A letter report issued by the Government Accountability Office with an abstract that begins "The high pace of military operations in Iraq and elsewhere has generated a multibillion dollar equipment maintenance requirement that must be addressed after units return home. Upon returning from deployments, active, reserve, and National Guard units reconstitute, or restore, their equipment to a condition that enables them to conduct training and prepare for future deployments. The Department of Defense (DOD) uses a two-phased process to develop equipment reconstitution supplemental budget estimates. GAO reviewed this process for the fiscal year 2004 supplemental budget to determine (1) the extent to which the process produced reliable estimates of reconstitution requirements in the fiscal year 2004 supplemental budget, and (2) whether DOD is accurately tracking and reporting reconstitution costs."

A letter report issued by the Government Accountability Office with an abstract that begins "In fiscal year 2003, the federal Food Stamp Program made payment errors totaling about $1.4 billion in benefits, or about 7 percent of the total $21.4 billion in benefits provided to a monthly average of 21 million low-income participants. Because payment errors are a misuse of public funds and can undermine public support of the program, it is important that the government minimize them. Because of concerns about ensuring payment accuracy GAO examined: (1) what is included in the national food stamp payment error rate and how it has changed over time, (2) what is known about the causes of food stamp payment errors, and (3) what actions the Food and Nutrition Service (FNS) and states have taken to reduce these payment errors. To answer these questions, GAO analyzed program quality control data for fiscal years 1999 through 2003 and interviewed program stakeholders, including state and local officials from nine states."

Testimony issued by the Government Accountability Office with an abstract that begins "The Department of Homeland Security (DHS) assumed responsibility for the immigration programs of the former Immigration and Naturalization Service (INS) in 2003. The three DHS bureaus with primary responsibility for immigration functions are U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP), U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE), and U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (CIS). This testimony focuses on CBP and ICE, which took over the immigration enforcement function. CBP is responsible for functions related to inspections and border patrol, and ICE is responsible for functions related to investigations, intelligence, detention, and removal. The Subcommittee on Immigration, Border Security, and Claims, House Committee on the Judiciary, held a hearing to discuss management challenges and potential structural changes. Some research organizations have suggested structural changes to address management challenges, including a merger of CBP and ICE. This testimony addresses the following questions: (1) Have ICE and CBP encountered similar management challenges to those encountered at INS? (2) What factors might be considered in addressing some of the management challenges that exist at ICE and CBP?"

Concurrent resolution introduced by the Texas House of Representatives and Senate honoring Green Acres Baptist Church in Tyler on its 50th anniversary.

Testimony issued by the Government Accountability Office with an abstract that begins "The House Subcommittee on Disability Assistance and Memorial Affairs asked GAO to update a 2002 study to determine what VA has done to (1) correct reported weaknesses in methods used by the Board to select decisions for quality review and calculate the accuracy rates reported by the Board and (2) address the potential for inconsistency in decision-making at all levels of adjudication in VA, including VA's 57 regional offices and the Board. GAO said in 2002 that VA had not studied consistency even though adjudicator judgment is inherently required in the decision-making process, and state-to-state variations in the average disability compensation payment per veteran raised questions about consistency. In January 2003, in part because of concerns about consistency, GAO designated VA's disability program as high-risk."

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This report provides an overview of the data brokerage industry and more specific background on LexisNexis and ChoicePoint.

The Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (IDEA) is the main federal program concerning the education of children with disabilities. It authorizes state and local aid for special education and related services for children with disabilities and contains detailed due process protections for children with disabilities and their parents. On December 3, 2004, President Bush signed “the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act Improvement Act” (P.L. 108-446), a major reauthorization and revision of IDEA. The new law preserves the basic structure and civil rights guarantees of IDEA but also makes significant changes in the law. Most provisions of P.L. 108-446 go into effect on July 1, 2005. This report will briefly discuss several of the major changes made by the reauthorization.

This report discusses administration’s proposed base program called strengthening America’s communities initiative intended to award funds in support of job creation and economic development.