Testimony issued by the Government Accountability Office with an abstract that begins "The Service-Disabled Veteran-Owned Small Business (SDVOSB) program is intended to provide federal contracting opportunities to qualified firms. In fiscal year 2008, the Small Business Administration (SBA) reported $6.5 billion in governmentwide sole-source, set-aside, and other SDVOSB contract awards. Given the amount of federal contract dollars being awarded to SDVOSB firms, GAO was asked to determine (1) whether cases of fraud and abuse exist within the SDVOSB program and (2) whether the program has effective fraud prevention controls in place. To identify whether cases exist, GAO reviewed SDVOSB contract awards and protests since 2003 and complaints sent to GAO's fraud hotline. GAO defined case-study firms as one or more affiliated firms that were awarded one or more SDVOSB contracts. To assess fraud prevention controls, GAO reviewed laws and regulations and conducted interviews with SBA and Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) officials. GAO did not attempt to project the extent of fraud and abuse in the program. In addition, GAO did not attempt to assess the overall effectiveness of VA's validation process to prevent or address fraud and abuse in VA SDVOSB contracts."

Testimony issued by the Government Accountability Office with an abstract that begins "The recent financial crisis resulted in a wide-ranging federal response that included infusing capital into several major corporations. The Troubled Asset Relief Program (TARP) has been the primary vehicle for most of these actions. As a result of actions and others, the government is a shareholder in the American International Group (AIG), Citigroup Inc. (Citi), Chrysler Group LLC (Chrysler), and General Motors Company (GM), among others. As market conditions have become less volatile, the government has been considering how best to manage these investments and ultimately divest them. This testimony discusses (1) the government's approach to past crisis and challenges unique to the current crisis; (2) the principles guiding the Department of the Treasury's implementation of its authorities and mechanisms for managing its investments; and (3) preliminary views from GAO's ongoing work with the Special Inspector General for TARP on the federal government's monitoring and management of its investments. This statement builds on GAO's work since the 1970s on providing government assistance to large corporations and more recent work on oversight of the assistance and investments provided under TARP. In its November 2009 report, GAO recommended that Treasury …

Correspondence issued by the Government Accountability Office with an abstract that begins "Section 502 of the Concurrent Resolution on the Budget for Fiscal Year 2010 required us to report to the appropriate congressional committees by December 31, 2009, regarding the Department of Defense's (DOD) progress in implementing GAO's audit recommendations. From fiscal years 2001 through 2008, we issued 743 reports to DOD or its components that included 3,099 recommendations. By law, agencies, including DOD, are required to submit written statements to Congress explaining actions taken in response to recommendations we have made. We follow up on the implementation status of each recommendation at least annually after report issuance to determine whether DOD has instituted sufficient corrective actions. This report, which responds to this mandate, contains the results of our analysis on the implementation status of the 3,099 recommendations."

A letter report issued by the Government Accountability Office with an abstract that begins "ESPCs finance energy-saving capital improvements, such as lighting retrofits for federal facilities, without the government incurring the full cost up front. Partnerships tap the capital and expertise of the private sector to develop real property. This report describes (1) what specific attributes of ESPCs and partnerships contributed to budget scoring decisions, (2) the costs of financing through ESPCs compared to the costs of financing via timely, full, and up-front appropriations, and (3) how ESPCs and partnerships are monitored. Using case studies, GAO reviewed GSA and Navy ESPCs and DOE and VA partnerships."

A letter report issued by the Government Accountability Office with an abstract that begins "The Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) is responsible for regulating hazardous wastes (such as mercury) under the Resource Conservation and Recovery Act (RCRA). Under RCRA, mercury-containing hazardous waste must meet specific treatment standards before land disposal. But, certain difficult to manage waste due, in part, to its large particle size, can follow alternate "debris" standards that provide diverse treatment options. This report examines (1) the mechanisms that EPA uses to track the treatment and disposal of mercury-contaminated debris and the quantity of this waste, (2) the extent to which EPA, states, and industry share a common understanding of the types of mercury-containing wastes that can be treated and disposed of as debris, and (3) EPA and state controls that are in place to monitor compliance with EPA's treatment and disposal requirements for mercury-contaminated debris."

Correspondence issued by the Government Accountability Office with an abstract that begins "The Medicare Prescription Drug, Improvement, and Modernization Act of 2003 (MMA) established a voluntary outpatient prescription drug benefit, known as Medicare Part D. The Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) is responsible for implementing this benefit. This new drug coverage will be provided through competing private Part D plans sponsored by health care organizations, which may charge premiums, deductibles, or copayments for drugs. As a result of MMA, on January 1, 2006, drug coverage for dual-eligible beneficiaries will transition from Medicaid to Medicare Part D. This transition will occur for approximately 6 million full-benefit dual-eligible beneficiaries--Medicare beneficiaries who receive full Medicaid benefits for services not covered by Medicare. CMS is in the process of implementing this transition. During May and June 2005, CMS mailed notices to these beneficiaries informing them of the transition in coverage and that they will receive a subsidy to cover their entire deductible and help cover any prescription drug plan (PDP) premiums. During October and November 2005, CMS automatically assigned dual-eligible beneficiaries to PDPs and mailed notices to these beneficiaries informing them of the assignment and also that they may select a different …

Correspondence issued by the Government Accountability Office with an abstract that begins "As GAO reported to Congress in July 2009, the number of nonprime mortgage originations (including subprime and Alt-A loans) grew rapidly from 2000 through 2006, a period during which average house prices appreciated dramatically. In dollar terms, the nonprime share of mortgage originations rose from about 12 percent ($125 billion) in 2000 to approximately 34 percent ($1 trillion) in 2006. These mortgages have been associated with what was subsequently recognized as a speculative housing bubble. As house prices subsequently fell, the subprime and Alt-A market segments contracted sharply, and very few nonprime originations were made after mid-2007. Borrowers who had obtained nonprime mortgages earlier in the decade increasingly fell behind on their mortgage payments, helping to push default and foreclosure rates to historical highs. Economic conditions and a weak housing market have contributed to the increase in troubled loans. In particular, falling house prices have left many borrowers in a negative equity position--that is, their mortgage balances exceed the current value of their homes. Negative equity makes borrowers more vulnerable to foreclosure by, among other factors, limiting their ability to sell or refinance their homes in the event …

Testimony issued by the Government Accountability Office with an abstract that begins "In September 2008, GAO reported internal control weaknesses over the Veterans Health Administration's (VHA) use of miscellaneous obligations to record estimates of obligations to be incurred at a future date. GAO was asked to testify on its previously reported findings that focused on (1) how VHA used miscellaneous obligations, and (2) the extent to which the Department of Veterans Affairs' (VA) related policies and procedures were adequately designed. GAO also obtained an update on the status of VA's activities to improve controls over its use of miscellaneous obligations. GAO's testimony is primarily a summary of its prior report (GAO-08-976), and also includes follow-up work to obtain information on the status of VA's efforts to implement our prior recommendations."

Testimony issued by the General Accounting Office with an abstract that begins "After the attacks of September 11, 2001, concerns intensified that terrorists would attempt to smuggle a weapon of mass destruction into the United States. One possible method for terrorists to smuggle such a weapon is to use one of the 7 million cargo containers that arrive at our nation's seaports each year. The Department of Homeland Security's U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) is responsible for addressing the potential threat posed by the movement of oceangoing cargo containers. Since CBP cannot inspect all arriving cargo containers, it uses a targeting strategy, which includes an automated targeting system. This system targets some containers for inspection based on a perceived level of risk. In this testimony, GAO provides preliminary findings on its assessment of (1) whether CBP's development of its targeting strategy is consistent with recognized key risk management and computer modeling practices and (2) how well the targeting strategy has been implemented at selected seaports around the country."

BRAC 2005 Intelligence Joint Cross-Service Group Meeting Minutes of December 16, 2003. The document is redacted and includes a draft Memorandum For The Secretary of Defense regarding the protection of classified information in BRAC 2005.

Document issued by the Office of the Attorney General of Texas in Austin, Texas, providing an interpretation of Texas law. It provides the opinion of the Texas Attorney General, Greg Abbott, regarding a legal question submitted for clarification: Which entity has authority to approve retirement and medical benefits for the Jefferson County Waterway and Navigation District Board members: the Jefferson County Commissioners Court or the Waterway Navigation District Board (RQ-0243-GA)

The report discusses the Child Support Enforcement. It is categorized into three categories: (I) Background, (II) New Annual CSE User Fee and (III) Implementation of CSE User Fee.

This report provides an overview of Lebanese politics, recent events in Lebanon, and current issues in U.S. - Lebanon relations.

This report reviews how the program works and provides analysis of program funding, recipients (numbers and characteristics), and the role being played by the program in the distribution of federal student aid. It concludes with an examination of several Pell-related issues that may be considered by the 108th Congress in the HEA reauthorization process.

This report discusses trade issues in the 109th Congress. For over 50 years, U.S. trade officials have negotiated multilateral trade agreements to achieve lower trade barriers and rules to cover international trade. During the 108th Congress, U.S. officials negotiated and Congress approved four bilateral free-trade agreements with Australia, Chile, Morocco, and Singapore.

This report discusses policy and legislation regarding fish and marine mammals. These animals are important resources in open ocean and nearshore coastal areas. Commercial and sport fishing are jointly managed by the federal government and individual states. Many laws and regulations guide the management of these resources by federal agencies.

This report focuses on the use and interpretation of firearms trace data produced by the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms, and Explosives (ATF).

This report frames potential policy questions concerning the U.S. Secret Service's (USSS's) mission and organization through an examination of the USSS history and its statutory authorities, mission, and present activities within the Department of Homeland Security (DHS).

This report provides information on locating military unit histories and individual service records of discharged, retired, and deceased military personnel. It includes contact information for military history centers, websites for additional sources of research, and a bibliography of other publications.

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This report provides a brief overview of these laws, including examples of prohibited conduct and penalties for violation.

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