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Russian Nuclear Submarines: U.S. Participation in the Arctic Military Environmental Cooperation Program Needs Better Justification (open access)

Russian Nuclear Submarines: U.S. Participation in the Arctic Military Environmental Cooperation Program Needs Better Justification

A letter report issued by the Government Accountability Office with an abstract that begins "Norway, Russia, the United Kingdom, and the United States participate in the Arctic Military Environmental Cooperation (AMEC) program, a multilateral effort that seeks to reduce the environmental impacts of Russia's military activities through technology development projects. AMEC has primarily focused on Russia's aging fleet of nuclear submarines. Section 324 of the National Defense Authorization Act for Fiscal Year 2004 required GAO to review AMEC, including its relationship to the Department of Defense's (DOD) Cooperative Threat Reduction (CTR) program. In accordance with the act, GAO (1) assessed the extent to which AMEC supports and complements the CTR program, (2) identified AMEC member countries' financial contributions to the program, (3) assessed AMEC's future program objectives, and (4) evaluated DOD's proposal to expand its technology development activities to Russia's Pacific region."
Date: September 9, 2004
Creator: United States. Government Accountability Office.
Object Type: Report
System: The UNT Digital Library
Affordable Housing in Transit-Oriented Development: Key Practices Could Enhance Recent Collaboration Efforts between DOT-FTA and HUD (open access)

Affordable Housing in Transit-Oriented Development: Key Practices Could Enhance Recent Collaboration Efforts between DOT-FTA and HUD

A letter report issued by the Government Accountability Office with an abstract that begins "The federal government has increasingly focused on linking affordable housing to transit-oriented developments--compact, walkable, mixed-use neighborhoods located near transit--through the Department of Housing and Urban Development's (HUD) housing programs and the Department of Transportation's (DOT) Federal Transit Administration's (FTA) transit programs. GAO was asked to review (1) what is known about how transit-oriented developments affect the availability of affordable housing; (2) how local, state, and federal agencies have worked to ensure that affordable housing is available in transit-oriented developments; and (3) the extent to which HUD and FTA have worked together to ensure that transportation and affordable housing objectives are integrated in transit-oriented developments. To address these issues, GAO reviewed relevant literature, conducted site visits, and interviewed agency officials."
Date: September 9, 2009
Creator: United States. Government Accountability Office.
Object Type: Report
System: The UNT Digital Library
Business Modernization: Some Progress Made toward Implementing GAO Recommendations Related to NASA's Integrated Financial Management Program (open access)

Business Modernization: Some Progress Made toward Implementing GAO Recommendations Related to NASA's Integrated Financial Management Program

Correspondence issued by the Government Accountability Office with an abstract that begins "As we and others have reported in the past, the National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) has fundamental problems with its financial management operations that undermine its external financial reporting ability and thwart its efforts to effectively manage and oversee its major programs. In April 2000, NASA began addressing many of its financial and management challenges through its effort to implement a new integrated financial management system, known as the Integrated Financial Management Program (IFMP), which NASA expects to complete in fiscal year 2008. However, in April and November 2003--3 years into the IFMP implementation effort and with significant investment already made in the program--we issued a series of four reports that detailed weaknesses in NASA's acquisition and implementation strategy for IFMP. Specifically, we reported that NASA had not followed key best practices for acquiring and implementing IFMP and, therefore, was at risk of making a substantial investment in a financial management system that would fall far short of its stated goal of providing meaningful, reliable, and timely information to support effective day-to-day program management and external financial reporting. As part of the four reports we issued on …
Date: September 9, 2005
Creator: United States. Government Accountability Office.
Object Type: Text
System: The UNT Digital Library
Secure Border Initiative: Technology Deployment Delays Persist and the Impact of Border Fencing Has Not Been Assessed (open access)

Secure Border Initiative: Technology Deployment Delays Persist and the Impact of Border Fencing Has Not Been Assessed

A letter report issued by the Government Accountability Office with an abstract that begins "Securing the nation's borders from illegal entry of aliens and contraband, including terrorists and weapons of mass destruction, continues to be a major challenge. In November 2005, the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) announced the launch of the Secure Border Initiative (SBI), a multiyear, multibillion dollar program aimed at securing U.S. borders and reducing illegal immigration. Within DHS, U.S. Custom and Border Protection's (CBP) SBI program is responsible for developing a comprehensive border protection system using technology, known as SBInet, and tactical infrastructure--fencing, roads, and lighting. GAO was asked to provide periodic updates on the status of the program. This report addresses (1) the extent to which CBP has implemented SBInet and the impact of delays that have occurred, and (2) the extent to which CBP has deployed tactical infrastructure and assessed its results. To do this work, GAO reviewed program schedules, status reports, and previous GAO work; interviewed DHS and CBP officials, among others; and visited three SBI sites where initial technology or fencing had been deployed at the time of GAO's review."
Date: September 9, 2009
Creator: United States. Government Accountability Office.
Object Type: Report
System: The UNT Digital Library
Medicaid: Fraud and Abuse Related to Controlled Substances Identified in Selected States (open access)

Medicaid: Fraud and Abuse Related to Controlled Substances Identified in Selected States

A letter report issued by the Government Accountability Office with an abstract that begins "One significant cost to Medicaid is prescription drugs, which accounted for over $23 billion in fiscal year (FY) 2008, or about 7 percent of total Medicaid outlays. Many of these drugs are susceptible to abuse and include pain relievers and stimulants that are on the Drug Enforcement Administration's (DEA) Schedule of Controlled Substances. As part of the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009 (ARRA), the Medicaid program will receive about $87 billion in federal assistance based on a greater federal share of Medicaid spending. GAO was asked to determine (1) whether there are indications of fraud and abuse related to controlled substances paid for by Medicaid; (2) if so, examples of fraudulent, improper, and abusive activity; and (3) the effectiveness of internal controls that the federal government and selected states have in place to prevent fraud and abuse related to controlled substances. To meet these objectives, GAO analyzed Medicaid controlled substance claims for fraud and abuse indications for FY 2006 and 2007 from five selected states. GAO also interviewed federal and state officials and performed investigations."
Date: September 9, 2009
Creator: United States. Government Accountability Office.
Object Type: Report
System: The UNT Digital Library
File-Sharing Programs: Users of Peer-to-Peer Networks Can Readily Access Child Pornography (open access)

File-Sharing Programs: Users of Peer-to-Peer Networks Can Readily Access Child Pornography

Testimony issued by the General Accounting Office with an abstract that begins "The availability of child pornography has dramatically increased in recent years as it has migrated from printed material to the World Wide Web, becoming accessible through Web sites, chatrooms, newsgroups, and now the increasingly popular peer-to-peer file sharing programs. These programs enable direct communication between users, allowing users to access each other's files and share digital music, images, and video. GAO was requested to determine the ease of access to child pornography on peer-to-peer networks; the risk of inadvertent exposure of juvenile users of peer-to-peer networks to pornography, including child pornography; and the extent of federal law enforcement resources available for combating child pornography on peer-to-peer networks. Today's testimony is based on GAO's report on the results of that work (GAO- 03-351), Because child pornography cannot be accessed legally other than by law enforcement agencies, GAO worked with the Customs Cyber-Smuggling Center in performing searches: Customs downloaded and analyzed image files, and GAO performed analyses based on keywords and file names only."
Date: September 9, 2003
Creator: United States. General Accounting Office.
Object Type: Text
System: The UNT Digital Library
Wildland Fire Management: Federal Agencies Have Taken Important Steps Forward, but Additional, Strategic Action is Needed to Capitalize on Those Steps (open access)

Wildland Fire Management: Federal Agencies Have Taken Important Steps Forward, but Additional, Strategic Action is Needed to Capitalize on Those Steps

A letter report issued by the Government Accountability Office with an abstract that begins "The nation's wildland fire problems have worsened dramatically over the past decade, with more than a doubling of average annual acreage burned and federal appropriations for wildland fire management. The deteriorating fire situation has led the agencies responsible for managing wildland fires on federal lands--the Forest Service in the Department of Agriculture and four agencies in the Department of the Interior--to reassess how they respond to wildland fire and to take steps to improve their fire management programs. GAO reviewed (1) progress the agencies have made in managing wildland fire and (2) key actions GAO previously recommended and believes are still necessary to improve wildland fire management. GAO reviewed previous GAO reports and agency documents and interviewed agency officials. GAO prepared this report under the Comptroller General's authority to conduct evaluations on his own initiative."
Date: September 9, 2009
Creator: United States. Government Accountability Office.
Object Type: Report
System: The UNT Digital Library
Department of Energy: Additional Opportunities Exist for Reducing Laboratory Contractors' Support Costs (open access)

Department of Energy: Additional Opportunities Exist for Reducing Laboratory Contractors' Support Costs

A letter report issued by the Government Accountability Office with an abstract that begins "In fiscal year 2004, about two-thirds of the Department of Energy's (DOE) $26.9 billion in spending went to 28 major facilities--laboratories, production and test facilities, and nuclear waste cleanup and storage facilities. DOE spent about $2.9 billion in fiscal year 2004 to support the mission of its five largest laboratories. GAO was asked to examine (1) recent trends in indirect and functional support cost rates for these five laboratories, noting key differences in how contractors classify costs, and (2) the efforts of DOE and its contractors to reduce indirect and other support costs and identify additional opportunities for savings."
Date: September 9, 2005
Creator: United States. Government Accountability Office.
Object Type: Report
System: The UNT Digital Library
School Meal Programs: Improved Reviews, Federal Guidance, and Data Collection Needed to Address Counting and Claiming Errors (open access)

School Meal Programs: Improved Reviews, Federal Guidance, and Data Collection Needed to Address Counting and Claiming Errors

A letter report issued by the Government Accountability Office with an abstract that begins "In fiscal year 2008, the National School Lunch Program and School Breakfast Program provided meals to 30.9 million and 10.5 million children, respectively. Recently, the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) issued the first estimate of improper payments due to meal counting and claiming errors in these programs, which was approximately $860 million (8.6 percent of federal program reimbursements) in school year 2005-2006. These errors include: (1) cashier errors, such as those made in determining if a meal meets the federal menu planning and nutrition requirements (meal counting), and (2) aggregation errors made when officials count and total meals for federal reimbursement (meal claiming). GAO was asked to review (1) actions taken by states and school food authorities (SFA) to identify and address meal counting and claiming errors; and (2) actions taken by USDA to help states and SFAs identify and address meal counting and claiming errors. GAO's steps included analyzing data on state administrative reviews of SFAs; surveying all states; conducting site visits; and interviewing federal, state, and SFA officials."
Date: September 9, 2009
Creator: United States. Government Accountability Office.
Object Type: Report
System: The UNT Digital Library
Critical Infrastructure Protection: DHS Needs to Fully Address Lessons Learned from Its First Cyber Storm Exercise (open access)

Critical Infrastructure Protection: DHS Needs to Fully Address Lessons Learned from Its First Cyber Storm Exercise

A letter report issued by the Government Accountability Office with an abstract that begins "Federal policies establish the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) as the focal point for the security of cyberspace. As part of its responsibilities, DHS is required to coordinate cyber attack exercises to strengthen public and private incident response capabilities. One major exercise program, called Cyber Storm, is a large-scale simulation of multiple concurrent cyber attacks involving the federal government, states, foreign governments, and private industry. To date, DHS has conducted Cyber Storm exercises in 2006 and 2008. GAO agreed to (1) identify the lessons that DHS learned from the first Cyber Storm exercise, (2) assess DHS's efforts to address the lessons learned from this exercise, and (3) identify key participants' views of their experiences during the second Cyber Storm exercise. To do so, GAO evaluated documentation of corrective activities and interviewed federal, state, and private sector officials."
Date: September 9, 2008
Creator: United States. Government Accountability Office.
Object Type: Report
System: The UNT Digital Library
Passenger Rail Security: Enhanced Federal Leadership Needed to Prioritize and Guide Security Efforts (open access)

Passenger Rail Security: Enhanced Federal Leadership Needed to Prioritize and Guide Security Efforts

A letter report issued by the Government Accountability Office with an abstract that begins "The U.S. passenger rail system is a vital component of the nation's transportation infrastructure, carrying more than 11 million passengers each weekday. The Department of Homeland Security (DHS) and the Department of Transportation (DOT) share responsibility for ensuring the safety and security of rail systems. In this report, GAO addressed (1) DHS actions to assess the risks to the U.S. passenger rail system in the context of prevailing risk management principles, (2) federal actions taken to enhance the security of the U.S. passenger rail system, and (3) security practices that domestic and selected foreign passenger rail operators have implemented."
Date: September 9, 2005
Creator: United States. Government Accountability Office.
Object Type: Report
System: The UNT Digital Library
Information Security: Actions Needed to Better Protect Los Alamos National Laboratory's Unclassified Computer Network (open access)

Information Security: Actions Needed to Better Protect Los Alamos National Laboratory's Unclassified Computer Network

A letter report issued by the Government Accountability Office with an abstract that begins "The Los Alamos National Laboratory (LANL), which is operated by the National Nuclear Security Administration (NNSA), has experienced security lapses protecting information on its unclassified computer network. The unclassified network contains sensitive information. GAO (1) assessed the effectiveness of the security controls LANL has in place to protect information transmitted over its unclassified computer network, (2) assessed whether LANL had implemented an information security program for its unclassified network, and (3) examined expenditures to protect LANL's unclassified network from fiscal years 2001 through 2007. To carry out its work, GAO examined security policies and procedures and reviewed the laboratory's access controls for protecting information on the unclassified network."
Date: September 9, 2008
Creator: United States. Government Accountability Office.
Object Type: Report
System: The UNT Digital Library
Overview of the Long-Term Care Partnership Program (open access)

Overview of the Long-Term Care Partnership Program

Correspondence issued by the Government Accountability Office with an abstract that begins "In 2003, the most recent year for which data are available, national spending on long-term care totaled $183 billion, and nearly half of that was paid for by the Medicaid program, the joint federal-state health care financing program that covers basic health and long-term care services for certain low-income individuals. Private insurance paid a small portion of long-term care expenditures--about $16 billion or 9 percent in 2003. With the aging of the baby boom generation, long-term care expenditures are anticipated to increase sharply in coming decades. The projected spending on long-term care presents a looming fiscal challenge for federal and state governments. As a result, some policymakers are looking for ways to reduce the proportion of long-term care spending financed by Medicaid and promote private insurance as a larger funding source. The Long-Term Care Partnership Program is a public-private partnership between states and private insurance companies, designed to reduce Medicaid expenditures by delaying or eliminating the need for some people to rely on Medicaid to pay for long-term care services. Individuals, who buy select private long-term care insurance policies that are designated by a state as partnership policies …
Date: September 9, 2005
Creator: United States. Government Accountability Office.
Object Type: Text
System: The UNT Digital Library
Managing For Results: Enhancing Agency Use of Performance Information for Management Decision Making (open access)

Managing For Results: Enhancing Agency Use of Performance Information for Management Decision Making

A letter report issued by the Government Accountability Office with an abstract that begins "The Government Performance and Results Act (GPRA) of 1993 has laid a foundation of results-oriented agency planning, measurement, and reporting in the federal government. Performance planning and measurement have slowly, yet increasingly, become a part of agencies' cultures. For planning and performance measurement to be effective, federal managers need to use performance information to identify performance problems and look for solutions, develop approaches that improve results, and make other important management decisions. According to GAO's periodic surveys, federal managers reported having more performance measures in 2003 than in 1997. However, the data also showed that managers' reported use of performance information for program management activities has remained essentially unchanged from 1997 levels. GAO was asked to identify (1) how federal agencies can use performance information to make management decisions and (2) practices that can enhance or facilitate the use of performance information to make management decisions."
Date: September 9, 2005
Creator: United States. Government Accountability Office.
Object Type: Report
System: The UNT Digital Library
Food Labeling: FDA Needs to Better Leverage Resources, Improve Oversight, and Effectively Use Available Data to Help Consumers Select Healthy Foods (open access)

Food Labeling: FDA Needs to Better Leverage Resources, Improve Oversight, and Effectively Use Available Data to Help Consumers Select Healthy Foods

A letter report issued by the Government Accountability Office with an abstract that begins "Two thirds of U.S. adults are overweight, and childhood obesity and diabetes are on the rise. To reverse these health problems, experts are urging Americans to eat healthier. Food labels contain information to help consumers who want to make healthy food choices. The Food and Drug Administration (FDA) oversees federal labeling rules for 80 percent of foods. GAO was asked to examine (1) FDA's efforts to ensure that domestic and imported foods comply with labeling rules, (2) the challenges FDA faces in these efforts, and (3) the views of key stakeholders on FDA actions needed to mitigate misleading labeling. GAO analyzed FDA data, reports, and requirements on food labeling oversight and compliance and interviewed agency and key stakeholder group officials."
Date: September 9, 2008
Creator: United States. Government Accountability Office.
Object Type: Report
System: The UNT Digital Library
Prekindergarten: Four Selected States Expanded Access by Relying on Schools and Existing Providers of Early Education and Care to Provide Services (open access)

Prekindergarten: Four Selected States Expanded Access by Relying on Schools and Existing Providers of Early Education and Care to Provide Services

A letter report issued by the Government Accountability Office with an abstract that begins "For nearly 40 years, the federal government has played a role in providing early childhood development programs for children of low-income families through Head Start and other programs. Since 1980, the number of states with preschool programs has also significantly increased. While most of these programs have targeted children at risk of school failure, more recently, interest has grown in expanding these limited programs because of the growing concern about children's readiness for school and subsequent achievement. It has also been fueled by new research on early brain development that suggests the importance of early education and by the high rate of mothers in the workforce and their need for early childhood services. In this context, questions have arisen about how the various programs are coordinated and what lessons have been learned from broad-based state preschool efforts. This work focused on four states that have expanded their preschool programs to serve more children. In these states, GAO addressed (1) how prekindergarten programs were designed and funded, (2) the potential implications of these program features for children's participation and other programs that serve four year-olds, and (3) …
Date: September 9, 2004
Creator: United States. Government Accountability Office.
Object Type: Report
System: The UNT Digital Library
Railroad Retirement Board: Review of Commuter Railroad Occupational Disability Claims Reveals Potential Program Vulnerabilities (open access)

Railroad Retirement Board: Review of Commuter Railroad Occupational Disability Claims Reveals Potential Program Vulnerabilities

Correspondence issued by the Government Accountability Office with an abstract that begins "In fall 2008, a series of news reports revealed the relatively high number of workers at one commuter railroad--the Long Island Rail Road (LIRR)-- who have applied for and been approved for occupational disability benefits by the U.S. Railroad Retirement Board (RRB). According to RRB officials, a number of federal agencies, including the Federal Bureau of Investigation, Social Security Administration, and the Department of Health and Human Services, have launched investigations in response to issues raised. In addition, the New York Attorney General's office is conducting a criminal investigation."
Date: September 9, 2009
Creator: United States. Government Accountability Office.
Object Type: Text
System: The UNT Digital Library
Chief Information Officers: Responsibilities and Information Technology Governance at Leading Private-Sector Companies (open access)

Chief Information Officers: Responsibilities and Information Technology Governance at Leading Private-Sector Companies

A letter report issued by the Government Accountability Office with an abstract that begins "To help address the many challenges being faced by federal agencies, Congress has enacted a series of laws designed to improve agencies' performance. The Clinger-Cohen Act of 1996, for example, requires that each agency head designate a Chief Information Officer (CIO) to lead reforms to achieve real, measurable improvements in the agency's performance through better management of information resources. Recognizing the importance of the CIO position, congressional requesters asked GAO to conduct two reviews. The first, reported in July 2004, discussed the extent to which federal CIOs had responsibility for 12 functional areas that GAO had identified as either required by statute or critical to effective information and technology management, including information technology (IT) capital planning, strategic planning for information resources, and information security and privacy. This report focuses on the responsibilities of CIOs at 20 leading private-sector organizations. The questions GAO addressed were (1) What are the responsibilities of these CIOs, and how do they compare with those of federal CIOs? (2) What are the key challenges of these private-sector CIOs? (3) How do these organizations govern their information and IT assets enterprisewide?"
Date: September 9, 2005
Creator: United States. Government Accountability Office.
Object Type: Report
System: The UNT Digital Library
Emergency Preparedness: Improved Planning and Coordination Necessary for Modernization and Integration of Public Alert and Warning System (open access)

Emergency Preparedness: Improved Planning and Coordination Necessary for Modernization and Integration of Public Alert and Warning System

A letter report issued by the Government Accountability Office with an abstract that begins "A comprehensive system to alert the American people in times of hazard allows people to take action to save lives. The Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) is responsible for the current Emergency Alert System (EAS) and the development of the new Integrated Public Alert and Warning System (IPAWS). In this requested report, GAO examined (1) the current status of EAS, (2) the progress made by FEMA in implementing an integrated alert and warning system, and (3) the challenges involved in implementing an integrated alert and warning system. GAO conducted a survey of states, reviewed FEMA and other documentation, and interviewed industry stakeholders and officials from federal agencies responsible for public alerting."
Date: September 9, 2009
Creator: United States. Government Accountability Office.
Object Type: Report
System: The UNT Digital Library
Aviation Weather: FAA and the National Weather Service Are Considering Plans to Consolidate Weather Service Offices, but Face Significant Challenges (open access)

Aviation Weather: FAA and the National Weather Service Are Considering Plans to Consolidate Weather Service Offices, but Face Significant Challenges

A letter report issued by the Government Accountability Office with an abstract that begins "The National Weather Service's (NWS) weather products are a vital component of the Federal Aviation Administration's (FAA) air traffic control system. In addition to providing aviation weather products developed at its own facilities, NWS also provides on-site staff at each of FAA's en route centers--the facilities that control high-altitude flight outside the airport tower and terminal areas. Over the last few years, FAA and NWS have been exploring options for enhancing the efficiency of the aviation weather services provided at en route centers. GAO agreed to (1) determine the status and plans of efforts to restructure the center weather service units, (2) evaluate efforts to establish a baseline of the current performance provided by these units, and (3) evaluate challenges to restructuring them. To do so, GAO evaluated agency plans for the restructuring and for establishing performance measures. GAO also compared agency efforts to leading practices and interviewed agency officials."
Date: September 9, 2009
Creator: United States. Government Accountability Office.
Object Type: Report
System: The UNT Digital Library
Child Care: State Efforts to Enforce Safety and Health Requirements (open access)

Child Care: State Efforts to Enforce Safety and Health Requirements

A letter report issued by the Government Accountability Office with an abstract that begins "The federal government requires states that receive funds from the Child Care and Development Fund to establish basic health and safety requirements. The federal government also requires states receiving federal funds for child care to have procedures in place to ensure that providers being paid with grant dollars comply with the applicable safety and health requirements. Because of the significant federal role in paying for child care services and congressional concerns about the way in which states ensure the safety and health of children in child care settings, we were asked to follow up on our prior report, Child Care: State Efforts to Enforce Safety and Health Requirements (GAO/HEHS-00-28, Jan. 24, 2000). This report (1) identifies changes in states' licensing and enforcement activities for various types of licensed and nonlicensed providers since 1999, (2) describes the ways child care licensing agencies organize inspection staff and use technology, and (3) provides examples of promising practices in state child care licensing and enforcement activities. To obtain data, we surveyed state licensing officials in 2004 about their 2003 activities, interviewed experts and made site visits to four states--Delaware, Florida, …
Date: September 9, 2004
Creator: United States. Government Accountability Office.
Object Type: Report
System: The UNT Digital Library
Waters and Wetlands: Corps of Engineers Needs to Better Support Its Decisions for Not Asserting Jurisdiction (open access)

Waters and Wetlands: Corps of Engineers Needs to Better Support Its Decisions for Not Asserting Jurisdiction

A letter report issued by the Government Accountability Office with an abstract that begins "Section 404 of the Clean Water Act prohibits the discharge of dredged or fill material into federally regulated waters without first obtaining a U.S. Army Corps of Engineers (Corps) permit. Before 2001, the Corps asserted jurisdiction over most waters, including isolated, intrastate, nonnavigable waters, if migratory birds could use them. However, in January 2001, the U.S. Supreme Court concluded that the Corps exceeded its authority in asserting jurisdiction over such waters based solely on their use by birds. GAO was asked to examine, among other things, the (1) processes and data the Corps uses for making jurisdictional determinations; (2) extent to which the Corps documents decisions that it does not have jurisdiction; (3) extent to which the Corps is using its remaining authority to assert jurisdiction over isolated, intrastate, nonnavigable waters; and (4) extent to which the Corps and the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) are collecting data to assess the impact of the court's January 2001 ruling."
Date: September 9, 2005
Creator: United States. Government Accountability Office.
Object Type: Report
System: The UNT Digital Library
Private Equity: Recent Growth in Leveraged Buyouts Exposed Risks That Warrant Continued Attention (open access)

Private Equity: Recent Growth in Leveraged Buyouts Exposed Risks That Warrant Continued Attention

A letter report issued by the Government Accountability Office with an abstract that begins "The increase in leveraged buyouts (LBO) of U.S. companies by private equity funds prior to the slowdown in mid-2007 has raised questions about the potential impact of these deals. Some praise LBOs for creating new governance structures for companies and providing longer term investment opportunities for investors. Others criticize LBOs for causing job losses and burdening companies with too much debt. This report addresses the (1) effect of recent private equity LBOs on acquired companies and employment, (2) impact of LBOs jointly undertaken by two or more private equity funds on competition, (3) Securities and Exchange Commission's (SEC) oversight of private equity funds and their advisers, and (4) regulatory oversight of commercial and investment banks that have financed recent LBOs. GAO reviewed academic research, analyzed recent LBO data, conducted case studies, reviewed regulators' policy documents and examinations, and interviewed regulatory and industry officials, and academics."
Date: September 9, 2008
Creator: United States. Government Accountability Office.
Object Type: Report
System: The UNT Digital Library
Special Education: Improved Timeliness and Better Use of Enforcement Actions Could Strengthen Education's Monitoring System (open access)

Special Education: Improved Timeliness and Better Use of Enforcement Actions Could Strengthen Education's Monitoring System

A letter report issued by the Government Accountability Office with an abstract that begins "The Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (IDEA) ensures the education of the nation's disabled children. As a condition of receiving IDEA funds, states must provide educational and related services that facilitate learning to students with disabilities based on their individual needs. The Department of Education (Education) is responsible for ensuring state compliance with the law. In recent years, questions have been raised about Education's oversight of IDEA. GAO agreed to determine how Education monitors state compliance with IDEA for children aged 3-21, the extent and nature of noncompliance found, and how Education has ensured that noncompliance is resolved once identified. GAO analyzed Education monitoring documents, interviewed state and federal officials, and visited 5 state special education offices."
Date: September 9, 2004
Creator: United States. Government Accountability Office.
Object Type: Report
System: The UNT Digital Library