A letter report issued by the Government Accountability Office with an abstract that begins "The screening of airport passengers and their checked baggage is a critical component in securing our nation's commercial aviation system. Since May 2003, GAO has issued six products related to screener training and performance. This report updates the information presented in the prior products and incorporates results from GAO's survey of 155 Federal Security Directors--the ranking Transportation Security Administration (TSA) authority responsible for the leadership and coordination of TSA security activities at the nation's commercial airports. Specifically, this report addresses (1) actions TSA has taken to enhance training for passenger and checked baggage screeners and screening supervisors, (2) how TSA ensures that screeners complete required training, and (3) actions TSA has taken to measure and enhance screener performance in detecting threat objects."

A letter report issued by the Government Accountability Office with an abstract that begins "The President has emphasized the importance of safety, efficiency, and accountability in U.S. government staffing overseas by designating the achievement of a rightsized overseas presence as a part of the President's Management Agenda. One of the elements of rightsizing involves relocating certain administrative support functions from overseas posts to the United States or regional centers overseas, which can provide cheaper, safer, or more effective support. This report (1) reviews State's efforts in providing administrative support from remote locations, (2) identifies the challenges it faces in doing so, and (3) outlines the potential advantages and concerns associated with providing support remotely."

A letter report issued by the General Accounting Office with an abstract that begins "Pursuant to a congressional request, GAO reviewed efforts to collect environmental health data, focusing on the: (1) extent to which states, the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS), and the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) collect human exposure data on potentially harmful chemicals, including data to identify at-risk populations; and (2) main barriers hindering further progress in such efforts."

A letter report issued by the Government Accountability Office with an abstract that begins "Few things generate more attention and anxiety among American consumers than the price of gasoline. Periods of price increases are accompanied by high levels of media attention and consumer questioning about the causes and impacts of the price changes. The most recent upsurge in prices is no exception. Between January 3 and April 11, 2005, gasoline prices increased nearly every week, and during this time the average U.S. price for regular unleaded gasoline jumped 50 cents per gallon, adding about $7.8 billion to consumers' total gasoline bill, or about $58 for each passenger car in the United States. Spending billions more on gasoline pinched consumer budgets, leaving less money available for other purchases. Beyond having concerns over price increases, consumers find it difficult to understand how prices can vary so much across the country or even from neighborhood to neighborhood. For example, consumers in San Francisco paid an average of $2.63 per gallon during the week of April 11, 2005, while consumers in Chicago paid $2.33 per gallon; in Denver, $2.25; in New York, $2.19; and in Houston, $2.12. Within the city of Washington, D.C., pump …

A letter report issued by the General Accounting Office with an abstract that begins "The Coast Guard is in the final stages of planning the largest procurement project in its history-the modernization or replacement of more than 90 cutters and 200 aircraft used for missions more than 50 miles from shore. This project, called the Deepwater Capability Replacement Project, is expected to cost more than $10 billion and take 20 years or longer to complete. Congress and the Coast Guard are at a major crossroads with the project. Planning is essentially complete, and Congress will soon be asked to commit to a multibillion-dollar project that will define the way the Coast Guard performs many of its missions for decades to come. The deepwater acquisition strategy is unique and untried for a project of this magnitude. It carries many risks that could potentially cause significant schedule delays and cost increases. The project faces risks in the following four areas: (1) planning the project around annual funding levels far above what the administration has told the Coast Guard it can expect to receive, (2) keeping costs under control in the contract's later years, (3) ensuring that procedures and personnel are in place …

A letter report issued by the General Accounting Office with an abstract that begins "This report assesses the licensing process of the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC). Specifically, GAO examines (1) why the licensing process now takes longer and costs more than it did when FERC issued most original licenses several decades ago; (2) whether participants in the licensing process agree on the need for, and type of, further reforms to reduce time and costs; and (3) whether available time and cost data are sufficient to allow informed decisions on the effectiveness of recent reforms and the need for further reforms. GAO found that since 1986, FERC has been required to give "equal consideration" to, and make tradeoffs among, hydropower generation and other competing resource needs. Additional environmental and land management laws have also placed additional requirements on other federal and state agencies participating in the licensing process to address specific resource needs. GAO found no agreement between FERC, federal and state land resource agencies, licensees, environmental groups, and other participants in the licensing process on the need for further reforms to reduce process-related time and costs. Finally, available time and cost data are insufficient to allow informed decisions on …

A letter report issued by the General Accounting Office with an abstract that begins "Agencies are increasingly asked to demonstrate results, but many programs lack credible performance information and the capacity to rigorously evaluate program results. To assist agency efforts to provide credible information, GAO examined the experiences of five agencies that demonstrated evaluation capacity in their performance reports: the Administration for Children and Families (ACF), the Coast Guard, the Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD), the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA), and the National Science Foundation (NSF)."

A letter report issued by the General Accounting Office with an abstract that begins "Recent operations in Afghanistan demonstrated the dangers of providing air support close to troops on the ground. Such close air support requires timely, well-practiced procedures and communication between ground and air elements. While most close air support operations in Afghanistan were successful, "friendly fire" incidents have resulted from mistakes made while conducting the mission. At the request of the Ranking Minority Members of the Subcommittees on Total Force and Readiness, House Committee on Armed Services, GAO reviewed Department of Defense (DOD) efforts to provide adequate close air support training, as well as efforts to enhance the equipment used to support this mission."

A letter report issued by the General Accounting Office with an abstract that begins "Pursuant to a congressional request, GAO reviewed issues relating to the District of Columbia government's mismanagement of two building leases, focusing on: (1) whether the person or persons who approved the leases were authorized to do so; (2) the status of properties, leases, costs, and utilization; and (3) the steps the District has taken or is taking to ensure that leased properties, in general, are effectively managed and utilized."

A letter report issued by the General Accounting Office with an abstract that begins "Pursuant to a congressional request, GAO provided information on the withdrawal of health maintenance organizations (HMO) from the Federal Employees' Health Benefits Program (FEHBP), focusing on: (1) changes in the number of HMOs participating in FEHBP from plan years 1994 to 2000; (2) reasons why HMOs withdrew from FEHBP in plan years 1999 and 2000; and (3) FEHBP enrollment experiences for HMOs that withdrew from the program in 2000."

A letter report issued by the General Accounting Office with an abstract that begins "The Air Force began to test the force requirements in its manpower requirements-determination process in May 2000. The defense strategy envisions simultaneously fighting two major theater wars and conducting multiple contingency operations in peacetime. The Total Force Assessment was the Air Force's first evaluation of manpower adequacy in these contexts since 1995. Because the Total Force Assessment was not implemented as planned, the Air Force cannot demonstrate that it has the forces needed to carry out the full spectrum of military operations. Although intended to examine whether authorized Air Force personnel were sufficient to meet both the wartime and peacetime scenarios, the assessment only addressed the wartime scenario and did not address the adequacy of manpower for conducting multiple contingency operations in peacetime. Air Force officials concluded that manpower was adequate to support the wartime scenario but this assessment was inconclusive because the effort was discontinued before all discrepancies in the assessment's results were resolved. Although the Air Force spent considerable time and effort conducting at least a portion of its planned assessment, it has not used the results to the extent anticipated."

A letter report issued by the Government Accountability Office with an abstract that begins "Total projected cost of the F-22A modernization program and related reliability and maintainability improvements more than doubled since the program started–from $5.4 billion to $11.7 billion–and the schedule for delivering full capabilities slipped 7 years, from 2010 to 2017. The content, scope, and phasing of planned capabilities also shifted over time with changes in requirements, priorities, and annual funding decisions. Visibility and oversight of the program’s cost and schedule is hampered by a management structure that does not track and account for the full cost of specific capability increments. Substantial infrastructure costs for labs, testing, management, and other activities directly support modernization but are not charged to its projects. The Air Force plans to manage its fourth modernization increment as a separate major acquisition program, as defined in DOD policy and statutory requirements."

A letter report issued by the Government Accountability Office with an abstract that begins "Mortgage servicers--entities that manage home mortgage loans--halted foreclosures throughout the country in September 2010, finding that documents required to be provided to courts in some states may have been improperly signed or notarized. In addition, academics and court cases are raising questions over whether foreclosures are being brought properly because of concerns over how loans were transferred into mortgage-backed securities (MBS). GAO was asked to examine (1) the extent to which federal laws address mortgage servicers' foreclosure procedures and federal agencies' past oversight, (2) federal agencies' current oversight and future oversight plans, and (3) the potential impact of these issues on involved parties. GAO reviewed federal laws, regulations, exam guidance, agency documents, and studies, and conducted interviews with federal agencies, mortgage industry associations, investor groups, consumer advocacy groups, and legal academics."

A letter report issued by the Government Accountability Office with an abstract that begins "U.S. nuclear weapons are aging, with key components reaching the end of their service life. In September 2008, the Department of Defense (DOD) and the National Nuclear Security Administration (NNSA) began a study of military requirements and design options for extending the B61 bomb's service life. The B61 is used to support the U.S. strategic deterrent and the North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO). GAO was asked to assess the extent to which DOD and NNSA have (1) considered the time available to begin producing refurbished bombs when determining the scope of the study; and (2) taken actions to avoid operational gaps in U.S. nuclear weapons commitments to NATO during the life extension program. To evaluate these objectives, GAO analyzed DOD and NNSA policies, guidance, and reports on life extension programs, and interviewed officials responsible for B61 operations, life extension program planning, management, and oversight. This is the unclassified version of a classified report issued in December 2010."

A letter report issued by the General Accounting Office with an abstract that begins "In March, GAO testified on the federal government's fiscal-year implementation of legislative provisions for government information security reform. (See GAO-02-470T.) GAO reported that implementation of the reforms addresses serious, pervasive information security weaknesses. GAO also noted the Office of Management and Budget needs to (1) further guide agencies and encourage them to implement the reform provision requirements and (2) provide Congress with the information it needs for overseeing agencies' implementation, compliance, and corrective actions, as well as for its related budget deliberations."

A letter report issued by the General Accounting Office with an abstract that begins "Pursuant to a congressional request, GAO provided information on the National Institutes of Health's (NIH) efforts to include women in clinical research, focusing on: (1) the extent to which women are being included in clinical research that NIH funds; (2) the activities and accomplishments of the NIH Office of Research on Women's Health (ORWH) in promoting women's health research at NIH; and (3) how much funding NIH has allocated to research on health issues that affect women."