A letter report issued by the Government Accountability Office with an abstract that begins "To address the strain on the aviation system, the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) has proposed transitioning to the Next Generation Air Transportation System (NextGen). To fund this system and to make its costs to users more equitable, the Administration has proposed fundamental changes in the way that FAA is funded. As part of the reauthorization, the Administration proposes major changes in the way that grants through the Airport Improvement Program (AIP) are funded and allocated to the 3,400 airports in the national airport system. In response, GAO was asked for an update on current funding levels for airport development and the sufficiency of those levels to meet planned development costs. This report comprises capital development estimates made by FAA and Airports Council International (ACI), a leading industry association; analyzes how much airports have received for capital development and if sustained, whether it can meet future planned development; and summarizes the effects of proposed changes in funding for airport development. Airport funding and planned development data are drawn from the best available sources and have been assessed for their reliability. The Department of Transportation agreed with the …

This report is categorized into six categories: (I) What is Avian Influenza?, (II) Status of Avian Influenza Outbreaks, (III) Transmission, (IV) Control, (V) Economic Impacts, and (VI) Legislative Actions.

This report is about a free trade agreement between the United States and Bahrain.

This report discusses broadband Internet, examining what it is and the various technologies that allow for its transmission. Broadband or high-speed Internet access is provided by technologies that give users the ability to send and receive data at volumes and speeds far greater than access over traditional telephone lines; it also provides a continuous, "always on" connection (no need to dial-up) and a "two-way" capability, that is, the ability to both receive (download) and transmit (upload) data at high speeds.

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This report presents a side-by-side comparison of the major provisions of the 1990 Clean Air Act Amendments, and includes a glossary of common terms.

This report provides background and discusses constitutional provisions allocating war powers between Congress and the President.

A letter report issued by the Government Accountability Office with an abstract that begins "At annual meetings, shareholders of public corporations can vote on various issues (e.g., mergers and acquisitions) through a process called proxy voting. Institutional investors (e.g., mutual funds and pension funds) cast the majority of proxy votes due to their large stock holdings. In recent years, concerns have been raised about a group of about five firms that provide research and recommendations on proxy votes to their institutional investor clients. GAO was asked to report on (1) potential conflicts of interest that may exist with proxy advisory firms and the steps that the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) has taken to oversee these firms; (2) the factors that may impede or promote competition within the proxy advisory industry; and (3) institutional investors' use of the firms' services and the firms' potential influence on proxy vote outcomes. GAO reviewed SEC examinations of proxy advisory firms, spoke with industry professionals, and conducted structured interviews with 31 randomly selected institutional investors. GAO is not making any recommendations."

A letter report issued by the Government Accountability Office with an abstract that begins "Under time-and-materials contracts, payments to contractors are made based on the number of labor hours billed at hourly rates and, if applicable, other direct costs. Because of the risk they pose to the government, their use is supposed to be limited to cases where no other contract type is suitable. GAO was asked to identify trends in the Department of Defense's (DOD) obligations under time-and-materials contracts; analyze what DOD is buying under these contracts; assess why DOD is using them and whether actions are being taken to ensure that they are used only when no other contract type is suitable; evaluate DOD's monitoring of contractor performance; and determine the differences between the labor rates prime contractors bill DOD and the rates in their subcontracts. GAO reviewed 82 time-and-materials contracts, agreements, and orders and examined prime contract and subcontract labor rates on 12 additional contracts or agreements."

A letter report issued by the Government Accountability Office with an abstract that begins "During Operation Iraqi Freedom, the Army and the Marine Corps experienced problems with the delivery of supplies to the warfighter. Such problems highlight long-standing weaknesses in the Department of Defense's (DOD) supply chain management. DOD has identified joint theater logistics as a key effort aimed at improving distribution and supply support. GAO was asked to examine DOD's efforts to develop and implement joint theater logistics. GAO assessed (1) the extent to which DOD's approach to managing joint theater logistics departmentwide encompasses sound management principles and (2) the progress DOD has made in implementing joint theater logistics initiatives. GAO reviewed DOD documents and interviewed officials from the Joint Staff, services, agencies, and geographic combatant commands."

This report, tracks congressional appropriations for HUD and provides a detailed discussion of the funding and issues related to the majority of accounts in the Department’s budget.

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A letter report issued by the Government Accountability Office with an abstract that begins "The Emergency Management Assistance Compact (EMAC) is a collaborative arrangement among member states that provides a legal framework for requesting resources. Working alongside federal players, including the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) and the National Guard Bureau, EMAC members deployed an unprecedented level of assistance in response to hurricanes Katrina and Rita. Although EMAC played a critical role in our nation's response to these hurricanes, the magnitude of these events revealed limitations. GAO was asked to (1) examine how the use of EMAC has changed since its inception; (2) assess how well existing policies, procedures, and practices facilitate collaboration; and (3) evaluate the adequacy of the EMAC network's administrative capacity to achieve its mission. GAO examined documents and interviewed officials from 45 federal, state, and local agencies and offices."

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This report discusses the farm bill, which renewed about every five years, governs federal farm and food policy. The Farm Security and Rural Investment Act of 2002 (P.L. 107-171) is the most recent omnibus farm bill, covering a wide range of programs including commodity price and income support, farm credit, agricultural conservation, research, rural development, and foreign and domestic food programs, among others.

This report summarizes the subsidies that are available for about 25 agricultural commodities representing about one-third of gross farm sales.

This report summarizes the subsidies that are available for about 25 agricultural commodities representing about one-third of gross farm sales.

A letter report issued by the Government Accountability Office with an abstract that begins "The Federal Housing Administration (FHA) historically has been an important participant in the mortgage market, which includes loans that carry government insurance or guarantees (such as FHA-insured mortgages) and those that do not (conventional mortgages). The conventional market comprises prime loans for the most creditworthy borrowers and subprime loans for borrowers with impaired credit. Reduced demand for FHA-insured mortgages--which are used primarily by borrowers who would have difficulty obtaining conventional prime loans--has raised questions about the agency's role in and ability to adapt to the mortgage market. This report discusses (1) trends in FHA's share of the market for home purchase mortgages from 1996 through 2005, and how they compared with the trends for other market segments; and (2) factors associated with the trends in FHA's market share and the implications of these trends for homebuyers and FHA. To address these objectives, GAO analyzed FHA and Home Mortgage Disclosure Act (HMDA) data and interviewed officials from FHA and other mortgage institutions."

A letter report issued by the Government Accountability Office with an abstract that begins "In recent years, the Federal Housing Administration (FHA) has experienced a sharp decline in market share. Also, the agency has estimated that, absent program changes, its Mutual Mortgage Insurance Fund (Fund) would require appropriations in 2008. To adapt to market changes, FHA has implemented new procedures and proposed the following major legislative changes: raising FHA's loan limits, allowing risk-based pricing, and lowering down-payment requirements. GAO was asked to report on (1) the likely program and budget impacts of FHA's modernization efforts; (2) the tools, resources, and risk management practices important to FHA's implementation of the legislative proposals, if passed; and (3) other options that FHA and Congress could consider to help FHA adapt to market changes. To address these objectives, GAO analyzed FHA and Home Mortgage Disclosure Act (HMDA) data and interviewed officials from FHA and other mortgage institutions."

A letter report issued by the Government Accountability Office with an abstract that begins "This is GAO's third report since the September 11 terrorist attacks that assesses progress that market participants and regulators have made to ensure the security and resiliency of our securities markets. This report examined (1) actions taken to improve the markets' capabilities to prevent and recover from attacks; (2) actions taken to improve disaster response and increase telecommunications resiliency; and (3) financial regulators' efforts to ensure market resiliency. GAO inspected physical and electronic security measures and business continuity capabilities using regulatory, government, and industry-established criteria and discussed improvement efforts with broker dealers, banks, regulators, telecommunications carriers, and trade associations."

This report reviews the major legislative initiatives to deal with the gasoline price issue.

This report describes Internet resources on internships, fellowships, and work experience programs within the federal government. It is intended as a selective guide for students of all levels: high school, undergraduate, graduate, and postgraduate. This report will be updated annually.

In 2005, two congressional hearings were held to explore issues associated with e-waste, and the Congressional E-Waste Working Group was formed. One goal common to both the hearings and the establishment of the working group was to explore potential national solutions to the e-waste management issue. With increased legislative activity in the states, it is anticipated that stakeholders will increase their call for federal legislation regarding e-waste management. To illustrate the issues associated with individual state action, this report discusses the key issues that have led to state action, describes common elements in state waste laws and proposals, and provides an overview of each enacted state law.