A letter report issued by the General Accounting Office with an abstract that begins "Many proposals have been offered to restructure the U.S. Social Security system to include individual retirement savings accounts. However, some key proposals would make participation in the accounts voluntary rather than mandatory. While any individual account plan can offer a variety of choices regarding contributions, investments, and withdrawals, the choice of whether or not to participate is fundamental to a voluntary approach. That choice could have significant effects on individual retirement incomes and on the costs to the government as well. GAO was asked to report on the implications of using a voluntary approach to individual accounts. Accordingly, GAO's reporting on (1) how voluntary plans can affect individuals, (2) how they could affect the total costs of the retirement system, and (3) the role of educational efforts relating to the participation decision. Throughout this report, GAO focuses on the issues that pertain specifically to a voluntary approach as distinct from a mandatory approach. GAO studied three countries that have enacted voluntary individual account plans--the Czech Republic, Germany, and the United Kingdom."

A chapter report issued by the General Accounting Office with an abstract that begins "Now that the Government Performance and Results Act (GPRA) has been in effect for 10 years, GAO was asked to address (1) the effect of GPRA in creating a governmentwide focus on results and the government's ability to deliver results to the American public, (2) the challenges agencies face in measuring performance and using performance information in management decisions, and (3) how the federal government can continue to shift toward a more results-oriented focus."

Testimony issued by the Government Accountability Office with an abstract that begins "A safe, efficient, and convenient transportation system is integral to the health of our economy and quality of life. Our nation's vast transportation system of airways, railways, roads, transit systems, and waterways has served this need, yet is under considerable pressure due to increasing congestion and costs to maintain and improve the system. Calls for increased investment come at a time when traditional funding for transportation projects is increasingly strained. The authorizing legislation supporting transportation programs will soon expire. The Department of Transportation (DOT) implements national transportation policy and administers most federal transportation programs. DOT received funds for transportation infrastructure projects through the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009 to aid in economic recovery. DOT also requested $72.5 billion to carry out its activities for fiscal year 2010. This statement presents GAO's views on major challenges facing DOT and Congress as they work to administer recovery funds and reauthorize surface transportation and aviation programs. It is based on work GAO has completed over the last several years. GAO has made recommendations to DOT to improve transportation programs; the agency has generally agreed with these recommendations. To supplement …

Testimony issued by the Government Accountability Office with an abstract that begins "The majority of large-scale acquisition programs in the Department of Defense's (DOD) space portfolio have experienced problems during the past two decades that have driven up costs by billions of dollars, stretched schedules by years, and increased technical risks. To address the cost increases, DOD altered its acquisitions by reducing the number of satellites it intended to buy, reducing the capabilities of the satellites, or terminating major space systems acquisitions. Moreover, along with the cost increases, many space acquisitions are experiencing significant schedule delays--as much as 8 years--resulting in potential capability gaps in areas such as missile warning, military communications, and weather monitoring. This testimony focuses on (1) the status of space acquisitions, (2) causal factors of acquisition problems, and (3) efforts underway to improve acquisitions. In preparing this testimony, GAO relied on its body of work, including GAO reports on best practices, assessments of individual space programs, common problems affecting space system acquisitions, and the DOD's acquisition policies. We have made numerous recommendations to the DOD in the past on matters relating to overall best practices as well as on individual space program acquisitions. DOD often concurred …

Testimony issued by the Government Accountability Office with an abstract that begins "The rural America of 2005 is far different from the rural America of the 1930s, when the federal government first began to provide housing assistance to rural residents. Advances in transportation, computer technology, and telecommunications, along with the spread of suburbia, have linked many rural areas to urban areas. These changes, along with new fiscal and budget realities, raise questions about how Rural Housing Service (RHS) programs could most effectively and efficiently serve rural America."

Testimony issued by the General Accounting Office with an abstract that begins "Since September 2003, widespread allegations of abusive practices involving mutual funds have come to light. An abuse called late trading allowed some investors, at times in collusion with pension plan intermediary, broker-dealer, or fund adviser staff, to profit at other investors' expense by submitting orders for fund shares to receive that day's price after the legal cutoff. Other investors were allowed to conduct market timing trades to take advantage of stale prices used by funds to calculate their net asset values at funds with stated policies against such trading. SEC and other regulators have responded with numerous proposals for new or revised practices. Based on a body of work that GAO has conducted involving mutual funds, GAO analyzed and provides views on proposed and final rules involving (1) fund pricing and compliance practices intended to address various mutual fund trading abuses that have come to light recently, (2) fund boards' independence and effectiveness, (3) fund adviser compensation of broker-dealers that sell fund shares, and (4) additional actions regulators could take to further improve transparency and investor understanding of the fees they pay."

Testimony issued by the Government Accountability Office with an abstract that begins "The Forest Service, within the Department of Agriculture, manages over 190 million acres of national forest and grasslands. The agency is responsible for managing its lands for various purposes--including recreation, grazing, timber harvesting, and others--while ensuring that such activities do not impair the lands' long-term productivity. Numerous GAO reports examining different aspects of Forest Service programs--including a testimony before this Subcommittee in 2009--have identified persistent management challenges facing the agency. In light of the federal deficit and long-term fiscal challenges facing the nation, the Forest Service cannot ensure that it is spending its limited budget effectively and efficiently without addressing these challenges. This testimony highlights some of the management challenges facing the Forest Service today and is based on recent reports GAO has issued on a variety of the agency's activities."

Testimony issued by the General Accounting Office with an abstract that begins "Pursuant to a congressional request, GAO discussed the management of health care assets within the Department of Veterans Affairs (VA)."

Testimony issued by the General Accounting Office with an abstract that begins "Pursuant to a congressional request, GAO discussed the appraisal for the Baca Ranch, focusing on the: (1) extent to which the value established by the owner's appraisal was consistent with the comparable property sales data presented in the appraisal and in the Forest Service's market study; and (2) other key factors that influenced the appraisal's final outcome."

Testimony issued by the General Accounting Office with an abstract that begins "Pursuant to a congressional request, GAO discussed the Department of Defense's (DOD) $1.3 billion pharmacy programs and efforts under way to redesign DOD's pharmacy benefit."

Testimony issued by the General Accounting Office with an abstract that begins "Pursuant to a congressional request, GAO discussed the President's recent proposal for addressing Medicare and use of the projected budget surpluses over the next 15 years, focusing on: (1) the overall fiscal consequences of the proposal; (2) what it does and does not do for the Medicare Program; and (3) the importance of and difficulty in making fundamental changes to the program."

Correspondence issued by the Government Accountability Office with an abstract that begins "This letter responds to a Congressional request that we address questions submitted for the record related to the February 11, 2009, hearing entitled FAA Reauthorization Act of 2009. Our attached responses to these questions are based on updates to our previous work and our knowledge of the areas addressed by the questions."

A letter report issued by the Government Accountability Office with an abstract that begins "In 2002, GAO reported that immigration benefit fraud was pervasive and significant and the approach to controlling it was fragmented. Experts believe that individuals ineligible for these benefits, including terrorists and criminals, could use fraudulent means to enter or remain in the U.S. You asked that GAO evaluate U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Service's (USCIS) anti-fraud efforts. This report addresses the questions: (1) What do available data and information indicate regarding the nature and extent of fraud? (2) What actions has USCIS taken to improve its ability to detect fraud? (3) What actions does the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) take to sanction those who commit fraud?"

The Joint Light Tactical Vehicle (JLTV) is currently being developed by the Army and the Marine Corps as a successor to the 11 different versions of the High Mobility, Multi-Wheeled Vehicle (HMMWV) that have been in service since 1985. There are concerns about the affordability of JLTVs and its redundancy with other tactical wheeled vehicles.

The United States and the other 153 members of the World Trade Organization (WTO) have been engaged in a set or "round" of negotiations called the Doha Development Agenda (DDA) since December 2001. The DDA's main objective is to refine and expand the rules by which WTO members conduct foreign trade with one another. This report is designed to assist the 112th Congress to understand and monitor progress of the negotiations and the major issues that the negotiators are addressing. The report provides a brief background section on the significance of services to the U.S. economy. It then explains briefly the General Agreement on Trade in Services (GATS) and the structure and agenda of the services negotiations in the DDA round, including U.S. objectives in the negotiations. The report concludes with a status report on the negotiations and an examination of potential results.

This report assesses recent international developments as the leaders from a number of nations work to reach a consensus on an informal set of best practices regarding national restrictions on foreign investment for national security purposes. This report also provides one possible approach for assessing the costs and benefits involved in using national policies to direct or to restrict foreign direct investment for national security reasons.

This report discusses North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO) burdensharing--the funding, via individual contributions from NATO member states, of certain commonly conducted activities. The report discusses how each NATO member state's contribution is negotiated, and how member states are reconsidering their defense budgets (and, thereby, their willingness and ability to contribute to NATO operations) in light of the global financial crisis.

This report discusses background information on the V-22 Osprey Tilt-Rotor Aircraft, as well as procurement issues for FY2012 and related oversight issues for Congress.

This report provides an overview of the legal precedent for mandatory vaccination laws, and of state laws that require certain individuals or populations, including school-aged children and health care workers, to be vaccinated against various communicable diseases. Also discussed are state laws providing for mandatory vaccinations during a public health emergency or outbreak of a communicable disease.

This report reviews the ongoing programs that will affect the expected size and shape of the U.S. strategic nuclear force structure. It begins with an overview of this force structure during the Cold War, and summarizes the reductions and changes that have occurred since 1991. It then offers details about each category of delivery vehicle, focusing on their current deployments and ongoing and planned modernization programs. The report concludes with a discussion of issues related to decisions about the future size and shape of the U.S. strategic nuclear force.

This report summarizes the FY2011 budget request for research & development (R&D) funding, including comparisons to R&D funding requests in the FY2010 budget. Congress will play a central role in defining the nation's R&D priorities, especially with respect to two overarching issues: the extent to which the Federal R&D investment can grow in the context of increased pressure on discretionary spending and how available funding will be prioritized and allocated. This report breaks down in detail the various aspects of the President's FY2011 R&D funding request.

This report discusses the Navy's plan to develop and design a class of 12 next-generation ballistic missile submarines, or SSBN(X)s, as replacements for the 14 Ohio class SSBNs currently in operation. The report explores certain related issues for Congress, including the affordability of the project and its potential impact on other Navy shipbuilding programs, alternatives to the program, and which shipyard or shipyards will build the proposed ships.

This report discusses the air pollution regulations and the Environmental Protection Agency's (EPA's) regulatory actions on greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions, and also addresses some climate change issues.

This report discusses climate change and surveys existing law for legal issues that have arisen, or may arise in the future, on account of climate change and government responses thereto.