A letter report issued by the Government Accountability Office with an abstract that begins "The Department of Homeland Security's (DHS) U.S. Customs and Border Protection's (CBP) schedules and Life-cycle Cost Estimates for the Arizona Border Surveillance Technology Plan (the Plan) reflect some, but not all, best practices. Scheduling best practices are summarized into four characteristics of reliable schedules—comprehensive, well constructed, credible, and controlled (i.e., schedules are periodically updated and progress is monitored). GAO assessed CBP's schedules as of March 2013 for the three highest-cost programs that represent 97 percent of the Plan's estimated cost. GAO found that schedules for two of the programs at least partially met each characteristic (i.e., satisfied about half of the criterion), and the schedule for the other program at least minimally met each characteristic (i.e., satisfied a small portion of the criterion), as shown in the table below. For example, the schedule for one of the Plan's programs partially met the characteristic of being credible in that CBP had performed a schedule risk analysis for the program, but the risk analysis was not based on any connection between risks and specific activities. For another program, the schedule minimally met the characteristic of being controlled in …

Correspondence issued by the Government Accountability Office with an abstract that begins "While the previous two-contract structure of the Evolved Expendable Launch Vehicle (EELV) program met Department of Defense (DOD) needs for unprecedented mission success and an at-the-ready launch capability, the scope of its capability contract limited DOD’s ability to identify the cost of an individual launch, as direct launch costs were not separated from other costs. Minimal insight into contractor cost or pricing data meant DOD may have lacked sufficient knowledge to negotiate fair and reasonable launch prices."

Testimony issued by the Government Accountability Office with an abstract that begins "The Medicare Prescription Drug, Improvement, and Modernization Act of 2003 (MMA) reformed the way the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS), the agency that administers Medicare, contracts with claims administration contractors. From its inception, the process for selecting Medicare fee-for-service (FFS) claims administration contractors was stipulated by Congress and differed from most other federal contracts in that, among other things, the Medicare contracts were not awarded through a competitive process. The MMA repealed limitations on the types of contractors CMS could use and required that CMS use competitive procedures to select new contracting entities to process medical claims and provide incentives for contractors to provide quality services. CMS has implemented the MMA contracting reform requirements by shifting and consolidating all claims administration tasks to new entities called Medicare Administrative Contractors. CMS is currently in the process of further consolidating these contracts. The agency also uses other contractors to review claims to ensure payments are proper and investigate potential fraud."

A letter report issued by the Government Accountability Office with an abstract that begins "Of the 29 federal programs GAO reviewed (which accounted for about 86 percent of federal program spending for states or their residents in fiscal year 2010), statehood would likely affect 11 programs. For 3 other programs, while the programs themselves would likely not change under statehood, eligibility determinations for these programs could be affected indirectly by changes that could occur to benefits in other programs. Statehood would not likely affect the 15 remaining programs. See figure below."

Testimony issued by the Government Accountability Office with an abstract that begins "The Department of Defense (DOD) began the Evolved Expendable Launch Vehicle (EELV) program in 1995 to provide a new generation of launch vehicles to ensure affordable access to space for government satellites. In November 1997, based on commercial forecasts at that time, the Office of the Secretary of Defense (OSD) approved maintaining competition between two contractors, and in 1998, DOD competitively awarded “other transaction agreements” to Boeing and Lockheed Martin for the development and the associated launch infrastructure to meet EELV program requirements. In 2005, DOD revised the EELV acquisition strategy to reflect the collapse of the commercial launch market and the ensuing erosion of the industrial base which DOD believed threatened its assured access to space. In acknowledging the government's role as the primary EELV customer, the new strategy maintained assured access to space by funding two product lines of launch vehicles. Shortly afterwards, Boeing and Lockheed Martin announced plans to consolidate their launch operations into a joint venture—United Launch Alliance (ULA). According to DOD, the EELV program was focused on mission success in the ensuing years, until 2010, when DOD officials predicted EELV program costs would …

A letter report issued by the Government Accountability Office with an abstract that begins "Three of the nine selected agencies' risk assessment methodologies that GAO reviewed—the Department of Energy (DOE), the Department of Justice (DOJ), and the Department of State (State)—fully align with the Interagency Security Committee's (ISC) risk assessment standards, but six do not—the Department of the Interior (DOI), the Department of Veterans Affairs (VA), the Federal Protective Service (FPS), the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA), the Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC), and the Office of Personnel Management (OPM). As a result, these six agencies may not have a complete understanding of the risks facing approximately 52,000 federal facilities and may be less able to allocate security resources cost-effectively at the individual facility level or across the agencies' facility portfolios. ISC's The Risk Management Process for Federal Facilities ( RMP ) standard requires that agencies' facility risk assessment methodologies must (1) consider all of the undesirable events identified in the RMP as possible risks to federal facilities, and (2) assess the threat, consequences, and vulnerability to specific undesirable events. Six of the nine agencies' methodologies GAO reviewed do not align with ISC's standards because the methodologies do not (1) consider …

Testimony issued by the Government Accountability Office with an abstract that begins "GAO's fiscal year (FY) 2015 budget request of $525.1 million seeks an increase of 3.9 percent to maintain staff capacity as well as continue necessary maintenance and improvements to our information technology (IT) and building infrastructure. Additionally, receipts and reimbursements, primarily from program and financial audits, and rental income, totaling $30.9 million are expected in FY 2015."

A letter report issued by the Government Accountability Office with an abstract that begins "The U.S. Agency for International Development (USAID) reduces the average delivery time frame for emergency food aid by prepositioning food domestically—that is, in warehouses in the United States—and overseas. GAO estimates that compared with USAID's standard shipping process, which can take several months, prepositioning food aid shortened delivery time frames by an average of almost a month for shipments to the World Food Program (WFP). GAO also estimates that prepositioning shortened delivery time frames by an average of more than 2 months for other organizations—“cooperating sponsors”—that receive USAID grants. In addition, USAID reduces delivery time frames when it diverts shipments en route to overseas prepositioning warehouses to areas with immediate needs. For all cooperating sponsors, GAO estimates that diversions saved, on average, about 2 months."

Testimony issued by the Government Accountability Office with an abstract that begins "The decline in marriage, rise in women's labor force participation, and transition away from defined benefit (DB) plans to defined contribution (DC) plans have resulted in changes in the types of retirement benefits households receive and increased vulnerabilities for some. Since the 1960s, the percentage of unmarried and single-parent families has risen dramatically, especially among low-income, less-educated individuals, and some minorities. At the same time, the percentage of married women entering the labor force has increased. The decline in marriage and rise in women's labor force participation have affected the types of Social Security benefits households receive, with fewer women receiving spousal benefits today than in the past. In addition, the shift away from DB to DC plans has increased financial vulnerabilities for some due to the fact that DC plans typically offer fewer spousal protections. DC plans also place greater responsibility on households to make decisions and manage their pension and financial assets so they have income throughout retirement. As shown in the figure below, despite Social Security's role in reducing poverty among seniors, poverty remains high among certain groups of seniors, such as minorities and unmarried …

A letter report issued by the Government Accountability Office with an abstract that begins "The Departments of Defense (DOD), Labor (DOL), and Veterans Affairs (VA) have implemented most of the key components of the Transition Assistance Program (TAP), a gateway to information and services available to servicemembers transitioning to civilian life. However, the agencies are still in the process of implementing other key components of TAP. While originally planned for October 2013, agencies now plan to implement virtually all components by the end of March 2014, with full implementation expected by June 2014."

A letter report issued by the Government Accountability Office with an abstract that begins "Fiscal year 2013 sequestration reduced or delayed some public services and disrupted some operations in the 23 federal agencies GAO reviewed, even though agencies took actions to minimize the effects. For example, agencies reported that sequestration reduced assistance for education, housing, and nutrition, as well as health and science research and development grants. Agencies also reported delaying investments such as information technology and facilities projects. Some federal services also experienced backlogs and delays as a result of personnel actions including limiting hiring and furloughing employees. However, many of the effects of sequestration could not be quantified or will not be known until future years, if at all, for a number of reasons including the timing of when funds are disbursed (such as grant cycles that start late in the fiscal year), challenges in isolating the effects from other factors, and the lack of currently available performance data for some programs. Moreover, congressional and agency actions mitigated some potential effects by shifting funds to higher priorities while deferring or reducing funding for lower priorities."

A letter report issued by the Government Accountability Office with an abstract that begins "Based on the number of providers awarded incentive payments, participation in the Department of Health and Human Services' (HHS) Medicare and Medicaid Electronic Health Record (EHR) programs increased substantially from their first year in 2011 to 2012. For hospitals, participation increased from 45 percent of those eligible for 2011 to 64 percent of those eligible for 2012. For professionals, such as physicians, participation increased from 21 percent of those eligible for 2011 to 48 percent of those eligible for 2012. While increases occurred, a substantial percentage of providers that participated in 2011 did not participate in 2012. Officials who oversee the programs at the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) noted there could be several reasons for this, such as challenges in demonstrating meaningful use, and are monitoring the issue. Various program changes make future participation difficult to estimate. For example, increased stringency of requirements for the programs' second phase beginning in 2014—Stage 2—may slow participation, while the introduction of penalties in 2015 for some providers may motivate participation."

A letter report issued by the Government Accountability Office with an abstract that begins "The Department of Education (Education) relies on collection agencies to assist borrowers in rehabilitating defaulted student loans, which allows borrowers who make nine on-time monthly payments within 10 months to have the default removed from their credit reports. Education works with 22 collection agencies to locate borrowers and explain repayment options, including rehabilitation. From fiscal years 2011 to 2013, Education collected about $9 billion on over 1.5 million loans through rehabilitation, most of which was recovered by collection agencies."

A letter report issued by the Government Accountability Office with an abstract that begins "Two U.S. agencies—the Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC) and the National Nuclear Security Administration (NNSA)—have several ongoing efforts, both in the United States and internationally, to secure radiological sources that could be used to make a terrorist weapon. These efforts include strengthening regulatory requirements, upgrading security, and recovering unwanted or abandoned radiological sources. Domestically, NRC has worked to strengthen regulatory requirements to provide reasonable assurance that U.S. licensees protect high-risk radiological sources. In addition, at the request of licensees, NNSA provides voluntary security upgrades designed to raise security to a level above existing regulatory requirements, consistent with best practices that NNSA has identified. These upgrades include, for example, motion sensors and alarms that are tracked by staff at remote monitoring centers. Internationally, NRC has spent about $12 million since 2002 to help countries establish and strengthen their regulatory frameworks. From fiscal year 2008 through March 2013, NNSA has spent about $304 million to help remove or secure radiological sources in foreign locations. However, NNSA officials said that applying the highest standards and best practices used for domestic security upgrades may not be feasible in some other countries, …

A letter report issued by the Government Accountability Office with an abstract that begins "All the nuclear regulatory bodies in the 16 selected countries in GAO's review—13 of which currently operate nuclear power reactors and 3 of which are developing or considering developing civilian nuclear power programs—have taken steps to strengthen nuclear safety in response to the Fukushima Daiichi accident in Japan. Japan in particular has fundamentally restructured its nuclear regulatory framework, and 3 other countries—China, Sweden, and Vietnam—are providing additional resources to their nuclear regulatory bodies. Countries are taking steps to improve safety with a focus on considering previously unimagined accident scenarios. Specifically, regulatory bodies in several countries (e.g., Belgium, Canada, Russia, and the United States) are now planning for accident scenarios that could involve multiple reactors at a single power plant. In addition, new requirements for emergency equipment, such as backup electric generators, in case of the loss of off-site power, as occurred at the Fukushima Daiichi nuclear power plant, are an area of focus among the regulatory bodies in GAO's review."

A letter report issued by the Government Accountability Office with an abstract that begins "The Small Business Administration (SBA) has established lending standards to protect against default and has measured program performance, but lacks guidance on determining the number of jobs supported by 504 program-funded projects. SBA's guidance for certified development companies (CDC)—nonprofits that provide funding to small businesses to promote local economic development in their communities and are certified by SBA—includes credit underwriting standards for determining ability to repay. SBA also has established performance indicators—such as the number of small businesses assisted and jobs supported—for the 504 loan program. However, SBA does not describe how CDCs should calculate jobs created and retained by 504 projects, a key program requirement. Federal internal control standards require control activities that help participants report information accurately. Without specific guidance, SBA cannot ensure that CDCs are calculating this information consistently or accurately. GAO's analysis of SBA data showed that 504 loans approved in fiscal years 2006 through 2008 had the highest 18-month default rates, which correlated with trends in the private sector for commercial real estate loans."

A letter report issued by the Government Accountability Office with an abstract that begins "The Veterans Millennium Health Care and Benefits Act (Millennium Act) authorizes the Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) to cover emergency care for conditions not related to veterans' service-connected disabilities when veterans who have no other health plan coverage receive care at non-VA providers. However, GAO identified a number of instances where VA staff who processed claims did not comply with applicable requirements of the Millennium Act, its implementing regulations, or VA policies when they denied the claims. Specifically, at the four VA facilities included in this review, GAO found 66 instances of noncompliance among the 128 denied claims reviewed, which led some claims to be inappropriately denied. VA facilities subsequently reconsidered and paid 25 of these claims. GAO also found that VA facilities may not be notifying veterans as required that their Millennium Act claims have been denied. Eighty-three claims out of 128 that GAO reviewed lacked documentation that the veteran was notified of the denial or of his or her appeal rights. These findings suggest that veterans whose claims have been inappropriately denied may have been held financially liable for emergency care that VA should …

A letter report issued by the Government Accountability Office with an abstract that begins "The TRICARE Management Activity (TMA) within the Department of Defense (DOD) used the acquisition process prescribed by federal regulations to acquire health care services for the TRICARE Program through the third generation of TRICARE's managed care support contracts (MCSC). This process included a three-phased contract award process outlined in the figure below."

A letter report issued by the Government Accountability Office with an abstract that begins "The Medicare competitive bidding program (CBP) for durable medical equipment (DME) is administered by the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) within the Department of Health and Human Services. Under the CBP, only competitively selected contract suppliers can furnish certain DME product categories (such as oxygen supplies and hospital beds) at competitively determined prices to Medicare beneficiaries in designated competitive bidding areas. The CBP's round 1 rebid was in effect for a 3-year period, from 2011 through 2013. It included nine DME product categories in nine geographic areas. For CBP monitoring purposes, CMS also selected nine comparator areas that were demographically similar to the rebid areas. GAO's analysis found that in 2012, the second year of the round 1 rebid:"

A letter report issued by the Government Accountability Office with an abstract that begins "Using data from multiple sources, GAO determined that 675 of 708 Department of State (State) personnel and all 143 U.S. Agency for International Development (USAID) personnel on assignments longer than 6 months (assigned personnel) in the designated high-threat countries on March 31, 2013, were in compliance with the Foreign Affairs Counter Threat (FACT) training requirement. GAO found that the remaining 33 State assigned personnel on such assignments had not complied with the mandatory requirement. For State and USAID personnel on temporary duty of 6 months or less (short-term TDY personnel), GAO was unable to assess compliance because of gaps in State's data. State does not systematically maintain data on the universe of U.S. personnel on short-term TDY status to designated high-threat countries who were required to complete FACT training. This is because State lacks a mechanism for identifying those who are subject to the training requirement. These data gaps prevent State or an independent reviewer from assessing compliance with the FACT training requirement among short-term TDY personnel. According to Standards for Internal Control in the Federal Government , program managers need operating information to determine whether …

A letter report issued by the Government Accountability Office with an abstract that begins "Joint Professional Military Education (JPME) research institutions, particularly at the National Defense University, experienced growth in number, funding, and size in terms of staffing levels from fiscal year (FY) 2007 through FY 2011, but the number of institutions as well as funding and staffing levels declined over the past 2 years. For example, total funding for JPME research institutions increased from $30.8 million in FY 2007 to $47.7 million in FY 2011, but subsequently decreased to $40.6 million in FY 2013. GAO identified several factors that contributed to these institutions' growth, including increases in funding provided by outside organizations for research and the creation of new research institutions. Department of Defense (DOD) officials reported that DOD-wide budget reductions, including the effects of sequestration, contributed to decreases in the number, size, and funding for JPME research institutions."

A letter report issued by the Government Accountability Office with an abstract that begins "In 2007, GAO found that agencies had conducted more retrospective reviews of the costs and benefits of existing regulation than was readily apparent, especially to the public. Requirements in statutes or executive directives were sometimes the impetus for reviews, but agencies more often conducted these retrospective reviews based on their own discretionary authorities. Agencies reported that discretionary reviews more often generated actions, such as amending regulations or changes to guidance. GAO also found that multiple factors, such as data limitations and lack of transparency, impeded agencies' reviews. GAO made 7 recommendations in 2007 to improve the effectiveness and transparency of retrospective regulatory reviews. Among GAO's recommendations were: minimum standards for documenting and reporting completed review results; including public input as a factor in regulatory review decisions; and consideration of how agencies will measure the performance of new regulations. In 2011 and 2012, the administration issued new directives to agencies on how they should plan and conduct analyses of existing regulations that addressed each of GAO's recommendations."

Testimony issued by the Government Accountability Office with an abstract that begins "GAO's fiscal year (FY) 2015 budget request of $525.1 million seeks an increase of 3.9 percent to maintain staff capacity as well as continue necessary maintenance and improvements to our information technology (IT) and building infrastructure. Additionally, receipts and reimbursements, primarily from program and financial audits, and rental income, totaling $30.9 million are expected in FY 2015."

Testimony issued by the Government Accountability Office with an abstract that begins "The Department of Homeland Security's (DHS) U.S. Customs and Border Protection's (CBP) schedules and Life-cycle Cost Estimates for the Arizona Border Surveillance Technology Plan (the Plan) reflect some, but not all, best practices. Scheduling best practices are summarized into four characteristics of reliable schedules—comprehensive, well constructed, credible, and controlled (i.e., schedules are periodically updated and progress is monitored). GAO assessed CBP's schedules as of March 2013 for the three highest-cost programs that represent 97 percent of the Plan's estimated cost. GAO found that schedules for two of the programs at least partially met each characteristic (i.e., satisfied about half of the criterion), and the schedule for the other program at least minimally met each characteristic (i.e., satisfied a small portion of the criterion), as shown in the table below. For example, the schedule for one of the Plan's programs partially met the characteristic of being credible in that CBP had performed a schedule risk analysis for the program, but the risk analysis was not based on any connection between risks and specific activities. For another program, the schedule minimally met the characteristic of being controlled in that it …