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Homeland Security: Voluntary Initiatives Are Under Way at Chemical Facilities, but the Extent of Security Preparedness Is Unknown (open access)

Homeland Security: Voluntary Initiatives Are Under Way at Chemical Facilities, but the Extent of Security Preparedness Is Unknown

A letter report issued by the General Accounting Office with an abstract that begins "The events of September 11, 2001, triggered a national re-examination of the security of thousands of industrial facilities that use or store hazardous chemicals in quantities that could potentially put large numbers of Americans at risk of serious injury or death in the event of a terrorist-caused chemical release. GAO was asked to examine (1) available information on the threats and risks from terrorism faced by U.S. chemical facilities; (2) federal requirements for security preparedness and safety at facilities; (3) actions taken by federal agencies to assess the vulnerability of the industry; and (4) voluntary actions the chemical industry has taken to address security preparedness, and the challenges it faces in protecting its assets and operations."
Date: March 14, 2003
Creator: United States. General Accounting Office.
Object Type: Report
System: The UNT Digital Library
Law Enforcement: Better Performance Measures Needed to Assess Results of Justice's Office of Science and Technology (open access)

Law Enforcement: Better Performance Measures Needed to Assess Results of Justice's Office of Science and Technology

A letter report issued by the General Accounting Office with an abstract that begins "The mission of the Office of Science & Technology (OST), within the Department of Justice's National Institute of Justice (NIJ), is to improve the safety and effectiveness of technology used by federal, state, and local law enforcement and other public safety agencies. Through NIJ, OST funds programs in forensic sciences, crime prevention, and standards and testing. To support these programs, Congress increased funding for OST from $13.2 million in 1995 to $204.2 million in 2003 (in constant 2002 dollars). GAO reviewed (1) the growth in OST's budgetary resources and the changes in OST's program responsibilities, (2) the types of products OST delivers and the methods used for delivering them; and (3) how well OST's efforts to measure the success of its programs in achieving intended results meet applicable requirements."
Date: November 14, 2003
Creator: United States. General Accounting Office.
Object Type: Report
System: The UNT Digital Library
GAO Performance and Accountability Report, 2003 (open access)

GAO Performance and Accountability Report, 2003

Other written product issued by the General Accounting Office with an abstract that begins "Presented is GAO's performance and accountability report for fiscal year 2003. In the spirit of the Government Performance and Results Act, this annual report informs the Congress and the American people about what we have achieved on their behalf. Importantly, GAO received a clean opinion from independent auditors on our financial statements for the 17th consecutive year. The financial information and the data measuring GAO's performance contained in this report are complete and reliable."
Date: November 14, 2003
Creator: United States. General Accounting Office.
Object Type: Text
System: The UNT Digital Library
Tactical Aircraft: DOD Should Reconsider Decision to Increase F/A-22 Production Rates While Development Risks Continue (open access)

Tactical Aircraft: DOD Should Reconsider Decision to Increase F/A-22 Production Rates While Development Risks Continue

A letter report issued by the General Accounting Office with an abstract that begins "The Air Force is developing the F/A-22 aircraft to fly at higher speeds for longer distances, be less detectable, and improve the pilot's awareness of the surrounding situation. The F/A-22 will replace the Air Force's existing fleet of F-15 aircraft. Over the past several years the program has experienced significant cost overruns and schedule delays. Congress mandated that GAO assess the development program and determine whether the Air Force is meeting key performance, schedule, and cost goals. GAO also assessed the implications of the progress of the development program on production."
Date: March 14, 2003
Creator: United States. General Accounting Office.
Object Type: Report
System: The UNT Digital Library
Applying Agreed-Upon Procedures: Federal Unemployment Taxes (open access)

Applying Agreed-Upon Procedures: Federal Unemployment Taxes

Correspondence issued by the General Accounting Office with an abstract that begins "We have performed the procedures contained in the enclosure to this report, which we agreed to perform, solely to assist the Department of Labor in ascertaining whether the net federal unemployment tax (FUTA) revenue distributed to the Unemployment Trust Fund (UTF) for the fiscal year ended September 30, 2003, is supported by the underlying records. As agreed with the Inspector General, we evaluated fiscal year 2003 activity affecting distributions to the UTF."
Date: November 14, 2003
Creator: United States. General Accounting Office.
Object Type: Text
System: The UNT Digital Library
Military Aircraft: Observations on DOD's Aerial Refueling Aircraft Acquisition Options (open access)

Military Aircraft: Observations on DOD's Aerial Refueling Aircraft Acquisition Options

Correspondence issued by the General Accounting Office with an abstract that begins "During the Senate Armed Services Committee's September 4, 2003 hearing on the Department of Defense's (DOD) proposed lease of 100 Boeing KC-767A aerial refueling aircraft, Congress expressed concern about a significant "bow-wave" funding requirement in future years to pay for leasing and then buying these 100 aircraft at the end of their leases, while continuing efforts to modernize the remainder of the tanker fleet. Subsequently, Congress requested that DOD analyze the option of leasing 25 aircraft, followed by a procurement of the remaining 75 aircraft. The Deputy Secretary of Defense responded to the request on September 22, 2003, identifying several alternative acquisition strategies, with associated cost and savings estimates. On September 25, 2003, Congress asked that GAO review the DOD response and assess the validity of the department's assumptions and the accuracy of the cost and savings estimates, and identify any other alternative acquisition strategies that the Committee should consider. This letter responds to that request."
Date: October 14, 2003
Creator: United States. General Accounting Office.
Object Type: Text
System: The UNT Digital Library
Homeland Security: EPA's Management of Clean Air Act Chemical Facility Data (open access)

Homeland Security: EPA's Management of Clean Air Act Chemical Facility Data

Correspondence issued by the General Accounting Office with an abstract that begins "The events of September 11, 2001, triggered a national re-examination of the security of many of the nation's critical infrastructures. Following these events, government agencies have struggled to find the right balance between the public's "right to know" and the dangers of inappropriate public disclosure of sensitive information. Professional and trade groups representing critical infrastructure sectors including the chemical industry generally oppose the release of information regarding the vulnerability of such facilities. These groups argue that terrorists could use this information to target the chemical facilities that are most vulnerable or located near population centers. Other groups support communities' right to information about hazards to which they might be exposed. Federal, state, and local governments have weighed these factors in reassessing the information publicly available in their publications and on their Web sites. For this reason, the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) is currently reviewing its management of the chemical facility information it has obtained under Clean Air Act provisions. Regulations promulgated under Section 112(r) of the Clean Air Act as amended in 1990 require chemical facilities that produce, use, or store certain hazardous chemicals beyond threshold amounts to …
Date: March 14, 2003
Creator: United States. General Accounting Office.
Object Type: Text
System: The UNT Digital Library
Information Security: Improvements Needed in Treasury's Security Management Program (open access)

Information Security: Improvements Needed in Treasury's Security Management Program

A letter report issued by the General Accounting Office with an abstract that begins "The Department of the Treasury relies heavily on information systems--and on the public's trust in its work. Information security is therefore critical to Treasury operations. In support of its annual audit of the government's financial statements, GAO assessed the effectiveness of (1) Treasury's information security controls in protecting the confidentiality, integrity, and availability of the department's systems and data and (2) Treasury's implementation of its departmentwide information security program. In assessing the adequacy of Treasury's information security program, GAO focused on the effectiveness of its departmentwide policies and processes, rather than on bureau-specific directives and guidance."
Date: November 14, 2003
Creator: United States. General Accounting Office.
Object Type: Report
System: The UNT Digital Library
Contracting for Information Technology Services (open access)

Contracting for Information Technology Services

Correspondence issued by the General Accounting Office with an abstract that begins "Federal agencies spend billions of dollars annually acquiring information technology (IT) services from thousands of contractors using a variety of contracting methods. IT services include computer and telecommunication services, as well as the testing, quality control, installation, and operation of computer equipment. We (1) identified trends in federal spending for IT services from fiscal years 1997 to 2001 and (2) determined the distribution of federal spending for IT services among small, medium-size, and large businesses in fiscal year 2001, the latest year for which such information was available."
Date: February 14, 2003
Creator: United States. General Accounting Office.
Object Type: Text
System: The UNT Digital Library
Posthearing Questions from the September 9, 2003, Hearing on "Pornography, Technology, and Process: Problems and Solutions on Peer-to-Peer Networks" (open access)

Posthearing Questions from the September 9, 2003, Hearing on "Pornography, Technology, and Process: Problems and Solutions on Peer-to-Peer Networks"

Correspondence issued by the General Accounting Office with an abstract that begins "This letter responds a Congressional request that we provide answers to questions relating to our September 9, 2003, testimony. In that testimony, we discussed the availability of child pornography on peer-to-peer (P2P) networks."
Date: November 14, 2003
Creator: United States. General Accounting Office.
Object Type: Text
System: The UNT Digital Library
Department of Energy: External Regulation Savings in Safety and Health Activities at DOE Science Laboratories (open access)

Department of Energy: External Regulation Savings in Safety and Health Activities at DOE Science Laboratories

Correspondence issued by the General Accounting Office with an abstract that begins "The Department of Energy (DOE) is unusual among federal agencies in that it regulates and inspects its own facilities to protect the safety and health of its workers and of the communities surrounding its vast complex of research laboratories. With few exceptions, all other federal facilities must comply with national standards set by the Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC) for nuclear safety and by the Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) for worker safety and health. DOE asserts that, for the most part, its safety and health standards meet or exceed those promulgated for facilities regulated by NRC and OSHA. At DOE's 10 science laboratories, which are run by management and operating (M&O) contractors, the department and its contractors use a contract administration process to select standards appropriate to current worker hazards and public safety issues. Both DOE and the M&O contractors are involved in safety and health activities. DOE's field offices, most of which are located at the laboratories, provide continuous safety and health oversight of the M&O contractors. DOE headquarters offices provide policy guidance to the field offices and also conduct some oversight of the laboratories. Safety …
Date: May 14, 2003
Creator: United States. General Accounting Office.
Object Type: Text
System: The UNT Digital Library
Forest Service: Information on Decisions Involving Fuels Reduction Activities (open access)

Forest Service: Information on Decisions Involving Fuels Reduction Activities

Correspondence issued by the General Accounting Office with an abstract that begins "Human activities--especially the federal government's decades-old policy of suppressing all wildland fires--have resulted in dangerous accumulations of brush, small trees, and other vegetation on federal lands. This vegetation has increasingly provided fuel for large, intense wildland fires, particularly in the dry, interior western United States. The scale and intensity of the fires in the 2000 wildland fire season made it one of the worst in 50 years. That season capped a decade characterized by dramatic increases in the number of wildland fires and the costs of suppressing them. These fires have also posed special risks to communities in the wildland-urban interface--where human development meets or intermingles with undeveloped wildland--as well as to watersheds and other resources, such as threatened and endangered species, clean water, and clean air. The centerpiece of the federal response to the growing threat of wildland fires has been the development of the National Fire Plan. This plan advocates a new approach to wildland fires by shifting emphasis from the reactive to the proactive--from attempting to suppress wildland fires to reducing the buildup of hazardous vegetation that fuels fires. The plan recognizes that unless these …
Date: May 14, 2003
Creator: United States. General Accounting Office.
Object Type: Text
System: The UNT Digital Library
Federal Bureau of Investigation's Comments on Recent GAO Report on its Enterprise Architecture Efforts (open access)

Federal Bureau of Investigation's Comments on Recent GAO Report on its Enterprise Architecture Efforts

Correspondence issued by the General Accounting Office with an abstract that begins "On September 25, 2003, we issued our report on efforts by the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) to develop a corporate blueprint--commonly called an enterprise architecture--to guide and constrain its information technology (IT) systems modernization. (This report is available on GAO's Web site at www.gao.gov/cgi-bin/getrpt?GAO-03-959.) We provided the FBI with a draft of this report on August 22, 2003, requesting that comments be provided by September 18. On September 23, the FBI provided us with written comments. However, the comments were not received in time to be analyzed, incorporated, and responded to in the report and still meet our September 25, 2003, reporting commitment to Congress. As discussed with Congress at that time, we did not extend the reporting date in order to include the FBI's comments and instead are transmitting and responding to them in this follow-up correspondence."
Date: November 14, 2003
Creator: United States. General Accounting Office.
Object Type: Text
System: The UNT Digital Library
Medicaid and SCHIP: States Use Varying Approaches to Monitor Children's Access to Care (open access)

Medicaid and SCHIP: States Use Varying Approaches to Monitor Children's Access to Care

A letter report issued by the General Accounting Office with an abstract that begins "Over 25 million children have health insurance coverage through Medicaid or the State Children's Health Insurance Program (SCHIP). Coverage alone, however, does not guarantee that services will be available or that children will receive needed care. GAO was asked to evaluate states' efforts to facilitate and monitor access to primary and preventive services for children in these jointly funded federal-state programs. The study surveyed 16 states, covering over 65 percent of the Medicaid and SCHIP population. GAO analyzed requirements relevant to managed care and fee-for-service (FFS) delivery systems, including the number and location of physicians and their availability to see beneficiaries, monitoring of health plan or physician compliance with these requirements, and collection and analysis of beneficiary service utilization data."
Date: January 14, 2003
Creator: United States. General Accounting Office.
Object Type: Report
System: The UNT Digital Library
Food-Processing Security: Voluntary Efforts Are Under Way, but Federal Agencies Cannot Fully Assess Their Implementation (open access)

Food-Processing Security: Voluntary Efforts Are Under Way, but Federal Agencies Cannot Fully Assess Their Implementation

A letter report issued by the General Accounting Office with an abstract that begins "The events of September 11, 2001, have placed added emphasis on ensuring the security of the nation's food supply. GAO examined (1) whether FDA and USDA have sufficient authority under current statutes to require that food processors adopt security measures, (2) what security guidelines FDA and USDA have provided to industry, and (3) what security measures food processors have adopted."
Date: February 14, 2003
Creator: United States. General Accounting Office.
Object Type: Report
System: The UNT Digital Library
Hospital Emergency Departments: Crowded Conditions Vary among Hospitals and Communities (open access)

Hospital Emergency Departments: Crowded Conditions Vary among Hospitals and Communities

A letter report issued by the General Accounting Office with an abstract that begins "Hospital emergency departments are a major part of the nation's health care safety net. Emergency departments report being under increasing pressure, with the number of visits nationwide increasing from an estimated 95 million in 1997 to an estimated 108 million in 2000. GAO was asked to provide information on emergency department crowding, including the extent hospitals located in metropolitan areas are experiencing crowding, the factors contributing to crowding, and the actions hospitals and communities have taken to address crowding. To conduct this work, GAO surveyed over 2,000 hospitals and about 74 percent responded. The survey collected information on crowding, such as data on diversion--that is, the extent to which hospitals asked ambulances that would normally bring patients to their hospitals to go instead to other hospitals that were presumably less crowded."
Date: March 14, 2003
Creator: United States. General Accounting Office.
Object Type: Report
System: The UNT Digital Library
Tax Administration: IRS and TIGTA Should Evaluate Their Processing of Employee Misconduct under Section 1203 (open access)

Tax Administration: IRS and TIGTA Should Evaluate Their Processing of Employee Misconduct under Section 1203

A letter report issued by the General Accounting Office with an abstract that begins "Section 1203 of the Internal Revenue Service (IRS) Restructuring and Reform Act of 1998 outlines conditions for firing IRS employees for any of 10 acts of misconduct covering taxpayer and employee rights and tax return filing requirements. Both IRS and the Treasury Inspector General for Tax Administration (TIGTA) have responsibilities related to section 1203. Because of concerns that section 1203 may have a chilling effect on IRS enforcement staff's productivity, GAO (1) determined the number of section 1203 allegations, (2) surveyed IRS employee perceptions about section 1203, and (3) identified problems IRS and TIGTA face in processing section 1203 cases and the extent to which they have addressed them."
Date: February 14, 2003
Creator: United States. General Accounting Office.
Object Type: Report
System: The UNT Digital Library
Pension Benefit Guaranty Corporation: Long-Term Financing Risks to Single-Employer Insurance Program Highlight Need for Comprehensive Reform (open access)

Pension Benefit Guaranty Corporation: Long-Term Financing Risks to Single-Employer Insurance Program Highlight Need for Comprehensive Reform

Testimony issued by the General Accounting Office with an abstract that begins "More than 34 million workers and retirees in 30,000 single-employer defined benefit pension plans rely on a federal insurance program managed by the Pension Benefit Guaranty Corporation (PBGC) to protect their pension benefits, and the program's long-term financial viability is in doubt. Over the last decade, the program swung from a $3.6 billion accumulated deficit (liabilities exceeded assets), to a $10.1 billion accumulated surplus, and back to a $3.6 billion accumulated deficit, in 2002 dollars. Furthermore, despite a record $9 billion in estimated losses to the program in 2002, additional severe losses may be on the horizon. PBGC estimates that financially weak companies sponsor plans with $35 billion in unfunded benefits, which ultimately might become losses to the program. This testimony provides GAO's observations on the factors that contributed to recent changes in the single-employer pension insurance program's financial condition, risks to the program's long-term financial viability, and changes to the program that might be considered to reduce those risks."
Date: October 14, 2003
Creator: United States. General Accounting Office.
Object Type: Text
System: The UNT Digital Library
Results-Oriented Cultures: Creating a Clear Linkage between Individual Performance and Organizational Success (open access)

Results-Oriented Cultures: Creating a Clear Linkage between Individual Performance and Organizational Success

A letter report issued by the General Accounting Office with an abstract that begins "The federal government is in a period of profound transition and faces an array of challenges and opportunities to enhance performance, ensure accountability, and position the nation for the future. High-performing organizations have found that to successfully transform themselves, they must often fundamentally change their cultures so that they are more results-oriented, customer-focused, and collaborative in nature. To foster such cultures, these organizations recognize that an effective performance management system can be a strategic tool to drive internal change and achieve desired results. Based on previously issued reports on public sector organizations' approaches to reinforce individual accountability for results, GAO identified key practices that federal agencies can consider as they develop modern, effective, and credible performance management systems."
Date: March 14, 2003
Creator: United States. General Accounting Office.
Object Type: Report
System: The UNT Digital Library
Vehicle Donations: Benefits to Charities and Donors, but Limited Program Oversight (open access)

Vehicle Donations: Benefits to Charities and Donors, but Limited Program Oversight

A letter report issued by the General Accounting Office with an abstract that begins "Donating a vehicle to charity enables a donor to support a charitable cause, dispose of an unwanted vehicle, and receive a tax benefit. More charities are turning to vehicle donation programs as a means for raising funds. As a result, our objectives were to: (1) determine the number of charities with vehicle donation programs, and the number of taxpayers claiming deductions for vehicle donations; (2) compare the proceeds received by charities from vehicle donations to what donors claimed for those deductions; and (3) describe related Internal Revenue Service (IRS) and state compliance activities."
Date: November 14, 2003
Creator: United States. General Accounting Office.
Object Type: Report
System: The UNT Digital Library
Workforce Training: Employed Worker Programs Focus on Business Needs, but Revised Performance Measures Could Improve Access for Some Workers (open access)

Workforce Training: Employed Worker Programs Focus on Business Needs, but Revised Performance Measures Could Improve Access for Some Workers

A letter report issued by the General Accounting Office with an abstract that begins "Although training for employed workers is largely the responsibility of employers and individuals, the Workforce Investment Act (WIA) allowed state and local entities to use federal funds for training employed workers. Similarly, welfare reform legislation created Temporary Assistance for Needy Families (TANF) block grants and gave states greater flexibility to design training services for TANF clients to help them obtain and retain jobs. To better understand how the training needs of employed workers, including low-wage workers, is publicly supported, GAO was asked to determine (1) the extent to which local areas and states provide assistance to train employed workers, including funding training; (2) the focus of such training efforts and the kind of training provided; and (3) when targeting training to low-wage workers, the approaches state and local officials identified to address challenges in training this population."
Date: February 14, 2003
Creator: United States. General Accounting Office.
Object Type: Report
System: The UNT Digital Library
Financial Management: Effective Implementation of the Improper Payments Information Act of 2002 Is Key to Reducing the Government's Improper Payments (open access)

Financial Management: Effective Implementation of the Improper Payments Information Act of 2002 Is Key to Reducing the Government's Improper Payments

Testimony issued by the General Accounting Office with an abstract that begins "The Subcommittee on Government Efficiency and Financial Management, House Committee on Government Reform asked GAO to testify on the implementation of the Improper Payments Information Act of 2002 (PL 107-300) and related Office of Management and Budget (OMB) guidance, and on GAO's strategies to reduce improper payments."
Date: July 14, 2003
Creator: United States. General Accounting Office.
Object Type: Text
System: The UNT Digital Library
Hazardous Materials: EPA's Cleanup of Asbestos in Libby, Montana, and Related Actions to Address Asbestos-Contaminated Materials (open access)

Hazardous Materials: EPA's Cleanup of Asbestos in Libby, Montana, and Related Actions to Address Asbestos-Contaminated Materials

A letter report issued by the General Accounting Office with an abstract that begins "Between 1979 and 1998, the number of deaths in Libby, Montana from asbestosis--a lung disease that progressively restricts breathing and can be fatal--was 40 to 80 times higher than the average for the United States. Vermiculite ore--containing high concentrations of asbestos--was mined at Libby between 1923 and 1990, and accounted for most of the world's vermiculite. Mining, processing, or any disturbance of the contaminated vermiculite releases asbestos fibers into the air, which can lead to respiratory illnesses, including asbestosis. When processed, the vermiculite is used in insulation, fireproofing materials, garden materials, and other products. GAO reviewed the history of the Environmental Protection Agency's (EPA) involvement in Libby prior to the agency's initiation of cleanup actions in 1999, the status and costs of EPA's cleanup in Libby, and other actions EPA and other federal agencies are taking to address exposure to asbestoss-contaminated materials."
Date: April 14, 2003
Creator: United States. General Accounting Office.
Object Type: Report
System: The UNT Digital Library
Civil Penalties: Agencies Unable to Fully Adjust Penalties for Inflation Under Current Law (open access)

Civil Penalties: Agencies Unable to Fully Adjust Penalties for Inflation Under Current Law

A letter report issued by the General Accounting Office with an abstract that begins "Civil penalties are an important element of regulatory enforcement, allowing agencies to punish violators appropriately and to serve as a deterrent to future violations. In 1996, Congress enacted the Inflation Adjustment Act to require agencies to adjust certain penalties for inflation. GAO assessed federal agencies' compliance with the act and whether provisions in the act have prevented agencies from keeping their penalties in pace with inflation."
Date: March 14, 2003
Creator: United States. General Accounting Office.
Object Type: Report
System: The UNT Digital Library