Correspondence issued by the Government Accountability Office with an abstract that begins "As an important part of the economic stimulus efforts, Congress enacted the First- Time Homebuyer Credit (FTHBC) to assist the struggling real estate market and encourage taxpayers to purchase their first homes. Congress enacted different versions of the FTHBC--as part of the Housing and Economic Recovery Act of 2008 (Housing Act); the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009 (Recovery Act); and the Worker, Homeownership, and Business Assistance Act of 2009 (Assistance Act). The dollar amounts that can be claimed and rules associated with the credit, including potential repayment, vary depending on the version. Joint Committee on Taxation estimates suggest that the three FTHBC provisions combined may result in total revenue losses to the federal government of about $22 billion through 2019. In response to the request for updated information on the use of the FTHBC, our objectives were to identify (1) the number of FTHBC claims and dollar amounts claimed for each credit version by state and (2) state rankings, using selected statistics, such as the total dollar amount of FTHBC claimed in each state."

A letter report issued by the Government Accountability Office with an abstract that begins "The Navy plans to spend about $28 billion to buy 55 Littoral Combat Ships (LCS) and at least 64 interchangeable mission packages to perform one of three missions--mine countermeasures, antisubmarine warfare, and surface warfare--in waters close to shore. The Navy has been developing two different LCS seaframes and plans to select one for production in 2010. Due to the small 78-person crew size--40 core crew, 23 for aviation detachment, and typically 15 for mission packages--the Navy is developing new concepts for personnel, training, and maintenance. GAO was asked to assess the extent to which the Department of Defense (DOD) has (1) estimated LCS long-term operating and support costs and (2) developed plans to operate and support LCS. To do so, GAO compared Navy cost estimates to DOD guidance and GAO best practices; and analyzed Navy plans to implement its concepts for personnel, training, and maintenance and the extent these plans included assessments of program risk."

A letter report issued by the Government Accountability Office with an abstract that begins "The Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA), a component of the Department of Homeland Security (DHS), maps flood hazard areas across the country and makes flood insurance available to more than 20,100 communities through the National Flood Insurance Program. From 2003 through 2008, FEMA spent $1.2 billion in a comprehensive effort to update the nation's flood insurance maps. In 2009, FEMA began an annual review of 20 percent of the nation's flood maps, for which Congress allocated $440 million in 2009 and 2010. As requested, GAO reviewed the actions FEMA has taken to enhance the accuracy of updated flood maps, and FEMA's outreach efforts in conducting flood mapping activities. GAO analyzed FEMA's mapping standards and information systems, tested quality assurance processes, and interviewed FEMA officials and contractors."

A letter report issued by the Government Accountability Office with an abstract that begins "Fiscal sustainability presents a national challenge shared by all levels of government. Since 2007, GAO has published long-term fiscal simulations for the state and local government sector. These simulations show that, like the federal government, the state and local government sector faces persistent and long-term fiscal pressures. Using the Bureau of Economic Analysis's National Income and Product Accounts (NIPA) as the primary data source, GAO's model projects the level of receipts and expenditures for the sector until 2060 based on current and historical spending and revenue patterns. GAO assumes the current set of policies in place across federal, state, and local governments remains constant. This update incorporates NIPA data including increased federal grant funding made available to the sector through the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009. The model simulates the long-term fiscal outlook for the state and local sector as a whole and, while the model incorporates the Congressional Budget Office's economic projections, adjustments are made to capture the budgetary effects of near-term cyclical swings in the economy. Because the model covers the sector in the aggregate, the fiscal outcomes for individual states and …

Correspondence issued by the Government Accountability Office with an abstract that begins "This letter formally transmits the briefing in response to a congressional request on May 4, 2009, that we review the EFV program. We provided congressional staff a draft copy of this briefing in meeting with them on June 9, 2010. We provided the same draft to the Department of Defense (DOD) for comments. A summary of DOD's comments with our evaluation are also attached, as well as a reprinted copy of DOD's written comments."

A letter report issued by the Government Accountability Office with an abstract that begins "The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers (Corps) is the world's largest public engineering, design, and construction management agency. In fiscal year 2006 it began incorporating performance information into its budget process, but Congress raised concerns that the criteria used by the Corps to prioritize projects are not transparent and the budget formulation process could achieve a higher return on investment. GAO was asked to (1) describe the information the Corps uses in its budget formulation process and the implications of the process, and (2) evaluate whether the President's recent budget requests for the Corps are presented so that agency priorities are clear and proposed use of funds transparent. GAO reviewed the Corps' internal budget guidance, documentation of its project rankings and budget formulation process, performance review materials, and budget presentation materials. GAO also interviewed Corps and Office of Management and Budget officials."

A letter report issued by the Government Accountability Office with an abstract that begins "Recent foreign-based intrusions on the computer systems of U.S. federal agencies and commercial companies highlight the vulnerabilities of the interconnected networks that comprise the Internet, as well as the need to adequately address the global security and governance of cyberspace. Federal law and policy give a number of federal entities responsibilities for representing U.S. cyberspace interests abroad, in collaboration with the private sector. More recently, the President appointed a national Cybersecurity Coordinator charged with improving the nation's cybersecurity leadership. GAO was asked to identify (1) significant entities and efforts addressing global cyberspace security and governance issues, (2) U.S. entities responsible for addressing these issues and the extent of their involvement at the international level, and (3) challenges to effective U.S. involvement in global cyberspace security and governance efforts. To do this, GAO analyzed policies, reports, and other documents and interviewed U.S. government and international officials and experts from over 30 organizations."

A letter report issued by the Government Accountability Office with an abstract that begins "The estimated number of Iraqis who have been internally displaced since February 2006 is about 1.6 million, and numerous Iraqis are in neighboring countries. Tens of thousands of Iraqi families have returned home and the number is slowly increasing. GAO examined (1) conditions in Iraq that pose a challenge to the reintegration of displaced Iraqis, (2) actions the international community is taking to address these conditions and reintegration, and (3) the extent to which the international community has an effective reintegration strategy. GAO analyzed reports and data, met with officials from the U.S. and Iraqi governments and international and nongovernmental organizations, and did fieldwork in Geneva and Baghdad."

Testimony issued by the Government Accountability Office with an abstract that begins "The attempted December 25, 2009, terrorist attack and the October 2010 bomb attempt involving air cargo originating in Yemen highlight the ongoing threat to aviation and the need to coordinate security standards and practices to enhance security with foreign partners, a process known as harmonization. This testimony discusses the Department of Homeland Security's (DHS) progress and challenges in harmonizing international aviation security standards and practices and facilitating compliance with international standards. This testimony is based on reports GAO issued from April 2007 through June 2010, and ongoing work examining foreign airport assessments. For this work, GAO obtained information from DHS and the Transportation Security Administration (TSA) and interviewed TSA program officials, foreign aviation officials, representatives from international organizations such as the International Civil Aviation Organization (ICAO), and industry associations, about ongoing harmonization and TSA airport assessment efforts and challenges."

Testimony issued by the Government Accountability Office with an abstract that begins "The U.S. Postal Service's (USPS) financial condition and outlook deteriorated sharply during fiscal years 2007 through 2009. USPS actions to cut costs and increase revenues were insufficient to offset declines in mail volume and revenues. Mail volume declined from 213 billion pieces in fiscal year 2006, to 171 billion pieces in fiscal year 2010--or about 20 percent. Volume declines resulted from the recession and changes in the use of mail as transactions and messages continued to shift to electronic alternatives. In this environment, USPS initiatives to increase revenues had limited results. USPS expects mail volume to decline further to about 150 billion pieces by 2020. This trend exposes weaknesses in USPS's business model, which has relied on growth in mail volume to help cover costs. GAO and others have reported on options for improving USPS's financial condition, including GAO's April 2010 report on USPS's business model (GAO-10-455). Recently, legislation has been introduced that addresses USPS's finances and the need for flexibility to help modernize operations. This testimony discusses (1) updated information on USPS's financial condition and outlook, (2) the need to modernize and restructure USPS, and (3) key …

Other written product issued by the Government Accountability Office with an abstract that begins "Since 1992, GAO has published long-term fiscal simulations of what might happen to federal deficits and debt levels under varying policy assumptions. We developed our long-term model in response to a bipartisan request from Members of Congress who were concerned about the long-term effects of fiscal policy. More recently, GAO has also begun publishing separate long-term fiscal simulations for the state and local government sector. GAO runs two simulations: (1) "Baseline Extended" follows the Congressional Budget Office's (CBO) January 2010 baseline estimates for the first 10 years and then simply holds revenue and spending other than large entitlement programs constant as a share of gross domestic product (GDP); and (2) the "Alternative" simulation is based on historical trends and policy preferences. Discretionary spending grows with GDP rather than inflation during the first 10 years, Medicare physician payment rates are not reduced as in CBO's baseline, all tax provisions are extended to 2020, and the alternative minimum tax (AMT) exemption amount is indexed to inflation through 2020; revenues are then brought back to their historical level. This update incorporates CBO's most recent baseline projections that were released …