The Department of Energy Organization Act, which created DOE, was enacted in 1977 and DOE officially came into existence in October of that year. That law brought together for the first time, not only most of the government’s energy programs, but also science and technology programs and defense responsibilities that included the design, construction, and testing of nuclear weapons. Over its history, DOE has shifted its emphasis and focus as the energy and security needs of the Nation have changed. Today, DOE stands at the forefront of helping the Nation meet our energy, scientific, environmental, and national security goals. These include developing and deploying new energy technologies, reducing our dependence on foreign energy sources, protecting our nuclear weapons stockpile, and ensuring that America remains competitive in the global marketplace. To help achieve these goals, President Bush has launched two key initiatives: the American Competitiveness Initiative (ACI) and the Advanced Energy Initiative (AEI). The President launched these initiatives recognizing that science, technology, and engineering hold the answers to many of the critical challenges our world faces. These new initiatives to spur scientific innovation and technology development expand DOE’s continuing support for the competitive energy markets, both domestically and internationally, and of …

Other written product issued by the Government Accountability Office with an abstract that begins "The Inspector General Act of 1978, as amended, (IG Act) created independent offices headed by inspectors general (IG) responsible for conducting and supervising audits and investigations; promoting economy, efficiency, and effectiveness; and preventing and detecting fraud and abuse in their agencies' programs and operations. To carry out the purposes of the act, the IGs have been granted authorities and responsibilities to provide for their independence and effectiveness. These include the authority to have direct access to all records and information of the agency, to hire staff and manage their own resources, to receive and respond to complaints from agency employees, to request assistance from other government agencies, to issue subpoenas to obtain information and documents, and to administer oaths when taking testimony. The Senate Committee on Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs asked us to review whether additional IG authorities and responsibilities such as those provided in H.R. 2489, as well as other changes, could further enhance the independence and effectiveness of the IGs. Introduced in 2005, H.R. 2489 includes provisions for (1) a defined term of office for the IGs and conditions for removal, (2) IGs …

Testimony issued by the Government Accountability Office with an abstract that begins "From fiscal years 2003 through 2006, U.S. government agencies have reported significant costs for U.S. stabilization and reconstruction efforts in Iraq. In addition, the United States currently has committed about 138,000 military personnel to the U.S.-led Multinational Force in Iraq (MNF-I). Over the past 3 years, worsening security conditions have made it difficult for the United States to achieve its goals in Iraq. In this statement, we discuss (1) the trends in the security environment in Iraq, and (2) progress in developing Iraqi security forces, as reported by the Departments of Defense (DOD) and State. We also present key questions for congressional oversight, including what political, economic, and security conditions must be achieved before the United States can draw down and withdraw? Why have security conditions continued to deteriorate even as Iraq has met political milestones, increased the number of trained and equipped forces, and increasingly assumed the lead for security? If existing U.S. political, economic, and security measures are not reducing violence in Iraq, what additional measures, if any, will the administration propose for stemming the violence?"

Correspondence issued by the Government Accountability Office with an abstract that begins "To lawfully work in the United States, individuals must provide identification and evidence of work authorization to their employers. Individuals who are not U.S. citizens must have authorization to work from the Department of Homeland Security (DHS). Yet individuals without these required authorizations can gain employment using fraudulent documents containing fictitious information or information that belongs to someone else or by being hired by an employer who does not follow the law. In prior GAO work on these issues, we have reported that Social Security Administration (SSA) and Internal Revenue Service (IRS) data can be useful for identity and employment eligibility verification as well as to facilitate more effective worksite enforcement. However, the use of these data has drawbacks since they contain some erroneous information and information about hundreds of thousands or even millions of U.S. citizens and work-authorized aliens. Because the confidentiality of tax data is considered crucial to voluntary taxpayer compliance, IRS is restricted under Section 6103 of the Internal Revenue Code from sharing taxpayer information with third parties except in very limited circumstances. Currently, IRS is not authorized to share taxpayers' information for worksite enforcement …

Correspondence issued by the Government Accountability Office with an abstract that begins "In March 2006, we issued our opinions on the calendar year 2005 financial statements of the Bank Insurance Fund (BIF), the Savings Association Insurance Fund (SAIF), and the FSLIC Resolution Fund (FRF). We also issued our opinion on the effectiveness of the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation's (FDIC) internal control over financial reporting (including safeguarding assets) and compliance as of December 31, 2005, and our evaluation of FDIC's compliance with significant provisions of selected laws and regulations for the three funds for the year ended December 31, 2005. The purpose of this report is to discuss issues identified during our audits of the 2005 financial statements regarding internal controls and accounting procedures that could be improved, and to recommend actions to address these weaknesses. Although these issues were not material in relation to the financial statements, we believe they warrant management's attention."

Testimony issued by the Government Accountability Office with an abstract that begins "In November 2005, the National Security Council (NSC) issued the National Strategy for Victory in Iraq (NSVI) to clarify the President's strategy for achieving U.S. political, security, and economic goals in Iraq. The U.S. goal is to establish a peaceful, stable, and secure Iraq. In addition, in June 2006, the administration issued a fact sheet at Camp David discussing current progress and goals in Iraq. This testimony (1) discusses the extent to which the NSVI and its supporting documents address the six characteristics of an effective national strategy, and (2) assesses how security, political, and economic factors will affect achieving the U.S. strategy for Iraq. In this testimony, the NSVI and supporting documents are collectively referred to as the U.S. strategy for Iraq."

Testimony issued by the Government Accountability Office with an abstract that begins "The Energy Policy Act of 2005 (Act) contains provisions that address challenges to developing geothermal resources, including the high risk and uncertainty of developing geothermal power plants, lack of sufficient transmission capacity, and delays in federal leasing. Among the provisions are means to simplify federal royalties on geothermal resources while overall collecting the same level of royalty revenues. This testimony summarizes the results of a recent GAO report, GAO-06-629. In this testimony, GAO describes: (1) the current extent of and potential for geothermal development, (2) challenges faced by developers of geothermal resources, (3) federal, state, and local government actions to address these challenges, and (4) how provisions of the Act are likely to affect federal geothermal royalty disbursement and collections."

Testimony issued by the Government Accountability Office with an abstract that begins "To ensure that essential government services are available in emergencies, federal agencies are required to develop continuity of operations (COOP) plans. The Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA), within the Department of Homeland Security (DHS), is responsible for providing guidance to agencies on developing such plans. Its guidance states that in their continuity planning, agencies should consider the use of telework--that is, work performed at an employee's home or at a work location other than a traditional office. The Office of Personnel Management (OPM) recently reported that 43 agencies have identified staff eligible to telework, and that more than 140,000 federal employees used telework in 2004. OPM also reported that many government operations can be carried out in emergencies using telework. For example, telework appears to be an effective strategy for responding to a pandemic--a global outbreak of disease that spreads easily from person to person and causes serious illness and death worldwide. In previous work, GAO identified steps that agencies should take to effectively use telework during an emergency. GAO was asked to testify on how agencies are addressing the use of telework in their continuity planning, which …

Correspondence issued by the Government Accountability Office with an abstract that begins "In August and September 2005, Hurricanes Katrina and Rita caused devastating damage to states along the Gulf Coast. In the aftermath of the storms, many questions were raised about the status of the thousands of children living in the affected areas. We prepared this preliminary information under the Comptroller General's authority to learn more about (1) the number of missing children and the challenges and lessons learned in locating them; (2) the number of foster and other children receiving child welfare services in Louisiana, in particular, who were affected by the storm, and the challenges and lessons learned in locating and serving them; and (3) the number of schoolchildren displaced by the storm, the damage to their schools, and the challenges and lessons learned for educating displaced school-aged children."

Contains base input from Fort Monmouth, NJ

Contains base input from Portland International Airport Air Guard Station, OR

Contains base input from Ellington Air Guard Station, TX

Base Input - Air Force - Nashville International Airport Air Guard Station - TN

Base Input - Coronado-CA Naval Air Depot North Island

Base Input Air Force - Ellington Field Air Guard Station - TX

Base Input Fort Belvoir, VA Army Team Wes Hood. Night Vision Lab Briefing

Base Input Air Force - Lambert International Airport, St. Louis - MO

Base Input - Air Force - Mansfield Lahm MAP Air Guard Station - OH

Base Input Naval Base Coronado-CA Navy/MC

Base Input - Air Force - Reno-Tahoe International Airport Air Guard Station - NV

Base Input - Shepard AFB, TX

Community Briefing - Army - Fort Monmouth - NJ 7/20/05

Community Briefing - General - Idaho - Bureau of Homeland Security

Community Briefing Maxwell Air Force Base - AL 7/20/2005