Testimony issued by the General Accounting Office with an abstract that begins "Pursuant to a congressional request, GAO discussed the security protection of executive branch officials in fiscal years 1997 through 1999, focusing on: (1) how many federal government officials were protected, who protected them, and how many security personnel protected them; (2) how much did it cost to protect these officials; (3) under what legal authorities were agencies providing security protection; (4) under what circumstances were officials protected; (5) how agencies were preparing threat assessments, and the implications of standardizing and centralizing threat assessments; (6) what training did protective personnel receive, and what are the implications of standardizing and centralizing security protection training; (7) what are the implications of centralizing protection services under one agency; and (8) what are the views of the protected officials regarding the need for and adequacy of their protection."

Testimony issued by the Government Accountability Office with an abstract that begins "This testimony discusses the potential for overlap, duplication and fragmentation in economic development programs. In March 2011 and more recently in May 2011 we reported on potential duplication among federal economic development programs; this statement discusses this work. We are involved in ongoing work focusing on economic development programs; if they are administered efficiently and effectively, they can contribute to the well-being of our nation's economy at the least cost to taxpayers. Absent a common definition for economic development, we had previously developed a list of nine activities most often associated with economic development. These activities include planning and developing strategies for job creation and retention, developing new markets for existing products, building infrastructure by constructing roads and sewer systems to attract industry to undeveloped areas, and establishing business incubators to provide facilities for new businesses' operations. Our recent work includes information on 80 economic development programs at four agencies--the Departments of Commerce (Commerce), Housing and Urban Development (HUD), and Agriculture (USDA) and the Small Business Administration (SBA). Commerce administers 11 of the 80 programs. According to the agencies, funding provided for these 80 programs in fiscal year …

Testimony issued by the Government Accountability Office with an abstract that begins "The U.S. Census Bureau (Bureau) estimates that the 2010 Census will cost over $11.3 billion, making it the most expensive in our history. The U.S. House of Representatives and Senate appropriation bills propose to reduce the Bureau's fiscal year 2007 budget request, raising questions about the Bureau's design of the 2010 Census and associated costs. Based on issued GAO work, this testimony addresses the extent to which the Bureau has (1) made progress redesigning its approach, including nonresponse follow-up, a key cost driver; and (2) developed a comprehensive project plan for the 2010 Census, as well as timely, detailed cost data for effective oversight and cost control."

Testimony issued by the Government Accountability Office with an abstract that begins "The No Child Left Behind Act (NCLBA) requires that states improve academic performance so that all students reach proficiency in reading and mathematics by 2014 and that achievement gaps close among student groups. States set annual proficiency targets using an approach known as a status model, which calculates test scores 1 year at a time. Some states have interest in using growth models that measure changes in test scores over time to determine if schools are meeting proficiency targets. The Chairman of the Committee on Education and the Workforce asked GAO to testify on its recent report on measuring academic growth. Specifically, this testimony discusses (1) how many states are using growth models and for what purposes, (2) how growth models can measure progress toward achieving key NCLBA goals, and (3) what challenges states face in using growth models especially to meet the law's key goals. While growth models may be defined as tracking the same students over time, GAO used a definition that also included tracking the performance of schools and groups of students. In comments on the report, Education said that this definition could be confusing. …

Testimony issued by the Government Accountability Office with an abstract that begins "This testimony discusses lifetime costs of supporting the newest generation of veterans. The Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) operates one of the largest health care delivery systems in the nation, providing care to a diverse population of veterans. VA operates about 150 hospitals, 130 nursing homes, and 820 outpatient clinics through 21 regional health care networks called Veterans Integrated Service Networks. VA is responsible for providing health care services to various populations--including an aging veteran population and a growing number of younger veterans returning from the military operations in Afghanistan and Iraq. Budgeting for this vital health care mission is inherently complex. It is based on current assumptions and imperfect information, not only about program needs, but also on future economic and policy actions that may affect demand and the cost of providing these services. Adding to this complexity, VA has recognized over the years the need to plan and budget for facility modernization, and realign its real property portfolio to provide accessible, high-quality, and cost-effective access to its services. The statement today addresses VA's real property realignment efforts and VA's approach to developing budget estimates for health …

Testimony issued by the Government Accountability Office with an abstract that begins "As one of the largest and most complex organizations in the world, the Department of Defense (DOD) faces many challenges in resolving serious problems in its financial management and related business operations and systems. DOD is required by various statutes to (1) improve its financial management processes, controls, and systems to ensure that complete, reliable, consistent, and timely information is prepared and responsive to the financial information needs of agency management and oversight bodies, and (2) produce audited financial statements. Over the years, DOD has initiated numerous efforts to improve the department's financial management operations and achieve an unqualified (clean) opinion on the reliability of its reported financial information. These efforts have fallen short of sustained improvement in financial management or financial statement auditability. The Subcommittee has asked GAO to provide its perspective on the status of DOD's financial management weaknesses and its efforts to resolve them; the challenges DOD continues to face in improving its financial management and operations; and the status of its efforts to implement automated business systems as a critical element of DOD's Financial Improvement and Audit Readiness strategy."

Testimony issued by the Government Accountability Office with an abstract that begins "Scientists increasingly believe that most, if not all, diseases have a genetic component. Consequently, genetic testing is becoming an integral part of health care with great potential for future test development and use. Some genetic tests are sold directly to the consumer via the Internet or retail stores, and purport to use genetic information to deliver personalized nutrition and lifestyle guidance. These tests require consumers to self-collect a sample of genetic material, usually from a cheek swab, and then forward the sample to a laboratory for analysis. Companies that market this type of test claim to provide consumers with the information needed to tailor their diet and exercise programs to address their genetically determined health risks. GAO was asked to investigate the "legitimacy" of these claims. This testimony reflects the findings of GAO's investigation of a nonrepresentative selection of genetic tests. Specifically, GAO purchased tests from four Web sites and created "fictitious consumers" by submitting for analysis 12 DNA samples from a female and 2 samples from an unrelated male, and describing this DNA as coming from adults of various ages, weights, and lifestyle descriptions. GAO also consulted …

Testimony issued by the Government Accountability Office with an abstract that begins "Traffic fatalities and fatality rates have substantially decreased over the last 10 years, yet far too many people continue to be killed or injured on the nation's roadways. In addition, auto safety defect recalls are on the rise. On average, about 70 percent of vehicles subject to a recall are fixed, leaving the remainder to continue posing risks to vehicle owners, passengers, and pedestrians. The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) administers programs that provide grants to states to improve traffic safety and oversees the identification and remedy of vehicle and equipment defects that could pose an unreasonable risk to safety. The upcoming reauthorization of surface transportation programs affords Congress an opportunity to strengthen these grant programs in several ways and to address gaps GAO identified in NHTSA's auto recall process. This statement addresses (1) NHTSA's progress in improving oversight and performance measurement for traffic safety grant programs, (2) NHTSA's oversight of the auto safety defect process, and (3) issues for Congress to consider in reauthorizing funding for traffic and vehicle safety programs. This statement is based primarily on reports GAO has issued since enactment of the Safe, …

Testimony issued by the Government Accountability Office with an abstract that begins "The Department of Homeland Security (DHS) has some of the most extensive acquisition needs within the U.S. government. In fiscal year 2005, the department reported that it obligated almost $17.5 billion to acquire a wide range of goods and services. DHS's acquisition portfolio is broad and complex, including procurements for sophisticated screening equipment for air passenger security; technologies to secure the nation's borders; trailers to meet the housing needs of Hurricane Katrina victims; and the upgrading of the Coast Guard's offshore fleet of surface and air assets. This testimony summarizes GAO reports and testimonies, which have reported on various aspects of DHS acquisitions. It addresses (1) areas where DHS has been successful in promoting collaboration among its various organizations, and (2) challenges it still faces in integrating the acquisition function across the department; and (3) DHS' implementation of an effective review process for its major, complex investments. The information in this testimony is based on work that was completed in accordance with generally accepted government auditing standards."

Testimony issued by the Government Accountability Office with an abstract that begins "Federal regulation is a basic tool of government. Agencies issue thousands of rules and regulations each year to achieve goals such as ensuring that workplaces, air travel, and foods are safe; that the nation's air, water and land are not polluted; and that the appropriate amount of taxes are collected. The costs of these regulations are estimated to be in the hundreds of billions of dollars, and the benefits estimates are even higher. Over the past 25 years, a variety of congressional and presidential regulatory reform initiatives have been instituted to refine the federal regulatory process. This testimony discusses findings from the large number of GAO reports and testimonies prepared at the request of Congress to review the implementation of regulatory reform initiatives. Specifically, GAO discusses common strengths and weaknesses of existing reform initiatives that its work has identified. GAO also addresses some general opportunities to reexamine and refine existing initiatives and the federal regulatory process to make them more effective. GAO's prior reports and testimonies contain a variety of recommendations to improve particular reform initiatives and aspects of the regulatory process."

Testimony issued by the Government Accountability Office with an abstract that begins "The Department of Defense's (DOD) management of its supply chain network is critical to supporting military forces in Iraq, Afghanistan, and elsewhere and also represents a substantial investment of resources. As a result of weaknesses in DOD's management of supply inventories and responsiveness to warfighter requirements, supply chain management is on GAO's list of high-risk federal government programs and operations. In July 2010, DOD issued a new Logistics Strategic Plan that represents the department's current vision and direction for supply chain management and other logistics areas. Today's testimony draws from GAO's prior related work and observations from an ongoing review of DOD supply chain management, and, as requested, will (1) describe DOD's prior strategic planning efforts in the area of logistics, (2) highlight key elements in the new Logistics Strategic Plan, and (3) discuss opportunities for improvement in future iterations of this plan. In conducting its ongoing audit work, GAO reviewed the Logistics Strategic Plan, compared elements in the plan with effective strategic planning practices, and met with cognizant officials from DOD, the military services, and other DOD components as appropriate."

Other written product issued by the Government Accountability Office with an abstract that begins "Critical to the success of the federal government's transformation are its people--human capital. Yet the government has not transformed, in many cases, how it classifies, compensates, develops, and motivates its employees to achieve maximum results within available resources and existing authorities. One of the questions being addressed as the federal government transforms is how to update its compensation system to be more market based and performance oriented. To further the discussion of federal pay reform, GAO, the U.S. Office of Personnel Management, the U.S. Merit Systems Protection Board, the National Academy of Public Administration, and the Partnership for Public Service convened a symposium on March 9, 2005, to discuss organizations' experiences with market-based and more performance-oriented pay systems. Representatives from public, private, and nonprofit organizations made presentations on the successes and challenges they experienced in designing and managing their market-based and more performance-oriented pay systems. A cross section of human capital stakeholders was invited to further explore these successes and challenges and engage in open discussion. While participants were asked to review the overall substance and context of the draft summary, GAO did not seek consensus …

Testimony issued by the Government Accountability Office with an abstract that begins "Pursuant to the Accountability for Tax Dollars Act of 2002, the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) is required to prepare and submit to Congress and the Office of Management and Budget audited financial statements. GAO agreed, under its audit authority, to perform the initial audit of SEC's financial statements. GAO's audit was done to determine whether, in all material respects, (1) SEC's fiscal year 2004 financial statements were reliable, (2) SEC's management maintained effective internal control over financial reporting and compliance with laws and regulations, and (3) SEC's management complied with applicable laws and regulations. Established in 1934 to enforce the securities laws and protect investors, the SEC plays an important role in maintaining the integrity of the U.S. securities markets. GAO was asked by the Chairman of the Senate Subcommittee on Federal Financial Management, Government Information, and International Security, Committee on Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs, to present the results of its May 26, 2005, report, Financial Audit: Securities and Exchange Commission's Financial Statements for Fiscal Year 2004 (GAO-05-244)."

Correspondence issued by the Government Accountability Office with an abstract that begins "Great Basin National Park encompasses over 77,000 acres of White Pine County in east-central Nevada and is home to diverse geologic, topographic, and wildlife resources--including ancient bristlecone pines, the world's longest living tree species. The park was created to preserve a representative segment of the Great Basin Region and receives about 80,000 visitors annually. The park features numerous scenic areas with views of the surrounding landscape, which includes both deserts and mountains. The National Park Service (NPS), within the Department of the Interior, is responsible for managing the park, and the park's management plan lists both air quality and visibility as outstanding resources. This plan identifies threats to air quality and visibility--including air pollution from the possible development of coal-fired power plants in the region--and states that even slight increases in air pollution could cause major decreases in visibility. In 2004 and 2006, two companies each initiated the process to build new coal-fired power plants about 55 miles northwest of Great Basin National Park, near the city of Ely, Nevada. While the development of these new power plants would provide jobs, needed electric power, and other benefits, they …

Correspondence issued by the General Accounting Office with an abstract that begins "Pursuant to a congressional request, GAO provided information on the extent of improper payment estimates reported in agencies' during fiscal year (FY) 1999 financial statements."

Correspondence issued by the Government Accountability Office with an abstract that begins "This letter is in response to Congressional request to provide information on measures in the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009 (Recovery Act) to augment unemployment compensation. Unemployment has risen sharply in the current recession, with the June 2009 rate reaching 9.5 percent of the labor force nationally; 15 states and the District of Columbia have unemployment rates exceeding 10 percent. The Recovery Act enacted measures that expanded unemployment compensation benefits for individuals and provided additional funding to states to pay and administer these benefits. These measures include an extension of benefits under Extended Unemployment Compensation (EUC) through 2009; Unemployment Insurance (UI) "modernization" grants to states that expand eligibility according to specific criteria; an increase in weekly benefits of $25; and an exemption of the first $2,400 in unemployment benefits received by individuals in 2009 from taxation."

Correspondence issued by the Government Accountability Office with an abstract that begins "In summary, BOP uses different factors in estimating the daily costs of its facilities and community corrections and incorporating certain additional factors would increase the daily cost per inmate for its facilities. Specifically, BOP estimates daily costs per inmate for its prison facilities using operational costs such as staff salaries and training, inmate food, and medical supplies, among other things, but does not include factors such as construction of new prisons, certain modernization and repair (M&R) projects, or depreciation of its existing facilities. According to BOP, these M&R projects and depreciation are incorporated into budget requests, financial statements, and a user fee BOP computes to bill states for the full costs of housing state prisoners. Adding these costs into BOP’s estimates would raise the costs from between $4.39 and $4.82 per day per inmate for the last 3 fiscal years. For community corrections, BOP estimates daily costs using the contract per diem rates paid to the private companies that operate RRCs and monitor inmates on home detention and the costs of management and oversight by BOP Community Corrections officials and subtracts out subsistence fees paid by inmates in …

Correspondence issued by the Government Accountability Office with an abstract that begins "The federal government has numerous programs designed to improve Americans' financial literacy, some of which are targeted at helping consumers determine whether and when to purchase a home, how to manage a mortgage, and how to deal with setbacks that could limit their ability to make timely mortgage payments. However, as we have reported, little is known about the effectiveness of specific strategies for improving financial literacy. In the Housing and Economic Recovery Act of 2008 (HERA), Congress created a pilot program to provide grants to providers of financial education and counseling services to prospective homebuyers. Pursuant to HERA, the goals of this education and counseling include increasing the knowledge and decision-making capabilities of prospective homebuyers, identifying successful methods resulting in positive behavioral change for financial empowerment, and educating prospective homebuyers about options for building savings. HERA also mandated that we submit a report to Congress evaluating this grant program, which was later named the Financial Education and Counseling (FEC) Pilot Program. Accordingly, the objectives of this report are to describe (1) the characteristics of the organizations providing services under the FEC program and how they were selected, …

Correspondence issued by the Government Accountability Office with an abstract that begins "In May 2005, we issued our report expressing an opinion on the Securities and Exchange Commission's (SEC) fiscal year 2004 financial statements and an opinion on SEC's internal controls as of September 30, 2004. We also reported on the results of our tests of SEC's compliance with selected provisions of laws and regulations during fiscal year 2004. Our report on SEC's fiscal year 2004 financial statements identified reportable conditions in the internal controls over financial reporting that we considered to be material weaknesses. These weaknesses related to SEC's controls over (1) recording and reporting disgorgements and penalties pertaining to those who violate securities laws, (2) preparing financial statements and related disclosures, and (3) information security. In March 2005, we reported on the information security weaknesses, making six recommendations to address those weaknesses. The purpose of this report is to provide SEC with 18 recommendations to addresses the remaining weaknesses concerning disgorgements and penalties, and financial statement preparation and reporting."

Correspondence issued by the Government Accountability Office with an abstract that begins "On June 21, 2005, we testified at the Subcommittee on Economic Development, Public Buildings, and Emergency Management Committee on Transportation and Infrastructure's oversight hearing on the judiciary's ability to pay for current and future space needs. This report responds to a June 23, 2005, request in which Congress asked additional questions about the Federal Buildings Fund (FBF) and the judiciary's efforts to manage its space needs. To respond to these questions, we primarily relied on our previous work and knowledge of these areas. We prepared this response during June and July 2005 in accordance with generally accepted government auditing standards. Because our response is primarily based on previously issued products, we did not seek agency comments on a draft of this report."

Correspondence issued by the General Accounting Office with an abstract that begins "The General Services Administration (GSA) began its Metropolitan Area Acquisition (MAA) program in 1997 to achieve immediate, substantial, and sustained price reductions for local voice and selected data communications services in selected metropolitan areas. As of June 2001, GSA has awarded 37 MAA contracts for 20 metropolitan areas. The transition from existing GSA contracts to the MAA contracts is still underway. This correspondence answers congressional questions about GAO's June 2001 testimony on MAA implementation issues."

Correspondence issued by the Government Accountability Office with an abstract that begins "The leading cause of death for children ages 3 to 7 is motor vehicle traffic crashes. Head Start, a federal early care and education program run by local grantees and targeted at low-income children, currently serves approximately 900,000 children, and transports many of them to and from Head Start centers across the country. While not required to do so, many Head Start grantees offer transportation as a way to make Head Start more widely available to the eligible population, especially very poor children. To address concerns about transporting children safely, the 1992 Head Start Improvement Act directed the Office of Head Start, housed within the U. S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS), to develop transportation regulations to ensure the safety and effectiveness of transportation services made available to children by Head Start grantees. Head Start issued these regulations in 2001. To provide Congress with information that it requested on the regulations and their implementation, we determined: (1) the research and cost information Head Start considered in establishing the transportation regulations; (2) the actions Head Start grantees have taken to implement the vehicle, restraint, and bus monitor …

A statement of record issued by the General Accounting Office with an abstract that begins "Pursuant to a congressional request, GAO discussed the Department of Veterans Affairs' (VA) effort to reduce and prevent patient adverse events in VA health care facilities through its new patient safety initiative."