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OFPP Followup to Federal Supply Schedule Recommendations (open access)

OFPP Followup to Federal Supply Schedule Recommendations

Correspondence issued by the General Accounting Office with an abstract that begins "This report is to bring the Office of Federal Procurement Policy's attention to two GAO recommendations concerning the acquisition of information technology services under the Federal Supply Schedule (FSS). In GAO's view, implementation of these recommendations has been delayed because of unnecessary coupling with other FSS issues."
Date: January 31, 2003
Creator: United States. General Accounting Office.
Object Type: Text
System: The UNT Digital Library
Corps of Engineers: Effects of Restrictions on Corps' Hopper Dredges Should Be Comprehensively Analyzed (open access)

Corps of Engineers: Effects of Restrictions on Corps' Hopper Dredges Should Be Comprehensively Analyzed

A letter report issued by the General Accounting Office with an abstract that begins "The fiscal year 2002 Conference Report for the Energy and Water Development Appropriations Act directed GAO to study the benefits and effects of the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers' (Corps) dredge fleet. GAO examined the characteristics and changing roles of the Corps and industry in hopper dredging; the effect of current restrictions on the Corps' hopper dredge fleet; and whether existing and proposed restrictions on the fleet, including the proposal to place the McFarland in ready reserve, are justified. In addition, GAO identified concerns related to the government cost estimates the Corps prepares to determine the reasonableness of industry bids."
Date: March 31, 2003
Creator: United States. General Accounting Office.
Object Type: Report
System: The UNT Digital Library
Local TV Act: Progress Made, but Timeliness and Cost Accounting Issues Need to be Addressed (open access)

Local TV Act: Progress Made, but Timeliness and Cost Accounting Issues Need to be Addressed

A letter report issued by the General Accounting Office with an abstract that begins "The LOCAL TV Act required that GAO perform an annual audit of the (1) administration of the provisions of the Act, and (2) financial position of each applicant who receives a loan guarantee under the Act, including the nature, amount, and purpose of investments made by the applicant. In fiscal year 2002, the LOCAL TV Program was funded; however, because it was not fully implemented in that year, there were no loan guarantee applicants for GAO to audit. Therefore, this report primarily addresses whether program administration during fiscal year 2002 satisfied the provisions of the Act."
Date: October 31, 2003
Creator: United States. General Accounting Office.
Object Type: Report
System: The UNT Digital Library
September 11: Overview of Federal Disaster Assistance to the New York City Area (open access)

September 11: Overview of Federal Disaster Assistance to the New York City Area

A chapter report issued by the General Accounting Office with an abstract that begins "The federal government has been a key participant in the efforts to provide aid to the New York City area to help it respond to and recover from the September 11 terrorist attacks. The President pledged, and the Congress subsequently authorized, about $20 billion in federal aid. This federal aid was provided primarily through four sources: the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA), the Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD), the Department of Transportation (DOT), and the Liberty Zone tax benefits--a set of tax benefits targeted to lower Manhattan. These sources provided 96 percent, or $19.63 billion, of the committed federal aid to the New York City area. It has been over 2 years since the attacks occurred, and many efforts have been undertaken to aid the New York City area to cope with the disaster and its many impacts. GAO was asked to describe how much and what type of federal assistance was provided to the New York City area through these four sources and how the federal government's response to this disaster differed from previous disasters. We provided a draft of this report to …
Date: October 31, 2003
Creator: United States. General Accounting Office.
Object Type: Report
System: The UNT Digital Library
Review of the Office of Personnel Management's Analysis of the United States Postal Service's Funding of Civil Service Retirement System Costs (open access)

Review of the Office of Personnel Management's Analysis of the United States Postal Service's Funding of Civil Service Retirement System Costs

Correspondence issued by the General Accounting Office with an abstract that begins "In our December 2001 report, "United States Postal Service: Information on Retirement Plans" (GAO-02-170), we raised the question of whether the United States Postal Service (USPS) was paying more or less than appropriate to cover benefit payments for the Civil Service Retirement System (CSRS) for which it is responsible. In May 2002, we asked the Office of Personnel Management (OPM) to calculate a hypothetical "Postal Fund" balance and projected funding status by estimating the present value (PV) of the future benefits USPS is required to fund for CSRS retirees and survivors under current law and extent to which prior and projected future contributions required by current law would fund these benefits. OPM released its analysis in November 2002, indicating that, based on current contributions, USPS's CSRS obligations would be significantly overfunded in the future. The Administration has proposed legislation that addresses this overfunding. In this correspondence we will (1) review OPM's analysis for reasonableness and (2) analyze the legislative proposal to identify any issues needing further consideration."
Date: January 31, 2003
Creator: United States. General Accounting Office.
Object Type: Text
System: The UNT Digital Library
Dietary Supplements: Review of Health-Related Call Records for Users of Metabolife 356 (open access)

Dietary Supplements: Review of Health-Related Call Records for Users of Metabolife 356

A letter report issued by the General Accounting Office with an abstract that begins "Dietary supplements containing ephedra, such as Metabolife 356, have been associated with serious adverse health-related events. In a February 28, 2003, announcement, the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) proposed that dietary supplements containing ephedra include a statement on their label warning that "Heart attack, stroke, seizure, and death have been reported after consumption of ephedrine alkaloids." GAO was asked to review health-related call records that Metabolife International--the manufacturer of Metabolife 356--collected from consumers from May 1997 through July 2002. Most of the records were from calls to a consumer phone line the company maintained. Metabolife International voluntarily provided the call records to GAO. Specifically, GAO (1) examined the extent to which consumer information in the call records was comprehensive, interpretable, and consistently recorded, (2) counted the number of call records reporting types of adverse events that FDA had identified in 1997 as serious or potentially serious, and (3) compared GAO's findings to those of six other reviews of the call records, including one by Metabolife International."
Date: March 31, 2003
Creator: United States. General Accounting Office.
Object Type: Report
System: The UNT Digital Library
Student Loan Programs: As Federal Costs of Loan Consolidation Rise, Other Options Should Be Examined (open access)

Student Loan Programs: As Federal Costs of Loan Consolidation Rise, Other Options Should Be Examined

A letter report issued by the General Accounting Office with an abstract that begins "The federal government makes consolidation loans available to help borrowers manage their student loan debt. By combining loans into one and extending the repayment period, a consolidation loan reduces monthly repayments, which may lower default risk and, thereby, reduce federal costs of loan defaults. Consolidation loans also allow borrowers to lock in a fixed interest rate--an option not available for other student loans--and are available to borrowers regardless of financial need. GAO was asked to examine (1) how consolidation borrowers differ from nonconsolidation borrowers; (2) how federal costs have been affected by recent interest rate and loan volume changes; and (3) the extent to which repayment options--other than consolidation--are available to help simplify and reduce loan repayments."
Date: October 31, 2003
Creator: United States. General Accounting Office.
Object Type: Report
System: The UNT Digital Library
Consumer Credit: Limited Information Exists on Extent of Credit Report Errors and Their Implications for Consumers (open access)

Consumer Credit: Limited Information Exists on Extent of Credit Report Errors and Their Implications for Consumers

A statement of record issued by the General Accounting Office with an abstract that begins "Accurate credit reports are critical to the credit process--for consumers attempting to obtain credit and to lending institutions making decisions about extending credit. In today's sophisticated and highly calibrated credit markets, credit report errors can have significant monetary implications to consumers and credit granters. In recognition of the importance of this issue, the Senate Committee on Banking, Housing, and Urban Affairs asked GAO to (1) provide information on the frequency, type, and cause of credit report errors, and (2) describe the impact of the 1996 amendments to the Fair Credit Reporting Act (FCRA) on credit report accuracy and potential implications of reporting errors for consumers."
Date: July 31, 2003
Creator: United States. General Accounting Office.
Object Type: Text
System: The UNT Digital Library
Federal Programs: Ethnographic Studies Can Inform Agencies' Actions (open access)

Federal Programs: Ethnographic Studies Can Inform Agencies' Actions

A staff study issued by the General Accounting Office with an abstract that begins "In this time of emphasis on performance and results, federal agencies and congressional committees can benefit from knowing the full range of social science methods that can help them improve the programs they oversee. Among the methods they might consider are those of ethnography, derived from anthropology. However, information about the past and present uses of ethnography to improve federal programs has not been systematically gathered or analyzed. Therefore, the potential for program improvement may be overlooked. Ethnography can fill gaps in what we know about the community whose beliefs and behavior affect how federal programs operate. This can be especially useful when such beliefs or behavior present barriers to a program's objectives. Ethnography helps build knowledge of a community by observing its members and by interviewing them in their natural setting. Although many people associate ethnography with lengthy anthropological research aimed at cultures remote from our own, it can be used to inform public programs and has a long history of application in the federal government."
Date: March 31, 2003
Creator: United States. General Accounting Office.
Object Type: Text
System: The UNT Digital Library
Financial Management: Audit of the Centennial of Flight Commission for Fiscal Year 2002 (open access)

Financial Management: Audit of the Centennial of Flight Commission for Fiscal Year 2002

Correspondence issued by the General Accounting Office with an abstract that begins "The Centennial of Flight Commission (Commission) was created on November 13, 1998, by the Centennial of Flight Commemoration Act (Public Law 105-389, as amended by Public Law 106-68). The purpose of the Commission is to commemorate the 100th anniversary of the Wright Brothers' flight at Kitty Hawk, North Carolina, on December 17, 1903. The Commission is to provide recommendations and advice to the President, the 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. We are required by the act to audit the financial transactions of the Commission. This report presents the results of our audit of the Commission's fiscal year 2002 financial transactions, with cumulative information since the Commission's inception. We previously reported the results of our audits on Commission financial transactions for fiscal years 1999 and 2000, and 2001."
Date: July 31, 2003
Creator: United States. General Accounting Office.
Object Type: Text
System: The UNT Digital Library
Defense Health Care: Oversight of the TRICARE Civilian Provider Network Should Be Improved (open access)

Defense Health Care: Oversight of the TRICARE Civilian Provider Network Should Be Improved

A letter report issued by the General Accounting Office with an abstract that begins "Testifying before Congress in 2002, military beneficiary groups described problems accessing care from TRICARE's civilian medical providers. Providers also testified on their dissatisfaction with the TRICARE program, specifying low reimbursement rates and administrative burdens. The Bob Stump National Defense Authorization Act of 2003 required GAO to review the oversight of the TRICARE network of civilian providers. Specifically, GAO describes how the Department of Defense (DOD) oversees the adequacy of the civilian provider network, evaluates DOD's oversight of the civilian provider network, and describes the factors that have been reported to contribute to network inadequacy. GAO analyzed TRICARE Prime--the managed care component of TRICARE. To describe and evaluate DOD's oversight, GAO reviewed and analyzed information from reports on network adequacy and interviewed DOD and contractor officials in 5 of 11 TRICARE regions."
Date: July 31, 2003
Creator: United States. General Accounting Office.
Object Type: Report
System: The UNT Digital Library
Information Technology: Benefits Realized for Selected Health Care Functions (open access)

Information Technology: Benefits Realized for Selected Health Care Functions

A letter report issued by the General Accounting Office with an abstract that begins "The rapidly rising costs of health care, along with an increasing concern for the quality of care and the safety of patients, are driving health care organizations to use information technology (IT) to automate clinical care operations and their associated administrative functions. Among its other functions, IT is now being used for electronic medical records, order management and results reporting, patient care management, and Internet access for patient and provider communications. It also provides automated billing and financial management. The Ranking Minority Member of the Senate Committee on Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions asked GAO to identify cost savings and other benefits realized by health care organizations that have implemented IT both in providing clinical health care and in the administrative functions associated with health care delivery. GAO analyzed information from 10 private and public health care delivery organizations, 3 health care insurers, and 1 community data network."
Date: October 31, 2003
Creator: United States. General Accounting Office.
Object Type: Report
System: The UNT Digital Library
National Airspace System: Better Cost Data Could Improve FAA's Management of the Standard Terminal Automation Replacement System (open access)

National Airspace System: Better Cost Data Could Improve FAA's Management of the Standard Terminal Automation Replacement System

A letter report issued by the General Accounting Office with an abstract that begins "To enhance the capacity and safety of the national airspace system, the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA), within the Department of Transportation, is acquiring 74 Standard Terminal Automation Replacement Systems (STARS). STARS will replace some outdated air traffic control equipment. Since 1996, when FAA initiated this major computer hardware and software acquisition, the scope and estimated costs of STARS have changed many times. FAA now estimates that STARS's remaining costs will total about $2.54 billion. GAO was asked to assess the reliability of FAA's life-cycle cost estimate for STARS, determine the impact of STARS's estimated costs on future FAA budgets, and identify any alternatives to STARS that FAA is considering. GAO based its analysis on published FAA cost data and the guidance FAA uses for managing major acquisitions."
Date: January 31, 2003
Creator: United States. General Accounting Office.
Object Type: Report
System: The UNT Digital Library
Child Welfare: Most States Are Developing Statewide Information Systems, but the Reliability of Child Welfare Data Could Be Improved (open access)

Child Welfare: Most States Are Developing Statewide Information Systems, but the Reliability of Child Welfare Data Could Be Improved

A letter report issued by the General Accounting Office with an abstract that begins "To better monitor children and families served by state child welfare agencies, Congress authorized matching funds for the development of statewide automated child welfare information systems (SACWIS) and required that the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) compile information on the children served by state agencies. This report reviews (1) states' experiences in developing child welfare information systems and HHS's role in assisting in their development, (2) factors that affect the reliability of data that states collect and report on children served by their child welfare agencies and HHS's role in ensuring the reliability of those data, and (3) practices that child welfare agencies use to overcome challenges associated with SACWIS development and data reliability."
Date: July 31, 2003
Creator: United States. General Accounting Office.
Object Type: Report
System: The UNT Digital Library
Debt Collection: Opportunities Exist for Improving FMS's Cross-Servicing Program (open access)

Debt Collection: Opportunities Exist for Improving FMS's Cross-Servicing Program

A letter report issued by the General Accounting Office with an abstract that begins "GAO has previously reviewed facets of Treasury's Financial Management Service's (FMS) cross-servicing efforts. These reviews did not include FMS's handling of nontax debts that were returned to FMS uncollected by its private collection agency (PCA) contractors because FMS officials did not consider the cross-servicing program to be fully mature. During fiscal years 2000, 2001, and 2002, FMS's PCA contractors returned about $3.9 billion of uncollected debts to FMS. This report focuses primarily on (1) actions taken by FMS on uncollected nontax debts returned from its PCA contractors and (2) actions taken, if any, by FMS and the Office of Management and Budget (OMB) to ensure that federal agencies are reporting their eligible uncollectible nontax debts to IRS as income to debtors."
Date: October 31, 2003
Creator: United States. General Accounting Office.
Object Type: Report
System: The UNT Digital Library
Small Business Administration: Progress Made, but Transformation Could Benefit from Practices Emphasizing Transparency and Communication (open access)

Small Business Administration: Progress Made, but Transformation Could Benefit from Practices Emphasizing Transparency and Communication

A letter report issued by the General Accounting Office with an abstract that begins "The Small Business Administration (SBA) has recognized that it needs to realign its current organizational structure and processes to improve its ability to fulfill its primary mission--supporting the nation's small businesses. In July 2002, SBA announced that it was initiating a transformation effort to increase the public's awareness of SBA's services and products and make its processes more efficient. GAO evaluated SBA's progress in implementing its transformation initiatives and challenges that have impeded or could impede implementation and whether SBA's transformation incorporates practices GAO has identified in previous work that are important to successful organizational change."
Date: October 31, 2003
Creator: United States. General Accounting Office.
Object Type: Report
System: The UNT Digital Library
Women's Earnings: Work Patterns Partially Explain Difference between Men's and Women's Earnings (open access)

Women's Earnings: Work Patterns Partially Explain Difference between Men's and Women's Earnings

A letter report issued by the General Accounting Office with an abstract that begins "Despite extensive research on the progress that women have made toward equal pay and career advancement opportunities over the past several decades, there is no consensus about the magnitude of earnings differences between men and women and why differences may exist. According to data from the Department of Labor's Current Population Survey (CPS), women have typically earned less than men. Specifically, in 2001, the published CPS data showed that for full-time wage and salary workers, women's weekly earnings were about three-fourths of men's. However, this difference does not reflect key factors, such as work experience and education, that may affect the level of earnings individuals receive. Studies that attempt to account for key factors have provided a more comprehensive estimate of the earnings difference. However, recent information is lacking because many studies on earnings differences relied on data that predated the mid-1990s. But, even when accounting for these factors, questions remain about the size of and reasons for any earnings difference. To provide insight into these issues, Congress asked that we examine the factors that contribute to differences in men's and women's earnings."
Date: October 31, 2003
Creator: United States. General Accounting Office.
Object Type: Report
System: The UNT Digital Library
U.S. Commission on Civil Rights: More Operational and Financial Oversight Needed (open access)

U.S. Commission on Civil Rights: More Operational and Financial Oversight Needed

A letter report issued by the General Accounting Office with an abstract that begins "Over the past 10 years, GAO, the Congress, the Office of Personnel Management (OPM), and others have raised numerous concerns about the U.S. Commission on Civil Rights. GAO was asked to assess (1) the adequacy of the Commission's project management procedures, (2) whether the Commission's controls over contracting services and managing contracts are sufficient, and (3) the extent of recent oversight of the Commission's financial activities."
Date: October 31, 2003
Creator: United States. General Accounting Office.
Object Type: Report
System: The UNT Digital Library
DOD Business Systems Modernization: Longstanding Management and Oversight Weaknesses Continue to Put Investments at Risk (open access)

DOD Business Systems Modernization: Longstanding Management and Oversight Weaknesses Continue to Put Investments at Risk

Testimony issued by the General Accounting Office with an abstract that begins "The Department of Defense's (DOD) management of its business systems modernization program has been an area of longstanding concern to Congress and one that GAO has designated as high risk since 1995. Because of this concern, GAO was requested to testify on (1) DOD's current inventory of existing and new business systems and the amount of funding devoted to this inventory; (2) DOD's modernization management capabilities, including weaknesses and DOD's efforts to address them; and (3) GAO's collective recommendations for correcting these weaknesses and minimizing DOD's exposure to risk until they are corrected. In developing this testimony, GAO drew from its previously issued reports on DOD's business systems modernization efforts, including one released today on four key Defense Finance and Accounting Service (DFAS) projects."
Date: March 31, 2003
Creator: United States. General Accounting Office.
Object Type: Text
System: The UNT Digital Library
GAO Performance and Accountability Report, 2002 (open access)

GAO Performance and Accountability Report, 2002

Other written product issued by the General Accounting Office with an abstract that begins "Presented is GAO's performance and accountability report for fiscal 2002. 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 16th consecutive year. The financial information and the data measuring GAO's performance contained in this report are complete and reliable."
Date: January 31, 2003
Creator: United States. General Accounting Office.
Object Type: Text
System: The UNT Digital Library
VA Health Care: Improvements Needed in Hepatitis C Disease Management Practices (open access)

VA Health Care: Improvements Needed in Hepatitis C Disease Management Practices

A letter report issued by the General Accounting Office with an abstract that begins "In 1998, the Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) launched an initiative to screen and test veterans for hepatitis C--a chronic blood-borne virus that can cause potentially fatal liver-related conditions. Since 2001, GAO has been monitoring VA's hepatitis C program. This year GAO was asked to report on VA's hepatitis C disease management practices. GAO surveyed 141 VA medical facilities about their processes for notifying veterans concerning hepatitis C test results and evaluating veterans' medical conditions regarding potential treatment options. In addition, GAO reviewed medical records of 100 hepatitis C patients at 1 facility and visited 4 other facilities that used unique hepatitis C disease management processes."
Date: January 31, 2003
Creator: United States. General Accounting Office.
Object Type: Report
System: The UNT Digital Library
Information Technology Training: Practices of Leading Private-Sector Companies (open access)

Information Technology Training: Practices of Leading Private-Sector Companies

A letter report issued by the General Accounting Office with an abstract that begins "The rapid pace of technological change, with its potential to transform the way the government delivers services, makes information technology (IT) human capital a critical issue for federal agencies.GAO has identified strategic human capital management as a high risk area for the federal government, and the demand for skilled IT workers is expected to increase over the long term. Given that competition for workers affects the federal government as it does any other employer, effective training of staff is essential to developing and retaining a qualified workforce. Some private-sector companies are recognized for their effective and innovative training programs form the IT workforce, which could provide models and examples for federal agencies. To help federal agencies better design and implement such training programs, GAO was asked to examine private-sector practices for training both IT and non-IT professionals (e.g., business managers and other staff needing training in IT) that could be used as a basis for addressing federal efforts."
Date: January 31, 2003
Creator: United States. General Accounting Office.
Object Type: Report
System: The UNT Digital Library
Contract Management: Commercial Use of Share-in-Savings Contracting (open access)

Contract Management: Commercial Use of Share-in-Savings Contracting

A letter report issued by the General Accounting Office with an abstract that begins "The Congress and federal agencies are increasingly turning to performance-based contracting methods to enhance the delivery of government services. Share-in-Savings (SIS) contracting--in which the contractor assumes more risk by investing upfront costs but also receives a share in any savings generated by its efforts--is one performance-based technique that Congress is trying to promote. We were asked to examine its use by industry in terms of whether there were any key conditions that needed to be in place to make this technique successful. In conducting our review, we found that the form of SIS used in a commercial contract varied by contract. Some contracts employed a basic SIS approach, in which a contractor's total compensation was paid entirely through sharing a portion of a client's savings or increased revenues. And some employed a tailored approached in which contractors were paid for at least some portion of their time and materials costs, even if savings or increased revenues were not realized. We performed a detailed analysis on four specific contracts to identify conditions that fostered success."
Date: January 31, 2003
Creator: United States. General Accounting Office.
Object Type: Report
System: The UNT Digital Library
Catalogue of GAO and Inspectors General Reports on Contracting Issues for Fiscal Years 1997 through 2002 (open access)

Catalogue of GAO and Inspectors General Reports on Contracting Issues for Fiscal Years 1997 through 2002

Other written product issued by the General Accounting Office with an abstract that begins "The federal government spent more than $230 billion through contracts with private industry in fiscal year 2001. Ten Executive Branch agencies account for almost 95 percent of this spending. Past reviews by Executive Branch agency inspectors general, military-department audit agencies, and the General Accounting Office (GAO) have created an extensive body of reports on the procedures and practices that federal agencies use to plan, award, and administer contracts. These reviews identified weaknesses in the contracting processes of individual agencies and contracting challenges these agencies have in common. Consequently, to facilitate literate searches of the reports concerning federal contracting matters, we compiled a catalogue of information from reports and testimonies by the 10 agencies' inspectors general, military department audit agencies, and GAO. Such a catalogue could be useful to the oversight community and others in determing (1) common contracting issues identified across multiple agencies and (2) the potential contracting-risk areas and gaps in contracting oversight across these agencies."
Date: March 31, 2003
Creator: United States. General Accounting Office.
Object Type: Text
System: The UNT Digital Library