Correspondence issued by the Government Accountability Office with an abstract that begins "This letter responds to a Congressional request concerning our January 21, 2005, report Student Financial Aid: Need Determination Could Be Enhanced through Improvements in Education's Estimate of Applicants' State Tax Payments (GAO-05-105). The Department of Education (Education) proposed an update to the state and other tax allowance, a part of the federal need analysis for student financial aid. Most federal aid, including Pell Grants and student loans, and some state and institutional aid are awarded based on a student's cost of attendance less the student's and/or family's ability to pay these costs--known as the expected family contribution (EFC). The allowance, which accounts for the amount of state and other nonfederal taxes paid by students and families, effectively reduces the EFC. Education proposed to update the allowance on the basis of information compiled by the Internal Revenue Service's Statistics of Income (SOI) Division, specifically state and other taxes paid by taxpayers and reported on their federal income tax returns for tax year 2000. Our January 2005 report discussed (1) the factors that had affected the updating of the tax data on which the allowance is based, (2) the effects …

This report discusses Title X of the Public Health Service Act. The program, enacted in 1970, is the only federal program devoted solely to family planning and related preventive health services. Although the authorization for Title X ended with FY1985, funding for the program has been provided through bills that provide appropriations for the Departments of Labor, Health and Human Services, and Education, and Related Agencies.

None

None

This report discusses issues in U.S.-Jordanian relations. These issues include the stability of the Jordanian regime, democratic reform under way in Jordan, the role of Jordan in the Arab-Israeli peace process, Jordan’s concerns over the U.S.-led campaign against Iraq in 2003, and its relations with other regional states.