A letter report issued by the Government Accountability Office with an abstract that begins "Approximately 90 percent of all federal background investigations are provided by the Office of Personnel Management's (OPM) Federal Investigative Services (FIS) division. In fiscal year 2009, FIS conducted over 2 million investigations of varying types, making the organization a major steward of personal information on U.S. citizens. GAO was asked to (1) describe how OPM uses personally identifiable information (PII) in conducting background investigations and (2) assess the extent to which OPM's privacy policies and procedures for protecting PII related to investigations meet statutory requirements and align with widely accepted privacy practices. To address these objectives, GAO compared OPM and FIS policies and procedures with key privacy laws and widely accepted practices."

A letter report issued by the Government Accountability Office with an abstract that begins "After security conditions in Iraq began to deteriorate in June 2003, the U.S.-led Coalition Provisional Authority (CPA) included restoring essential services in Iraq, such as water and sanitation, as part of its strategy for establishing a secure, peaceful, and democratic Iraq. From 1991 to 2003, a decreasing number of Iraqis had access to safe drinking water and sanitation services, and water-borne disease rates rose. The United States has made available $2.6 billion for rebuilding the water and sanitation sector. As part of GAO's review of Iraq reconstruction under the Comptroller General's authority, we assessed U.S. activities in the water and sanitation sector, including (1) the funding and status of U.S. activities, (2) U.S. efforts to measure progress, (3) the factors affecting the implementation of reconstruction activities, and (4) the sustainability of U.S.-funded projects."

A letter report issued by the Government Accountability Office with an abstract that begins "The Department of Homeland Security's (DHS) Atlas program is intended to modernize Immigration and Customs Enforcement's (ICE) information technology (IT) infrastructure. By congressional mandate, DHS is to develop and submit for approval an expenditure plan for Atlas that satisfies certain legislative conditions, including a review by GAO. GAO was asked to determine whether the plan satisfied certain legislative conditions and to provide observations on the plan and management of the program."

A letter report issued by the Government Accountability Office with an abstract that begins "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 provide quality services in a simple, transparent, and equitable manner. Since ICASS was implemented in 1998, its performance has not been systematically reviewed. GAO was asked to examine (1) whether ICASS has led to efficient delivery of administrative services and (2) whether ICASS is an effective mechanism for providing quality services."

A letter report issued by the Government Accountability Office with an abstract that begins "Antibiotics have saved millions of lives, but antibiotic use in food animals contributes to the emergence of resistant bacteria that may affect humans. The Departments of Health and Human Services (HHS) and Agriculture (USDA) are primarily responsible for ensuring food safety. GAO reviewed the issue in 2004 and recommended improved data collection and risk assessment. GAO was asked to examine the (1) extent to which agencies have collected data on antibiotic use and resistance in animals, (2) actions HHS's Food and Drug Administration (FDA) took to mitigate the risk of antibiotic resistance in humans as a result of use in animals, (3) extent to which agencies have researched alternatives to current use practices and educated producers and veterinarians about appropriate use, and (4) actions the European Union (EU) and an EU member country, Denmark, have taken to regulate use in animals and lessons that have been learned. GAO analyzed documents, interviewed officials from national organizations, and visited producers in five states and Denmark.."

A letter report issued by the Government Accountability Office with an abstract that begins "The events of September 11, 2001, led to profound changes in government policies and structures to confront homeland security threats. Most notably, the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) began operations in 2003 with key missions that included preventing terrorist attacks from occurring in the United States, and minimizing the damages from any attacks that may occur. DHS is now the third-largest federal department, with more than 200,000 employees and an annual budget of more than $50 billion. Since 2003, GAO has issued over 1,000 products on DHS's operations in such areas as border and transportation security and emergency management, among others. As requested, this report addresses DHS's progress in implementing its homeland security missions since it began operations, work remaining, and issues affecting implementation efforts. This report is based on GAO's past and ongoing work, supplemented with DHS Office of Inspector General reports, with an emphasis on reports issued since 2008. GAO also analyzed information provided by DHS in July and August 2011 on recent actions taken in response to prior work."

A letter report issued by the Government Accountability Office with an abstract that begins "Commercial satellites are used by the U.S. government to provide a variety of fixed satellite services, such as military communications. However, the number of satellite operators providing such service has declined since 2000. Further, until recently, three vendors, known as satellite service providers, had sole authority to contract with the Department of Defense (DOD) under its primary satellite contract. Among other things, GAO was asked to describe (1) changes that have occurred in the fixed satellite services industry since 2000 and the effects these changes could have on the relationship between satellite operators and service providers; (2) the technological, regulatory, and other factors that affect competition in the fixed satellite services industry; and (3) how costs for DOD to acquire fixed satellite services have changed since 2000 and contracting officials' views on the effects of changes in the industry and contracts on costs. To address these objectives, GAO reviewed demand and capacity data, economic literature, and international regulations; analyzed DOD commercial satellite procurement data; and interviewed satellite industry stakeholders. The Federal Communications Commission, DOD, General Services Administration, and the Departments of Justice and State reviewed a …

Testimony issued by the Government Accountability Office with an abstract that begins "Administered by the Administration on Aging (AoA) in the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS), Title III of the Older Americans Act (OAA) is intended to assist individuals age 60 and older by providing supportive services. Title III, Medicaid and Medicare, state, and other sources of funding provide for several types of services, including congregate and home-delivered meals, transportation, and support for caregivers. This testimony reports on ongoing GAO work in preparation for the reauthorization of the OAA and a full report to be issued by GAO in 2011. Based on preliminary findings, GAO describes (1) Title III services most requested by seniors and how state and local agencies reach those most in need, and (2) how agencies have coped with increasing requests in the current economic environment. To do this, GAO reviewed aging plans from the 50 states and District of Columbia; conducted site visits to 4 states; interviewed national, state, and local officials; and analyzed preliminary responses to a Web-based survey of 125 Local Area Agencies on Aging for fiscal year 2009. The survey data used in this document reflect a 54 percent response rate …

A letter report issued by the General Accounting Office with an abstract that begins "Pursuant to a congressional request, GAO provided information on inpatient and residential treatment facilities' use of restraints or seclusion as a means of treating mental patients, focusing on the: (1) dangers of restraint and seclusion, the extent to which restraint and seclusion are used in inpatient and residential treatment facilities for individuals with mental illness or mental retardation, and the number of related injuries and deaths; (2) federal and state policies that govern the use of restraint and seclusion in inpatient or residential treatment facilities for individuals with mental illness or mental retardation; and (3) experiences of states that have instituted regulations and reporting requirements to address the use of restraint and seclusion."

Testimony issued by the Government Accountability Office with an abstract that begins "The terrorist attacks of September 11, 2001, led to profound changes in government agendas, policies and structures to confront homeland security threats facing the nation. Most notably, the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) began operations in 2003 with key missions that included preventing terrorist attacks from occurring in the United States, reducing the country's vulnerability to terrorism, and minimizing the damages from any attacks that may occur. DHS is now the third-largest federal department, with more than 200,000 employees and an annual budget of more than $50 billion. Since 2003, GAO has issued over 1,000 products on DHS's operations in such areas as border and transportation security and emergency management, among others. As requested, this testimony addresses DHS's progress and challenges in implementing its homeland security missions since it began operations, and issues affecting implementation efforts. This testimony is based on a report GAO is issuing today, which assesses DHS's progress in implementing its homeland security functions and work remaining."

A letter report issued by the General Accounting Office with an abstract that begins "Evidence from the medical literature shows that a variety of frequently used dietary supplements marketed as anti-aging therapies can have serious health consequences for senior citizens. Some seniors have underlying diseases or health conditions that make the use of the product medically inadvisable, and some supplements can interact with medications that are being taken concurrently. Furthermore, studies have found that products sometimes contain harmful contaminants or much more of an active ingredient than is indicated on the label. Unproven anti-aging and alternative medicine products also pose an economic risk to seniors. The Food and Drug Administration (FDA) and the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) have identified several products that make advertising or labeling claims with insufficient substantiation, some costing consumers hundreds or thousands of dollars apiece. Federal and state agencies have efforts under way to protect consumers of these products. FDA and FTC sponsor programs and provide educational materials for senior citizens to help them avoid health fraud. At the state level, agencies are working to protect consumers of health products by enforcing state consumer protection and public health laws, although anti-aging and alternative products are receiving …

Testimony issued by the Government Accountability Office with an abstract that begins "The Department of Defense's (DOD) spending on goods and services has grown significantly since fiscal year 2000 to well over $250 billion annually. Prudence with taxpayer funds, widening deficits, and growing long-range fiscal challenges demand that DOD maximize its return on investment, while providing warfighters with the needed capabilities at the best value for the taxpayer. DOD needs to ensure that its funds are spent wisely, and that it is buying the right things, the right way. In this testimony, GAO discusses (1) recent trends in DOD contracting activity and the environment in which this activity takes place, and (2) practices which undermine its ability to establish sound business arrangements, particularly those involving the selection and oversight of DOD's contractors and incentivizing their performance. This statement is based on work GAO has completed over the past 6 years covering a range of DOD acquisition and contracting issues. Some of these issues are long-standing. GAO has identified DOD contract management as a high-risk area for more than decade. With awards to contractors large and growing, DOD will continue to be vulnerable to contracting fraud, waste or misuse of taxpayer …

A letter report issued by the General Accounting Office with an abstract that begins "Pursuant to a congressional request, GAO reviewed the U.S. Postal Service's (USPS) electronic commerce (e-commerce) initiatives, focusing on USPS': (1) e-commerce initiatives that have been implemented or are being developed; (2) goals and strategies for the e-commerce area; (3) processes for approving these initiatives; and (4) expected performance and results to date related to e-commerce."

Testimony issued by the Government Accountability Office with an abstract that begins "The Senate Special Committee on Aging asked GAO to follow up on its 2004 report, Guardianships: Collaboration Needed to Protect Incapacitated Elderly People, GAO-04-655. This report covered what state courts do to ensure that guardians fulfill their responsibilities, what exemplary guardianship programs look like, and how state courts and federal agencies work together to protect incapacitated elderly people. For this testimony, GAO agreed to (1) provide an overview and update of the findings of this prior work; (2) discuss the status of a series of recommendations GAO made in that report; and (3) discuss the prospects for progress in efforts to strengthen protections for incapacitated elderly people through guardianships. To complete this work, GAO interviewed lawyers and agency officials who have been actively involved in guardianship and representative payee programs, and spoke with officials at some of the courts identified as exemplary in the report."

A chapter report issued by the General Accounting Office with an abstract that begins "The 34 democratic countries of the Western Hemisphere pledged in December 1994 to form Free Trade Area of the Americas (FTAA) no later than 2005. The FTAA agreement would eliminate tariffs and create common trade and investment rules among the 34 democratic nations of the Western Hemisphere. When completed, the FTAA agreement will cover about 800 million people, more than $11 trillion in production, and $3.4 trillion in world trade. The five FTAA negotiating groups pursuing liberalization of trade and investment--market access, agriculture, investment, services, and government procurement--have submitted initial proposals and agreed on a date to begin market access negotiations, but the groups face short-term and long-term issues. In the short-term, these groups must resolve several practical issues in order to begin negotiations on market access schedules no later than May 15, 2002, and to narrow differences and prepare revised trade rule chapters by August 2002. Over the long-term, these market-opening groups face fundamental questions about how much and how fast to liberalize. Narrowing outstanding differences may be difficult for the four other negotiating groups, which have made initial proposals on rules governing intellectual property; …

A letter report issued by the General Accounting Office with an abstract that begins "Pursuant to a congressional request, GAO provided information on efforts to recover Medicare's overpayments, focusing on: (1) how the Health Care Financing Administration (HCFA) and its contractors identify potential overpayments, and whether techniques used by recovery auditors would improve overpayment identification; (2) how well HCFA and its contractors collect overpayments once they are identified, and whether the services of recovery auditors would improve HCFA collection efforts; and (3) what challenges HCFA would face if it were required to hire recovery auditors to augment its overpayment identification and collection activities."

Other written product issued by the Government Accountability Office with an abstract that begins ""Unless we fix our health care system--in both the public and private sectors--rising health care costs will have severe, adverse consequences for the federal budget as well as the U.S. economy in the future." This is one of the key messages that Comptroller General David M. Walker has been delivering across the country in town-hall style meetings, in speeches, and on radio and television programs. Using another format to explore issues with health care experts, Mr. Walker convened a forum at GAO on May 17, 2007. Attendees included health policy experts, business leaders, and public officials selected for their subject matter knowledge and representation of various perspectives. Participants examined health care cost, access, and quality challenges in discussion sessions led by distinguished economists Robert Reischauer and Mark Pauly and other leading health care authorities Carolyn Clancy and Suzanne Delbanco. Nationally known health insurance expert Leonard Schaeffer served as the keynote lunchtime speaker. At the conclusion of the forum, participants were polled for their views on points raised during the discussions. The poll was conducted using electronic voting technology that produced real-time, but confidential, results."

A letter report issued by the General Accounting Office with an abstract that begins "Foodborne diseases in the United States cause an estimated 76 million illnesses, 325,000 hospitalizations, and 5,000 deaths annually, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC). Surveillance is the most important tool for detecting and monitoring both existing and emerging foodborne diseases. In the United States, surveillance for foodborne disease is also used to identify outbreaks--two or more cases of a similar illness that result from ingestion of a common food--and their causes. CDC has 18 surveillance systems used to detect cases or outbreaks of foodborne disease, pinpoint their cause, recognize trends, and develop effective prevention and control measures. Four principal systems--the Foodborne Disease Outbreak Surveillance System, PulseNet, FoodNet, and the Surveillance Outbreak Detection Algorithm--focus on foodborne diseases and cover more than one pathogen. Although CDC's systems have contributed to food safety, the usefulness of several of these surveillance systems is impaired both by CDC's untimely release of surveillance data and by gaps in the data collection. CDC is providing funds to state and local health departments to address their staffing and technology needs to help the states provide CDC with more complete information. …

Testimony issued by the Government Accountability Office with an abstract that begins "This testimony is intended to discuss our report on whether or not the government of Iraq has met 18 benchmarks contained in the U.S. Troop Readiness, Veterans' Care, Katrina Recovery, and Iraq Accountability Appropriations Act of 20072 (the Act). The Act requires GAO to report on the status of the achievement of these benchmarks. Consistent with GAO's core values and our desire to be fair and balanced, we also considered and used a "partially met" rating for some benchmarks. In comparison, the Act requires the administration to report on whether satisfactory progress is being made toward meeting the benchmarks. The benchmarks cover Iraqi government actions needed to advance reconciliation within Iraqi society, improve the security of the Iraqi population, provide essential services to the population, and promote economic well-being. To complete this work, we reviewed U.S. agency and Iraqi documents and interviewed officials from the Departments of Defense, State, and the Treasury; the Multi-National Force-Iraq (MNF-I) and its subordinate commands; the Defense Intelligence Agency; the Central Intelligence Agency; the National Intelligence Council; and the United Nations. These officials included Ryan Crocker, the U.S. Ambassador to Iraq, and General …

Testimony issued by the Government Accountability Office with an abstract that begins "The Visa Waiver Program enables citizens of 27 countries to travel to the United States for tourism or business for 90 days or less without obtaining a visa. In fiscal year 2005, nearly 16 million people entered the country under the program. After the 9-11 terrorist attacks, the risk that aliens would exploit the program to enter the United States became more of a concern. This testimony discusses our recent report on the Visa Waiver Program. Specifically, it (1) describes the Visa Waiver Program's benefits and risks, (2) examines the U.S. government's process for assessing potential risks, and (3) assesses the actions taken to mitigate these risks. We met with U.S. embassy officials in six program countries and reviewed relevant procedures and reports on participating countries"

A letter report issued by the General Accounting Office with an abstract that begins "Pursuant to a congressional request, GAO reviewed the Department of Defense's (DOD) management of the maintenance of its real properties, focusing on: (1) how the services determine and prioritize maintenance and repair requirements and how they allocate resources to meet their needs; (2) promising practices in facility management that the services could consider; and (3) barriers to implementing promising practices and ways to address them."

A letter report issued by the General Accounting Office with an abstract that begins "Apprenticeship, which combines supervised on-the-job training with formal instruction, benefits both employers and employees by providing the skills and knowledge necessary for a specific job and a credential recognized throughout an industry. The use of apprenticeship is standard practice in some industries, but expansion beyond traditional occupations has been limited. The Department of Labor has not systematically identified new occupations suitable for apprenticeship programs, nor has it successfully alleviated the concerns of some employers about apprenticeship requirements, which has slowed the expansion of apprenticeship to new occupations. Labor has approved 19 new occupations for apprenticeships in the last five years, and many of these have been in less traditional occupations, such as internetworking technicians. Employers are often wary of apprenticeship programs. For example, some employers are reluctant to commit to incremental increases in wages as required by apprenticeship regulations. GAO identified several apprenticeship programs in which apprenticeship training helped to develop workers with sought-after skills. The key to the establishment of the several programs GAO reviewed was the close interaction between employers and federal or state apprenticeship officials to ensure that employers understood the value of …

Other written product issued by the General Accounting Office with an abstract that begins "Pursuant to a legislative requirement, GAO reviewed the Securities and Exchange Commission's (SEC) new rule on selective disclosure and insider trading. GAO noted that: the new rule would address three issues: (a) the selective disclosure by various issuers of material nonpublic information; (b) when insider trading liability arises in connection with a trader's "use" or "knowing possession" of material nonpublic information; (c) when the breach of a family or other nonbusiness relationship may give rise to liability under the misappropriation theory of insider trading; and (d) SEC complied with applicable requirements in promulgating the rule."

A letter report issued by the General Accounting Office with an abstract that begins "Pursuant to a congressional request, GAO reviewed health care plans' withdrawal from the Medicare Choice program, focusing on the: (1) geographic distribution and the distribution among plans of enrollees affected by the recent plan withdrawals; (2) factors associated with plans that terminated or reduced their participation in the program; and (3) likely role of payment rates in affecting plans' decisions."