A letter report issued by the General Accounting Office with an abstract that begins "The Department of Education runs two major federal student loan programs, the William D. Ford Federal Direct Loan Program (FDLP) and the Federal Family Education Loan Program (FFELP). Under FDLP, students or their parents borrow money directly from the federal government through the schools the students attend. Under FFELP, money is borrowed from private lenders, and the federal government guarantees repayment if the borrowers default. GAO investigated concerns about Education's reliance on estimates to project FDLP costs and a lack of historical information on which to base those estimates. GAO found that developing a reasonable estimate of subsidy cost for loan programs is complex. Many assumptions must be taken into account and projections must be made for the life of the loans. Because FDLP's subsidy costs are determined largely by interest rates and interest rate fluctuations cannot be predicted with any certainty, it is unclear whether the current trend in negative subsidy costs for FDLP will continue. In addition, other factors, such as origination fees paid by borrowers, defaults, subsequent collections on defaulted loans and timing of loan repayments, affect the subsidy cost of FDLP. Although …

Correspondence issued by the General Accounting Office with an abstract that begins "GAO examined the Drug Enforcement Administration's (DEA) Heroin Signature Program and Domestic Monitor Program to determine why there were apparent discrepancies in the 1999 statistical data generated by these two programs, particularly in the data on Southwest Asia heroin. GAO focused on why the program data showed heroin seizure information for only one U.S. Pacific Coast international airport. In addition, GAO examined whether enough samples from heroin seizures were being furnished for analysis under the Heroin Signature Program and the extent to which DEA was committed to the Domestic Monitor Program. GAO concluded that the discrepancies in the 1999 statistical data generated by the programs were the result of the two programs' data not being comparable. The reason Heroin Signature Program data showed heroin seizure information for only one U.S. Pacific Coast international airport was because seizures at other Pacific Coast airports during 1999 did not meet federal prosecution guidelines. GAO further found that DEA officials responsible for administering the Heroin Signature Program received enough samples of the heroin seized by federal law enforcement agencies, but did not receive enough samples from state and local law enforcement agencies. …

A letter report issued by the General Accounting Office with an abstract that begins "Return-to-work practices used in the private sector and in foreign countries reflect the understanding that some people with disabilities can and do return to work. Although the Social Security Administration (SSA) has begun to focus more on return to work, it has yet to adopt a complete strategy for implementing this new approach. The Ticket to Work and Work Incentives Improvement Act of 1999 is expected to enhance work incentives for people with disabilities, but fundamental policy weaknesses in the Disability Insurance (DI) and Supplemental Security Income (SSI) programs persist. SSA needs to develop a comprehensive return-to-work strategy that emphasizes its return-to-work incentives. In developing this strategy, SSA can supplement what it learns from the experiences of the Ticket to Work demonstrations with the return-to-work approaches of other disability systems to identify elements of a new system that could help each individual realize his or her productive potential. Adopting a comprehensive return-to-work strategy will require fundamental changes to the underlying philosophy of the DI and SSI programs."

A letter report issued by the General Accounting Office with an abstract that begins "Federal and state agencies are making extensive use of information technology (IT) to address traditional regulatory management. For example, the Department of Labor has a system of electronic "advisors" imitating the interaction that an individual might have with an employment law expert, and the Environmental Protection Agency is working with partners in state government to develop a national environmental information exchange network. Several of the state innovations include interactive systems that allow regulated entities to identify their regulatory responsibilities and complete related transactions. For example, the Texas Railroad Commission has an electronic process that allows users to obtain oil or gas well permits on-line, complete the required forms, and pay any associated fees. Representatives from nongovernmental organizations suggest that federal agencies improve both the content and access to on-line information, more broadly and consistently use some existing applications, and adopt some new applications. Several key factors that facilitate or hinder the adoption and diffusion of innovative IT applications are (1) top-level leadership commitment/support, (2) adequate financial resources and human capital, (3) legislative and executive branch IT initiatives, (4) internal and external partnerships with critical stakeholders, (5) …

A letter report issued by the General Accounting Office with an abstract that begins "This report reviews the Department of Defense's (DOD) management practices for demilitarizing excess ammunition. Specifically, GAO evaluates (1) the extent to which the excess ammunition stockpile has been reduced and whether the liability associated with excess ammunition has been fully identified, (2) the Army's reliance on contracted demilitarization and the impact of doing so on government facilities that use similar environmentally friendly processes, and (3) the feasibility of using excess ammunition for U.S. training needs. GAO found that DOD's reported stockpile of excess ammunition has grown rather than decreased, rising from 354,000 tons in 1993 to 493,000 tons at the end of 2000. In addition, the reported stockpile does not include all excess ammunition, which understates DOD's ultimate liability for demilitarizing ammunition. In recent years, the Army has devoted 50 percent of its excess ammunition demilitarization budget to contractors that use environmentally friendly demilitarization processes. Although a congressional directive resulted in greater emphasis on contractor demilitarization, the Army began and later expanded this effort without considering the effect it would have on government facilities. With increased contractor demilitarization, the Army has retained and underutilized environmentally friendly …

A letter report issued by the General Accounting Office with an abstract that begins "The General Services Administration (GSA), the federal government's real property manager, it is responsible for identifying, funding, and completing needed repairs and alterations at federal buildings. This report examines (1) GSA's process for assessing and selecting prospectus-level major repair and alteration design projects for funding, (2) the obstacles that impede GSA from satisfying its repair and alteration requirements, and (3) the consequences associated with deferring needed repairs and alterations at selected buildings. GAO found that in fiscal year 2001, GSA assessed the merits of 27 prospectus-level repair and alteration design projects and recommended 12 for funding. These projects were selected by a multifaceted process that relied on empirical data and professional judgment coupled with specific selection criteria and computer analysis that compared competing projects. GSA explained its decisions when it recommended lower-ranked projects for repairs. However, because of insufficient funding, those projects were placed on GSA's growing repair and alteration inventory. GSA has faced long-standing obstacles, including inadequate program data, the lack of a multiyear repair and alteration plan, and limited funding, in reducing this multibillion-dollar inventory. In addition, funding limitations remain a major obstacle. Delaying …

A letter report issued by the General Accounting Office with an abstract that begins "When computing their federal taxes, taxpayers either claim a standard deduction or itemize deductions. This report estimates (1) the number of taxpayers who may have overpaid their taxes by claiming the standard deduction instead of itemizing their deductions, and (2) the amount of taxes they may have overpaid. On about 510,000 individual tax returns in tax year 1998, GAO found that taxpayers did not itemize their deductions yet had mortgage interest payments that exceeded the standard deduction amount for their tax filing status. These taxpayers may have overpaid their taxes by about $311 million. The average overpayment amount was $610, and about 35 percent of the taxpayers had overpaid their taxes by more than $500."

Correspondence issued by the General Accounting Office with an abstract that begins "Discrimination complaints by minority farmers who were denied benefits under the Department of Agriculture's (USDA) farm assistance programs have been a long-standing issue. In 1997, a group of African-American farmers consolidated their claims of racial discrimination in farm lending and benefit programs into one class action suit against USDA. In April 1999, a federal district court approved a consent decree to settle the suit that included a framework for resolving the individual claims. This correspondence examines (1) the status of claims under the class action settlement and (2) the results of the Department's efforts to resolve discrimination complaints by minority farmers through its administrative processes. GAO found that the consent decree provides for various parties outside the federal government to decide on the individual claims on the basis of information submitted by the claimants and USDA. Although USDA participates in the process, it does not make decisions on the individual claims. As of January 2001, more than 25,000 people had filed claims under the consent decree. At the same time, however, more than 3,600 claimants were rejected as not being eligible class members, and more than 7,900 who …

A letter report issued by the General Accounting Office with an abstract that begins "The Internal Revenue Service (IRS) began the Customer Account Data Engine (CADE) project to modernize the agency's outdated and inefficient data management system. This report determines (1) the reported status of CADE and IRS' plans for completing the project, (2) whether IRS is managing the relationship between CADE and the agency's enterprise architecture and current systems environment, (3) whether IRS is managing CADE in accordance with its Enterprise Life Cycle (ELC), and (4) whether IRS is ensuring that CADE will satisfy agency business needs. GAO found that IRS was over budget and behind schedule in meeting CADE's next project milestone, which is the completion of the preliminary design. IRS was not effectively managing the relationship between CADE and the enterprise architecture or its current systems environment. IRS had not fully employed several critical management controls that are intended to ensure that CADE is aligned with ELC. IRS had completed or was in the process of completing steps to ensure that CADE will satisfy agency business needs."

Correspondence issued by the General Accounting Office with an abstract that begins "This report investigates whether the Department of Defense (DOD) misused the security classification process to stifle public discussion of problems with the National Missile Defense System. On May 11, 2000, Dr. Theodore Postol reported an alleged incident of fraud to John Podesta, former White House Chief of Staff. Dr. Postol wrote a letter that alleged scientific fraud by contractors involved in developing the National Missile Defense system for DOD's Ballistic Missile Defense Organization (BMDO). The letter contained Dr. Postol's analysis of public data and extracts from documents he used to reach his conclusion. BMDO's decision to classify Dr. Postol's letter prompted him to write another letter to Mr. Podesta complaining that the classification was an attempt to restrict his public exposure of scientific fraud. Dr. Postol wrote a third letter to Mr. Podesta complaining that an unscheduled visit by the Defense Security Service (DSS) was an attempt to intimidate him and violate his First Amendment rights. GAO found that DOD's decision to conduct a security classification review was performed in accordance with Executive Order 12958. Similarly, BMDO's subsequent request that DSS contact Dr. Postol to discuss concerns that …

A letter report issued by the General Accounting Office with an abstract that begins "This report reviews whether the policies and procedures of the Environmental Protection Agency's Science Advisory Board ensure that (1) its peer review panelists are independent and the panels are properly balanced and (2) the public is sufficiently informed about the points of view represented on the panels. GAO found that the policies and procedures used by the staff office to ensure the independence of the Board's peer reviewers and the balancing of viewpoints have limitations that reduce their effectiveness. The staff office has not systematically requested information that is needed to assess the independence and overall balance of viewpoints represented on the panel--such as previous public positions the panelists have taken on the matter being reviewed--until the first meeting, when the panelists have already been chosen. Furthermore, conflicts of interest may not be identified and mitigated in a timely manner. GAO also found that the staff office's policies and procedures for providing the public with information on the backgrounds of the Board's peer review panelists do not adequately inform the public about the points of view represented on the panels."

Testimony issued by the General Accounting Office with an abstract that begins "The Department of Energy's (DOE) Clean Coal Technology program provides cost-sharing assistance or partnerships with industry in demonstrating the commercial applications of emerging technologies, referred to as "clean coal." This testimony discusses the successes DOE has reported, some weaknesses GAO identified, and lessons learned in cost-sharing. GAO found that DOE has many examples of successes in the program, including commercialization of some technologies--the primary way DOE measures success. From a management perspective, many projects had experienced delays, cost overruns, bankruptcies, and performance problems. This program serves as an example to other cost-share programs in demonstrating how the government and the private sector can work effectively together to develop and demonstrate new technologies."

A letter report issued by the General Accounting Office with an abstract that begins "The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) has issued a rule requiring vehicle manufacturers to install advanced air bag systems in an increasing number of cars beginning in 2003. This report reviews the development of technologies that vehicle manufacturers plan to use to comply with the advanced air bag rule. GAO found that some advanced air bag technologies are now being installed in vehicles and others are still being developed. The principal advanced technology being installed in some vehicles is an air bag that can inflate with lower or higher levels of power--rather than a single level--depending on the severity of the crash. Although frontal air bag systems with these advanced technologies are an improvement over previous systems, they do not contain all of the features that manufacturers believe are needed to meet the requirements of the advanced air bag rule, such as sensors that can distinguish among different types of occupants. To meet the requirements, manufacturers plan to introduce new technologies as well as continue to make further improvements in current technologies. The key new technologies that manufacturers plan to introduce are occupant classification sensors …

Testimony issued by the General Accounting Office with an abstract that begins "Consumer complaints against household good carriers have soared in the last five years, yet the Department of Transportation (DOT) has done little to oversee the industry. Although DOT does not collect nationwide information on consumer complaints against household good movers, it estimates that it receives about 4,000 complaints each year. Consumer protection in the interstate household goods moving industry is a relatively low priority for DOT compared with its primary mission of promoting motor carrier safety. The Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration (FMCSA) has fallen behind in its recent efforts to improve industry oversight and consumer protection. FMCSA has failed to meet the milestones for completing many of its efforts and has extended its deadlines by as much as a year. In addition, DOT has not completed a study on the effectiveness of arbitration as a way to settle household goods disputes, even though the law mandated that the study be completed by 1997. DOT now plans to conduct the study between 2003 and 2005. This testimony summarizes a March report (GAO-01-318)."

Testimony issued by the General Accounting Office with an abstract that begins "Federal computer systems are riddled with weaknesses that continue to put critical operations and assets at risk. New information security provisions introduced by Congress will be a major catalyst for federal agencies to improve their security program management. To help maintain the momentum that the new information security reform provisions have generated, federal agencies must act quickly to implement strong security program management. A key element of the strategy outlined in Presidential Decision Directive (PDD) 63 was establishing the National Infrastructure Protection Center as "a national focal point" for gathering information on threats and facilitating the federal government's response to computer-based incidents. The center has begun critical infrastructure protection efforts to establish a foundation for future governmentwide efforts. However, the analytical and information-sharing capabilities that PDD 63 asserts are needed to protect the nation's critical infrastructures have not yet been achieved."

A letter report issued by the General Accounting Office with an abstract that begins "The Department of Education relies heavily on the central automated processing system (EDCAPS) to support its core financial management information functions, including general ledger and funds management, grant planning and payment processing, and purchasing and contract management. Education's Inspector General (IG) has reported serious information system control weaknesses in this system. These weaknesses increase the risk of unauthorized access or disruption of services and make Education's sensitive grant and loan data vulnerable to misuse, fraud, improper disclosure, or destruction, which could go undetected. Education is making progress in correcting security weaknesses identified by the IG, and the department has taken other steps to improve security. However, GAO identified weaknesses that place critical financial and sensitive grant information at risk of unauthorized access and disclosure and key operations at risk disruption. Specifically, Education did not adequately protect its network from unauthorized users, effectively manage user IDs and passwords, appropriately limit access to unauthorized users, effectively maintain system software controls, or routinely monitor user access activity. Furthermore, Education did not provide adequate physical security for its computer resources, appropriately segregate all key operations and computer functions, effectively control …

A letter report issued by the General Accounting Office with an abstract that begins "Recognizing that the country's fragmented employment and training programs were not serving job seekers or employers well, Congress enacted the Workforce Investment Act (WIA) in 1988. One of WIA's goals was to create a one-stop center system to help unify the services provided by many programs and give states the flexibility to design services better suited to local workforce needs. Veterans' employment and training programs, administered by the Department of Labor's Veterans' Employment and Training Service (VETS), are mandatory program partners in this new one-stop center system. VETS administers two grants programs--the Disabled Veterans' Outreach Program (DVOP) and the Local Veterans' Employment Representative (LVER) program--that fund staff offering services for veterans. Although veterans receive priority employment services at one-stop centers, VETS does not collect appropriate data for determining the effectiveness of these services, including subsequent job retention and wages. VETS requires states to collect information on the number and type of employment services provided to veterans relative to nonveterans. This information showed that veterans received more intensive services, and received these services more readily, than did nonveterans seeking services through states' employment service offices or one-stop …

A letter report issued by the General Accounting Office with an abstract that begins "The military's health program--TRICARE--provides medical care to about 8.3 million active duty service members and retired beneficiaries and their dependents and survivors. The Department of Defense (DOD) also provides benefits for persons severely disabled by physical or mental problems through its Individual Case Management Program for Persons with Extraordinary Conditions (ICMP-PEC) and for less severely disabled active duty dependents through its Program for Persons with Disabilities (PFPWD). Recently, military families and advocacy groups have raised concerns about accessing ICMP-PEC benefits. Also, the DOD Authorization Act for 2001 entitled military retirees age 65 and older and their dependents and survivors to TRICARE benefits for life which may have caseload and cost effects on ICMP-PEC. As of June 2001, 38 ICMP-PEC participants were projected to receive $6 million in services in fiscal year 2001, Their annual per-case costs were projected to range from $13,000 to $382,000. ICMP-PEC now lacks a clear purpose, well-defined eligibility criteria and benefits, and an efficient application process. In contrast, PFPWD is an established program with well defined criteria and benefits that assist thousands of ADFMs with their special health care service and equipment …

A letter report issued by the General Accounting Office with an abstract that begins "The Department of Defense's (DOD) policy and practices for developing core depot maintenance capabilities are creating gaps between actual capabilities and those needed for future national defense emergencies and contingencies. If the existing policy is not clarified and current practices continue, the military depots will not have the equipment, facilities, and trained personnel to provide logistics support on many of the weapon systems and related equipment for military use in the next five to 15 years. Although DOD intends for its depots to have these capabilities, actual practices are much different. Core policy does not adequately take into consideration future systems repair needs and the impact of retiring systems on developing capabilities. Furthermore, the practices of individual services hinder the establishment of future core capabilities and management oversight. Additional investments in new facilities, equipment, and workforce training and revitalization have been limited for some time. Finally, there is no strategic plan and associated service implementation plans to create and sustain a viable depot maintenance capability."

A letter report issued by the General Accounting Office with an abstract that begins "Local emergency medical systems (EMS) have reported substantial needs in such areas as personnel, training, equipment, and the availability of doctors to advise emergency personnel in the field. Federal agencies have supported EMS improvements by acting as facilitators rather then by establishing requirements or providing significant funding. The agencies provide technical assistance, set voluntary standards for licensing EMS providers, and administer limited grant funding. The four federal agencies GAO studied have separately begun to collect EMS data or promote data consistency. However, progress in developing this information has been slow. State and local EMS officials attributed the lack of progress to the many competing demands on their time and said that EMS providers and local systems have few incentives to collect and report EMS information."

Testimony issued by the General Accounting Office with an abstract that begins "Risk management is a systematic and analytical process that weighs the likelihood that a threat will endanger an asset, individual, or function and identifies actions to reduce the risk and mitigate the consequences of an attack. A good risk management approach includes the following three assessments: a threat, a vulnerability, and a criticality. After these assessments have been completed and evaluated, key steps can be taken to better prepare the United States against potential terrorist attacks. Threat assessments alone are insufficient to support the key judgments and decisions that must be made. However, along with vulnerability and criticality assessments, leaders and managers will make better decisions using this risk management approach. If the federal government were to apply this approach universally and if similar approaches were adopted by other segments of society, the United States could more effectively and efficiently prepare in-depth defenses against terrorist acts."

A letter report issued by the General Accounting Office with an abstract that begins "The National Defense Authorization Act for 2001 authorized the military archives to (1) charge fees to persons requesting information and (2) retain collected fees to help defray costs of providing the information. Although none of the archives has yet implemented a fee, one archive plans to do so by October 2001. The Department of Defense's (DOD) archives and other offices are also authorized under both the User Charge Statute and the Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) to charge for information provided to the public. However, neither of these statutes authorizes an agency to retain those fees. The four designated archives are charging fees to public requesters but are not using the fee schedule mandated by the DOD regulation implementing the User Charge Statute. Similarly, DOD's fee schedules for charges under FOIA are outdated. DOD's inconsistent use of the authority to charge fees and the use of outdated DOD fees schedules result in uncollected fees of a million dollars or more annually and inconsistent handling of public requests for historical information."

A letter report issued by the General Accounting Office with an abstract that begins "Several factors affect employers' decisions to participate in the Occupational Safety and Health Administration's (OSHA) consultation program. GAO surveyed industry associations, employee representatives, and participating employers and found that the two main incentives for program participation are (1) making the employer's workplace safer and reducing worker injury and illness by promoting workplace safety and health and (2) preparing the employer's workplace for an OSHA inspection. The measurement system OSHA uses lacks enough data to separate the program outcomes from the outcomes of OSHA's other efforts to reduce workplace injuries and illnesses. OSHA's process for allocating funds to the state consultation programs plays no role in encouraging participating states to achieve agency goals."

Correspondence issued by the General Accounting Office with an abstract that begins "The United States Capitol Preservation Commission receives commemorative coin surcharge funds authorized by the United States Capitol Visitor Center Commemorative Coin Act of 1999. Under the Omnibus Consolidated Appropriations Act of 1997 and the U.S. Mint's Compliance Procedures for Surcharge Eligibility, the commission must meet certain requirements before receiving available coin surcharge funds. The commission must provide the U.S. Mint with eligibility-related assertions associated with the commission's receipt and use of private matching funds, and an independent auditor must examine the assertions. GAO found that the assertion about the commission's receipt and use of private matching funds pursuant to the law and the U.S. Mint's Compliance Procedures for Surcharge Eligibility are fairly stated in all respects."