A letter report issued by the Government Accountability Office with an abstract that begins "The Honest Leadership and Open Government Act (HLOGA) of 2007 amended the Lobbying Disclosure Act of 1995 by doubling the frequency of lobbyists' reporting and increasing criminal and civil penalties. This is GAO's second report in response to the Act's requirement for GAO to annually (1) determine the extent to which lobbyists can demonstrate compliance with the Act by providing support for information on their registrations and reports, (2) describe challenges identified by lobbyists to complying with the Act, and (3) describe the resources and authorities available to the U.S. Attorney's Office for the District of Columbia's efforts to enforce the Act. For this report, GAO placed increased emphasis on written documentation to support disclosure reports. GAO reviewed a random sample of 100 lobbyist disclosure reports filed during the first three quarters of calendar year 2008. GAO also selected a random sample of 100 reports of federal political contributions, filed for the first time, for mid-calendar-year 2008. This methodology allowed GAO to generalize the sample results to the populations of 40,169 lobbying activity disclosure reports and 6,048 reports with contributions filed. GAO met with lobbyists regarding …

Testimony issued by the Government Accountability Office with an abstract that begins "The Departments of Defense (DOD) and State (State) and the U.S. Agency for International Development (USAID) have relied extensively on contractors to support troops and civilian personnel and carry out reconstruction efforts in Iraq and Afghanistan. While recognizing the benefits of using contactors, GAO and others have noted the risks and challenges associated with relying on contractors. To help increase contractor oversight, the National Defense Authorization Act for Fiscal Year 2008 directed DOD, State, and USAID to sign a memorandum of understanding (MOU) on contracting in Iraq and Afghanistan that identified a database to track information on contractor personnel and contracts performed in the two countries. In their July 2008 MOU, the agencies designated the Synchronized Pre-Deployment and Operational Tracker database (SPOT) as their system for tracking the required information. GAO's testimony addresses how contractor personnel and contract information can aid agencies in managing contracts and the status of SPOT's implementation. It is drawn from GAO's ongoing and prior contingency contracting work. This work involved meeting with agency officials, including those in Iraq, and reviewing agency documents. GAO obtained agency views on previously unreported information, which the agencies …

Testimony issued by the Government Accountability Office with an abstract that begins "n 2008, the cumulative cost growth in the Department of Defense's portfolio of 96 major defense acquisition programs was $296 billion and the average delay in delivering promised capabilities to the warfighter was 22 months. These poor outcomes mean that other critical defense and national priorities may go unfunded and that warfighters may go without the equipment they need to counter the changing threats that they face. GAO has examined extensively the issues in DOD's weapon system programs from the perspective of best practices in product development, and believes that significant improvements are possible. Because the ability to measure knowledge, processes, and outcomes is critical to achieving these improvements, GAO has used metrics to review the management and health of these programs from within the framework of best practices. This testimony discusses: 1) "knowledge metrics," used to determine how well programs manage technology, design, and manufacturing risks; 2) outcome metrics--concerning cost, schedule, and capability--that serve as "health indicators" of how well programs are being executed in terms of predicted outcomes; and 3) the prerequisites that GAO believes must be met in order for a program's plans and goals …

Testimony issued by the Government Accountability Office with an abstract that begins "This testimony discusses the potential viability of high speed rail in the United States. Federal and other decision makers have had a renewed interest in how high speed rail might fit into the national transportation system and address increasing mobility constraints on highways and at airports due to congestion. This testimony is based on our report issued March 19, 2009, entitled High Speed Passenger Rail: Future Development Will Depend on Addressing Financial and Other Challenges and Establishing a Clear Federal Role. In preparing the report, we reviewed federal legislation; interviewed federal, state, local, and private sector officials, as well as U.S. project sponsors; and reviewed high speed rail development in France, Japan, and Spain. More detailed information on our scope and methodology appears in the March 19, 2009, report. We conducted our work in accordance with generally accepted government auditing standards. This statement focuses on (1) the factors affecting the economic viability of high speed rail projects, including difficulties in determining the economic viability of proposed projects; (2) the challenges in developing and financing high speed rail systems; and (3) the federal role in the potential development of …

Testimony issued by the Government Accountability Office with an abstract that begins "The Department of Defense (DOD) is in the process of implementing its new human capital system for managing civilian personnel--the National Security Personnel System (NSPS). Key components of NSPS include compensation, classification, and performance management. Implementation of NSPS could have far-reaching implications, not just for DOD, but for civil service reform across the federal government. As of February 2009, about 205,000 civilian employees were under NSPS. Based on GAO's prior work reviewing performance management in the public sector, GAO developed an initial list of safeguards that NSPS should include to ensure it is fair, effective, and credible. In 2008, Congress directed GAO to evaluate, among other things, the extent DOD implemented accountability mechanisms, including those in 5 U.S.C. section 9902(b)(7) and other internal safeguards in NSPS. This statement is based on GAO's September 2008 report, which determined (1) the extent to which DOD has implemented internal safeguards to ensure NSPS was fair, effective, and credible; and (2) how DOD civilians perceive NSPS and what actions DOD has taken to address these perceptions. For that report, GAO analyzed relevant documents and employee survey results; interviewed appropriate officials; and conducted …

Testimony issued by the Government Accountability Office with an abstract that begins "Our nation's wildland fire problems have worsened in the past decade. The Forest Service within the Department of Agriculture and four agencies within the Department of the Interior (Interior) are responsible for managing fires on federal lands. Federal appropriations to these agencies for wildland fire management have more than doubled since the late 1990s, averaging $2.9 billion annually in recent years. Rising wildland fire costs have challenged the agencies to meet their land management responsibilities. This testimony, based on previous GAO reports, discusses (1) the budgetary and programmatic effects of the increasing cost of fire management activities and (2) steps the agencies could take to help contain wildland fire expenditures and steps they could take, and Congress could consider, to reduce the need to transfer funds from other programs."

A letter report issued by the Government Accountability Office with an abstract that begins "The Department of Commerce's National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA), with the aid of the National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA), plans to procure the next generation of geostationary operational environmental satellites, called the Geostationary Operational Environmental Satellite-R series (GOES-R). GOES-R is to replace the current series of satellites, which will likely begin to reach the end of their useful lives in approximately 2014. This series is considered critical to the United States' ability to maintain the continuity of data required for weather forecasting through the year 2028. GAO was asked to (1) determine the status of the GOES-R program, (2) evaluate whether plans for the acquisition address problems experienced on similar programs, and (3) determine whether NOAA's plan will be adequate to support current data requirements. To do so, GAO analyzed contractor and program data and interviewed officials from NOAA and NASA."

Correspondence issued by the Government Accountability Office with an abstract that begins "On November 14, 2008, we issued our opinion on the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission's (SEC) fiscal years 2008 and 2007 financial statements. We also issued our opinion on the effectiveness of SEC's internal control over financial reporting (including safeguarding of assets) and over compliance as of September 30, 2008, and our evaluation of SEC's compliance with selected provisions of laws and regulations during fiscal year 2008. The purpose of this report is to present issues identified during our fiscal year 2008 audit of SEC's internal controls and accounting procedures and to recommend actions to address these issues. Accordingly, in this report we are making 19 recommendations to SEC to strengthen internal controls and accounting procedures. These recommendations are in addition to 24 remaining recommendations included in prior year audits of SEC's financial statements that still need to be fully addressed."

Testimony issued by the Government Accountability Office with an abstract that begins "In fiscal 2008, the Department of the Interior (Interior) collected over $22 billion in royalties and other fees related to oil and gas. Interior's Bureau of Land Management (BLM) and Minerals Management Service (MMS) manage federal onshore and offshore oil and gas leases, respectively. Acquiring a federal lease gives the lessee the rights to explore for and develop the oil and gas resources under the lease, including drilling wells and building pipelines that may lead to oil and gas production. This statement focuses on findings from a number of recent GAO reports on federal oil and gas management. GAO has made numerous recommendations to Interior, which the agency generally agreed with and is taking steps to address. However, two important issues remain unresolved. Specifically, GAO made one recommendation and one matter for Congressional consideration that together call for a comprehensive reevaluation of how Interior manages federal oil and gas resources. Interior has not undertaken such a comprehensive review and until this is done, the public cannot have reasonable assurance that federal oil and gas resources are being appropriately managed for the public good."

A letter report issued by the Government Accountability Office with an abstract that begins "Because the insurance market is a vital part of the U.S. economy, Congress and others are concerned about limitations to reciprocity and uniformity, regulatory inefficiency, higher insurance costs, and uneven consumer protection. GAO was asked to review the areas of (1) producer licensing, (2) product approval, and (3) market conduct regulation in terms of progress by NAIC and state regulators to increase reciprocity and uniformity, the factors affecting this progress, and the potential impacts if greater progress is not made. GAO analyzed federal laws and regulatory documents, assessed NAIC efforts, and interviewed industry officials."

Correspondence issued by the Government Accountability Office with an abstract that begins "In an effort to improve the U.S. military's flexibility to address conventional and terrorist threats worldwide, the Department of Defense (DOD) plans to relocate more than 8,000 Marines and an estimated 9,000 dependents from Okinawa, Japan, to Guam as well as expand other U.S. force capabilities on the island at an estimated cost of more than $13 billion. Guam is an integral part of DOD's logistical support system and serves as an important forward operational hub for a mix of military mission requirements. According to DOD, Guam provides strategic flexibility, freedom of action, and prompt global action for the Global War on Terrorism, peace and wartime engagement, and crisis response. DOD plans to begin construction on Guam during fiscal year 2010 in order to meet the desired buildup deadline of fiscal year 2014 indicated in the agreement reached by the U.S.-Japan Security Consultative Committee on October 29, 2005. As a result of the military buildup, Guam's current population of 171,000 will increase by an estimated 25,000 active duty military personnel and dependents (or 14.6 percent), to 196,000. In addition, the realignment will require additional workers to move to …

A letter report issued by the Government Accountability Office with an abstract that begins "The Internal Revenue Service (IRS) collects the revenues that fund the federal government and issues billions of dollars in refunds. Consequently, IRS's ability to demonstrate agility and speed in restoring its functions after a disruption is vital to the government and the economy. GAO (1) identified the definition and attributes of organizational resilience; (2) examined the extent to which these attributes are exhibited within IRS; and (3) reviewed the challenges and opportunities faced by the IRS in becoming more resilient. GAO gathered and analyzed the attributes of resilience based on discussions with academic and practitioner experts in the field. GAO then reviewed IRS human capital and emergency preparedness policies and strategic plans, observed campus operations and emergency working group meetings, and interviewed officials from headquarters and each of the four business units."

Correspondence issued by the Government Accountability Office with an abstract that begins "In November 2005, the President issued an executive order establishing the Office of the Federal Coordinator for Gulf Coast Rebuilding (OFC) with the broad mission of supporting recovery efforts following Hurricanes Katrina and Rita. Given their vast size and impact, these storms presented unprecedented rebuilding challenges to federal, state, and local officials which, combined with concerns about the lack of coordination in government's initial response to the disaster, precipitated the creation of the Office of the Federal Coordinator. To assist in Congress' ongoing oversight responsibilities of the recovery of the Gulf Coast, Congress asked us to: (1) describe the functions the Coordinator has performed, (2) obtain stakeholder perspectives regarding the office's operation, and (3) provide observations on issues to be considered for moving forward. We provided Congressional staff with summaries of our findings this past February to answer these questions as well as our observations, including extending the term of OFC. We have since updated some of the information in our briefing, using information that has subsequently become available including the President's decision to extend the operations of OFC through September 30, 2009."

Correspondence issued by the Government Accountability Office with an abstract that begins "A genuine U.S. passport is a vital document, permitting its owner to travel freely into and out of the United States, prove U.S. citizenship, obtain further identification documents, and set up bank accounts, among other things. Since May 2005, we have issued several reports identifying significant fraud vulnerabilities in the passport issuance process. This report (1) describes our recent work on passport fraud and (2) summarizes actions the Department of State (State) has indicated it is taking to address the fraud vulnerabilities we identified."

Other written product issued by the Government Accountability Office with an abstract that begins "This report presents the Government Accountability Office's (GAO) Performance Plan for Fiscal Year 2010. In the spirit of the Government Performance and Results Act, this annual plan informs the Congress and the American people about what we expect to accomplish on their behalf in the coming fiscal year. It sets forth our plan to make progress toward achieving our strategic goals for serving the Congress and the American people. This framework not only shows the relationship between our strategic goals and strategic objectives, but also show major themes that could potentially affect our work."

A letter report issued by the Government Accountability Office with an abstract that begins "Service members found unfit for duty due to a service-related illness or injury may be eligible for military disability retirement. When their disability is not stable, however, they may be placed on the military's Temporary Disability Retired List (TDRL) and granted temporary benefits for as long as 5 years. GAO was asked to respond to concerns about TDRL caseloads, management, and impact on servicemembers. To address these concerns, we analyzed TDRL data; interviewed military officials; reviewed laws, regulations, and other relevant documents; and conducted 12 focus groups with temporary retirees. This report examines (1) recent trends in the TDRL caseload size, (2) recent trends in the characteristics of those placed on the TDRL, (3) disability retirement outcomes for TDRL placements, (4) the adequacy of TDRL management, and (5) the adequacy of information provided to TDRL retirees."

Correspondence issued by the Government Accountability Office with an abstract that begins "This correspondence formally transmits the briefing we prepared in response to Senate Report 110-335 accompanying the National Defense Authorization Act for Fiscal Year 2009. The Senate Report required the Comptroller General to conduct an assessment of medical and dental personnel requirements of the Departments of the Army, Navy, and Air Force, including their reserve components. To satisfy this requirement, we previously provided to Congress on April 1, 2009 a copy of the draft briefing we sent to DOD for comment."

Correspondence issued by the Government Accountability Office with an abstract that begins "Under the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009 (ARRA), Congress required the Small Business Administration (SBA) to implement a total of eight administrative provisions to help facilitate small business lending and enhance liquidity in the secondary markets. These administrative provisions include (1) temporarily requiring SBA to reduce or eliminate certain fees on 7(a) and 504 loans; (2) temporarily increasing the maximum 7(a) guarantee from 85 percent to 90 percent; and (3) implementing provisions designed specifically to facilitate secondary markets, such as extending existing guarantees in the 504 program and making loans to systemically important brokerdealers that operate in the 7(a) secondary market. Further, ARRA established deadlines for SBA to issue regulations that implement certain administrative provisions, such as those pertaining to facilitating secondary market activities. Specifically, ARRA required SBA to issue regulations extending the guarantee related to the 504 program within 15 days after enactment (March 4, 2009) and for making loans to systemically important broker-dealers within 30 days after enactment (March 19, 2009). ARRA also mandates that we report within 60 days after the date of enactment, April 17, 2009, on SBA's initial efforts to comply …

A letter report issued by the Government Accountability Office with an abstract that begins "In January 2006, to better align foreign assistance programs with U.S. foreign policy goals, the Secretary of State appointed the Administrator of the U.S. Agency for International Development (USAID) to serve concurrently as Director of Foreign Assistance (DFA) and gave the DFA authority over all Department of State and USAID foreign assistance funding and programs. The Office of the Director of Foreign Assistance (State/F) was given responsibility for reforming foreign assistance by, among other things, consolidating State and USAID foreign assistance processes. GAO was asked to (1) examine State/F's key efforts to consolidate State and USAID foreign assistance processes and (2) identify any key challenges that affect State/F's reform of foreign assistance. GAO evaluated budget, planning, and other documents and interviewed agency officials in Washington, D.C.; Ethiopia; Haiti; Jordan; Kenya; Peru; and Ukraine."

A letter report issued by the Government Accountability Office with an abstract that begins "In February 2007, a series of Washington Post articles disclosed problems at Walter Reed Army Medical Center, particularly with the management of servicemembers receiving outpatient care. In response, the Army established Warrior Transition Units (WTU) for servicemembers requiring complex case management. Each servicemember in a WTU is assigned to a Triad of Care--a primary care manager, a nurse case manager, and a squad leader--who provide case management services to ensure continuity of care. The Army established staff-to-servicemember ratios for each Triad of Care position. This report examines (1) the Army's ongoing efforts to staff WTU Triad of Care positions and (2) how the Army monitors the recovery process of WTU servicemembers. GAO reviewed WTU policies, analyzed Army staffing and monitoring data, interviewed Army officials, and visited five selected WTUs."

A letter report issued by the Government Accountability Office with an abstract that begins "For entities that rely on others for funding, effective governance, accountability, and internal control are keys to maintaining trust and credibility. In recent years, corporate governance and accountability have received increased scrutiny and emphasis in the nonprofit, federal government, and public company sectors. Governance and accountability problems have also been identified at designated federal entities (DFE) such as the Smithsonian Institution, the Legal Services Corporation, and the Pension Benefit Guaranty Corporation. This report responds to a congressional request that GAO describe (1) the statutory structure of the governing bodies for each DFE organization and (2) the role of the inspectors general (IGs) in the governance structure. To accomplish this, GAO surveyed the DFE heads and IGs on governance issues and reviewed information from a variety of sources, including the IG Act and subsequent amendments; enabling legislation for the DFEs; and legislative and regulatory standards and requirements for financial reporting and internal control. GAO is not making specific recommendations in this report, but is providing this information for consideration in future efforts to update the governance of DFEs, oversee the entities and their IGs, and continue work …

A letter report issued by the Government Accountability Office with an abstract that begins "Regulation is one of the principal tools that the government uses to implement public policy. As part of the rulemaking process federal agencies must comply with an increasing number of procedural and analytical requirements. GAO was asked to examine how broadly applicable rulemaking requirements cumulatively have affected (1) agencies' rulemaking processes, in particular including effects of requirements added to the process since 2003, and (2) transparency of the Office of Information and Regulatory Affairs (OIRA) regulatory review process. To address these objectives, GAO reviewed selected rules issued between January 2006 and May 2008 and associated dockets and also interviewed knowledgeable agency and OIRA officials."

A letter report issued by the Government Accountability Office with an abstract that begins "The United States has provided approximately $38.6 billion in reconstruction assistance to Afghanistan and has over 35,000 troops in the country as of February 2009. Some progress has occurred in areas such as economic growth, infrastructure development, and training of the Afghan National Security Forces (ANSF), but the overall security situation in Afghanistan has not improved after more than 7 years of U.S. and international efforts. In response, the new administration plans to deploy approximately 21,000 additional troops1 to Afghanistan this year, and has completed a strategic review of U.S. efforts in Afghanistan and Pakistan. Based on our past work and the significance of U.S. efforts in Afghanistan to the overall U.S. counterinsurgency strategy, we have highlighted Afghanistan as an urgent oversight issue facing this Congress. The government of Afghanistan, with the assistance of the international community, developed the Afghanistan National Development Strategy (ANDS), which was finalized in June 20083, as a guiding document for achieving Afghanistan's reconstruction goals. The ANDS articulates the priorities of the government of Afghanistan as consisting of four major areas: (1) security; (2) governance, rule of law, and human rights; (3) …

Other written product issued by the Government Accountability Office with an abstract that begins "This is an E-supplement to GAO-09-473SP. In its Afghanistan National Development Strategy, the Afghan Government, in conjunction with international donors, established the goal of completing a fully upgraded regional highway network by the end of 2008. The construction of the regional highways was a top road reconstruction priority of the Afghan government and interational donors, as these roads were expected to foster regional trade and contribute to Afghanistan's economic development. The United States and two other donors committed more than $1.5 billion for the over-3,200-kilomteres-long regional highway network and had completed about 60 percent (1,954 kilometers) of these highways as of February 2008. The United States, through the Agency for International Development (USAID), had completed the construction of the 715 kilometers of the regional highways it funded. In addition, it also managed the construction for the 115-kilometer-long Saudi-funded section, which is complete. As of February 2008, construction of an additional 29 percent (932 kilometers) of the regional highway network was ongoing and donors committed funding but had yet to start construction of the remaining 11 percent (354 kilometers). Completion of at least 300 kilometers of the …