A letter report issued by the General Accounting Office with an abstract that begins "The Tennessee Valley Authority (TVA) relied on its 11 coal-burning plants to supply 60 percent of its electric power in fiscal year 2001. These plants account for almost all of TVA's emissions of two key air pollutants--sulfur dioxide (SO2), which has been linked to reduced visibility, and nitrogen oxides (NOx), which contribute to the formation of harmful ozone. To meet an increase in demand of 1.7 percent annually through 2010, TVA estimates that it will need to expand its current generating capacity of 30,365 megawatts by 500 megawatts annually. Building new generating capacity can produce more emissions, which raises environment concerns. To lessen the need for new capacity, TVA and other electricity suppliers promote the efficient use of electricity through "demand-side management" programs, which seek to reduce the amount of energy consumed or to change the time of day when it is consumed. Even though TVA intends to increase its capacity to generate electricity through 2005, it also expects to reduce its SO2 and NOx emissions during the same time period, primarily by burning lower-sulfur coal, installing devices to control emissions at its existing plants, and …

Testimony issued by the General Accounting Office with an abstract that begins "This testimony focuses on the Alternative Minimum Tax (AMT), its interaction with the regular tax system, and its projected growth in coverage. GAO found that (1) AMT was designed to ensure that high-income individuals do not avoid significant income tax liabilities--for tax year 1997, about 14,000 taxpayers would not have paid any income taxes absent AMT, (2) AMT operates as a separate tax system that parallels the regular individual income tax system but with different rules for determining taxable income, different tax rates for computing tax liability, and different rules for allowing the use of tax credits, (3) AMT affected about one percent of taxpayers in 2000 and accounted for about $5.8 billion in additional tax revenue; by 2010, it is expected to increase the tax liabilities of about one out of six taxpayers and account for about $189 billion in tax revenues over the period, (4) the projected increase in AMT coverage is, for the most part, attributable to inflation and to the scheduled expiration of legislation temporarily excluding some tax credits from AMT rules, and (5) AMT's impacts include increased taxpayer compliance burden; increased Internal Revenue …

A chapter report issued by the General Accounting Office with an abstract that begins "This report examines how best practices offer improvements to the way the Department of Defense defines and matches weapon system requirements to available resources such as cost, schedule, and mature technologies. GAO identified three factors that were key to matching needs and resources before product development began. First, developers employed the technique of systems engineering to identify gaps between resources and customer needs before committing to a new product development. Second, customers and developers were flexible. Leeway existed to reduce or defer customer needs to future programs or for the developer to make an investment to increase knowledge about a technology or design feature before beginning product development. Third, the roles and responsibilities of the customer and the product developer were matched, with the product developer being able to determine or significantly influence product requirements. In cases where these factors were not present at program launch, product development began without a match between requirements and resources. Invariably, this imbalance favored meeting customer needs by adding resources, which resulted in increased costs and later deliveries."

Other written product issued by the General Accounting Office with an abstract that begins "Pursuant to a legislative requirement, GAO reviewed the Bureau of Indian Affairs' (BIA) new rule on the distribution of fiscal year (FY) 2000 Indian Reservation Roads Funds. GAO noted that: (1) the new rule is published as a temporary one and requires distribution of one-half of the FY 2000 Indian Reservation Roads funds to projects on or near Indian reservations using the Relative Need Formula adopted in 1993; and (2) BIA complied with the applicable requirements in promulgating the rule."

A letter report issued by the General Accounting Office with an abstract that begins "The Bureau of Land Management's (BLM) Mining Law Administration Program (MLAP) is responsible for managing the environmentally responsible exploration and development of locatable minerals on public lands. The program is funded through mining fees collected from the holders of unpatented mining claims and sites and by appropriations to the extent that fees are inadequate to fund the program. Congress and program managers need accurate cost information in order to make informed program and budgeting decisions. However, GAO found that BLM's financial records did not accurately reflect the true costs of its programs because the costs of labor and a number of contracts and services costs were charged to MLAP and not to the appropriate program. As a result, other subactivities benefited from the charging of these improper costs and fewer funds have been available for actual MLAP operations. BLM has taken steps to make correcting adjustments for improper charges to MLAP contracts and services; however, additional adjustments are needed to correct for labor costs that were improperly charged to MLAP. Until these adjustments for improperly charged labor are made, Congress and program managers can place only …

Testimony issued by the General Accounting Office with an abstract that begins "Pursuant to a congressional request, GAO discussed its recent report on the management of federal medical stockpiles that would be used to treat civilians in a chemical or biological terrorist attack."

A statement of record issued by the General Accounting Office with an abstract that begins "Pursuant to a congressional request, GAO discussed the Navy and Marine Corps Intranet effort, focusing on whether the: (1) the Navy acquisition approach and implementation plan are based on appropriate analyses, resolution of key issues, and adequate risk management activities; and (2) Office of the Secretary of Defense is overseeing that effort with adequate review of relevant Navy analyses and other program activities to ensure that system interoperability and information assurance safeguards are implemented."

Correspondence issued by the General Accounting Office with an abstract that begins "Under the Federal Acquisition Regulation and the Department of Energy's (DOE) acquisition regulations, DOE can reimburse its contractors for reasonable legal costs associated with cases brought against them in such matters as equal opportunity employment, radiation and toxic exposure, personal injury, and wrongful discharge. Such costs are not reimbursable if there is liability related to the contractor's willful misconduct, lack of good faith, or failure to exercise prudent business judgment. In practice, DOE reimburses its contractors for most of the legal costs. From fiscal year 1995 through the third quarter of fiscal year 2001, there have been more than 2,100 cases and DOE has reimbursed its contractors more than $290 million for associated litigation and disposition costs. The contractors have spent $13 million in their defense. In the same time period, there have been nearly 400 equal employment opportunity cases for which DOE reimbursed its contractors $53 million. The contractors spent $2 million."

Correspondence issued by the General Accounting Office with an abstract that begins "Pursuant to a congressional request, GAO reviewed several evaluations of the Even Start Family Literacy Program's effectiveness, focusing on how the Even Start program has performed in terms of preparing children for school."

A letter report issued by the General Accounting Office with an abstract that begins "GAO reviewed the Farm Credit Administration's (FCA) regulation of the Farm Credit System (System) to ensure compliance with its statutory mission to serve young, beginning, and small farmers (YBS). FCA has issued YBS-related policies and guidance, designed and implemented a YBS examination protocol, and examined institutions for compliance with YBS requirements. However, FCA has not promulgated regulations to define standards and clarify what constitutes an acceptable YBS program. GAO also found that FCA failed to follow examination procedures and document examination conclusions in the YBS program. Slightly more than half of the institutions in the System had a YBS program or service in place. Nearly one third had set numerical goals for YBS service, although most were not conducting demographic studies. Half had YBS marketing and outreach efforts in place, and most were coordinating their YBS offerings with federal, state, or other governmental or private credit sources."

Other written product issued by the General Accounting Office with an abstract that begins "Pursuant to a legislative requirement, GAO reviewed the Federal Emergency Management Agency's (FEMA) interim rule on property acquisition and relocation grants in the wake of Hurricane Floyd. GAO noted that: (1) the interim final rule provides guidance on the administration of grants of $215 million for the acquisition and relocation of properties affected by Hurricane Floyd and surrounding events for hazard mitigation purposes; and (2) FEMA complied with applicable requirements in promulgating the rule."

A letter report issued by the General Accounting Office with an abstract that begins "The number of women participating in intercollegiate athletics at four-year colleges and universities increased substantially between school years 1981-82 and 1998-99, while the number of men participating increased more modestly. The total number of women's teams increased by 3,784 teams, compared to an increase of 36 men's teams. In all, 963 schools added teams and 307 discontinued teams since 1992-93. The two factors cited most often as greatly influencing the decision to add or discontinue teams were the need to address student interest in particular sports and the need to meet gender equity goals and requirements. Schools that discontinued men's teams also found the need to reallocate the athletic budget to other sports. Colleges and universities that discontinued a team typically took three months or less between originating the proposal and making the final decision. Most schools informed members of the campus community of the possibility that the team would be discontinued, and most held meetings with campus groups before making the final decision. Most schools offered to help affected athletes transfer to other schools, and students receiving athletics-related financial aid continued to receive financial aid …

Testimony issued by the General Accounting Office with an abstract that begins "Pursuant to a congressional request, GAO discussed the challenges the Federal Transit Administration (FTA) faces in evaluating and overseeing proposed mass transit construction projects, focusing on: (1) FTA's process for evaluating proposed transit projects; (2) FTA's oversight of transit projects under construction; (3) the ever-increasing competition for federal transit construction dollars; and (4) the costs, schedules, and financing of six ongoing transit projects."

A letter report issued by the General Accounting Office with an abstract that begins "To help military families adapt and function effectively in military life, the Department of Defense (DOD) funds a wide variety of personnel and family support programs. These programs use a combination of direct assistance and information and referral to help with crises, deployments, moves, child care, personal financial management, parenting, and transition out of the service. To efficiently distribute funds to those with the greatest need, DOD requires each service to assess the needs of military personnel and their families and their use of family support programs. This report examines (1) how the Air Force determines the needs of its military families, (2) what type of information about military family needs the Air Force obtains, and (3) how information from needs assessments affects the allocation of funding for Air Force family support programs. GAO found that the Air Force assesses the needs of its personnel every two years using a random sample survey. However, the Air Force process does not meet other DOD criteria generally recognized as important for needs assessments, including the use of benchmarks to determine if needs have changed or emerged. Additionally, the …

Testimony issued by the General Accounting Office with an abstract that begins "Pursuant to a congressional request, GAO discussed the Department of Defense's 1999 Survey of Active Duty Personnel, focusing on: (1) military personnel's satisfaction with military life and the aspects of military life that influence decisions to stay in or leave; (2) the extent to which military personnel are working long hours and spending time away from home; and (3) the personal financial conditions reported by military personnel."

A letter report issued by the General Accounting Office with an abstract that begins "Pursuant to a congressional request, GAO described the Department of State's Overseas Emergency Security Program, focusing on: (1) progress that State has made in implementing the program funded by the emergency supplemental appropriations and the challenges State faces in completing the program; and (2) State's long-term capital construction program and its response to a study on overseas presence in follow-on reports."

Testimony issued by the General Accounting Office with an abstract that begins "Pursuant to a congressional request, GAO discussed the Department of State's fiscal year (FY) 2001 budget, focusing on the management challenges that State faces in improving its operations in four areas."

A letter report issued by the General Accounting Office with an abstract that begins "The U.S. Office of Special Counsel has not been consistently processing cases within statutory time limits, creating backlogs. Because the backlogs are of concern to the Congress, this report provides information on how many cases were processed within statutory time limits, the actions taken by OSC to address case processing delays and backlog, and the agency's perspective on the adequacy of its resources and our analysis of this perspective."

A letter report issued by the Government Accountability Office with an abstract that begins "Since enactment of the Water Resources Development Act of 2007, 49 project studies have undergone peer review but it is unclear how many were performed in response to section 2034 requirements because the Army Corps of Engineers (Corps) does not make specific determinations or track if a peer review is being conducted under section 2034. In February 2011, in response to section 2034, the Corps submitted its initial report to Congress summarizing its implementation of the peer review process. In its report, however, the Corps did not distinguish which studies had been selected for peer review in accordance with section 2034 and therefore, did not provide Congress information that would help decision makers evaluate the requirements of section 2034 at the end of the trial period."

A letter report issued by the Government Accountability Office with an abstract that begins "While repayments, dividends, and interest from institutions participating in the Capital Purchase Program (CPP) have exceeded the program’s original investment disbursements, the number of missed payments has increased over the life of the program. As of January 31, 2012, the Department of the Treasury (Treasury) had received $211.5 billion from its CPP investments, exceeding the $204.9 billion it had disbursed. Of that amount, $16.7 billion remains outstanding, and most of these investments were concentrated in a relatively small number of institutions. In particular, as of January 31, 2012, 25 institutions accounted for $11.2 billion, or 67 percent, of outstanding investments. As of November 30, 2011, Treasury estimated that CPP would have a lifetime income of $13.5 billion after all institutions exited the program. As of January 31, 2012, 341 institutions had exited CPP, almost half by repaying CPP with funds from other federal programs. Institutions continue to exit CPP, but the number of institutions missing scheduled dividend or interest payments has increased. For example, as of November 30, 2011, the number of institutions that had missed their quarterly payments rose to 158, a marked increase from …

Testimony issued by the Government Accountability Office with an abstract that begins "The Coast Guard's Deepwater program is a 25-year, $24 billion plan to replace or modernize its fleet of vessels and aircraft. While there is widespread acknowledgment that many of the Coast Guard's aging assets need replacement or renovation, concerns exist about the acquisition approach the Coast Guard adopted in launching the Deepwater program. From the outset, GAO has expressed concern about the risks involved with the Coast Guard's acquisition strategy, and continues to review Deepwater program management. This statement discusses (1) the Coast Guard's acquisition approach for the Deepwater program; (2) Coast Guard efforts to manage the program, hold contractors accountable, and control costs through competition; (3) the status of the Coast Guard's efforts to acquire new or upgraded Deepwater assets; and (4) operational challenges the Coast Guard is facing because of performance and design problems with Deepwater patrol boats."

A letter report issued by the Government Accountability Office with an abstract that begins "Pursuant to various statutes, federal agencies develop an abundance of performance, budget, and financial information that could be useful for Congress' review and monitoring of agencies. However, agencies' understanding of Congress' information needs is often limited and agencies may not be providing timely information in a format that aids congressional understanding of trends and issues. Thus, Members and their staff may not be aware of or avail themselves to certain information. To describe the information available and how it might be used to support congressional oversight, the Federal Aviation Administration was selected as a case study in part due to the large quantity of information already available. GAO was asked to identify: (1) information FAA produces that could enhance congressional oversight, (2) other technology and information resources that could enhance congressional oversight, and (3) how committee access to FAA's information could be improved to enhance its timeliness and usefulness."

Correspondence issued by the Government Accountability Office with an abstract that begins "For many years, the Department of Defense (DOD) has been attempting to improve visibility over its inventory and equipment. The lack of visibility over inventory and equipment shipments increases vulnerability to undetected loss or theft and substantially heightens the risk that millions of dollars will be spent unnecessarily. Additionally, needed supplies may not reach the warfighter when needed, which may impair readiness. In order to improve visibility, DOD began using a technology to enable it to track shipments. This technology is known as radio frequency identification (RFID). RFID technology consists of active or passive electronic tags that are attached to equipment and supplies that are shipped from one location to another. This technology is part of a family of automatic information technologies used to enable hands-off identification of cargo and inventory. This report focuses on active RFID tags, which cost around $100 each and are reusable. DOD has been using active RFID technology since the early 1990s to help with in-transit visibility of shipments, and, as of January 2005, it officially began to implement the use of passive RFID. During the course of our work on the use …

Testimony issued by the Government Accountability Office with an abstract that begins "In March 2011 and February 2012, GAO reported on 6 areas where the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) or Congress could take action to reduce overlap and potential unnecessary duplication, and 9 areas to achieve cost-savings. Of the 22 actions GAO suggested be taken in March 2011 to address such issues, 2 were fully implemented, 14 were partially implemented, and 6 have not been addressed. GAO’s February 2012 report identified 18 additional actions to address overlap, potential duplication, and costs savings."