A letter report issued by the Government Accountability Office with an abstract that begins "Federal law enforcement officers (LEO) are required to complete mandatory basic training in order to exercise their law enforcement authorities. GAO was asked to identify federal mandatory law enforcement basic training programs. This report builds on GAO's prior work surveying federal civilian law enforcement components regarding their functions and authorities (see GAO-07-121, December 2006). GAO defined an LEO as an individual authorized to perform any of four functions: conduct criminal investigations, execute search warrants, make arrests, or carry firearms. In this report GAO describes (1) the mandatory basic law enforcement training that the components reported requiring their LEOs to complete and the federal law enforcement job series classifications for which basic training programs are mandatory; and (2) a breakdown of the delivery of the of basic training programs, by type of organization providing the training and location. To conduct this work, GAO administered a Web-based survey to 105 federal civilian law enforcement components. Each was requested to self-report on, required basic training programs for LEOs, the organizations conducting the training, training locations, and the job series for which programs are mandatory. GAO is not making recommendations."

Correspondence issued by the Government Accountability Office with an abstract that begins "On June 28, 2007, GAO testified before the Senate Subcommittee on Federal Financial Management, Government Information, Federal Services, and International Security, Committee on Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs, at a hearing entitled, "Financial Management Systems Modernization at the Department of Homeland Security: Are Missed Opportunities Costing Us Money?" At the hearing, we discussed the Department of Homeland Security's (DHS) failed efforts to implement the Electronically Managing Enterprise Resources for Government Effectiveness and Efficiency (eMerge2) program that was expected to integrate financial management systems across the entire department. Our testimony and related report focused on (1) DHS's financial management systems modernization efforts, (2) key financial management system transformation challenges, and (3) the four building blocks that form the foundation for successful financial management system implementation efforts. This letter responds to Congress's July 10, 2007, request for responses to follow-up questions relating to our June 28, 2007, testimony. The responses are based on work associated with previously issued GAO products."

Correspondence issued by the Government Accountability Office with an abstract that begins "Congress requested that GAO identify the official Social Security reform public speaking events and other promotion initiatives involving administration officials, and their costs to the federal government, since January 2005. As you know, the Social Security Board of Trustees is projecting in its 2007 report that as early as 2017 Social Security benefit payments will exceed tax revenues. After that time, the gap between costs and tax revenues grows continuously, and unless action is taken to close this gap, it is currently estimated that the Social Security trust funds will be depleted by 2041. In his 2005 State of the Union Address, the President emphasized the need to reform Social Security, and he announced his intention to work with the Congress to achieve reforms. On March 2, 2005, the Secretary of the Treasury announced the "60 Stops in 60 Days" tour in which the President and other administration officials would speak to the public about the need for reform in a series of town hall meetings across the country in an attempt to gain popular support for program reforms. Congress asked us to include events such as those …

A letter report issued by the Government Accountability Office with an abstract that begins "The Advance Earned Income Tax Credit (AEITC) allows individuals to receive a portion of the Earned Income Tax Credit (EITC) in their paychecks, instead of receiving all of it when filing their year-end tax return. Limited research has been conducted on the AEITC since GAO last examined it in the early 1990s. GAO was asked to determine (1) how many individuals received the AEITC compared with the EITC in tax years 2002 through 2004, what actions, if any, have been taken to increase use, and the potential for increases in use in the future; (2) the extent of noncompliance, if any, associated with the AEITC; and (3) how well the Internal Revenue Service's (IRS) procedures address the areas of noncompliance. To address these questions, GAO analyzed Forms W-2 and tax return data and interviewed IRS and Social Security Administration (SSA) officials."

We explore the possibility that all close binaries, i.e. those with periods {approx}< 3 d, including contact (W UMa) binaries, are produced from initially wider binaries (periods of say 10's of days) by the action of a triple companion through the medium of Kozai Cycles with Tidal Friction (KCTF).

Iron-based amorphous alloys are desirable industrial materials since they are highly resistant to corrosion and possess enhanced hardness for wear resistance. The amorphous materials can be produced from the melt as powder and later spray deposited as coatings on large engineering structures. As a laboratory experiment, SAM2X5 powder was coated on electrochemical specimens of 304SS for testing. Results show that the coated specimens did not perform satisfactorily during the laboratory testing. This is because of partial devitrification during the deposition of the powder on the small specimen substrates.

Iron-based amorphous alloys can be more resistant to corrosion than polycrystalline materials of similar compositions. However, when the amorphous alloys are exposed to high temperatures they may recrystallize (or devitrify) thus losing their resistance to corrosion. Four different types of amorphous alloys melt spun ribbon specimens were exposed to several temperatures for short periods of time. The resulting corrosion resistance was evaluated in seawater at 90 C and compared with the as-prepared ribbons. Results show that the amorphous alloys can be exposed to 600 C for 1-hr. without losing the corrosion resistance; however, when the ribbons were exposed at 800 C for 1-hr. their localized corrosion resistance decreased significantly.

The goal of this program was to develop a revolutionary solid-state gamma-ray detector suitable for use in down-hole gas and oil exploration. This advanced detector would employ wide-bandgap semiconductor technology to extend the gamma sensor's temperature capability up to 200 C as well as extended reliability, which significantly exceeds current designs based on photomultiplier tubes. In Phase II, project tasks were focused on optimization of the final APD design, growing and characterizing the full scintillator crystals of the selected composition, arranging the APD device packaging, developing the needed optical coupling between scintillator and APD, and characterizing the combined elements as a full detector system preparing for commercialization. What follows is a summary report from the second 18-month phase of this program.

Iron-based amorphous alloys are produced by rapid solidification from the melt. These alloys may possess unique mechanical and corrosion resistant properties. The chemical composition of the alloy may influence the cooling rate that is necessary for the alloys to be completely vitreous. At the same time, the corrosion resistance of the amorphous alloys may also depend on their chemical composition. This paper examines the anodic behavior of iron-based amorphous alloys containing three different concentrations (1, 3 and 5 atomic %) of yttrium (Y) in several electrolyte solutions. Results from polarization resistance potentiodynamic polarization show that when the alloy contains 5% atomic Y, the corrosion resistance decreases.

Research is conducted at the Joint Actinide Shock Physics Experimental Facility (JASPER) on the effects of high pressure and temperature environments on plutonium-239, in support of the stockpile stewardship program. Once an experiment has been completed, it is necessary to transport the end products for interim storage or final disposition. Federal shipping regulations for nonexclusive use transportation require that no more than 180 grams of fissile material are present in at least 360 kilograms of contiguous non-fissile material. To evaluate the conservatism of these regulatory requirements, a worst-case scenario of 180g {sup 239}Pu and a more realistic scenario of 100g {sup 239}Pu were modeled using one of Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory's Monte Carlo transport codes known as COG 10. The geometry consisted of {sup 239}Pu spheres homogeneously mixed with high-density polyethylene surrounded by a cube of either stainless steel 304 or aluminum. An optimized geometry for both cube materials and hydrogen-to-fissile isotope (H/X) ratio were determined for a single unit. Infinite and finite 3D arrays of these optimized units were then simulated to determine if the systems would exceed criticality. Completion of these simulations showed that the optimal H/X ratio for the most reactive units ranged from 800 to 1600. …

We developed a velocimeter system several years ago that uses the heterodyne method [1]. This system is assembled from commercially available components that were developed for the telecommunications industry. There are several advantages of this system over the traditional VISAR method that has made it increasingly popular. This system is compact, portable, and relatively inexpensive. The maximum velocity of this system is determined by the electrical bandwidth of the electronics and the digitizer sample rate. The maximum velocity for the system described here is over 5 km/s.

Free weekly newspaper that includes business and classified advertising.

This report examines current political and economic conditions in Honduras as well as issues in Honduran-U.S. relations.

Weekly newspaper from Dallas, Texas that includes local, state, and national news and advertising of interest to the Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, and Transgender (LGBT) community.

This report examines the federal and state roles in the maintenance, inspection, reconstruction, and replacement of the nation's highway bridge infrastructure, as well as the emergency response and reconstruction role of the Department of Transportation (DOT).

Clipping of an article from the Dallas Voice regarding Paul Tran's position on the board of directors of National Stonewall Democrats, including a list of his political history.

Email from Christina Ocasio to multiple recipients on August 10, 2007, discussing general membership meeting.

Free weekly newspaper that includes business and classified advertising.

Funeral program for Booker T. Grant, born February 10, 1932 and died August 1, 2007. The funeral was held August 10, 2007 at F. E. Lewis Memorial Chapel, officiated by Rev. Howard Mims. Funeral arrangements were made through Lewis Funeral Home and he was buried in Southern Memorial Park in San Antonio, Texas.

Funeral program for Anthony Curtis Gundy, born July 21, 1958 and died August 3, 2007. The funeral was held August 10, 2007 at F. E. Lewis Memorial Chapel, officiated by Rev. S. H. Gundy. The funeral arrangements were made through Lewis Funeral Home and he was buried in Fort Sam Houston National Cemetery near San Antonio, Texas.

Funeral program for Estella Ann Routt Wilson, born November 27, 1934 and died August 3, 2007. The funeral was held August 10, 2007 at the St. Philip's Episcopal Church, officiated by Rev. Milbrew Davis. Funeral arrangements were made through the Sutton-Sutton Mortuary, Inc., and she was buried in the Fort Sam Houston National Cemetery near San Antonio, Texas.

Funeral program for Mrs. Loma E. Woods, born September 12, 1919 and died August 4, 2007. The funeral was held August 10, 2007 at Lilly of the Valley Baptist Church, officiated by Rev. Steven R. Owens, Sr. Funeral arrangements were made through the Carter-Taylor-Williams Mortuary, and she was buried in Fort Sam Houston National Cemetery near San Antonio, Texas.

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