A letter report issued by the General Accounting Office with an abstract that begins "In fiscal year 2000, the Department of Agriculture's Food Stamp Program, administered jointly by the Food and Nutrition Service (FNS) and the states, provided $15 billion in benefits to an average of 17.2 million low-income persons each month. FNS, which pays the full cost of food stamp benefits and half of the states' administrative costs, promulgates program regulations and oversees program implementation. The states run the program, determining whether households meet eligibility requirements, calculating monthly benefits the households should receive, and issuing benefits to participants. FNS assesses the accuracy of states' efforts to determine eligibility and benefits levels. Because of concerns about the integrity of Food Stamp Program payments, GAO examined the states' efforts to minimize food stamp payment errors and what FNS has done and could do to encourage and assist the states reduce such errors. GAO found that all 28 states it examined had taken steps to reduce payment errors. These steps included verifying the accuracy of benefit payments calculated through supervisory and other types of casefile reviews, providing specialized training for food stamp workers, analyzing quality control data to determine causes of errors …

A letter report issued by the General Accounting Office with an abstract that begins "This report, part of GAO's performance and accountability series, discusses the major management challenges and program risks facing the Department of the Treasury. The primary challenges facing Treasury include (1) modernizing the Internal Revenue Service's tax administration systems; (2) improving Customs Service's regulation of commercial trade; (3) achieving sound financial management; (4) improving the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, and Firearms' performance measures; and (5) improving the management of Treasury's asset forfeiture program."

A letter report issued by the General Accounting Office with an abstract that begins "The State Department has determined that about 80 percent of overseas U.S. diplomatic facilities lack adequate security and may be vulnerable to terrorist attack. In September 1998, State expanded its capital construction program to accelerate replacing its most vulnerable embassies and consulates by acquiring sites and preparing plans at 10 priority locations. This report summarizes (1) the status of the 10 priority embassy and consulate construction projects and (2) State's plans for the overall construction program. As of November 2000, seven projects are in the construction phase. The remaining three projects are on hold pending agreement between State and Congress about the Department's construction proposals. Although State envisions a long-term, multi-billion dollar program and has ranked more than 180 facilities it may need to replace, it has not prepared a long-term capital construction plan that identifies (1) proposed construction project's cost estimates and schedules and (2) estimated annual funding requirements for the overall program."

A letter report issued by the General Accounting Office with an abstract that begins "Each year, the Internal Revenue Service (IRS) determines the staffing level for its toll-free telephone customer service operations. GAO found that IRS lacks a long-term telephone customer service goal that reflects the needs of taxpayers and the costs and benefits of meeting that goal. Rather, IRS annually determines the level of funding it will seek for its customer service workforce, using its judgment of how to best balance service and compliance activities. IRS then calculates the level of service that funding levels will provide. This approach is inconsistent with the Government Performance and Results Act and the practice of selected public and private call centers that field questions. IRS recognizes the shortcomings of its personnel management and will include performance measures and goals in its 2002 strategic plan. According to IRS officials, the agency also faces challenges in recruiting, training, retaining, and scheduling customer service representatives. IRS is developing a strategy to address each of these issues."

A letter report issued by the General Accounting Office with an abstract that begins "The Farm Service Agency (FSA) within the Department of Agriculture provides financial assistance to farmers and ranchers who are unable to obtain commercial credit at reasonable rates and terms. FSA provides direct government-funded loans and repayment guarantees on farm loans made by commercial lenders. During the 1990s, GAO issued a series of reports highlighting the substantial financial risk associated with FSA's farm loan programs and multibillion-dollar portfolio. GAO recently reviewed FSA's farm loan programs to determine the outstanding principal owed on direct and guaranteed farm loans at the end of fiscal year 2000 and the losses incurred by FSA on direct and guaranteed farm loans in the same year. GAO found that FSA had more than $16.6 billion in outstanding farm loans as of September 2000. Farm loan losses incurred by FSA during fiscal year 2000 totalled about $486 million. Both figures represent a significant decrease when compared to figures for earlier years."

A letter report issued by the General Accounting Office with an abstract that begins "The Department of Education runs two major federal student loan programs, the William D. Ford Federal Direct Loan Program (FDLP) and the Federal Family Education Loan Program (FFELP). Under FDLP, students or their parents borrow money directly from the federal government through the schools the students attend. Under FFELP, money is borrowed from private lenders, and the federal government guarantees repayment if the borrowers default. GAO investigated concerns about Education's reliance on estimates to project FDLP costs and a lack of historical information on which to base those estimates. GAO found that developing a reasonable estimate of subsidy cost for loan programs is complex. Many assumptions must be taken into account and projections must be made for the life of the loans. Because FDLP's subsidy costs are determined largely by interest rates and interest rate fluctuations cannot be predicted with any certainty, it is unclear whether the current trend in negative subsidy costs for FDLP will continue. In addition, other factors, such as origination fees paid by borrowers, defaults, subsequent collections on defaulted loans and timing of loan repayments, affect the subsidy cost of FDLP. Although …

A letter report issued by the General Accounting Office with an abstract that begins "This report, part of GAO's performance and accountability series, discusses the major management challenges and program risks facing the Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD). These challenges include reducing HUD's single-family insurance risk, improving HUD's rental housing assistance programs, and resolving issues related to information and financial management."

A letter report issued by the General Accounting Office with an abstract that begins "Under Title III of the Older Americans Act, the Administration on Aging (AoA) distributes grants to states on the basis of their proportional share of the total elderly population in the United States. These grants are then disbursed to more than 600 area agencies nationwide, and are used to fund group and in-home meals, as well as support services, including transportation and housekeeping. The grants are further subdivided by these agencies to more than 4,000 local service providers. AoA requires that states obligate these funds by September 30 of the fiscal year in which they are awarded. Also, states must spend this money within two years after the fiscal year in which it is awarded. During this time AoA does not limit or monitor the amount of unspent funds that states may carry over to the succeeding fiscal year. GAO examined whether states were using Title III carryover funds to expand their meal service programs for the elderly beyond a level sustainable by their annual allotments alone. GAO found that the buildup and use of Title III carryover funds to support elderly nutrition services does not …

A letter report issued by the General Accounting Office with an abstract that begins "This report, part of GAO's performance and accountability series, discusses the major management challenges and program risks facing the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA). These challenges include (1) improving environmental performance information management, (2) developing a comprehensive human capital approach, and (3) strengthening working relationships with the states."

A letter report issued by the General Accounting Office with an abstract that begins "This report, part of GAO's performance and accountability series, discusses the major management challenges and program risks facing the Agency for International Development (AID). GAO identified weaknesses in AID's management of its human capital. AID has, however, made efforts to improve this area, including hiring additional foreign service employees, establishing a recruitment program, and improving employee training. AID needs to sustain its focus on these areas if it is to succeed in reforming its personnel system. GAO also found weaknesses in financial management, information technology management, and data collection."

A letter report issued by the General Accounting Office with an abstract that begins "Under the Treaty of Guadalupe Hidalgo in 1848, which formally ended the Mexican-American War, the United States assumed control over vast new territories, including much of what is now the state of New Mexico. The United States agreed to recognize ownership of property, including the ownership of land grants, in the ceded areas. Whether the United States carried out the provisions of the treaty, especially with regard to community land grants, has been a controversial issue for generations. Land grant documents contained no direct reference to "community land grants," nor do Spanish and Mexican laws define or use this term. GAO did find, however, that some grants refer to lands set aside for general communal use or for specific purposes, such as hunting, maintaining pastures, wood gathering, or watering. Scholars, the land grant literature, and popular terminology commonly use the phrase "community land grants" to denote land grants that set aside common lands for the use of the entire community. GAO used this broad definition to determine which Spanish and Mexican land grants could be identified as community land grants. GAO identified 152 community land grants …

A letter report issued by the General Accounting Office with an abstract that begins "This report, part of GAO's performance and accountability series, discusses the major management challenges and program risks facing the Department of Agriculture (USDA). These challenges include (1) improving USDA's farm loan programs to reduce its vulnerability to loss, (2) improving delivery of services to farmers, (3) maintaining the integrity of the food assistance programs, (4) minimizing foodborne illnesses, (5) strengthening Department-wide information security, (6) improving USDA's financial accountability, (7) providing Congress and the public with a better understanding of what it accomplishes with appropriated funds, and (8) improving USDA's processing of discrimination complaints."

A letter report issued by the General Accounting Office with an abstract that begins "This report, part of GAO's performance and accountability series, discusses the major management challenges and program risks facing the Department of State. GAO found that the most critical infrastructure need for State is to enhance the protection of U.S. embassies and other overseas facilities in response to the rising threat of terrorism. Other significant challenges that State must address involve improving the management of drug control assistance to Colombia, providing expedited visa processing, and strengthening its strategic and performance goals."

A letter report issued by the General Accounting Office with an abstract that begins "This report, part of GAO's performance and accountability series, discusses the major management challenges and program risks facing the Department of Labor (DOL). These challenges include (1) increasing the employment and earnings of America's workforce, (2) protecting the benefits of workers, and (3) fostering safe and healthy workplaces."

A letter report issued by the General Accounting Office with an abstract that begins "This report, part of GAO's performance and accountability series, discusses the major management challenges and program risks facing the Department of Education. These challenges include (1) ensuring access to postsecondary education, (2) encouraging states to improve performance information, (3) promoting coordination with other federal agencies and school districts, and (4) improving financial management."

A letter report issued by the General Accounting Office with an abstract that begins "This report, part of GAO's performance and accountability series, discusses the major management challenges and program risks facing the Department of Commerce. These challenges include (1) increasing U.S. businesses' access to international markets, (2) ensuring that the United States is secure from proliferation of dual-use commodities and chemical weapons, (3) ensuring that weather forecasts and severe weather warnings are accurate and timely, (4) improving the economy in distressed areas, and (5) addressing other challenges to building a high-performing organization."

A letter report issued by the General Accounting Office with an abstract that begins "Since the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) issued the Hazard Analysis and Critical Control Point system (HACCP) regulations for seafood, the food industry has made some progress in ensuring the safety of seafood. However, several important weaknesses compromise the overall effectiveness of the federal seafood safety system. If left uncorrected, they will continue to undermine the goal of HACCP systems--that is, controlling hazards in the production process before the product reaches the market. More importantly, U.S. consumers may remain at risk of contracting foodborne illness from contaminated domestic and imported seafood products."

A letter report issued by the General Accounting Office with an abstract that begins "The Digital Millennium Copyright Act was enacted to ensure that members of actors', directors', and writers' unions were paid residuals when films were reused in television and video. GAO's analysis of motion picture industry data found that, in the three years leading up to the 1998 legislation, at most, about 2 percent of the $1.7 billion in residuals owed went unpaid. The unpaid residuals accrued when production companies did not require distributors to pay residuals upon reuse of the film. In reviewing films made under contract with an actors' union between 1996 and 1998, GAO found 771 films for which residuals had not been paid or obligations assumed. About 87 percent of these films were low-budget productions costing less than $2 million. Because these low-budget films typically generate little in the way of earnings on which residuals are based, the amount of lost residuals is relatively small. Although there has been little impact on the motion picture industry so far, the legislation could affect the profitability of low-budget films. The payment of previously unpaid residuals could increase the production and distribution costs of low-budget films, thereby …

A chapter report issued by the General Accounting Office with an abstract that begins "In 1998, the Navy consolidated the Pearl Harbor Naval Shipyard and the Naval Intermediate Maintenance Facility in Hawaii. Because of concerns about some aspects of the consolidation, the Navy began a test project, commonly called the Pearl Harbor pilot, to determine if integrating the management, operations, and funding of the shipyard and the intermediate maintenance facility can result in greater efficiency and lower overall ship maintenance costs. In September 1999, GAO reported that the preliminary results of the ongoing Pearl Harbor pilot were mixed and recommended that the Department of Defense (DOD) and the Navy address unresolved issues related to the financial management of the consolidation as the Navy proceeds with similar consolidations in other locations. This report updates GAO's earlier report and discusses whether (1) the Navy has provided adequate cost visibility and accountability over the consolidation, (2) DOD and the Navy have resolved other issues related to the financial structure for consolidations at Pearl Harbor and elsewhere, and (3) the consolidation has generated greater efficiency and lower costs for ship maintenance at Pearl Harbor. GAO found that the Navy still has not provided adequate …

A letter report issued by the General Accounting Office with an abstract that begins "This report, part of GAO's performance and accountability series, discusses the major management challenges and program risks facing the Social Security Administration (SSA). The challenges facing SSA include (1) improving research, evaluation, and policy development; (2) improving SSA's disability determination process; (3) sustaining management and oversight of long-standing, high-risk Supplemental Security Income issues; (4) addressing future service delivery issues; and (5) strengthening controls to protect SSA information."

A letter report issued by the General Accounting Office with an abstract that begins "The Fish and Wildlife Service's (FWS) Carlesbad office is developing a computerized project-tracking system for its consultation and habitat conservation planning (HCP) projects. This system, if properly implemented, should improve the office's record keeping and its ability to track the status of projects and help determine why they are in that status. The new system could also improve project management by allowing office managers to determine how long an applicant has been involved in the consultation or HCP process and whether the recommended time frames for completing consultations and the targeted frames for processing HCPs have been exceeded. The Carlsbad office will still have difficulty completing its consultations and HCP projects within recommended or targeted time frames if it is unable to address its staffing problems. An inability to hire new staff and retain existing, experienced staff has made it difficult for the Carlsbad office to meet the demands of its workload. Because the Carlsbad office does not maintain its project files in accordance with federal internal control standards and FWS' guidelines, there has often been confusion between the office and its customers on what was …

A letter report issued by the General Accounting Office with an abstract that begins "To suppress enemy air defenses, U.S. armed forces use specialized aircraft designed to neutralize, destroy, or temporarily degrade enemy air defense systems through either physical attack or electronic warfare. Concerns have been raised that the Air Force's decision to retire EF-111 and F-4G suppression aircraft, combined with a growing threat from increasingly sophisticated enemy air defenses, has created a gap between the services' suppression capabilities and their needs. GAO (1) examined the steps that the military has taken since 1996 to improve its ability to suppress enemy air defenses and (2) evaluated the services' plans to eliminate any gap between their suppression capabilities and needs. GAO found that the services have improved their suppression capabilities, such as increasing the size of their fleets of F-16CJ and EA-6B suppression aircraft, improving the electronic warfare and missile systems on these aircraft, studying cost-effective alternatives for suppression in the future, and reviewing electronic warfare programs to determine if these programs are adequately managed, prioritized, and funded. However, GAO also found that current suppression capabilities are not adequate and that no comprehensive, cross-service strategy exists for achieving the suppression mission."

A letter report issued by the General Accounting Office with an abstract that begins "This report reviews the Internal Revenue Service's (IRS) third expenditure plan for its systems modernization project. GAO found that the plan satisfied the conditions specified in Treasury's 1998 and 1999 appropriations acts and that IRS was making progress towards satisfying Congress' direction on the Custodial Accounting Project (CAP) and Security and Technology Infrastructure Release (STIR) Project. Although IRS has made significant progress in establishing effective modernization management capability, important and challenging work remains to ensure that the systems work as intended. GAO also found that five modernization initiatives experienced schedule delays or cost increases, each of which IRS disclosed in the third plan. However, the third plan did not address whether projects' prior commitments for delivery of promised systems capabilities and benefit/business value were being met. IRS used contractor-provided "rough order-of-magnitude" estimates in preparing its third expenditure plan. However, consistent with its established practice, IRS planned to validate the third plan's estimates as part of its negotiating and definitizing contract task orders. For IRS' second expenditure plan, this process resulted in finalized contract costs that were $9 million under the "rough order-of-magnitude" estimates in the plan."

A letter report issued by the General Accounting Office with an abstract that begins "This report, part of GAO's performance and accountability series, discusses the major management challenges and program risks facing the Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC). GAO found that NRC must resolve issues related to its risk-informed regulatory approach for commercial power plants. NRC developed the Risk-Informed Regulation Implementation Plan to guide its efforts to transition from its traditional regulatory approach to a risk-informed approach. This plan, however, is not as comprehensive as it could be. GAO found that the plan lacks critical performance measures and does not address activities that cut across agency resources. NRC must also address the inherent difficulties in applying a risk-informed approach to nuclear material licensees. Other challenges facing NRC include strengthening its personnel management, developing an effective cost accounting system, and resolving financial management issues."