where, and how improvements may be implemented. Managers and analysts can use the guide to …

Testimony issued by the Government Accountability Office with an abstract that begins ""

Testimony issued by the Government Accountability Office with an abstract that begins "The Department of Homeland Security (DHS) has updated and strengthened its strategy for how it plans to address GAO’s high-risk designation and resolve the department’s management challenges. In January 2011, DHS provided GAO with its Integrated Strategy for High Risk Management, which summarized the department’s preliminary plans for addressing the high-risk area. GAO found that this strategy, which was later updated in June and December 2011, was generally responsive to the actions and outcomes needed to address GAO’s high-risk designation. For example, the January 2011 strategy generally identified multiple, specific actions and target completion time frames consistent with the outcomes GAO identified. However, the strategy did not address the root causes of problems, among other things. In its June 2011 strategy, DHS, among other things, identified 10 root causes that cut across the management areas and their integration. GAO identified ways the strategy could be strengthened, including consistently reporting the progress of its initiatives and corrective actions. In its most recent update, DHS better positioned itself to address its management challenges. For example, for the first time, DHS included ratings of the department’s progress addressing its high-risk outcomes. …

Other written product issued by the Government Accountability Office with an abstract that begins ""

Guidance issued by the General Accounting Office with an abstract that begins "This publication has been superseded by GAO-01-376G, Executive Guide: Maximizing the Success of Chief Information Officers: Learning From Leading Organizations, February 2001. GAO published a guide: (1) to assist federal agencies in maximizing the success of chief information officers (CIO); and (2) to offer concrete suggestions on what agency executives can do to ensure the effectiveness of their CIO organizations."

A statement of record issued by the General Accounting Office with an abstract that begins "Pursuant to a congressional request, GAO discussed the Department of Defense's (DOD) and the military services' management of real property assets, focusing on: (1) principle findings on DOD's strategy for management of real property and how the services determine and prioritize maintenance needs and allocate resources to them; (2) promising practices in facilities maintenance by nonmilitary entities; (3) some barriers that the services face in implementing such practices; (4) GAO's recommendations on how DOD could improve its real property management; and (5) the steps DOD has told GAO it is taking in response to GAO's testimony."

Other written product issued by the General Accounting Office with an abstract that begins "This annual performance and accountability report assesses GAO's accomplishments in fiscal year 2001 and describes the agency's plans for continued progress through fiscal year 2003. In the last year, GAO's work resulted in a number of significant improvements to government that will benefit all Americans. By acting on GAO's recommendations, the government achieved a number of significant improvements to government, including (1) protecting patients in mental health facilities, (2) reducing nuclear waste treatment costs, (3) controlling pollution, (4) informing the debate over aviation security, (5) improving accountability over defense inventory, (6) strengthening federal information security, (7) improving collection of nontax debt, (8) focusing attention on major management challenges and high-risk issues, (9) identifying strategies for a more cost-effective census, (10) strengthening relationships with GAO's clients and stakeholders, (11) aligning GAO's resources with its strategic goals, and (12) aligning human capital policies and practices to support GAO's mission. GAO also provided information critical to the public debate on counterterrorism efforts and called attention to looming problems, such as the human capital crisis facing the federal workforce and information technology issues. Taxpayers benefited from the $26 billion in …

Other written product issued by the General Accounting Office with an abstract that begins "Pursuant to a congressional request, GAO provided information on the euro, focusing on: (1) what the euro is and why Europe is moving to it now; (2) what the potential effects of the euro are on the dollar; (3) what are the potential monetary policy and exchange rate effects of the euro; (4) what are the euro's implications for U.S. trade and investment with Europe; and (5) what are the implications of the euro for international economic policymaking. GAO noted that: (1) the euro is the new currency being used by 11 of the 15 countries that are members of the European Union (EU); (2) the euro is part of an initiative known as the European Economic and Monetary Union and is designed to more closely link EU's economic policies; (3) a variety of factors will determine whether the emergence of the euro will have a significant impact on the international role of the dollar; (4) over the longer term, several analysts believe that the comparative status of the dollar and euro as international currencies may be affected by potential developments in the euro area payments …

Other written product issued by the General Accounting Office with an abstract that begins "The recent, rapid growth in Internet-based computer technologies has significant implications for the United States. The ability to conduct business via the Internet has brought about changes in the way companies do business with each other and in how they interact with consumers. The Internet allows businesses and consumers from different countries to interact as easily as if they were physically close to each other. This borderless aspect of international electronic commerce creates a wider marketplace that facilitates new transactions and business relationships. However, the potential for widespread adoption of international electronic commerce raises questions from the technical to the policy-related. This report provides information on emerging electronic commerce issues, including: (1) what is being done to remove obstacles and facilitate international electronic commerce, (2) efforts to adopt a legal framework for international electronic commerce transactions, and (3) how international trade agreements and negotiations address barriers to international electronic commerce."

Other written product issued by the General Accounting Office with an abstract that begins "This is an insert to GAO's publication, Serving the Congress and the Nation, describing the role, functions, and responsibilities of GAO's External Liaison team."

Testimony issued by the Government Accountability Office with an abstract that begins "The Future Combat System (FCS) is a networked family of weapons and other systems in the forefront of efforts by the Army to become a lighter, more agile, and more capable combat force. When considering complementary programs, projected investment costs for FCS are estimated to be on the order of $200 billion. FCS's cost is of concern given that developing and producing new weapon systems is among the largest investments the government makes, and FCS adds significantly to that total. Over the last five years, the Department of Defense (DOD) doubled its planned investments in such systems from $700 billion in 2001 to $1.4 trillion in 2006. At the same time, research and development costs on new weapons continue to grow on the order of 30 to 40 percent. FCS will be competing for significant funds at a time when Federal fiscal imbalances are exerting great pressures on discretionary spending. In the absence of more money being available, FCS and other programs must be executable within projected resources. Today, I would like to discuss (1) the business case needed for FCS to be successful and (2) related business …

Other written product issued by the General Accounting Office with an abstract that begins "This is an insert to GAO's publication, Serving the Congress and the Nation, describing the role, functions, and responsibilities of GAO's International Affairs and Trade team."

Testimony issued by the General Accounting Office with an abstract that begins "Pursuant to a congressional request, GAO discussed the challenges the Department of Education faces in achieving financial management reform, focusing on: (1) Education's fiscal year (FY) 1999 financial audit results in the context of related work GAO has performed; (2) the relationship between the audit findings and the potential for waste, fraud, and abuse; and (3) the status of GAO's ongoing study of the department's grantback account."

Testimony issued by the General Accounting Office with an abstract that begins "Pursuant to a congressional request, GAO discussed its recent reports on the securities industry's progress toward implementing decimal trading, focusing on the: (1) progress made to date toward converting to decimals; and (2) challenges that remain."

Testimony issued by the Government Accountability Office with an abstract that begins "The foundation laid by the Chief Financial Officers Act of 1990 and other management reform legislation provided a much needed statutory basis to improve the accountability of government programs and operations. Such reforms were intended to produce reliable, timely, and useful financial information to help manage day-to- day operations and exercise oversight and promote fiscal stewardship. This testimony, based on GAO's prior work, addresses (1) the progress made and challenges remaining to improve federal financial management practices, and (2) the serious challenges posed by the government's deteriorating long-range fiscal condition and the Comptroller General's views on a possible way forward."