A letter report issued by the Government Accountability Office with an abstract that begins "In recent years, nearly half of all annual apprehensions of illegal aliens along the entire Southwest border with Mexico have occurred along the Arizona border. Keeping illegal flows of people and drugs under control remains a top priority for the Department of Homeland Security's (DHS) U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP). In 2005, the Secure Border Initiative Network (SBInet) was conceived as a surveillance technology to create a "virtual fence" along the border. After spending nearly $1 billion, DHS deployed SBInet systems along 53 miles of Arizona's border that represent the highest risk for illegal entry. In January 2011, in response to concerns regarding SBInet's performance, cost, and schedule, DHS cancelled future procurements. CBP developed the Arizona Border Surveillance Technology Plan (Plan) for the remainder of the Arizona border. Funding for this Plan for fiscal year 2012 is $242 million. GAO was requested to assess the extent to which CBP (1) has the information needed to support and implement the Plan and (2) estimated life-cycle costs for future investments in accordance with best practices. GAO analyzed Plan documents and cost estimates, compared those estimates with best …

Correspondence issued by the General Accounting Office with an abstract that begins "Pursuant to a congressional request, GAO reviewed the Department of Defense's (DOD) anthrax immunization program, focusing on the: (1) need for a six-shot regimen and annual booster shots; (2) long- and short-term safety of the vaccine; (3) efficacy of the vaccine; and (4) extent to which problems the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) found in the vaccine production facility in Michigan could compromise the safety, efficacy, and quality of the vaccine."

Correspondence issued by the Government Accountability Office with an abstract that begins "The Department of Defense (DOD) prepositions equipment at strategic locations around the world to enable it to field combat-ready forces in days, rather than the weeks it would take if equipment had to be moved from the United States to the locations of conflicts. These prepositioned materiel and equipment sets have played an important role in supporting ongoing operations in Iraq and Afghanistan. However, sustained operations in Iraq and Afghanistan have taken a toll on the condition and readiness of military equipment. Over the last few years, we have identified a number of ongoing and long-term challenges regarding DOD's prepositioned stocks. The National Defense Authorization Act for Fiscal Year 2008 added an annual reporting requirement to Title 10 of the United States Code that directs DOD to submit a report to the congressional defense committees on the status of prepositioned materiel and equipment as of the end of each fiscal year, no later than the date of the submission of the President's annual budget request. For this report, our objective was to determine what additional information in future DOD reports on the status of its prepositioned materiel and …

A letter report issued by the Government Accountability Office with an abstract that begins "Vacant and unattended residential properties can attract crime, cause blight, and pose a threat to public safety. While homeowners or mortgage owners--including the mortgage servicers that administer loans on behalf of loan owners--are responsible for maintaining vacant properties with mortgages undergoing foreclosure, the costs local governments incur to mitigate any unsafe conditions can be significant. GAO was asked to examine (1) trends in the number of vacant properties and how they relate to the recent increase in foreclosures, (2) the types of costs that vacant properties create and who bears the responsibility for these properties and their costs, and (3) state and local government strategies to address vacant properties and the federal role in assisting these efforts. GAO analyzed Census Bureau vacancy data and data on property maintenance costs from the Federal Housing Administration (FHA) and two housing-related government-sponsored enterprises (GSE). GAO conducted case studies in nine cities selected to provide a range of local economic and housing conditions, rates of foreclosure, and geographic locations. GAO also interviewed local officials, representatives of community development organizations, federal agencies, and mortgage servicers, among others. The Federal Reserve, Census, …

Testimony issued by the Government Accountability Office with an abstract that begins "In 2000, as part of a multibillion-dollar courthouse construction initiative, the judiciary requested and the General Services Administration (GSA) proposed building a new courthouse in Los Angeles to increase security, efficiency, and space--but construction never began. About $400 million was appropriated for the L.A. courthouse project. For this testimony, GAO was asked to report on (1) the status of the L.A. courthouse project, (2) challenges GAO has identified affecting federal courthouses nationwide, and (3) the extent to which these challenges are applicable to the L.A. courthouse project. This testimony is based on GAO-10-417 and GAO's other prior work on federal courthouses, during which GAO analyzed courthouse planning and use data, visited courthouses, modeled courtroom sharing scenarios, and interviewed judges, GSA officials, and others. In GAO-10-417, GAO recommended that (1) GSA ensure that new courthouses are constructed within their authorized size or, if not, that congressional committees are notified, (2) the Judicial Conference of the United States retain caseload projections to improve the accuracy of its 10-year-judge planning, and (3) the Conference establish and use courtroom sharing policies based on scheduling and use data. GSA and the judiciary agreed …

A letter report issued by the Government Accountability Office with an abstract that begins "High-level nuclear waste--one of the nation's most hazardous substances--is accumulating at 80 sites in 35 states. The United States has generated 70,000 metric tons of nuclear waste and is expected to generate 153,000 metric tons by 2055. The Nuclear Waste Policy Act of 1982, as amended, requires the Department of Energy (DOE) to dispose of the waste in a geologic repository at Yucca Mountain, about 100 miles northwest of Las Vegas, Nevada. However, the repository is more than a decade behind schedule, and the nuclear waste generally remains at the commercial nuclear reactor sites and DOE sites where it was generated. This report examines the key attributes, challenges, and costs of the Yucca Mountain repository and the two principal alternatives to a repository that nuclear waste management experts identified: storing the nuclear waste at two centralized locations and continuing to store the waste on site where it was generated. GAO developed models of total cost ranges for each alternative using component cost estimates provided by the nuclear waste management experts. However, GAO did not compare these alternatives because of significant differences in their inherent characteristics that …

A letter report issued by the Government Accountability Office with an abstract that begins "This report presents our opinion on the financial statements of the Congressional Award Foundation for the fiscal years ended September 30, 2004, and 2003. These financial statements are the responsibility of the Congressional Award Foundation. This report also presents (1) our opinion on the effectiveness of the Foundation's related internal control as of September 30, 2004, and (2) our conclusion on the Foundation's compliance in fiscal year 2004 with selected provisions of laws and regulations we tested. We conducted our audit pursuant to section 107 of the Congressional Award Act, as amended (2 U.S.C. 807), and in accordance with U.S. generally accepted government auditing standards."

Correspondence issued by the Government Accountability Office with an abstract that begins "We assisted the Department of Labor in ascertaining whether the net federal unemployment tax (FUTA) revenue distributed to the Unemployment Trust Fund (UTF) for the fiscal year ended September 30, 2005, is supported by the underlying records. We evaluated fiscal year 2005 activity affecting distributions to the UTF. In performing the agreed-upon procedures, we conducted our 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. These standards also provide guidance for performing and reporting the results of agreed-upon procedures. The procedures we agreed to perform relate to (1) transactions that represent the underlying basis of amounts distributed to the UTF and (2) key reconciliations of the Internal Revenue Service records to the Department of the Treasury records."

A statement of record issued by the Government Accountability Office with an abstract that begins "Concern has been rising about the nation's preparedness to respond to vaccine shortages that could occur in future annual influenza seasons or during an influenza pandemic--a global influenza outbreak. Although the timing or extent of a future influenza pandemic cannot be predicted, studies suggest that its effect in the United States could be severe, and shortages of vaccine could occur. For the 2004-05 annual influenza season, the nation lost about half its expected influenza vaccine supply when one of two major manufacturers announced in October 2004 that it would not release any vaccine. GAO examined federal, state, and local actions taken in response to the shortage, including lessons learned. The nation's experience during the unexpected 2004-05 vaccine shortfall offers insights into some of the challenges that government entities will face in a pandemic. GAO was asked to provide a statement on lessons learned from the 2004-05 vaccine shortage and their relevance to planning and preparing for similar situations in the future, including an influenza pandemic. This statement is based on a GAO report, Influenza Vaccine: Shortages in 2004-05 Season Underscore Need for Better Preparation (GAO-05-984), …

A letter report issued by the Government Accountability Office with an abstract that begins "Individuals or organizations seeking to register the names of their Web sites may provide inaccurate contact information to registrars in order to hide their identities or to prevent members of the public from contacting them. Contact information is made publicly available on the Internet through a service known as Whois. Data accuracy in the Whois service can help law enforcement officials to investigate intellectual property misuse and online fraud, or identify the source of spam e-mail, and can help Internet operators to resolve technical network issues. GAO was asked, among other things, to (1) determine the prevalence of patently false or incomplete contact data in the Whois service for the .com, .org, and .net domains; (2) determine the extent to which patently false data are corrected within 1 month of being reported to ICANN; and (3) describe steps the Department of Commerce (Commerce) and ICANN have taken to ensure the accuracy of contact data in the Whois database."

Correspondence issued by the Government Accountability Office with an abstract that begins "The Small Business Innovation Research (SBIR) program targets small businesses for federal research or research and development funding to develop and commercialize innovative technologies. The Small Business Administration (SBA), which oversees the program, is in the process of amending the provisions of the SBIR policy directive that pertain to small businesses retaining the rights to data they generate in the performance of an SBIR award for not less than 4 years. Because the update to the policy directive has a bearing on the issue of whether laws and policy directives are sufficient to protect SBIR awardees, GAO will study the SBIR data rights issues, as mandated in 2012 by the National Defense Authorization Act (NDAA), once SBA has completed that update, which SBA officials estimate will be in late 2013 or early 2014."

Correspondence issued by the Government Accountability Office with an abstract that begins "We assisted the Department of Transportation (DOT) in ascertaining whether the net excise tax revenue distributed to the Highway Trust Fund (HTF) for the fiscal year ended September 30, 2005, is supported by the underlying records. As agreed with DOT, we evaluated fiscal year 2005 activity affecting distributions to the HTF. In performing the agreed-upon procedures, we conducted our 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. These standards also provide guidance for performing and reporting the results of agreed-upon procedures."

Correspondence issued by the Government Accountability Office with an abstract that begins "The Department of Energy's (DOE) Hanford site in southeastern Washington state was established in 1943 to produce nuclear materials, especially plutonium, for the nation's defense. The site occupies 586 square miles northwest of the cities of Richland, Pasco, and Kennewick, with a combined regional population of over 200,000. The Columbia River, the nation's second largest river and a source of hydropower production and drinking water for downstream communities, as well as a major route for salmon migration, flows through the site for almost 50 miles. DOE built nine nuclear reactors to produce plutonium and other materials near the river shore to take advantage of river water for reactor cooling. Several miles away from the river, DOE built other facilities used in making nuclear materials. During operations from 1943 to 1989, activity at these reactors and other facilities generated large volumes of hazardous and radioactive waste. Some of this waste was deposited directly into the ground in trenches, injection wells, or other facilities designed to allow the waste to disperse into the soil. Some of the most hazardous and radioactive material was stored in large underground tanks. Over time, …

A letter report issued by the Government Accountability Office with an abstract that begins "Auto crashes kill or injure millions of people each year. Information about where and why such crashes occur is important in reducing this toll, both for identifying particular hazards and for planning safety efforts at the state and federal levels. Differences in the quality of state traffic data from state to state, however, affect the usability of data for these purposes. The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) administers a grant program to help states improve the safety data systems that collect and analyze crash data from police and sheriff's offices and other agencies, and the Congress is considering whether to reauthorize and expand the program. The Senate Appropriations Committee directed GAO to study state systems and the grant program. Accordingly, GAO examined (1) the quality of state crash information, (2) the activities states undertook to improve their traffic records systems and any progress made, and (3) NHTSA's oversight of the grant program."

A letter report issued by the Government Accountability Office with an abstract that begins "The United States has 26 agreements in force for peaceful nuclear cooperation. Under the U.S. Atomic Energy Act of 1954, as amended, these agreements are a prerequisite to certain aspects of U.S. nuclear cooperation with other cooperating partners. GAO was asked to (1) quantify the amount and value of U.S. nuclear exports facilitated by these agreements, (2) assess U.S. efforts to support the U.S. nuclear industry's ability to compete for sales, and (3) examine U.S. nuclear industry challenges to exporting. To conduct this work, GAO reviewed and assessed data collection efforts by U.S. agencies from 1994 through 2008, analyzed available data, and interviewed U.S. industry representatives and U.S. and foreign government officials."

A letter report issued by the Government Accountability Office with an abstract that begins "The Department of Defense (DOD) relies heavily on its civilian workforce to perform duties usually performed by military personnel--including combat support functions such as logistics. Civilian senior leaders--some of whom occupy positions that might be cut during DOD's latest attempts to reduce overhead costs--are among those who manage DOD's civilians. In 2007, Congress mandated that DOD assess requirements for its civilian senior leader workforce in light of recent trends. DOD reported its recent reply to this requirement in its 2009 update to the Civilian Human Capital Strategic Plan, which used information from a 2008 baseline review to validate its senior leader requirements. GAO was asked to review DOD's approach for (1) assessing its civilian senior leader workforce requirements, (2) identifying and communicating the need for additional senior leaders, and (3) developing and managing this workforce. GAO reviewed submissions for DOD's baseline review and requests for additional senior leaders, including DOD's intelligence agencies. GAO also interviewed DOD and Office of Personnel Management officials."

A letter report issued by the Government Accountability Office with an abstract that begins "The use of pesticides and fertilizers contributes to U.S. agricultural productivity and helps ensure a generally stable, plentiful, and inexpensive food supply. However, these chemicals may also harm human health, water quality, and food safety. The U.S. Department of Agriculture's (USDA) National Agricultural Statistics Service (NASS) collects, analyzes, and disseminates Agricultural Chemical Usage (ACU) data to meet regulatory, business, and other informational needs. In fiscal years 2007 through 2009, NASS substantially scaled back the ACU program before restoring it in 2010. GAO was asked to examine (1) what factors NASS considered in reducing the ACU program; (2) how ACU data users were affected by the temporary cutback, and their views on the data's quality and usefulness; and (3) the extent to which agricultural pesticide and fertilizer usage data are available from sources other than NASS. GAO reviewed relevant NASS documents and interviewed NASS officials as well as 25 selected ACU data users."

Correspondence issued by the Government Accountability Office with an abstract that begins "We have performed the procedures described in this letter, which we agreed to perform and with which the Inspector General of the U.S. Department of Transportation concurred, solely to assist the Inspector General's office in ascertaining whether the net excise tax revenue distributed to the Highway Trust Fund (HTF) for the fiscal year ended September 30, 2010, is supported by the underlying records. As agreed with the Inspector Generals' office, we evaluated fiscal year 2010 activity affecting excise tax distributions to the HTF. We conducted the engagement in accordance with U.S. generally accepted government auditing standards, which incorporate certain financial audit and attestation standards established by the American Institute of Certified Public Accountants. The Inspector General is responsible for the adequacy of these agreed-upon procedures to meet your objectives, and we make no representation in that respect. The procedures we agreed to perform were related to (1) transactions that represent the underlying basis of amounts distributed from the general fund to the HTF during fiscal year 2010, (2) the Internal Revenue Service's (IRS) quarterly HTF excise tax receipt certifications prepared during fiscal year 2010, (3) the U.S. Department …

A letter report issued by the General Accounting Office with an abstract that begins "Pursuant to a congressional request, GAO analyzed the potential budgetary and economic effects of several Social Security reform proposals."

A letter report issued by the General Accounting Office with an abstract that begins "Congress mandated that every 4 years the Department of Defense (DOD) conduct a review to examine the national defense strategy and its implications for force structure, modernization, infrastructure and the budget. Because the 2001 review, which was issued on September 30, 2001, will have a significant impact on the department's planning and budget, GAO was asked to assess (1) the strengths and weaknesses of DOD's conduct and reporting of the review, and (2) whether changes in the QDR legislation could improve the usefulness of future reviews."

A letter report issued by the General Accounting Office with an abstract that begins "Since the 1998 bombings of two U.S. embassies in Africa, the State Department has done much to improve physical security at overseas posts. However, most overseas diplomatic office facilities still do not meet the security standards State developed to protect these sites from terrorist attacks and other dangers. To correct this problem, State in 1999 embarked on an estimated $21 billion embassy construction program. The program's key objective is to provide secure, safe, and functional compounds for employees overseas--in most cases by building replacement facilities. In 2001, State's Bureau of Overseas Buildings Operations (OBO)--which manages the program--began instituting reforms in its structure and operations to meet the challenges of the embassy construction program. This report discusses (1) OBO's mechanisms for more effectively managing the embassy construction program and (2) the status of and challenges facing the program. We received comments from State, which said that the report is a fair and accurate representation overall of the Department's overseas construction process."

Testimony issued by the General Accounting Office with an abstract that begins "Pursuant to a congressional request, GAO discussed the year 2000 technology problem, focusing on: (1) the federal government's progress and challenges that remain in correcting its systems; (2) state and local government year 2000 issues; and (3) the readiness of key public infrastructure and economic sectors."

Testimony issued by the General Accounting Office with an abstract that begins "Pursuant to a congressional request, GAO discussed its study of the Health Care Financing Administration's (HFCA) implementation of two of its nursing home initiatives."

Correspondence issued by the Government Accountability Office with an abstract that begins "We have performed the procedures, which we agreed to perform and with which the Department of Transportation's Inspector General concurred, solely to assist the Inspector General's office in ascertaining whether the net excise tax revenue distributed to the Airport and Airway Trust Fund (AATF) for the fiscal year ended September 30, 2010, is supported by the underlying records. As agreed with the Inspector General's office, we evaluated fiscal year 2010 activity affecting excise tax distributions to the AATF. We conducted the engagement in accordance with U.S. generally accepted government auditing standards, which incorporate certain financial audit and attestation standards established by the American Institute of Certified Public Accountants. The Department of Transportation's Inspector General Office is responsible for the adequacy of these agreed-upon procedures to meet the office's objectives, and we make no representation in that respect. The procedures we agreed to perform were related to (1) transactions that represent the underlying basis of amounts distributed from the general fund to the AATF during fiscal year 2010, (2) the Internal Revenue Service's (IRS) quarterly AATF excise tax receipt certifications prepared during fiscal year 2010, (3) the U.S. Department …