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Rural Economic Development: More Assurance Is Needed That Grant Funding Information Is Accurately Reported (open access)

Rural Economic Development: More Assurance Is Needed That Grant Funding Information Is Accurately Reported

A letter report issued by the Government Accountability Office with an abstract that begins "GAO was asked to update its 1989 report on the distribution of economic development funding using newer tools now available for measuring the distribution of federal funds to rural areas. GAO agreed to (1) identify federal economic development programs, (2) determine the best way to identify rural areas for this report, (3) determine the amount and share of economic development funding that rural areas receive, and (4) discuss the way federal agencies report data on economic development funding."
Date: February 24, 2006
Creator: United States. Government Accountability Office.
Object Type: Report
System: The UNT Digital Library
Missile Defense: Actions Being Taken to Address Testing Recommendations, but Updated Assessment Needed (open access)

Missile Defense: Actions Being Taken to Address Testing Recommendations, but Updated Assessment Needed

A letter report issued by the General Accounting Office with an abstract that begins "In August 2000, the Defense Department's (DOD) Director, Operational Test and Evaluation (DOT&E), made 50 recommendations on a test program for a system to defeat long-range ballistic missile threats against the United States. DOD's Missile Defense Agency (MDA) plans to begin fielding the system by September 2004. GAO examined (1) how MDA addressed DOT&E's recommendations and (2) what is known about the effectiveness of the system to be fielded by September 2004. GAO issued a classified report on this subject in June 2003. This unclassified, updated version reflects changes in MDA's test schedule."
Date: February 26, 2004
Creator: United States. General Accounting Office.
Object Type: Report
System: The UNT Digital Library
Bureau of Prisons: Written Policies on Lateral Transfers and Assessment of Temporary Assignments Needed (open access)

Bureau of Prisons: Written Policies on Lateral Transfers and Assessment of Temporary Assignments Needed

A letter report issued by the Government Accountability Office with an abstract that begins "The Department of Justice's Federal Bureau of Prisons (BOP) is responsible for the custody and care of more than 202,000 federal offenders with approximately 35,000 employees, almost half of whom are correctional officers, dispersed across BOP's 114 correctional facilities in 6 regions. In response to a request, GAO identified whether BOP had policies and procedures and how it assessed the management of those policies and procedures for (1) employee-requested lateral transfers of BOP employees between correctional facilities and (2) day-to-day changes in correctional services or temporary assignments of BOP employees within a correctional facility. GAO reviewed available documentation on BOP's policies and procedures on lateral transfers and temporary assignments. GAO also interviewed officials from BOP's central and regional offices and seven facilities selected on the basis of the number of staff; at least one facility was selected from within each of BOP's six regions."
Date: February 25, 2009
Creator: United States. Government Accountability Office.
Object Type: Report
System: The UNT Digital Library
Drug Control: The Department of State's Contract Award for Its Counternarcotics Aviation Program (open access)

Drug Control: The Department of State's Contract Award for Its Counternarcotics Aviation Program

Correspondence issued by the General Accounting Office with an abstract that begins "The Department of State adhered to applicable contracting laws and regulations in issuing three interim sole-source contract extensions to DynCorp Aerospace Technology. Although State had developed extensive plans to make a competitive award before DynCorp's existing contract expired, State determined that because of an ever-changing scope of work, it needed to prepare a completely new solicitation incorporating a different statement of work and various program changes. As a result, State could not award a new competitive contract before DynCorp's contract expired. The documentation shows that because of the contractor's magnitude, DynCorp's past experience on the job made it the only qualified contractor able to provide the services without interruption. As required, State publicized each of its decisions to use noncompetitive procedures for the interim contract extensions to allow potential offerors to challenge the decisions, but no firms expressed interest in competing for the awards. In awarding the current contract to DynCorp, State complied with the requirements for making a competitive award and also took discretionary steps to promote increased competition, such as holding a pre-proposal conference with potential offerors. Of the two proposals it received, State determined that …
Date: February 28, 2001
Creator: United States. General Accounting Office.
Object Type: Text
System: The UNT Digital Library
Export Controls: National Security Risks and Revisions To Controls on Computers (open access)

Export Controls: National Security Risks and Revisions To Controls on Computers

A statement of record issued by the General Accounting Office with an abstract that begins "Pursuant to a congressional request, GAO discussed its recent reports on export controls for high performance computers, focusing on how the executive branch: (1) assesses the national security risks associated with the export of high performance computers going to countries of concern; and (2) determines when the exports of computers at existing performance levels can no longer be controlled."
Date: February 28, 2000
Creator: United States. General Accounting Office.
Object Type: Text
System: The UNT Digital Library
Combating Terrorism: State Department's Antiterrorism Program Needs Improved Guidance and More Systematic Assessments of Outcomes (open access)

Combating Terrorism: State Department's Antiterrorism Program Needs Improved Guidance and More Systematic Assessments of Outcomes

A letter report issued by the Government Accountability Office with an abstract that begins "The Department of State's (State) Antiterrorism Assistance (ATA) program's objectives are to provide partner nations with counterterrorism training and equipment, improve bilateral ties, and increase respect for human rights. State's Office of the Coordinator for Counterterrorism (S/CT) provides policy guidance and its Bureau of Diplomatic Security, Office of Antiterrorism Assistance, (DS/T/ATA) manages program operations. GAO assessed (1) State's guidance for determining ATA priorities, (2) how State coordinates ATA with other counterterrorism programs, (3) the extent State established ATA program goals and measures, and (4) State's reporting on U.S. international counterterrorism assistance. To address these objectives, GAO reviewed State documents and met with cognizant officials in Washington, D.C., and four ATA program partner nations."
Date: February 29, 2008
Creator: United States. Government Accountability Office.
Object Type: Report
System: The UNT Digital Library
Financial Management: Some DOD Contractors Abuse the Federal Tax System with Little Consequence (open access)

Financial Management: Some DOD Contractors Abuse the Federal Tax System with Little Consequence

A letter report issued by the General Accounting Office with an abstract that begins "GAO was asked to determine (1) the magnitude of unpaid federal taxes owed by Department of Defense (DOD) contractors, (2) whether indications exist of abuse or criminal activity by DOD contractors related to the federal tax system, (3) whether DOD and the Internal Revenue Service (IRS) have effective processes and controls in place to use the Treasury Offset Program (TOP) in collecting unpaid federal taxes from DOD contractors, and (4) whether DOD contractors with unpaid federal taxes are prohibited by law from receiving contracts from the federal government."
Date: February 12, 2004
Creator: United States. General Accounting Office.
Object Type: Report
System: The UNT Digital Library
Military Personnel: First-Term Recruiting and Attrition Continue to Require Focused Attention (open access)

Military Personnel: First-Term Recruiting and Attrition Continue to Require Focused Attention

A statement of record issued by the General Accounting Office with an abstract that begins "Pursuant to a congressional request, GAO discussed ways that the Department of Defense (DOD) and the services are attempting to address their recent enlistment shortfalls and to reduce the attrition rate of their first-term enlisted personnel."
Date: February 24, 2000
Creator: United States. General Accounting Office.
Object Type: Text
System: The UNT Digital Library
Federally Chartered Corporation: Review of the Financial Statement Audit Report for the American Council of Learned Societies for Fiscal Year 2000 (open access)

Federally Chartered Corporation: Review of the Financial Statement Audit Report for the American Council of Learned Societies for Fiscal Year 2000

Correspondence issued by the General Accounting Office with an abstract that begins "GAO reviewed the audit reports covering the financial statements of the American Council of Learned Societies for fiscal year 2000. GAO found no reportable instances of noncompliance. The audit reports included the auditors' opinions that the financial statements of the corporation were presented fairly in accordance with generally accepted accounting principles."
Date: February 28, 2002
Creator: United States. General Accounting Office.
Object Type: Text
System: The UNT Digital Library
Peacekeeping: Cost Comparison of Actual UN and Hypothetical U.S. Operations in Haiti (open access)

Peacekeeping: Cost Comparison of Actual UN and Hypothetical U.S. Operations in Haiti

A letter report issued by the Government Accountability Office with an abstract that begins "The UN employs about 85,000 military and civilian personnel in peacekeeping operations in 16 countries. The United States has provided about $1 billion annually to support UN peacekeeping operations. In addition, the United States has led and participated in many such operations. UN reports and congressional hearings have raised concerns about accountability for UN peacekeeping operations and the need for reforms. We were asked to provide information relating to the cost and relative strengths of UN and U.S. peacekeeping. In particular, we have (1) compared the cost of the ongoing UN Stabilization Mission in Haiti with the cost that the United States would have incurred had an operation been deemed in the U.S. national interest and undertaken without UN involvement; (2) analyzed factors that could materially affect the estimated costs of a U.S. operation; and (3) identified the strengths of the United States and the UN for leading the operation. We developed our cost estimate of a U.S.-led operation using cost models from the Departments of Defense and State. The estimate is based on various military assumptions, such as the use of primarily active duty troops. …
Date: February 21, 2006
Creator: United States. Government Accountability Office.
Object Type: Report
System: The UNT Digital Library
Statement by Comptroller General David M. Walker on GAO's Preliminary Observations Regarding Preparedness and Response to Hurricanes Katrina and Rita (open access)

Statement by Comptroller General David M. Walker on GAO's Preliminary Observations Regarding Preparedness and Response to Hurricanes Katrina and Rita

Correspondence issued by the Government Accountability Office with an abstract that begins "GAO has undertaken a body of work to address federal, state, and local preparations for, response to, and recovery from Hurricanes Katrina and Rita. This correspondence contains GAO's preliminary findings."
Date: February 1, 2006
Creator: United States. Government Accountability Office.
Object Type: Text
System: The UNT Digital Library
Border Security: Key Unresolved Issues Justify Reevaluation of Border Surveillance Technology Program (open access)

Border Security: Key Unresolved Issues Justify Reevaluation of Border Surveillance Technology Program

A letter report issued by the Government Accountability Office with an abstract that begins "In September 2004, the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) established America's Shield Initiative (ASI)--a program that included a system of sensors, cameras, and databases formerly known as the Integrated Surveillance Intelligence System (ISIS)--to detect, characterize, and deter illegal breaches to the northern and southern U.S. borders. The goals of the ASI program were to address ISIS capability limitations and support the department's antiterrorism mission. In April 2005, department officials told GAO that ISIS was subsumed within ASI. By congressional mandate, GAO reviewed the program to determine (1) the operational needs that ASI was intended to address and DHS's plans for ASI, (2) the steps that DHS had taken to ensure that ASI was aligned with the department's enterprise architecture, and (3) the actions that DHS had taken to establish the capability to effectively manage ASI. In written comments, DHS agreed with a draft of this report, stating that it was factually correct in virtually all aspects. DHS also commented that it has ceased work on ASI and redirected resources to its Secure Border Initiative. It also described program management corrective actions that it plans to implement."
Date: February 22, 2006
Creator: United States. Government Accountability Office.
Object Type: Report
System: The UNT Digital Library
Homeland Security: Federal Action Needed to Address Security Challenges at Chemical Facilities (open access)

Homeland Security: Federal Action Needed to Address Security Challenges at Chemical Facilities

Testimony issued by the General Accounting Office with an abstract that begins "The events of September 11, 2001, triggered a national re-examination of the security of thousands of industrial facilities that use or store hazardous chemicals in quantities that could potentially put large numbers of Americans at risk of serious injury or death in the event of a terrorist-caused chemical release. GAO was asked to examine (1) available information on the threats and risks from terrorism faced by U.S. chemical facilities; (2) federal requirements for security preparedness and safety at facilities; (3) actions taken by federal agencies to assess the vulnerability of the industry; and (4) voluntary actions the chemical industry has taken to address security preparedness, and the challenges it faces in protecting its assets and operations. GAO issued a report on this work in March 2003 (GAO-03-439)."
Date: February 23, 2004
Creator: United States. General Accounting Office.
Object Type: Text
System: The UNT Digital Library
Tobacco Settlement: States' Allocations of Fiscal Years 2002 and 2003 Master Settlement Agreement Payments (open access)

Tobacco Settlement: States' Allocations of Fiscal Years 2002 and 2003 Master Settlement Agreement Payments

A letter report issued by the General Accounting Office with an abstract that begins "The Master Settlement Agreement (MSA) requires four of the nation's largest tobacco companies to make annual payments to states in perpetuity as reimbursement for past health care costs related to tobacco use. The Farm Security and Rural Investment Act of 2002 requires GAO to report annually on the amount of MSA payments states receive and how they allocate these payments for the years 2002 through 2006. This report provides information on (1) the amount of MSA payments that the 46 states party to the MSA received for fiscal year 2002 and the amount these states expect to receive during fiscal year 2003; (2) states' allocations of MSA funds to various program categories for fiscal years 2002 and 2003 and changes in these allocations from prior years; and (3) changes in states' decision-making frameworks for MSA funds since fiscal year 2001. To conduct this study, GAO sent a survey to budget officials in the 46 states party to the MSA. GAO did not independently verify the accuracy of the information provided by the state budget offices."
Date: February 28, 2003
Creator: United States. General Accounting Office.
Object Type: Report
System: The UNT Digital Library
Afghanistan Security: Corrective Actions Are Needed to Address Serious Accountability Concerns about Weapons Provided to Afghan National Security Forces (open access)

Afghanistan Security: Corrective Actions Are Needed to Address Serious Accountability Concerns about Weapons Provided to Afghan National Security Forces

Testimony issued by the Government Accountability Office with an abstract that begins "This testimony discusses the GAO report on accountability for small arms and light weapons that the United States has obtained and provided or intends to provide to the Afghan National Security Forces (ANSF)--the Afghan National Army and the Afghan National Police. Given the unstable security conditions in Afghanistan, the risk of loss and theft of these weapons is significant, which makes this hearing particularly timely. This testimony today focuses on (1) the types and quantities of weapons the Department of Defense (Defense) has obtained for ANSF, (2) whether Defense can account for the weapons it obtained for ANSF, and (3) the extent to which ANSF can properly safeguard and account for its weapons and other sensitive equipment."
Date: February 12, 2009
Creator: United States. Government Accountability Office.
Object Type: Text
System: The UNT Digital Library
Surface Transportation: Preliminary Observations on Efforts to Restructure Current Program (open access)

Surface Transportation: Preliminary Observations on Efforts to Restructure Current Program

Testimony issued by the Government Accountability Office with an abstract that begins "The nation has reached a critical juncture with its current surface transportation policies and programs. Demand has outpaced the capacity of the system, resulting in increased congestion. In addition, without significant changes in funding mechanisms, revenue sources, or planned spending, the Highway Trust Fund--the major source of federal highway and transit funding--is projected to incur significant deficits in the years ahead. Furthermore, the nation is on a fiscally unsustainable path. Recognizing many of these challenges and the importance of the transportation system to the nation, Congress established The National Surface Transportation Policy and Revenue Study Commission (Commission) to examine current and future needs of the system and recommend needed changes to the surface transportation program, among other things. The Commission issued its report in January 2008. This testimony discusses 1) principles to assess proposals for restructuring the surface transportation program and 2) GAO's preliminary observations on the Commission's recommendations. This statement is based on GAO's ongoing work for the Ranking Member of this Committee, the Chairman of the House Transportation and Infrastructure Committee, Senator DeMint, as well as a body of work GAO has completed over the past …
Date: February 6, 2008
Creator: United States. Government Accountability Office.
Object Type: Text
System: The UNT Digital Library
Performance Budgeting: Efforts to Restructure Budgets to Better Align Resources with Performance (open access)

Performance Budgeting: Efforts to Restructure Budgets to Better Align Resources with Performance

Other written product issued by the Government Accountability Office with an abstract that begins "Efforts to better align and integrate budget and performance information raises many issues, including the question of budget structure--should appropriations accounts or congressional budget justifications or both be restructured to tighten the link between resources and performance? If so, how and to what extent? The administration elevated attention to this issue by including budget restructuring as part of the President's Management Agenda in 2001. To provide an overview of the various budget restructuring efforts underway in the federal government, GAO: (1) summarized steps taken by the Office of Management and Budget (OMB) and nine selected agencies to better align their budgets with performance and to better capture the cost of performance in the budget; (2) discussed the potential implications of these efforts for congressional oversight and executive branch managerial flexibility and accountability; (3) described the experiences and implementation challenges associated with these efforts; and (4) identified lessons learned that can provide insights useful in considering current and future budget restructuring efforts."
Date: February 1, 2005
Creator: United States. Government Accountability Office.
Object Type: Text
System: The UNT Digital Library
Information Security: Advances and Remaining Challenges to Adoption of Public Key Infrastructure Technology (open access)

Information Security: Advances and Remaining Challenges to Adoption of Public Key Infrastructure Technology

A chapter report issued by the General Accounting Office with an abstract that begins "The federal government must overcome several major challenges before public key infrastructure (PKI) technology can be widely and effectively used. These challenges include providing interoperability among agency PKIs, ensuring that PKI implementations can support a potential large scale of users, reducing the cost of building PKI systems, setting policies to maintain trust levels among agencies, and establishing training programs for users at all levels. Although such challenges are difficult to overcome in the near term, the federal government can take steps to better assist agencies develop and implement PKIs that may eventually be interconnected into a federal governmentwide system. The recent effort to develop a Federal Bridge Certification Authority (FBCA) is an excellent first step in this direction, but this effort lacks the context of a well-defined program plan for the government as well as key policy and technical standards. Establishing a federal PKI management framework could facilitate and accelerate participation in the FBCA as well as overall federal adoption of key technology for enabling electronic government."
Date: February 26, 2001
Creator: United States. General Accounting Office.
Object Type: Report
System: The UNT Digital Library
Highway Trust Fund: Overview of Highway Trust Fund Financing (open access)

Highway Trust Fund: Overview of Highway Trust Fund Financing

A statement of record issued by the General Accounting Office with an abstract that begins "The Transportation Equity Act for the 21st Century changes the budgetary treatment of programs financed by the Highway Trust Fund. In particular, the act guaranteed annual funding levels for most highway and transit programs and linked highway user tax receipts, such as those from motor fuel and truck tire taxes, to the annual funding levels for highway programs. Revenue aligned budget authority adjustments are made to the annual guaranteed funding level provided in the act as highway account receipt levels change. For the first time, the adjustment for fiscal year 2003 is negative--decreasing the guaranteed level of highway funding by $4.369 billion. GAO found that the amounts distributed to the Highway Trust Fund for the first nine months of fiscal year 2001, as adjusted based on the Internal Revenue Service's certifications, were reasonable and adequately supported based on available information."
Date: February 11, 2002
Creator: United States. General Accounting Office.
Object Type: Text
System: The UNT Digital Library
Defense Acquisitions: Readiness of the Marine Corps' V-22 Aircraft for Full-Rate Production (open access)

Defense Acquisitions: Readiness of the Marine Corps' V-22 Aircraft for Full-Rate Production

Correspondence issued by the General Accounting Office with an abstract that begins "GAO concludes that the V-22 program is not ready for full-rate production. This conclusion is based on two factors. First, GAO's "best practices" work has identified practices used by successful commercial and defense programs to develop and produce quality products in significantly less time and at lower costs. GAO reviews of major weapons systems have shown that failure to follow these practices results in cost increases, schedule delays, and performance problems. Second, GAO analyzed Department of Defense (DOD) assessments and data on the V-22 program and interviewed DOD officials. As a result of GAO's findings, DOD postponed the full-rate production of the V-22 aircraft until the risks have been mitigated."
Date: February 20, 2001
Creator: United States. General Accounting Office.
Object Type: Text
System: The UNT Digital Library
Applying Agreed-Upon Procedures: Highway Trust Fund Excise Taxes (open access)

Applying Agreed-Upon Procedures: Highway Trust Fund Excise Taxes

Correspondence issued by the General Accounting Office with an abstract that begins "GAO helped the Department of Transportation to determine whether the net excise tax revenue distributed to the Highway Trust Fund for fiscal year 2001 was supported by the underlying records. In performing the agreed-upon procedures, GAO did its work in accordance with U.S. generally accepted government auditing standards, which incorporate financial audit and attestation standards established by the American Institute of Certified Public Accountants."
Date: February 11, 2002
Creator: United States. General Accounting Office.
Object Type: Text
System: The UNT Digital Library
Catastrophic Disasters: Federal Efforts Help States Prepare for and Respond to Psychological Consequences, but FEMA's Crisis Counseling Program Needs Improvements (open access)

Catastrophic Disasters: Federal Efforts Help States Prepare for and Respond to Psychological Consequences, but FEMA's Crisis Counseling Program Needs Improvements

A letter report issued by the Government Accountability Office with an abstract that begins "Catastrophic disasters, such as Hurricane Katrina, may result in trauma and other psychological consequences for the people who experience them. The federal government provides states with funding and other support to help them prepare for and respond to disasters. Because of congressional interest in these issues, GAO examined (1) federal agencies' actions to help states prepare for the psychological consequences of catastrophic disasters and (2) states' experiences obtaining and using grants from the Crisis Counseling Assistance and Training Program (CCP) to respond to the psychological consequences of catastrophic disasters. CCP is a program of the Department of Homeland Security's (DHS) Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA). GAO reviewed documents and interviewed program officials from federal agencies and conducted additional work in six states with experience responding to catastrophic disasters: Florida, Louisiana, Mississippi, New York, Texas, and Washington."
Date: February 29, 2008
Creator: United States. Government Accountability Office.
Object Type: Report
System: The UNT Digital Library
Homeland Security: Recommendations to Improve Management of Key Border Security Program Need to Be Implemented (open access)

Homeland Security: Recommendations to Improve Management of Key Border Security Program Need to Be Implemented

A letter report issued by the Government Accountability Office with an abstract that begins "The Department of Homeland Security (DHS) has established a program--the U.S. Visitor and Immigrant Status Indicator Technology (US-VISIT)--to collect, maintain, and share information, including biometric identifiers, on selected foreign nationals entering and exiting the United States. US-VISIT uses these identifiers (digital fingerscans and photographs) to screen persons against watch lists and to verify that a visitor is the person who was issued a visa or other travel document. Visitors are also to confirm their departure by having their visas or passports scanned and undergoing fingerscanning at selected air and sea ports of entry (POE). GAO has made many recommendations to improve the program, all of which DHS has agreed to implement. GAO was asked to report on DHS's progress in responding to 18 of these recommendations."
Date: February 14, 2006
Creator: United States. Government Accountability Office.
Object Type: Report
System: The UNT Digital Library
Electronic Government: Additional OMB Leadership Needed to Optimize Use of New Federal Employee Identification Cards (open access)

Electronic Government: Additional OMB Leadership Needed to Optimize Use of New Federal Employee Identification Cards

A letter report issued by the Government Accountability Office with an abstract that begins "Many forms of identification (ID) that federal employees and contractors use to access government-controlled buildings and information systems can be easily forged, stolen, or altered to allow unauthorized access. In an effort to increase the quality and security of federal ID and credentialing practices, the President issued Homeland Security Presidential Directive 12 (HSPD-12) in August 2004, requiring the establishment of a governmentwide standard for secure and reliable forms of ID. The resulting standard is referred to as the personal identity verification (PIV) card. GAO was asked to determine the progress selected agencies have made in (1) implementing the capabilities of the PIV cards to enhance security and (2) achieving interoperability with other agencies. To address these objectives, GAO selected eight agencies that have a range of experience in implementing smart card-based ID systems and analyzed what actions the agencies have taken to implement PIV cards."
Date: February 29, 2008
Creator: United States. Government Accountability Office.
Object Type: Report
System: The UNT Digital Library