A letter report issued by the Government Accountability Office with an abstract that begins "Disability benefits available through the Social Security Administration (SSA) can be an important source of financial support for some wounded warriors, and Congress has mandated that the Departments of Defense (DOD) and Veterans Affairs (VA) help them learn about and apply for such benefits. GAO was asked to determine: (1) how many wounded warriors have applied and been approved for SSA benefits and the extent to which they are receiving benefits from across the three agencies; (2) what steps DOD, VA, and SSA have taken to inform wounded warriors about SSA benefits, and the challenges that confront this process; and (3) steps taken by all three agencies to facilitate the processing of wounded warrior disability claims. Focusing on those wounded since 2001, GAO reviewed policy documents, contacted DOD and VA medical facilities, surveyed wounded warriors, and analyzed administrative data."

A letter report issued by the Government Accountability Office with an abstract that begins "The Energy Policy Act of 2005 was enacted in part to expedite oil and gas development. Section 390 of the act authorized the Department of the Interior's Bureau of Land Management (BLM) to use categorical exclusions to streamline the environmental analysis required when approving certain oil and gas activities. Numerous questions have been raised about how and when BLM should use these section 390 categorical exclusions. GAO was asked to report on (1) the extent to which BLM has used section 390 categorical exclusions and the benefits, if any, associated with their use; (2) the extent to which BLM has complied with the act and agency guidance; and (3) key concerns, if any, associated with section 390 categorical exclusions. GAO analyzed documents from all 26 BLM field offices that have used this new tool, including a nongeneralizable random sample of 215 section 390 categorical exclusion decision documents."

A letter report issued by the Government Accountability Office with an abstract that begins "In 2002, the Department of Defense (DOD) began developing and rapidly fielding a global Ballistic Missile Defense System (BMDS) composed of elements that include radars, interceptors, and command and control systems. These elements are envisioned to be linked together to defend against a broad range of ballistic missile threats. In 2009, DOD began a broadly scoped review of missile defense policy and strategy intended to reassess the BMDS and set direction for the future. In response to congressional interest in missile defense requirements and operations, GAO reviewed the extent to which DOD has (1) identified the types and quantities of elements and interceptors it needs and (2) established the units to operate elements that have been put into use. GAO reviewed key analyses, studies, plans, and other documents from the Missile Defense Agency (MDA), the services, combatant commands, and Joint Staff; and interviewed officials from across DOD."

Testimony issued by the Government Accountability Office with an abstract that begins "The Department of Defense (DOD) and other executive agencies increasingly deploy civilians in support of contingency operations in Iraq and Afghanistan. Prior GAO reports show that the use of deployed civilians has raised questions about the potential for differences in policies on compensation and medical benefits. When these civilians are deployed and serve side by side, differences in compensation or medical benefits may become more apparent and could adversely impact morale. This statement is based on GAO's June 2009 congressionally requested report, which compared agency policies and identified any issues in policy or implementation regarding (1) compensation, (2) medical benefits, and (3) identification and tracking of deployed civilians. GAO reviewed laws, agency policies and guidance; interviewed responsible officials at the Office of Personnel Management (OPM) and the six selected agencies, including DOD and State; reviewed workers' compensation claims filed by deployed civilians with the Department of Labor from January 1, 2006 through April 30, 2008; and conducted a survey of deployed civilians. GAO made ten recommendations for agencies to take actions such as reviewing compensation laws and policies, establishing medical screening requirements, and creating mechanisms to assist and …

Testimony issued by the Government Accountability Office with an abstract that begins "In fiscal year 2008, the Department of the Interior collected over $22 billion in royalties and other fees related to oil and gas. Within Interior, the Bureau of Land Management (BLM) manages onshore federal oil and gas leases, and the Minerals Management Service's (MMS) Offshore Energy and Minerals Management (OEMM) manages offshore leases. A federal lease gives the lessee rights to explore for and develop the lease's oil and gas resources. MMS is responsible for collecting royalties for oil and gas produced from both onshore and offshore leases. GAO has reviewed federal oil and gas management and revenue collection and found many material weaknesses. This testimony is based primarily on key findings from past GAO reports and some preliminary findings from ongoing work. These findings focus on Interior's: (1) policies for oil and gas leasing, (2) oversight of oil and gas production, (3) royalty regime and policies to boost oil and gas development, (4) oil and gas information technology (IT) systems, and (5) royalty-in-kind program. GAO's past reports provided recommendations that Interior officials report that they are working to implement."

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This report examines wildfire biomass fuels. It begins with a discussion of fuel characteristics and their relation to wildfire intensity and spread. This is followed with a description of actions proposed to reduce biomass fuel levels, their effectiveness for protecting property and resources from wildfires, and their impacts on other resource values. It concludes with an examination of the federal authorities for fuel reduction activities on federal and non-federal lands, together with data on the funding provided under each of these authorities.

This report details the Obama Administration's proposed FY2010 defense budget requests for F-35 program funding and outlines the issues that Congress must consider when deciding whether to approve, reject, or modify the administration's funding requests.

This report begins by describing the change in the age distribution of the U.S. population that will occur between 2010 and 2030 and by summarizing the historical data on the labor force participation of older workers. This discussion is followed by an analysis of data from the Census Bureau's Current Population Survey (CPS) on employment and receipt of pension income among persons aged 55 and older.

This report discusses the VH-71 program which is intended to provide 23 new presidential helicopters to replace the current fleet of 19 aging presidential helicopters.

This report reviews standard disaster housing procedures as well as options that could be taken to improve disaster housing including increased FEMA/HUD cooperation, the use of the case management authority, the repair and renovation of private rental housing units, and the use of alternative manufactured housing.