Memorandum of Meeting with Naval Air Depot North Island staff regarding a briefing and tour of the Naval Air Depot.

Correspondence issued by the Government Accountability Office with an abstract that begins "Oil and gas production from federal lands and waters is critical to meeting the nation's energy needs. This production provided about 31 percent of all oil and 29 percent of all natural gas produced in the United States in fiscal year 2007. Every five years, the federal government decides the areas in the offshore waters of the United States it will offer for leasing and establishes a schedule for individual lease sales. The Department of the Interior's Minerals Management Service (MMS) has conducted these sales at least once per year for at least the past 30 years. During the sales, oil and gas companies bid for the rights to explore and develop the oil and gas resources on these leases and also agree to pay the federal government royalties on the resources produced. In 1995, a time when oil and natural gas prices were significantly lower than they are today, Congress passed the Outer Continental Shelf Deep Water Royalty Relief Act (DWRRA), which authorized MMS to provide "royalty relief" on oil and gas produced in the deep waters of the Gulf of Mexico from certain leases issued from …

A letter report issued by the General Accounting Office with an abstract that begins "Pursuant to a legislative requirement, GAO provided information on the Civil Air Patrol, focusing on the: (1) nature of the relationship between the Air Force and the Patrol; (2) Air Force's oversight of the Patrol; (3) Patrol's management and oversight of its own activities; and (4) plans to resolve identified problems."

A letter report issued by the General Accounting Office with an abstract that begins "Pursuant to a legislative requirement, GAO provided information on how the Federal Highway Administration (FHwA) determines highway investment requirements, focusing on the: (1) methodology the Highway Economic Requirements System (HERS) computer model uses to generate its estimates of the nation's highway investment requirements; (2) strengths and limitations of the model; and (3) usefulness of the HERS estimates for deciding on federal investments in highway infrastructure."

Correspondence issued by the General Accounting Office with an abstract that begins "GAO reviewed the audit reports covering the financial statements of the American National Theater and Academy, for the fiscal years 2001 and 2000. GAO found no reportable instances of noncompliance. The audit report included the auditors' opinion that the financial statements of the corporation were presented fairly in accordance with generally accepted accounting principles."

Correspondence issued by the General Accounting Office with an abstract that begins "GAO reviewed the audit report covering the financial statements of the Boy Scouts of America for fiscal year 2001. GAO found no reportable instances of noncompliance. The audit reports included the auditors' opinions that the financial statements of the corporation were presented fairly in accordance with generally accepted accounting principles."

A letter report issued by the Government Accountability Office with an abstract that begins "Communities will need hundreds of billions of dollars in coming years to construct and upgrade wastewater treatment facilities, sewer systems, and other water infrastructure. To finance these efforts, they will rely heavily on low-interest loans from the Environmental Protection Agency's (EPA) Clean Water State Revolving Fund (CWSRF) program to supplement their own funds. Through fiscal year 2005, states have used their CWSRFs to provide communities over $52 billion for a variety of water quality projects. The Clean Water Act allows states to use their CWSRFs to (1) construct or improve conventional wastewater infrastructure, (2) control diffuse (nonpoint) sources of pollution such as agricultural runoff and leaking septic systems, and (3) protect federally-designated estuaries. Given the states' flexibility in determining how to spend CWSRF dollars, GAO was asked to examine (1) the extent to which states use their CWSRF dollars to support conventional wastewater treatment infrastructure versus other qualifying expenses, (2) the strategies states use to allocate their CWSRF dollars among qualifying expenses, and (3) the measures states use to ensure that their allocation strategies result in the most efficient and effective use of CWSRF dollars. EPA …

Correspondence issued by the General Accounting Office with an abstract that begins "Congress has provided funding for numerous highway demonstration projects in legislation authorizing surface transportation programs as well as annual appropriations acts for the Department of Transportation (DOT). In some cases, the projects are identified in the legislation itself. In others, they are identified in committee reports accompanying the legislation. These projects are all designated for specific locations within states and for specific purposes, and funds made available for them generally remain available until expended. As of March 31, 2002, there were 30 highway demonstration projects with unobligated balances no longer needed by the states totaling $5.6 million. These unobligated funds were provided in authorization or appropriations acts enacted from 1978 through 1994. Eight of the 30 projects have very small unobligated balances of less than $1.50 each."

Correspondence issued by the General Accounting Office with an abstract that begins "Pursuant to a legislative requirement, GAO provided information on the Environmental Protection Agency's (EPA) March 2000 climate change report, focusing on: (1) the agency's climate change programs for fiscal year (FY) 2001; (2) the programs' goals, strategies, and procedures to verify and validate performance information; (3) EPA's justification for requested funding increases; and (4) how the programs are justified independently of the Kyoto Protocol agreement."

Correspondence issued by the Government Accountability Office with an abstract that begins "Taxpayers who do not want to wait for their tax refunds from the Internal Revenue Service (IRS) may choose to obtain refund anticipation loans (RAL). RALs are short-term, high-interest bank loans that are advertised and brokered by both national chain and local tax preparation companies. Although the annual percentage rate (APR) on RALs can be over 500 percent, they allow taxpayers to receive cash refunds quickly--sometimes within the same day and even within an hour of filing their tax returns. After filing a taxpayer's return electronically, the tax preparer works in cooperation with a bank to advance the refund as a loan minus tax preparation costs, other fees, and a finance charge. As part of the RAL process, the taxpayer provides authorization to IRS to send the refund directly to the bank to repay the loan. Despite the benefits of receiving cash quickly based on an expected refund, IRS officials and others have raised concerns about whether taxpayers are fully aware of the costs involved and their tax filing alternatives. For example, in a 2007 report to Congress, the IRS National Taxpayer Advocate questioned whether RAL consumers actually …

Correspondence issued by the General Accounting Office with an abstract that begins "GAO reviewed the audit report covering the financial statements of the American Gold Star Mothers, Incorporated, for the fiscal years 2002 and 2001. GAO found no reportable instances of noncompliance, and the audit report included the auditors' opinions that the financial statements were presented fairly in accordance with generally accepted accounting principles."

Correspondence issued by the General Accounting Office with an abstract that begins "This report reviews the data, assumptions, and conclusions reached by the General Services Administration (GSA) and the Patent and Trademark Office (PTO) on the acquisition of about two million square feet of leased space for the consolidation of PTO activities. This build-to-suit lease, valued at approximately $1.2 billion over its 20-year term, was signed in June 2000. this report responds to allegations and questions from two public interest groups about the PTO lease acquisition. One public interest group alleged that during the procurement process for the lease (1) GSA improperly awarded the lease to an offeror who had not complied with the solicitation's stated requirements, (2) GSA failed to compete the construction of the interior finishes phase of the project as required by law, and (3) GSA used an illegal cost-plus-a-percentage-of-cost contract. The second public interest group asked (1) whether the requirements in GSA's Solicitation for Offers for the PTO lease transformed the lease from an operating lease to a capital lease under Office of Management and Budget (OMB) Circular A-11; (2) whether the new facility will be able to house all PTO employees and contractors throughout the …

Correspondence issued by the General Accounting Office with an abstract that begins "We reviewed the audit reports covering the financial statements of the Air Force Sergeants Association, for fiscal years 2002, 2001, and 2000. Our review disclosed no reportable instances of noncompliance with the financial reporting requirements of the law. The audit reports included the auditors' opinions that the financial statements of the corporation were presented fairly in accordance with generally accepted accounting principles."

Correspondence issued by the General Accounting Office with an abstract that begins "GAO reviewed the audit report covering the financial statements of the Aviation Hall of Fame for fiscal years 2001 and 2000. GAO found no reportable instances of noncompliance. The audit reports included the auditors' opinion that the financial statements of the corporation were presented fairly in accordance with generally accepted accounting principles."

Correspondence issued by the General Accounting Office with an abstract that begins "GAO reviewed the audit report covering the financial statements of the Civil Air Patrol for fiscal year 2000. GAO did not review the auditors' working papers and is not rendering an audit opinion. The audit report included the auditors' opinion that with one exception, the financial statements of the corporation were presented fairly in accordance with generally accepted accounting principles. The exception related to six wings as a region as well as unites below using level not being audited and not being included in these financial statements."

Correspondence issued by the General Accounting Office with an abstract that begins "We reviewed the audit reports covering the financial statements of the Big Brothers-Big Sisters of America, for fiscal years 2002 and 2001. GAO's review disclosed no reportable instances of noncompliance with the financial reporting requirements of the law. The audit reports included the auditors' opinions that the financial statements of the corporation were presented fairly in accordance with generally accepted accounting principles."

A letter report issued by the General Accounting Office with an abstract that begins "Pursuant to a congressional request, GAO provided information on the Department of Defense's (DOD) use of recovery auditing, a process that identifies and collects overpayments made to vendors, focusing on DOD's: (1) progress in recovering overpayments and the reasons for any delays; and (2) use of recovery auditing."

Testimony issued by the Government Accountability Office with an abstract that begins "The Congress and the President need to have reliable, useful and timely financial and performance information to make sound decisions on the current and future direction of vital federal government programs and policies. Unfortunately, except for the 2007 Statement of Social Insurance, GAO was again unable to provide assurance on the reliability of the consolidated financial statements of the U.S. government (CFS) due primarily to certain material weaknesses in the federal government's internal control. GAO has reported that unless these weaknesses are adequately addressed, they will, among other things, (1) hamper the federal government's ability to reliably report a significant portion of its assets, liabilities, costs, and other related information; and (2) affect the federal government's ability to reliably measure the full cost as well as the financial and nonfinancial performance of certain programs and activities. This testimony presents the results of GAO's audit of the CFS for fiscal year 2007 and discusses the federal government's long-term fiscal outlook."

A letter report issued by the General Accounting Office with an abstract that begins "This report discusses the U.S. Custom Service's expenditure plan for its Automated Commercial Environment System (ACE). GAO found that (1) Customs' expenditure plan satisfies the legislative conditions specified in the 2001 Consolidated Appropriations Act, (2) activities described in the plan are consistent with GAO's two open recommendations regarding the need for Customs to justify and make ACE investment decisions incrementally and strengthen ACE software acquisition management, and (3) there are two areas needing improvement. Customs has not adequately justified investing in the International Trade Data System (ITDS) pilot project parallel with, and separate from, planned ITDS efforts under ACE modernization. Also, Customs has defined conflicting roles and responsibilities for its independent verification and validation (IV&V) contractor."

A chapter report issued by the General Accounting Office with an abstract that begins "This report discusses the nature and extent of dismantlement, removal, and restoration requirements for oil industry activities that are occurring on both federal and state lands located on the North Slope of the state of Alaska. The state of Alaska, which owns the lands where most of the North Slope's current oil production occurs, has adopted general dismantlement, removal, and restoration requirements that contain no specific stipulations on what infrastructure must be removed or to what condition the lands used for oil industry activities must be restored once production ceases. Alaska's requirements are similar to those of some states but less explicit than those of other states, which create a fixed obligation to fully restore the land according to specific requirements. Until the state of Alaska defines the condition in which it would like its lands returned, there is no way to accurately estimate the cost of dismantling and removing the infrastructure and restoring the disturbed land on Alaska's North Slope. Existing financial assurances, such as bonding requirements, ensure the availability of only a small portion of the funds that are likely to be needed to …

Testimony issued by the General Accounting Office with an abstract that begins "The District of Columbia Superior Court has made progress in planning the transition of its Family Division to a Family Court, but some challenges remain. The Superior Court's transition plan addresses most, but not all, of the required elements outlined in the District of Columbia Family Court Act of 2001. Significantly, the completion of the transition hinges on timely completion of a complex series of interdependent plans intended to obtain and renovate physical space to house the court and its functions. All required space may not be available, as currently planned, to support the additional judges the Family Court needs to perform its work in accordance with the act, making it uncertain as to when the court can fully complete its transition. Although not required as part of its transition plan efforts, the Superior Court has begun to coordinate its activities with social services agencies in the District. However, the court and agencies face challenges in achieving coordinated services in the longer term. Finally, the development and application of the District of Columbia Courts' Integrated Justice Information System will be critical for the Family Court to be able …

Testimony issued by the General Accounting Office with an abstract that begins "Long-standing problems with excess and underutilized real property, deteriorating facilities, unreliable real property data, and costly space challenges are shared by several agencies. These factors have multibillion-dollar cost implications and can seriously jeopardize agencies' missions. Federal agencies face many challenges securing real property due to the threat of terrorism. This testimony discusses long-standing, complex problems in the federal real property area and what actions are needed to address them."

A letter report issued by the Government Accountability Office with an abstract that begins "Civil tax penalties are an important tool for encouraging compliance with tax laws. It is important that the Internal Revenue Service (IRS) administers penalties properly and determines the effectiveness of penalties in encouraging compliance. In response to a congressional request, GAO determined (1) whether IRS is evaluating penalties in a manner that supports sound penalty administration and voluntary compliance and, if not, how IRS may be able to do so, and (2) whether IRS's guidance for a new penalty for failure to disclose reportable transactions was issued in a timely manner and was useful to affected parties, and whether and how IRS has assessed the penalty. GAO reviewed IRS documents and guidance, and interviewed IRS officials and tax practitioners."

A statement of record issued by the General Accounting Office with an abstract that begins "The United States General Accounting Office (GAO) is an independent, professional, nonpartisan agency in the legislative branch that is commonly referred to as the investigative arm of Congress. Congress created GAO in the Budget and Accounting Act of 1921 to assist in the discharge of its core constitutional powers--the power to investigate and oversee the activities of the executive branch, the power to control the use of federal funds, and the power to make laws. All of GAO's efforts on behalf of Congress are guided by three core values: (1) Accountability--GAO helps Congress oversee federal programs and operations to ensure accountability to the American people; (2) Integrity--GAO sets high standards in the conduct of its work. GAO takes a professional, objective, fact-based, non-partisan, nonideological, fair, and balanced approach on all activities; and (3) Reliability--GAO produces high-quality reports, testimonies, briefings, legal opinions, and other products and services that are timely, accurate, useful, clear, and candid."