Correspondence issued by the General Accounting Office with an abstract that begins "Costs for nursing home care have almost doubled since 1990, from $53 billion to $92 billion in 2000. Much of that spending has been financed with public monies. Under the Medicare and Medicaid programs, the federal government financed 39 percent of the nation's nursing home spending in 2000, up from 28 percent in 1990. As federal outlays have grown, Congress has focused attention on the quality of care delivered and the level of staffing in nursing homes. Nursing home expenditures per resident day varied considerably across Ohio, Mississippi, and Washington--the 3 states covered in GAO's survey. Although the total level of spending varied, the average share devoted to resident-care activities, such as nursing care and medical supplies, was relatively stable. The share of spending devoted to buildings and equipment, by comparison, was more variable. Homes in Ohio and Washington that provided more nursing hours per resident day, especially nurses' aide hours, were less likely than homes providing fewer nursing hours to have repeated serious or potentially life-threatening quality problems. However, GAO found no clear relationship between a nursing home's spending per resident day and the number of serious …

Correspondence issued by the General Accounting Office with an abstract that begins "Government, commercial, and foreign entities rely almost exclusively on information generated by the United States space surveillance network to reduce the risk of space collisions when launching and operating their respective space missions. The network is maintained and operated by the Air Force Space Command; surveillance data is processed and an unclassified portion is sent to the National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) and made available to users. Currently, the Air Force Space Command is proposing a pilot study to replace the current NASA arrangement with one using a Federally Funded Research and Development Center (FFRDC). The study would test the FFRDC's ability to support commercial and foreign entities with space surveillance information and to ensure there is a sufficient market for the data. If the study is approved by the Air Force and Department of Defense, and if authorizing legislation is enacted that includes providing space surveillance support to foreign and commercial entities as part of DOD's mission, the study will begin in about 1 year."

Correspondence issued by the General Accounting Office with an abstract that begins "Congress has provided funding for numerous highway demonstration projects in legislation authorizing surface transportation programs as well as annual appropriations acts for the Department of Transportation (DOT). In some cases, the projects are identified in the legislation itself. In others, they are identified in committee reports accompanying the legislation. These projects are all designated for specific locations within states and for specific purposes, and funds made available for them generally remain available until expended. As of March 31, 2002, there were 30 highway demonstration projects with unobligated balances no longer needed by the states totaling $5.6 million. These unobligated funds were provided in authorization or appropriations acts enacted from 1978 through 1994. Eight of the 30 projects have very small unobligated balances of less than $1.50 each."

Correspondence issued by the General Accounting Office with an abstract that begins "The Department of Energy's (DOE) complex of research and nuclear facilities is not inspected or licensed by an independent external regulator, such as the Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC). Instead, DOE and its predecessors have, since 1946, been granted legislative authority to self-regulate nuclear and worker safety in the department's facilities. DOE officials told GAO that (1) the department's current position on external regulation is "neutral" because the Secretary has insufficient information on which to make a decision; (2) another study is needed to develop data on the costs and benefits of making the transition to, and operating under, external regulation, and (3) a realistic implementation plan cannot be developed for the six to nine months DOE estimates the study will take. On the other hand, NRC and the Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) report that they are prepared to begin regulating the department's 10 science laboratories. The cost of upgrading DOE facilities to regulator standards may not be significant for a variety of reasons. First, NRC concluded from its simulations that few changes to DOE facilities are needed to meet it's licensing requirements. Second, NRC stated that …

Correspondence issued by the General Accounting Office with an abstract that begins "The Centennial of Flight Commission was created in November to commemorate the 100th anniversary of the Wright brothers' flight at Kitty Hawk, North Carolina, in 1903. The Commission is to provide recommendations and advice to the President, Congress, and federal agencies on the most effective ways to encourage and promote national and international participation and sponsorships in commemoration of the centennial of powered flight. All 156 of the Commission's recorded obligations and expenditures during fiscal year 2001 were supported by documentation that was approved by management. The Commission recorded no donations, user fees, or in-kind donations for fiscal year 2001. The Commission's financial records for fiscal year 2001 contained some minor errors that went unnoticed due to a lack of complete records being maintained by the Commission, as well as the Federal Aviation Administration and the National Aeronautics and Space Administration which provide administrative support to the Commission."

Correspondence issued by the General Accounting Office with an abstract that begins "Although pilots and other crew members are currently prohibited from carrying weapons on-board aircraft, the Aviation and Transportation Security Act raises the possibility of arming pilots in the future. In responses to a congressional request, GAO provided information on reasons for and against allowing pilots to carry firearms in the cockpit; questions to be addressed if pilots were armed; and possible alternatives to arming pilots, such as providing them with less than lethal weapons. Proponents' and opponents' views on firearms in the cockpit fall into four categories: the potential effectiveness, risk, and cost-effectiveness of pilots carrying weapons, and policy issues that would arise if pilots were allowed to carry weapons. GAO concluded that without additional research, the potential benefits, risks, and costs of using weapons on aircraft cannot be fully determined."

Correspondence issued by the General Accounting Office with an abstract that begins "GAO reviewed the roles and responsibilities of the General Services Administration's (GSA) Federal Supply Service (FSS) and Federal Technology Service (FTS). Specifically, (1) the possible impact of the current FSS/FTS overlap on the prices paid for and quality of the services provided customer agencies by FSS and FTS, (2) whether the use of streamlined practices and procedures could result in savings and increases in service effectiveness, and (3) whether the statement of work that governs the study of the FSS and FTS that GSA has under contract will likely result in the kind of information needed to assess whether the current organization needs to be restructured."

Correspondence issued by the General Accounting Office with an abstract that begins "Congress limited the Executive Office of the President's use of systems modernization funds until the White House gave Congress a report that included an enterprise architecture, a description of information technology (IT) capital planning and investment control processes, a capital investment plan, and an IT human capital plan. The White House submitted its report to Congress in March 2002. GAO reviewed the report and found progress in the following four areas: (1) developing an officewide blueprint for modernizing its enterprise architecture; (2) defining officewide IT capital planning and investment control processes for implementing the enterprise architecture consistent with best practices; (3) correcting existing system problems and introducing infrastructure upgrades consistent with its defined technical rules and definitions; and (4) facilitating ongoing and planned efforts to complete the enterprise architecture, expand the capital planning and investment process, and manage the implementation of its fiscal year 2002 and 2003 capital investment plans. The White House has also begun using effective IT human capital management practices. Theses efforts should be considered a work in progress rather than a completed task. Therefore, the success of the White House's modernization effort depends on …

Correspondence issued by the General Accounting Office with an abstract that begins "Title I of the Global AIDS and Tuberculosis Relief Act provided for the creation of a trust fund to be administered by the World Bank to combat the HIV/AIDS epidemic. The act mandates that the Comptroller General of the United States submit a report to Congress evaluating the effectiveness of the fund within 2 years of enactment of the statute. In January 2002, the Global Fund to Fight AIDS, Tuberculosis, and Malaria was formally established, but as of May 2002, funds had not been disbursed to any project. GAO reviewed the status of the Global Fund and found that as of May 2002, the Global Fund had received more than $2 billion in pledges, with $700 million available for disbursement in 2002. The United States has pledged a total of $300 million to the Fund through fiscal year 2002, and the administration has requested an additional $200 million in its fiscal year 2003 budget request. At its first board meeting in January 2002, the Fund called for proposals for its first round of grants and had received 322 proposals for projects in 101 countries by the March deadline. …

Correspondence issued by the General Accounting Office with an abstract that begins "This report responds to a congressional request that GAO review allegations that the National Cancer Institute's Special Virus Cancer Program (SVCP) created the AIDS virus. GAO found no evidence to support the allegations that SVCP created the AIDS virus."

Correspondence issued by the General Accounting Office with an abstract that begins "To meet long-standing concerns about the Department of Defense's (DOD) organization and management of national security space activities, Congress chartered the Commission to Assess United States National Security Space Management and Organization to study the organization and management of space activities that support U.S. national security interests and make recommendations for improvements. DOD has decided to take actions related to 10 of the commission's 13 recommendations. These include recommendations for organizational changes aimed at consolidating some activities, changing chains of command, opening lines of communications, and modifying policies to achieve greater responsibility and accountability. Many changes have been implemented within the last few months, and thus related processes and procedures have not been completed. As a result, it is too early to determine whether these changes will enable DOD to promote and protect U.S. interests in space more effectively. Moreover, DOD has not yet completed plans for achieving some long-range goals, such as developing a cadre of space professionals and integrating military and intelligence space activities. The Secretary of Defense chose not to implement three of the commission's recommendations and is instead (1) opting to establish a focal …

A statement of record issued by the General Accounting Office with an abstract that begins "The United States General Accounting Office (GAO) is an independent, professional, nonpartisan agency in the legislative branch that is commonly referred to as the investigative arm of Congress. Congress created GAO in the Budget and Accounting Act of 1921 to assist in the discharge of its core constitutional powers--the power to investigate and oversee the activities of the executive branch, the power to control the use of federal funds, and the power to make laws. All of GAO's efforts on behalf of Congress are guided by three core values: (1) Accountability--GAO helps Congress oversee federal programs and operations to ensure accountability to the American people; (2) Integrity--GAO sets high standards in the conduct of its work. GAO takes a professional, objective, fact-based, non-partisan, nonideological, fair, and balanced approach on all activities; and (3) Reliability--GAO produces high-quality reports, testimonies, briefings, legal opinions, and other products and services that are timely, accurate, useful, clear, and candid."

Correspondence issued by the General Accounting Office with an abstract that begins "The Secretary of Transportation, in consultation with the Comptroller General, is required by the Department of Transportation and Related Agencies Appropriations Act for FY 2002 to study the transportation of hazardous and radioactive materials and its effects on public health and safety, the environment, and the economy. GAO has had no substantive consultation with the Department of Transportation on the study and only received a draft report one week prior to its scheduled delivery date to Congress. Consequently, GAO has not had the opportunity to perform a comprehensive review of the report's contents or to make timely suggestions for modifications."

A statement of record issued by the General Accounting Office with an abstract that begins "The National Association of Insurance Commissioners (NAIC), through its Accreditation Program, has made considerable progress in achieving uniformity among state insurance regulators. In addition, competitive pressures from further consolidation in the financial services sector and enactment of the Gramm-Leach-Bliley Act has focused attention on regulator reforms in the insurance industry. NAIC's Producer Licensing Reciprocity and Uniformity initiative aims to streamline the licensing process for selling insurance in multiple states. State regulators are also trying to streamline regulatory processes to bring new insurance products to market more quickly. NAIC's Speed to Market initiative focuses both on developing a more centralized filing and approval process for life and health insurance products and on improving existing state-based approval processes for other types of products. Finally, NAIC's National Treatment of Companies initiative aims to facilitate the licensing process for conducting business on a multistate basis. However, NAIC and the states face significant challenges in implementing their initiatives."

Correspondence issued by the General Accounting Office with an abstract that begins "Under the Department of Housing and Urban Development's (HUD) Community Development Block Grant (CDBG) program, entitlement communities--also called grantees--receive funds that they can spend to support specific community development activities, such as rehabilitating housing, improving public facilities, and providing public services. Most grantees are prohibited by statute from spending more than 15 percent of their CDBG funding on public service activities, such as child care, health care, and crime prevention. However, in the aftermath of the 1992 Los Angeles civil unrest, Congress gave an exemption from this statutory cap to two grantees--the City of Los Angeles and the County of Los Angeles--allowing them to spend up to 25 percent of their funds on public services. In December 2001, the exemption was extended through 2003. Between 1993 and 2001, the City of Los Angeles spent between 20 and 25 percent of its CDBG funding to support public service activities, while the County of Los Angeles spent between 9 and 20 percent. According to HUD data for 1999 through 2001, the city and county used a majority of their public service funding to support general public services and either youth …

A letter report issued by the General Accounting Office with an abstract that begins "The Balanced Budget and Emergency Deficit Control Act of 1985 requires that the Office of Management and Budget (OMB) and the Congressional Budget Office (CBO) issue sequestration reports annually to Congress. Overall, GAO found that OMB and CBO substantially complied with the act in fiscal year 2002. However, as in previous years, some of the required OMB and CBO reports were issued late. Further, GAO identified a total of 19 items where differences of over $500 million existed between CBO's and OMB's scoring of discretionary budget authority and/or outlays for enacted laws."

A letter report issued by the General Accounting Office with an abstract that begins "Damage, theft, vandalism, and pranks occurred in the White House complex during the 2001 presidential transition. Several Executive Office of the President (EOP) staff claim that they observed (1) messy offices containing excessive trash or personal items, (2) numerous prank signs containing derogatory and offensive statements about the president, (3) government property that was damaged, and (4) missing items. Further, EOP staff believed that what they observed during the transition was done intentionally. Some former Clinton administration staff acknowledged that they observed some damaged items and prank signs. However, the former Clinton administration staff said that (1) the amount of trash found during the transition was what could be expected; (2) they did not take the missing items; (3) some furniture was unintentionally broken before the transition, and little money was spent on repairs and upkeep during the administration; and (4) many of the reported observations were not of vandalism. This report makes several recommendations regarding the prevention and documentation of vandalism during future presidential transitions."

A chapter report issued by the General Accounting Office with an abstract that begins "The Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC) has not yet adequately revised its regulatory and oversight approach to respond to the transition to competitive energy markets. FERC recognizes that the transition from highly regulated monopolies to competitive markets requires a fundamental change in how it does business. However, it has struggled through various strategic planning and other efforts to define the specific strategies, processes, and activities to regulate and oversee these markets. GAO found that FERC (1) has had difficulty recruiting staff because it has trouble competing with private sector salaries; (2) faces the retirement of more than one-quarter of its employees by 2005; (3) has used recruitment bonuses, retention allowances, tuition reimbursement, and flexible work schedules to attract new staff and to retain current employees but has not taken advantage of the full range of personnel flexibilities and tools available to federal agencies, such as special salary rates; and (4) has not developed a strategic human capital management plan to assess its workforce needs and to develop strategies to address them."

Other written product issued by the General Accounting Office with an abstract that begins "This report updates GAO's strategic plan for serving Congress from fiscal year 2002-2007. Although the overall framework of the old plan is still valid, greater emphasis is being placed in a number of areas to reflect the altered agenda of policymakers. Recognizing that Congress and the federal government will focus considerable effort and resources on homeland security, GAO is proposing to increasing its emphasis on overseeing the efficiency and effectiveness of effort across the public and private sectors to protect against and respond to various forms of terrorism. In light of the changing public expectations and needs as well as fiscal pressures, GAO has redefined one of its strategic goals to focus on transforming the federal government's role to meet the challenges of the 21st century--what it does and how it does business. Because of the far reaching demographic and fiscal trends that will affect the United States, GAO excepts to add greater long-range focus to its work to support Congress in addressing program priorities and budget decisions."

A letter report issued by the General Accounting Office with an abstract that begins "The Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) has made important progress in raising corporate awareness of the department's information technology (IT) needs and in taking actions to improve key areas of IT performance. Nevertheless, the department has significant work to accomplish in order to use IT investments to improve mission performance. VA has taken important steps in laying the groundwork for an integrated, departmentwide enterprise architecture--a blueprint for evolving its information systems and developing new systems that optimize their mission value--by establishing crucial executive support and a strategy to define produces and processes essential to its development. VA has also strengthened its department-level information security program by requiring greater management accountability from senior executives, through mandated information security performance standards. In addition, Veterans Health Administration managers and clinicians have shown good progress in expanding their use of the decision support system to facilitate clinical and financial decisionmaking. However, many aspects of the department's IT environment remain troublesome. The department continues to report pervasive computer security challenges, including access and other general control weaknesses. Moreover, in pursuing critical information systems investments, the Veterans Benefits Administration has not addressed …

A letter report issued by the General Accounting Office with an abstract that begins "The Medicare program is the nation's largest health insurer with almost 40 million beneficiaries and outlays of over $219 billion annually. Because of the susceptibility of the program to fraud and abuse, Congress enacted the Health Care Fraud and Abuse Control (HCFAC) Program as part of the Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act (HIPPAA) of 1996. HCFAC, which is administered by the Department of Health and Human Services' (HHS) Office of Inspector General (OIG) and the Department of Justice (DOJ), established a national framework to coordinate federal, state, and local law enforcement efforts to detect, prevent, and prosecute health care fraud and abuse in the public and private sectors. HIPPAA requires HHS and DOJ to issue a joint annual report no later than January 1 of each year to Congress for the proceeding fiscal year. The joint HCFAC reports included deposits of $210 million for fiscal year 2000 and $464 million for fiscal year 2001, pursuant to the act. In testing at DOJ, GAO found errors in the recording of criminal fines deposits to the Federal Hospital Insurance Trust Fund in fiscal year 2001 that resulted …

A letter report issued by the General Accounting Office with an abstract that begins "The U.S. government owns about 3,500 properties overseas at more than 220 locations, including embassy and consular office buildings, housing, and land. The Department of State is responsible for acquiring, managing, and disposing of these properties. In 1996, GAO reported that the State Department did not have an effective process for identifying and selling unneeded overseas real estate, and that decisions concerning the sale of some properties had been delayed for years because of parochial conflicts among the parties involved. The State Department has taken steps to implement a more systematic process for identifying unneeded properties by (1) requesting posts to annually identify excess, underutilized, and obsolete property and (2) requesting its own staff and Inspector General officials to place greater emphasis on identifying such property when they visit posts. The State Department has significantly increased its sales of unneeded properties in the last 5 years. From 1997 through 2001, it sold 104 overseas properties for over $404 million, almost triple the proceeds compared with the previous 5 year period. However, the department still has a large number of unneeded properties that have not yet been …

A letter report issued by the General Accounting Office with an abstract that begins "Identity theft or identity fraud generally involves "stealing" another person's personal identifying information--such as Social Security Number (SSN), date of birth, and mother's maiden name--and then using the information to fraudulently establish credit, run up debt, or take away existing financial accounts. The Identity Theft and Assumption Deterrence Act of 1998 made identity theft a separate crime against the person whose identity was stolen, broadened the scope of the offense to include the misuse of information as well as documents and provided punishment--generally a fine or imprisonment or both. GAO found no comprehensive or centralized data on enforcement results under the federal Identity Theft Act. However, according to a Deputy Assistant Attorney General, federal prosecutors are using the 1998 federal law. As with the federal act, GAO found no centralized or comprehensive data on enforcement results under state identity theft statutes. However, officials in the 10 states selected for study provided examples of actual investigations or prosecutions under these statutes. Generally, the prevalence of identity theft and the frequently multi- or cross-jurisdictional nature of such a crime underscore the importance of promoting cooperation or coordination among …

A letter report issued by the General Accounting Office with an abstract that begins "During World War I, the U.S. Army operated a large research facility to develop and test chemical weapons and explosives in the area that became the Spring Valley neighborhood in Washington, D.C. Buried ordnance, discovered there in 1993, led to the designation by the Department of Defense (DOD) of 61 acres as a formerly used defense site. Through fiscal year 2001, DOD had spent over $50 million to identify and remove hazards at the site. The government entities involved have identified and removed a large number of hazards, but the number remaining is unknown. The health risks influencing cleanup activities at Spring Valley are the possibility of injury or death from exploding or leaking ordnance and containers of chemical warfare agents and potential long-term health problems from exposure to arsenic-contaminated soil. As of April 2002, the U.S. Army estimated that the remaining cleanup activities would cost $7.1 million and take 5 years. But these estimates are unreliable. GAO summarized this report in congressional testimony (See GAO-02-836T)."