A letter report issued by the Government Accountability Office with an abstract that begins "The Internal Revenue Service's (IRS) goal is to receive 80 percent of all major types of tax returns electronically by 2012. Legislation passed in November 2009 supports the 80 percent goal for individual income tax returns by requiring tax return preparers who file more than 10 individual returns per year to file them electronically, or e-file. GAO was asked to review IRS's implementation of this e-file mandate. Specifically, GAO (1) described e-file rates and preparers' experiences implementing the mandate, (2) assessed IRS's plans to enforce the mandate, (3) assessed IRS's analysis of options for digitizing more data from paper returns, and (4) determined whether there are any tax forms IRS cannot accept electronically and assessed IRS's plans for adding them to the e-file system. To conduct these analyses, GAO reviewed IRS processing data and e-file planning documents, and interviewed IRS officials and 26 members of national preparer organizations."

A letter report issued by the Government Accountability Office with an abstract that begins "Takeoffs, landings, and movement around the surface areas of airports (the terminal area) are critical to the safe and efficient movement of air traffic. The nation's aviation system is arguably the safest in the world, but close calls involving aircraft or other vehicles at or near airports are common, occurring almost daily. The Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) provides oversight of the terminal area and has taken action to improve safety, but has been called upon by the National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB) and others to take additional steps to improve its oversight. As requested, this report addresses (1) recent actions FAA has taken to improve safety in the terminal area, (2) recent trends in terminal area safety and factors contributing to those trends, and (3) any additional actions FAA could take to improve safety in the terminal area. To address these issues, GAO analyzed data from FAA data; reviewed reports and FAA documents; and interviewed federal and industry officials."

A publication issued by the Government Accountability Office with an abstract that begins "This testimony discusses the current progress toward implementing the Next Generation Air Transportation System (NextGen). NextGen will impact nearly every aspect of air transportation and will transform the way in which the air transportation system operates today. It will do so, in part, by (1) using satellite-based surveillance as opposed to ground-based radars, (2) using performance-based navigation instead of cumbersome step-by-step procedures, (3) replacing routine voice communications with data transmissions, and (4) organizing and merging the disjointed data that pilots, controllers, airports, airlines, and others currently rely on to operate the system. The Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) has been planning and developing NextGen since 2003, and is now implementing near-term (through 2012) and mid-term (through 2018) capabilities. Over the years, concerns have been raised by the Congress and other stakeholders that despite years of effort and billions of dollars spent, FAA has not made sufficient progress in deploying systems and producing benefits. In past reports, we have made a number of recommendations to FAA to address delays in development and acquisitions, improve its processes, and focus on accountability and performance. Others have also made recommendations to FAA …

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The U.S. Department of Energy's (DOE) commitment to assuring the health and safety of its workers includes the conduct of illness and injury surveillance activities that provide an early warning system to detect health problems among workers. The Illness and Injury Surveillance Program monitors illnesses and health conditions that result in an absence, occupational injuries and illnesses, and disabilities and deaths among current workers.

The April 2011 DOE workshop, 'Computational Needs for the Next Generation Electric Grid', was the culmination of a year-long process to bring together some of the Nation's leading researchers and experts to identify computational challenges associated with the operation and planning of the electric power system. The attached papers provide a journey into these experts' insights, highlighting a class of mathematical and computational problems relevant for potential power systems research. While each paper defines a specific problem area, there were several recurrent themes. First, the breadth and depth of power system data has expanded tremendously over the past decade. This provides the potential for new control approaches and operator tools that can enhance system efficiencies and improve reliability. However, the large volume of data poses its own challenges, and could benefit from application of advances in computer networking and architecture, as well as data base structures. Second, the computational complexity of the underlying system problems is growing. Transmitting electricity from clean, domestic energy resources in remote regions to urban consumers, for example, requires broader, regional planning over multi-decade time horizons. Yet, it may also mean operational focus on local solutions and shorter timescales, as reactive power and system dynamics (including …

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This Report discusses the three treaties that entered into force between 1963 and 1990 limit. It also points out the National Positions on Testing and the CTBT, CTBT Pros and Cons etc.

This report discusses the trade preferences and General Agreement on Tariffs and Trade (GATT) most-favored-nation (MFN) requirements, World Trade Organization (WTO) waivers for preferential trade agreements, and WTO waivers for U.S. preference programs.

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This report provides information about The Budget Control Act of 2011. The BCA provides measures Effects on Spending Levels and the Budget Deficit.

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