A letter report issued by the General Accounting Office with an abstract that begins "Section 366 of the National Defense Authorization Act for Fiscal Year 2003 required the Secretary of Defense to develop a report outlining a comprehensive plan to address training constraints caused by limitations on the use of military lands, marine areas, and air space that are available in the United States and overseas for training. The foundation for that plan is an inventory identifying training resources, capacities and capabilities, and limitations. In response to section 366, this report discusses the extent to which (1) the Office of the Secretary of Defense's (OSD) training range inventory is sufficient for developing the comprehensive training range plan and (2) OSD's 2004 training range report meets other requirements mandated by section 366."

A letter report issued by the General Accounting Office with an abstract that begins "As part of the No Child Left Behind Act (NCLBA) of 2001, the Congress authorized a 3-year, $17 million per year school-based mentoring grant program. For fiscal year 2004, Congress has increased funding to about $50 million to fund additional mentoring efforts. Congress requested that GAO provide information on the student mentoring program. To do this, GAO answered the following questions: (1) What are the basic elements, policies, and procedures of successful mentoring programs? (2) What are the key characteristics of NCLBA-funded mentoring efforts, including the extent to which they have the basic elements, policies, and procedures of successful mentoring programs? (3) How does the Department of Education monitor program implementation? (4) What are Education's and grantees' plans to assess program outcomes?"

A letter report issued by the General Accounting Office with an abstract that begins "Established in March 2002, the Homeland Security Advisory System was designed to disseminate information on the risk of terrorist acts to federal agencies, states, localities, and the public. However, these entities have raised questions about the threat information they receive from the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) and the costs they incurred as a result of responding to heightened alerts. This report examines (1) the decision making process for changing the advisory system national threat level; (2) information sharing with federal agencies, states, and localities, including the applicability of risk communication principles; (3) protective measures federal agencies, states, and localities implemented during high (codeorange) alert periods; (4) costs federal agencies reported for those periods; and (5) state and local cost information collected by DHS."

A letter report issued by the General Accounting Office with an abstract that begins "From homeland security to tracking outbreaks of disease, to investigating the space shuttle disaster to responding to natural disasters, the collection, maintenance, and use of location-based (geospatial) information has become critical to many federal agencies' abilities to achieve their goals. Local governments and the private sector also rely on such data to support essential functions. GAO was asked to determine the extent to which the federal government is coordinating the sharing of geospatial assets, including through oversight measures in place at the Office of Management and Budget (OMB), in order to identify and reduce redundancies in geospatial data and systems."

A letter report issued by the General Accounting Office with an abstract that begins "Russia's continued operation of three plutonium production reactors poses a serious proliferation threat. The Department of Energy's (DOE) Elimination of Weapons-Grade Plutonium Production program seeks to facilitate the reactors' closure by building or refurbishing replacement fossil fuel plants. This report (1) describes DOE's efforts to manage and implement the program, (2) assesses the challenges DOE faces in achieving its goal of shutting down the reactors, and (3) identifies DOE's current expenditures and projected program costs."

A letter report issued by the General Accounting Office with an abstract that begins "Colorectal cancer is the second leading cause of cancer deaths in the United States. Its mortality can be reduced through early detection and treatment. Four key tests are used to detect the cancer--fecal occult blood test (FOBT), flexible sigmoidoscopy, double-contrast barium enema (DCBE), and colonoscopy. Private health insurance plans generally cover these tests to diagnose cancer; however, the extent to which plans cover the tests for screening purposes--where no symptoms are evident--is less clear. Congress is considering legislation that would require coverage of the tests for screening purposes among all private health insurance plans. GAO was asked to (1) identify the state laws that require private health insurance coverage of these screening tests; and (2) determine the extent to which the tests are covered among small employer, individual, large employer, and federal employee health plans. GAO summarized state laws that require coverage of the tests. GAO examined test coverage among a sample of the largest 19 small employer and 14 individual plans in 10 states without laws requiring the coverage, and among 35 large employer plans nationally. The findings cannot be generalized beyond these plans. GAO …

A letter report issued by the General Accounting Office with an abstract that begins "Congress has appropriated more than $20 billion since April 2003 to support rebuilding efforts in Iraq. This complex undertaking, which is occurring in an unstable security environment and under significant time constraints, is being carried out largely through contracts with private-sector companies. As of September 2003, agencies had obligated nearly $3.7 billion on 100 contracts or task orders under existing contracts. Given widespread congressional interest in ensuring that reconstruction contracts are awarded properly and administered effectively, GAO reviewed 25 contract actions that represented about 97 percent of the obligated funds. GAO determined whether agencies had complied with competition requirements in awarding new contracts and issuing task orders and evaluated agencies' initial efforts in carrying out contract administration tasks."

A letter report issued by the General Accounting Office with an abstract that begins "Problems with management oversight and control of DOD's purchase card program led to concerns that similar issues exist for DOD's vendor payments. As a result, this report focuses on the Navy's telecommunication program and whether (1) the Navy has the basic cost and inventory information needed to oversee and manage these purchases and (2) selected Navy sites have adequate control to provide reasonable assurance that goods and services are purchased cost effectively and payments are made only for valid charges."

A letter report issued by the General Accounting Office with an abstract that begins "The Department of Energy's (DOE) Hanford Site in Washington State houses DOE's largest and most complex nuclear cleanup project--treating and preparing for disposal 55 million gallons of high-level radioactive waste. In 2000, DOE awarded an 11-year, $4.3 billion contract to design, construct, and test treatment facilities at Hanford. GAO was asked to review (1) efforts to accelerate the project's completion, (2) implementation on this project of agencywide management reforms, and (3) the challenges resulting from any unimplemented reforms."

A letter report issued by the General Accounting Office with an abstract that begins "Effective training of information technology (IT) staff, as called for in the E-Government (E-Gov) Act of 2002, is essential to developing and retaining a qualified workforce. In an earlier report (GAO-03-390), we identified 22 leading practices, grouped into 5 key training management processes, used by private-sector companies to implement effective IT training. These practices suggest approaches that government agencies could consider. To assess IT training in the federal government, including its use of leading practices, we were asked to determine, among other things, to what extent federal agencies use our leading practices, the major obstacles in providing effective IT training and how agencies address them, and the progress the Office of Personnel Management (OPM) is making in issuing policies and performing evaluations to encourage agencies to provide effective IT training."

A letter report issued by the General Accounting Office with an abstract that begins "The Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration (SAMHSA) is the lead federal agency responsible for improving the quality and availability of prevention and treatment services for substance abuse and mental illness. The upcoming reauthorization review of SAMHSA will enable the Congress to examine the agency's management of its grant programs and plans for converting its block grants to performance partnership grants, which will hold states more accountable for results. GAO was asked to provide the Congress with information about SAMHSA's (1) strategic planning efforts, (2) efforts to manage its workforce, and (3) partnerships with state and community-based grantees."

A letter report issued by the General Accounting Office with an abstract that begins "During its downsizing in the early 1990s, the Department of Defense (DOD) did not focus on strategically reshaping its civilian workforce. GAO was asked to address DOD's efforts to strategically plan for its future civilian workforce at the Office of the Secretary of Defense (OSD), the military services' headquarters, and the Defense Logistics Agency (DLA). Specifically, GAO determined: (1) the extent to which civilian strategic workforce plans have been developed and implemented to address future civilian workforce requirements, and (2) the major challenges affecting the development and implementation of these plans."

A letter report issued by the General Accounting Office with an abstract that begins "Ineffective management and oversight of the Department of Defense's (DOD) premium class travel and unused airline tickets led to concerns about DOD's overall management of the centrally billed accounts. GAO was asked to determine whether (1) DOD improperly reimbursed travelers for airline tickets DOD paid for using centrally billed accounts, (2) internal controls were effective in preventing issuance of unauthorized airline tickets, and (3) other control weaknesses led to compromised and fraudulently used centrally billed accounts."

A letter report issued by the General Accounting Office with an abstract that begins "U.S. Department of Agriculture's (USDA) Risk Management Agency (RMA) administers the federal crop insurance program in partnership with insurance companies who share in the risk of loss or gain. In 2002, American Growers Insurance Company (American Growers), at the time, the largest participant in the program, was placed under regulatory control by the state of Nebraska. To ensure that policyholders were protected and that farmers' claims were paid, RMA agreed to fund the dissolution of American Growers. To date, RMA has spent about $40 million. GAO was asked to determine (1) what factors led to the failure of American Growers, (2) whether RMA procedures were adequate to monitor companies' financial condition, and (3) how effectively and efficiently RMA handled the dissolution of American Growers."

A letter report issued by the General Accounting Office with an abstract that begins "The Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) provides healthcare to millions of veterans at VA's medical centers and healthcare facilities across the country. To support veterans, VA manages a Federal Supply Schedule (FSS) program and a national contract program. Both use VA's sizeable buying power to provide VA and other federal agencies discounts on medical products and services. To cover its costs in running the FSS program, VA charges its customers a user fee. Although sales through VA's FSS and national contracts totaled almost $7 billion in fiscal year 2003, concerns have been raised about the efficiency of these contract programs. GAO was asked to determine whether the FSS and national contracts have provided medical products at favorable prices and to identify opportunities to improve purchasing practices and increase savings. GAO was also asked to determine if VA's user fee is sufficient to cover program cost."

A letter report issued by the General Accounting Office with an abstract that begins "Minimizing improper payments is important given the dollar magnitude of the Temporary Assistance for Needy Families (TANF) and Child Care and Development Fund (CCDF) programs--about $34 billion in federal and state funds expended annually. These block grants support millions of low-income families with cash assistance, child care, and other services aimed at reducing their dependence on the government. At the federal level, the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) oversees TANF and CCDF. Within states, many public and private entities administer these programs and share responsibility for financial integrity. GAO looked at (1) what selected states have done to manage improper payments in TANF and CCDF and (2) what HHS has done to assess risk and assist states in managing improper payments in these programs. To address these questions, GAO judgmentally selected states that varied in geographic location and program size. GAO used a survey to collect consistent information from 11 states and visited 5 states."

A letter report issued by the General Accounting Office with an abstract that begins "The emergence of webcasting as a means of transmitting audio and video content over the Internet has led to concerns about copyright protection and the payment of royalties to those who own the recording copyrights. Arriving at an acceptable rate for calculating royalties has been particularly challenging. Under the Small Webcaster Settlement Act of 2002, small commercial webcasters reached an agreement with copyright owners that included the option of paying royalties for the period of October 28, 1998, to December 31, 2004, on the basis of a percentage of their revenues, expenses, a combination of both, or a minimum fee rather than paying the royalty rates set by the Librarian of Congress. During debate on the act, copyright owners raised concerns that small webcasters might have arrangements with other parties, such as advertisers, that could produce revenues or expenses that might not be included in their royalty calculations. In this context, the Congress mandated that GAO, in consultation with the Register of Copyrights, prepare a report on the (1) economic arrangements between small webcasters and third parties and (2) effect of those arrangements on the royalties …

A letter report issued by the General Accounting Office with an abstract that begins "The Department of Veterans Affairs Office of Inspector General (OIG) has identified significant vulnerabilities in Veterans Affairs' (VA) use of government purchase cards. In its April 26, 2004 report, the OIG reported instances of fraudulent activity totaling $435,900, and numerous improper and questionable uses of the purchase cards totaling $1.1 million. Given that VHA comprised at least 90 percent of VA's dollar and transaction volume for fiscal year 2002, GAO was asked to determine whether existing controls at VHA were designed to provide reasonable assurance that in the future, improper purchases would be prevented or detected in the normal course of business, purchase card and convenience check expenditures were made in compliance with applicable laws and regulations, and purchases were made for a reasonable cost and a valid government need."

A letter report issued by the General Accounting Office with an abstract that begins "The Agriculture Department's Rural Utilities Service (RUS) makes loans and provides loan guarantees to improve electric service to rural areas. Beyond guaranteeing loans, under a yet-to-be-implemented provision of the 2002 Farm Bill, RUS is also to guarantee the bonds and notes that lenders use to raise funds for making loans for electric and telecommunications services. Fees on these latter guarantees are to be used for funding rural economic development loans and grants. GAO was asked to examine (1) the extent to which RUS' borrowers provide electricity service to nonrural areas and (2) the potential financial risk to taxpayers and amount of loans and grants that the guarantee fees will fund. GAO also identified an alternative for funding rural economic development."

A letter report issued by the General Accounting Office with an abstract that begins "Members of the Congress and governmental experts have expressed repeated interest in examining the overlapping and fragmented functions and activities of the federal government. As a first-level look at potential overlap and fragmentation, the Chairwoman, Subcommittee on Civil Service and Agency Organization, House Committee on Government Reform, asked GAO to present information on which federal agencies spend funds in which federal mission areas. This report examines federal spending through two commonly used analytical approaches--budget functions and object classifications."

A letter report issued by the General Accounting Office with an abstract that begins "Under the current Social Security benefit formula, retired workers receive benefits that equal about 50 percent of pre-retirement earnings for a low-wage worker but only about 30 percent for a relatively high-wage worker. Factors other than earnings also influence the distribution of benefits, including the program's provisions for disabled workers, spouses, children, and survivors. Changes in the program over time also affect the distribution of benefits across generations. Social Security faces a long-term structural financing shortfall. Program changes to address that shortfall could alter the way Social Security's benefits and revenues are distributed across the population and affect the income security of millions of Americans. To gain a better understanding of the distributional effects of potential program changes, the Chairman and Ranking Minority Member of the Senate Special Committee on Aging asked us to address (1) how to define and describe "progressivity," that is, the distribution of benefits and taxes with respect to earnings level, when assessing the current Social Security system or proposed changes to it; (2) what factors influence the distributional effects of the current Social Security program; and (3) what would be the …

A letter report issued by the General Accounting Office with an abstract that begins "DHS was provided with significant flexibility to design a modern human capital management system. Its proposed system has both precedent-setting implications for the executive branch and farreaching implications on how the department is managed. GAO reported in September 2003 that the effort to design the system was collaborative and consistent with positive elements of transformation. In February, March, and April 2004 we provided preliminary observations on the proposed human capital regulations. Congressional requesters asked GAO to describe the infrastructure necessary for strategic human capital management and to assess the degree to which DHS has that infrastructure in place, which includes an analysis of the progress DHS has made in implementing the recommendations from our September 2003 report. DHS generally agreed with the findings of our report and provided more current information that we incorporated. However, DHS was concerned about our use of results from a governmentwide survey gathered prior to the formation of the department. We use this data because it is the most current information available on the perceptions of employees currently in DHS and helps to illustrate the challenges facing DHS."

A letter report issued by the General Accounting Office with an abstract that begins "This report responds to a request by the Ranking Minority Member, House Committee on Veterans' Affairs, for an analysis of the findings and recommendations contained in the March 2004 report of the Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) Task Force on Vocational Rehabilitation and Employment (VR&E). The mission of the VR&E program is to provide comprehensive services and assistance necessary to enable veterans with service-connected disabilities and employment handicaps to become employable, then obtain and maintain stable and suitable employment. We agreed to review and comment on the Task Force report's key findings and recommendations and make general observations about these findings and recommendations in light of our previous and ongoing work in the area."

A letter report issued by the General Accounting Office with an abstract that begins "The National Nuclear Security Administration (NNSA), a separately organized agency within the Department of Energy (DOE), is responsible for the management and security of the nation's nuclear weapons, nonproliferation, and naval reactor programs. NNSA oversees contractors that operate its facilities to ensure that activities are effective and in line with departmental policy. In December 2002, NNSA began implementing a major reorganization aimed at solving important long-standing organizational issues. GAO reviewed NNSA's overall reorganization efforts to assess (1) the extent to which it is addressing in practice the past problems concerning the unclear delineation of authority and responsibility, (2) workforce planning, and (3) its impact on federal oversight of contractor activities."