A letter report issued by the Government Accountability Office with an abstract that begins "Recent legislative and regulatory changes have addressed the relationship between auditor-provided tax services and auditor independence. At this time, the federal regulatory community is exploring further changes. To contribute to the discussion surrounding these changes, GAO's objectives were to determine (1) according to Internal Revenue Service (IRS) data, how many Fortune 500 companies obtained tax shelter services from their auditor; (2) according to IRS data, in how many Fortune 500 companies did the auditor provide the services to individual company officers or directors; and (3) whether selected Fortune 500 case study companies changed how they obtain tax services from their auditor in recent years. For the first two objectives, GAO used IRS and Standard and Poor's data after finding they were sufficiently reliable for our work. GAO counted a company, officer, or director as obtaining a tax shelter service from the company's external auditor when an auditor that IRS identified as promoting a tax shelter also audited the company in at least one year that the shelter was in effect. For the third objective, independent of any IRS information, GAO selected case studies on the basis …

A letter report issued by the Government Accountability Office with an abstract that begins "Many forms of identification (ID) that federal employees and contractors use to access government-controlled buildings and information systems can be easily forged, stolen, or altered to allow unauthorized access. In an effort to increase the quality and security of federal ID and credentialing practices, the President directed the establishment of a governmentwide standard--Federal Information Processing Standard (FIPS) 201--for secure and reliable forms of ID based on "smart cards" that use integrated circuit chips to store and process data with a variety of external systems across government. GAO was asked to determine (1) actions that selected federal agencies have taken to implement the new standard and (2) challenges that federal agencies are facing in implementing the standard."

A letter report issued by the Government Accountability Office with an abstract that begins "Congress recently increased active military personnel levels for the Army and the Marine Corps. The Secretary of Defense has undertaken initiatives to use military personnel more efficiently such as rebalancing high-demand skills between active and reserve components. In view of concerns about active personnel, GAO reviewed the ways in which the Department of Defense (DOD) determines personnel requirements and is managing initiatives to assign a greater proportion of active personnel to warfigthing duties. GAO assessed the extent to which the Office of the Secretary of Defense (OSD) (1) has conducted a data-based analysis of active military personnel needed to implement the national defense strategy and (2) has a plan for making more efficient use of active military personnel and evaluating the plan's results."

A letter report issued by the General Accounting Office with an abstract that begins "The National Center for Education Statistics (NCES) reports that the national status dropout rate--the percentage of 16- through 24-year olds who are not enrolled in school and who lack a high school diploma or a high school equivalency certificate--fluctuated between 10.9 and 12.5 percent between 1990 and 2000. However, dropout rates have varied considerably between regions of the country and among ethnic groups. Research has shown that dropping out it is a long-term process of disengagement that begins in the earliest grades. NCES and private research organizations have identified two factors--an individual's family and his or her experience in school--that are related to dropping out. Various state, local, and private programs are available to assist youth at risk of dropping out of school. These programs range in scope from small-scale supplementary services that target a small group of students, such as mentoring or counseling services, to comprehensive school-wide restructuring efforts that involve changing the entire school to improve educational opportunities for all students. One federal program, the Dropout Prevention Demonstration Program, is specifically targeted to dropouts, but the program is new and the Department of Education …

A letter report issued by the General Accounting Office with an abstract that begins "Pursuant to a congressional request, GAO provided information on the Advisory Commission to Study the Consumer Price Index's (CPI) updated estimate of CPI bias, focusing on the: (1) methodological changes the Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS) made to the CPI since December 1996, when the Advisory Commission (also referred to as the Boskin Commission) issued its final report; and (2) opinions of the five former Boskin Commission members on how much of the bias in the CPI that the Commission estimated in its December 1996 report remains after recent methodological changes to the CPI."

A letter report issued by the General Accounting Office with an abstract that begins "Congress passed the Workforce Investment Act (WIA) in 1998 to bring most federally funded employment and training services into a single, one one-stop center system. GAO assessed three programs that provide service through this system. States and localities have begun to implement the new performance measurement system for the three WIA-funded programs but report several challenges. States had to change the way they collected and reported performance data. They also faced challenges in implementing these measures due to their complexity and the resource demands created by new measures. Some developed new procedures to obtain access to sensitive records. The performance levels are of particular concern to state and local officials because failure to meet them can result in financial sanctions. As a result, states may be choosing to serve only those job seekers who are most likely to be successful. Even when fully implemented, performance measures may not provide a true picture of WIA-funded program performance because data are neither comparable across states nor timely. The measures include many of the indicators relevant to an employment and training program, such as getting and keeping jobs and …

A letter report issued by the General Accounting Office with an abstract that begins "Pursuant to a congressional request, GAO reviewed the effects that the U.S. cargo preference law and federal export assistance programs have on the pork export industry, focusing on the: (1) extent to which other countries' trade practices and the U.S. cargo preference law are impediments to exporting more pork products; (2) extent to which existing federal programs could be used to increase the export of pork products; and (3) potential for increased exports to strengthen the U.S. agricultural trade balance and improve producer prices."

A letter report issued by the Government Accountability Office with an abstract that begins "A Senate report related to the National Defense Authorization Act for Fiscal Year 2007 asked GAO to compare quality management practices used by the Department of Defense (DOD) and its contractors to those used by leading commercial companies and make suggestions for improvement. To do this, GAO (1) determined the impact of quality problems on selected weapon systems and prime contractor practices that contributed to the problems; (2) identified commercial practices that can be used to improve DOD weapon systems; (3) identified problems that DOD must overcome; and (4) identified recent DOD initiatives that could improve quality. GAO examined 11 DOD weapon systems with known quality problems and met with quality officials from DOD, defense prime contractors, and five leading commercial companies that produce complex products and/or are recognized for quality products."

A letter report issued by the Government Accountability Office with an abstract that begins "The Navy initiated its Fleet Response Plan (FRP) in March 2003 as a critical enabler to help meet the new demands of the twenty-first century security environment. FRP represents a major change in the way the Navy manages its forces, and is intended to more rapidly prepare and then sustain readiness in ships and squadrons. To achieve the desired capabilities under FRP, the Navy has altered its training, maintenance, and manning practices. The Navy expects this new readiness approach will enable its forces to provide presence and engagement in forward areas, as well as surge a greater number of ships on short notice. The Navy intends to achieve this goal without increasing its operations and maintenance budget of about $40 billion for each of the next 5 years. However, GAO previously reported that the Navy had not fully incorporated a sound management approach to guide and assess implementation of FRP. As a result, GAO was asked to examine the extent to which the Navy has (1) made progress in implementing a sound management approach for FRP and (2) evaluated the long-term risks and tradeoffs of FRP-related …

This Habitat Evaluation Procedure (HEP) study was performed to determine baseline habitat units on the Oxbow Conservation Area in Grant County, Oregon. The evaluation is a required part of the Memorandum of Agreement between the Confederated Tribes of the Warm Springs and Bonneville Power Administration (BPA) relating to the acquisition and management of the Oxbow Conservation Area. The HEP team was comprised of individuals from the Washington Department of Fish and Wildlife and the Confederated Tribes of the Warm Springs Reservation of Oregon. The survey was conducted using the following HEP evaluation models for key species: black-capped chickadee (Poecile atricapilla), mallard (Anas platyrhynchos), mink (Mustela vison), western meadowlark (Sturnella neglecta), white-tailed deer (Odocoileus virginiana), and yellow warbler (Dendroica petechia). Cover types used in this survey were conifer forest, irrigated meadow, riparian meadow, upland meadow, riparian shrub, upland shrub, and mine tailings. The project generated 701.3 habitat units for mitigation crediting purposes. Results for each HEP species are: (1) Black-capped chickadee habitat was good, with only isolated areas lacking snags or having low tree canopy cover. (2) Mallard habitat was poor in upland meadows and marginal elsewhere due to a lack of herbaceous/shrub cover and low herbaceous height. (3) Mink habitat …

As military operations in urban environments become more numerous, the ability of combat units to communicate, jam enemy communications, or employ RF weapons within this environment must be evaluated. To perform this evaluation in a mission level model requires a capability to evaluate the contributions of both terrain and man-made structures (interior and exterior) to RF propagation. The present study is an analysis of the adequacy of a mission level model (EADSIM) to perform these RF propagation calculations in an urban environment. Three basic environments must be assessed. The first environment consists entirely of terrain, with no man-made features impacting propagation values. The second environment includes terrain, but also includes the contribution of solid structures with abrupt edges, which may obstruct/influence LOS paths. The third environment includes not only terrain and structures, but also contains structures with interior features which must be evaluated to determine the propagation levels within and around these structures. EADSIM was used as the model for evaluation in view of its suite of propagation tools which can be used for analysis of RF propagation between transmitters and receivers including terrain. To assess EADSIM's capability to perform in these environments, flat terrain maps with an obstruction were …

On July 13, 2004, the Habitat Evaluation Procedure (HEP) was used to determine baseline habitat suitability on the Calispell Creek property, an acquisition completed by the Kalispel Tribe of Indians in February 2004. Evaluation species and appropriate models include Canada goose, mallard, muskrat, yellow warbler, and white-tailed deer. Habitat Suitability Index (HSI) values were visually estimated and agreed upon by all HEP team members. The Calispell Creek Project provides a total of 138.17 Habitat Units (HUs) for the species evaluated. Emergent wetland habitat provides 5.16 HUs for mallard and muskrat. Grassland provides 132.02 HUs for mallard and Canada goose. Scrub-shrub vegetation provides 0.99 HUs for yellow warbler and white-tailed deer. The objective of using HEP at the Calispell Creek Project and other protected properties is to document the quality and quantity of available habitat for selected wildlife species. In this way, HEP provides information on the relative value of the same area at future points in time so that the effect of management activities on wildlife habitat can be quantified. When combined with other tools, the baseline HEP will be used to determine the most effective on-site management, restoration, and enhancement actions to increase habitat suitability for targeted species. The …

There is growing national interest in renewable energy development based on the economic, environmental, and security benefits that these resources provide. Historically, greater development of our domestic renewable energy resources has faced a number of hurdles, primarily related to cost, regulation, and financing. With the recent sustained increase in the costs and associated volatility of fossil fuels, the economics of renewable energy technologies have become increasingly attractive to investors, both large and small. As a result, new entrants are investing in renewable energy and new business models are emerging. This study surveys some of the current issues related to wind and solar photovoltaic (PV) energy project financing in the electric power industry, and identifies both barriers to and opportunities for increased investment.

Simplified equations of graphite oxidation are reviewed for semi-infinite slab, finite slab, and cylinder geometries, using the principal assumptions of linearized oxidation kinetics and quasi-steady state oxidation profile. All equations are coupled to a general surface mass transfer boundary condition. The equations include those for oxidant concentration distribution, surface oxidation rate, burnoff profile, and oxidation efficiency. This review also covers some areas that may not be well recognized. The key role of the effective diffusivity is highlighted, with a brief review of measured values. The temperature-dependence of the surface oxidation rate is shown to be more complex than usually shown for the diffusion-affected zone. Assumption of linear kinetics permits ready estimation of equilibration time for development of the quasi-steady burnoff profile. In addition, approximations for the time-steady hydrogen concentration profiles are developed for the case of oxidation by H2O. All cited methods can be readily evaluated by spreadsheet calculation.

The paper describes the generalization of the method to produce secondary particles with a low-energy and low-intensity primary beam circulating in a Storage Ring with the Emittance-Recovery by Internal-Target (ERIT).

The thermal hazard posed by large hydrocarbon fires is dominated by the radiative emission from high temperature soot. Since the optical properties of soot, especially in the infrared region of the electromagnetic spectrum, as well as its morphological properties, are not well known, efforts are underway to characterize these properties. Measurements of these soot properties in large fires are important for heat transfer calculations, for interpretation of laser-based diagnostics, and for developing soot property models for fire field models. This research uses extractive measurement diagnostics to characterize soot optical properties, morphology, and composition in 2 m pool fires. For measurement of the extinction coefficient, soot extracted from the flame zone is transported to a transmission cell where measurements are made using both visible and infrared lasers. Soot morphological properties are obtained by analysis via transmission electron microscopy of soot samples obtained thermophoretically within the flame zone, in the overfire region, and in the transmission cell. Soot composition, including carbon-to-hydrogen ratio and polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbon concentration, is obtained by analysis of soot collected on filters. Average dimensionless extinction coefficients of 8.4 {+-} 1.2 at 635 nm and 8.7 {+-} 1.1 at 1310 nm agree well with recent measurements in the overfire …

This is the latest in a series of studies conducted for the National Science Foundation to estimate the proportion of foreign science / engineering doctorate recipients from U.S. universities who stayed in the United States after graduation. Sixty-six percent of those who graduated in 2003 were still in the United States in 2005, a 5 percent decline since the last report. But the five-year stay rate continues to climb, now at 68 percent.

The overall objective of this subcontract is to reduce the total cost of electricity generated by single-axis tracking solar energy systems for utility and other large-scale commercial applications by improving performance and reliability and by reducing installation time, cost, and environmental impact.

This document provides a guide to the process of conducting software appraisals under the Sandia National Laboratories (SNL) ASC Program. The goal of this document is to describe a common methodology for planning, conducting, and reporting results of software appraisals thereby enabling: development of an objective baseline on implementation of the software quality engineering (SQE) practices identified in the ASC Software Quality Plan across the ASC Program; feedback from project teams on SQE opportunities for improvement; identification of strengths and opportunities for improvement for individual project teams; guidance to the ASC Program on the focus of future SQE activities Document contents include process descriptions, templates to promote consistent conduct of appraisals, and an explanation of the relationship of this procedure to the SNL ASC software program.

Clean Cities Now is the official newsletter of DOE's Clean Cities program. It includes articles on coalition activities, fleet and stakeholder success stories, and helpful resources.

There is a general lack of compact electromagnetic radiation sources between 1 and 10 terahertz (THz). This a challenging spectral region lying between optical devices at high frequencies and electronic devices at low frequencies. While technologically very underdeveloped the THz region has the promise to be of significant technological importance, yet demonstrating its relevance has proven difficult due to the immaturity of the area. While the last decade has seen much experimental work in ultra-short pulsed terahertz sources, many applications will require continuous wave (cw) sources, which are just beginning to demonstrate adequate performance for application use. In this project, we proposed examination of two potential THz sources based on intersubband semiconductor transitions, which were as yet unproven. In particular we wished to explore quantum cascade lasers based sources and electronic based harmonic generators. Shortly after the beginning of the project, we shifted our emphasis to the quantum cascade lasers due to two events; the publication of the first THz quantum cascade laser by another group thereby proving feasibility, and the temporary shut down of the UC Santa Barbara free-electron lasers which were to be used as the pump source for the harmonic generation. The development efforts focused on two …

Overview of the Department of Energy's Human Reliability Program drug testing requirements.

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As part of the U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) Office of Industrial Technologies (OIT) Industries of the Future (IOF) Forest Products research program, a collaborative investigation was conducted on the sources, characteristics, and deposition of particles intermediate in size between submicron fume and carryover in recovery boilers. Laboratory experiments on suspended-drop combustion of black liquor and on black liquor char bed combustion demonstrated that both processes generate intermediate size particles (ISP), amounting to 0.5-2% of the black liquor dry solids mass (BLS). Measurements in two U.S. recovery boilers show variable loadings of ISP in the upper furnace, typically between 0.6-3 g/Nm{sup 3}, or 0.3-1.5% of BLS. The measurements show that the ISP mass size distribution increases with size from 5-100 {micro}m, implying that a substantial amount of ISP inertially deposits on steam tubes. ISP particles are depleted in potassium, chlorine, and sulfur relative to the fuel composition. Comprehensive boiler modeling demonstrates that ISP concentrations are substantially overpredicted when using a previously developed algorithm for ISP generation. Equilibrium calculations suggest that alkali carbonate decomposition occurs at intermediate heights in the furnace and may lead to partial destruction of ISP particles formed lower in the furnace. ISP deposition is predicted to occur …