Correspondence issued by the General Accounting Office with an abstract that begins "Because the activities of the Congressional side of the Census Monitoring Board (CMBC) ceased to exist on September 30, 2001, CMBC entered into an interagency agreement with the Government Printing Office (GPO) to pay CMBC bills and to provide administrative support services. GAO examined CMBC documents to determine financial cutoff procedures and conducted other audits as necessary. GAO found four CMBC personnel were present at CMBC's former office on October 1, 2001, but performed no substantive government action. More than $14,000 was obligated and paid for telephone, cable, Internet, computer, copier, and water services to be provided after CMBC's statutory termination date. These prepayments were improper and should not have been certified and paid. GPO was requesting reimbursement from vendors for services that were not properly provided. GPO acquired CMBC property and supplies after September 30, 2001. A November 2001 GPO inventory found that some CMBC property had not been returned, was reported stolen, or was missing. The use of government owned property after CMBC termination was not proper, and GPO is seeking the return of some property. GPO was arranging for CMBC records disposal. CMBC internal controls …

Correspondence issued by the Government Accountability Office with an abstract that begins "GAO has undertaken a body of work to address federal, state, and local preparations for, response to, and recovery from Hurricanes Katrina and Rita. This correspondence contains GAO's preliminary findings."

Other written product issued by the Government Accountability Office with an abstract that begins "Efforts to better align and integrate budget and performance information raises many issues, including the question of budget structure--should appropriations accounts or congressional budget justifications or both be restructured to tighten the link between resources and performance? If so, how and to what extent? The administration elevated attention to this issue by including budget restructuring as part of the President's Management Agenda in 2001. To provide an overview of the various budget restructuring efforts underway in the federal government, GAO: (1) summarized steps taken by the Office of Management and Budget (OMB) and nine selected agencies to better align their budgets with performance and to better capture the cost of performance in the budget; (2) discussed the potential implications of these efforts for congressional oversight and executive branch managerial flexibility and accountability; (3) described the experiences and implementation challenges associated with these efforts; and (4) identified lessons learned that can provide insights useful in considering current and future budget restructuring efforts."

Testimony issued by the Government Accountability Office with an abstract that begins "In August 1997, Congress created the State Children's Health Insurance Program (SCHIP) with the goal of significantly reducing the number of low-income uninsured children, especially those who lived in families with incomes exceeding Medicaid eligibility requirements. Unlike Medicaid, SCHIP is not an entitlement to services for beneficiaries but a capped allotment to states. Congress provided a fixed amount--$40 billion from 1998 through 2007--to states with approved SCHIP plans. Funds are allocated to states annually. States have 3 years to use each year's allocation, after which unspent funds may be redistributed to states that have already spent all of that year's allocation. GAO's testimony addresses trends in SCHIP enrollment and the current composition of SCHIP programs across the states, states' spending experiences under SCHIP, and considerations GAO has identified for SCHIP reauthorization. GAO's testimony is based on its prior work; analysis of the Current Population Survey, a monthly survey conducted by the U.S. Census Bureau (2003-2005); information from states' annual SCHIP reports (2002-2005); and SCHIP enrollment and expenditure data from the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (1998-2005)."

Correspondence issued by the Government Accountability Office with an abstract that begins "The Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) provides a uniform set of health care services to eligible veterans who enroll to receive such care and seek it from VA. These services include preventive and primary health care, a full range of outpatient and inpatient services, and prescription drugs. VA provides additional services, such as nursing home and dental care and other services, as required by law for some veterans and makes these services available to other veterans on a discretionary basis as resources permit. Most of the nation's 24 million veterans are eligible for some aspect of VA's health care services if they choose to enroll. In fiscal year 2005, about 7 million veterans were enrolled to receive VA health care services. In that year, VA planned to provide health care services to about 5 million veterans based on its initial budget request of $ 30.2 billion. Funding for VA's health care program has increased substantially in recent years. Congress appropriates funds annually for VA to provide health care services to eligible veterans. Congressional budget deliberations start when the President submits his annual budget request to Congress as the …

Correspondence issued by the Government Accountability Office with an abstract that begins "Electricity is central to the national economy and the daily lives of many Americans, powering homes, businesses, and industries. Today, an extensive system consisting of more than 150,000 miles of high-voltage transmission lines works to provide reliable electricity service and transport electricity from power plants to consumers. Federal and state entities share responsibility for regulating the electricity system. On the federal level, the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC) regulates interstate transmission of electricity and wholesale rates, among other regulatory activities. State public utility commissions are generally responsible for regulating retail electricity sales and, in some cases, planning for new power plants and transmission lines. However, as studies have shown, growth in electricity demand has strained the nation's transmission system, resulting in less flexibility to respond to system problems and an increased risk of potential blackouts. These issues have led some to suggest that new lines or other investments in the transmission system may be required to increase capacity and accommodate growing electricity demand. Several companies have recently introduced proposals to build new high-voltage direct-current (HVDC) transmission lines. Some of these proposed lines would follow active transportation rights of …

Guidance issued by the General Accounting Office with an abstract that begins "This publication supersedes AIMD-00-83, Executive Guide: Maximizing the Success of Chief Information Officers (Exposure Draft), March 2000. This guide is intended to assist federal agencies in maximizing the success of chief information officers (CIO). Principles and practices gleaned from the case studies presented in this guide offer concrete suggestions on what agency executives can do to ensure the effectiveness of their CIO organizations. The specific key conditions and strategies described in this guide can be used as suggestions for federal CIOs to apply or adapt to their environments, where appropriate."

Guidance issued by the General Accounting Office with an abstract that begins "This publications has been superseded by GAO-01-1008G, Internal Control Management and Evaluation Tool, August 2001. The Federal Managers' Financial Integrity Act of 1982 required that GAO issue standards for internal control in the federal government, which it did in 1983. However, changes in information technology, human capital management issues, and financial management-related legislation prompted GAO to revise the standard and issue another internal control guide. (See GAO/AIMD-00-21.3.1, November 1999.) These standards provide the overall framework for establishing and maintaining internal control and for identifying and addressing major performance challenges and areas at greatest risk for fraud, waste, abuse, and mismanagement. GAO is issuing this management and evaluation tool, which is based on GAO's internal control guide, to help agencies maintain or implement effective internal control and, when needed, to determine what, where, and how improvements can be implemented. Although this tool is not required to be used, it is intended to provide a systematic, organized, and structured approach to assessing the internal control structure."

Correspondence issued by the General Accounting Office with an abstract that begins "Pursuant to a congressional request, GAO provided information on the potential budgetary and economic effects of Senator Phil Gramm's social security reform proposal, focusing on: (1) the extent to which the proposal achieves sustainable solvency and how it would affect the economy and federal budget; (2) the balance struck between the twin goals of income adequacy and individual equity; and (3) how readily such changes could be implemented, administered, and explained to the public."

Correspondence issued by the General Accounting Office with an abstract that begins "To help build and rehabilitate multifamily rental housing, the Federal Housing Administration (FHA) provides lenders with mortgage insurance, or guarantees, for multifamily loans. In fiscal year 2001, FHA provided guarantees for all multifamily projects--regardless of program--on a first-come, first-served basis until the total budget authority for the multifamily programs was exhausted. FHA had obligated $81 million of the $101 million of its credit subsidy budget authority for the fiscal year by April 2001 and suspended issuing commitments for additional loans. FHA obligated most of its fiscal year 2001 subsidy budget authority by April 2001 because of unexpectedly high demand--five times FHA's estimate--for mortgage insurance under the Section 221(d)(3) Program, which is limited to nonprofit developers and cooperatives and has a higher subsidy rate than do other programs. FHA has taken steps to avoid this situation in the future. When most of the fiscal year 2001 credit subsidy budget authority was obligated, FHA placed several multifamily projects on a waiting list until funding became available. Most of these projects were funded using the remaining budget authority and credit subsidy from projects approved earlier that were later terminated or required …

Correspondence issued by the General Accounting Office with an abstract that begins "Pursuant to a legislative requirement, GAO reviewed the weaknesses of the North Texas Health Care System's (NTHCS) information system general controls and the status of corrective actions taken to mitigate these weaknesses."

Guidance issued by the General Accounting Office with an abstract that begins "This publication has been superseded by GAO-05-225G, Core Financial System Requirements: Checklist for Reviewing Systems under the Federal Financial Management Improvement Act, February 2005. GAO published a guide to assist agencies and internal auditors in maintaining their financial management systems in compliance with the Federal Financial Management Improvement Act of 1996."

Guidance issued by the Government Accountability Office with an abstract that begins "This publications supersedes AIMD-00-21.2.2, Core Financial System Requirements: Checklist for Reviewing Systems Under the Federal Financial Management Improvement Act, February 2000. The Federal Financial Management Improvement Act of 1996 (FFMIA) requires, among other things, that agencies implement and maintain financial management systems that substantially comply with federal financial management system requirements. These requirements are detailed in the Federal Financial Management System Requirements series issued by the Joint Financial Management Improvement Program (JFMIP) and in the guidance issued by the Office of Management and Budget (OMB): Circular No. A-127, Financial Management Systems, and the January 4, 2001, Revised Implementation Guidance for the Federal Financial Management Improvement Act (FFMIA) of 1996. JFMIP intended for the requirements to promote understanding of key financial management systems concepts and requirements, to provide a framework for establishing integrated financial management systems to support program and financial managers, and to describe specific requirements of financial management systems. We are issuing this checklist, which reflects JFMIP's revised Core Financial System Requirements (JFMIP-SR-02-01, November 2001), to assist (1) financial systems analysts, systems accountants, systems developers, program managers, and others who design, develop, implement, operate, or maintain financial …

Testimony issued by the Government Accountability Office with an abstract that begins "In April 2004, President Bush called for the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) to develop and implement a strategic plan to guide the nationwide implementation of health IT. The plan is to recommend methods to ensure the privacy of electronic health information. GAO was asked to summarize its report that is being released today. The report describes the steps HHS is taking to ensure privacy protection as part of its national health IT strategy and identifies challenges associated with protecting electronic health information exchanged within a nationwide health information network."

Other written product issued by the General Accounting Office with an abstract that begins "GAO provided information on the Joint Financial Management Improvement Program's current financial management initiatives, activities, and practices."

Testimony issued by the Government Accountability Office with an abstract that begins "Soaring retail gasoline prices, increased oil company profits, and mergers of large oil companies have garnered extensive media attention and generated considerable public concern. Gasoline prices impact the economy because of our heavy reliance on motor vehicles. According to the Department of Energy's Energy Information Administration (EIA), each additional ten cents per gallon of gasoline adds about $14 billion to America's annual gasoline bill. Given the importance of gasoline for the nation's economy, it is essential to understand the market for gasoline and how prices are determined. In this context, this testimony addresses the following questions: (1) What factors affect gasoline prices? (2) What has been the pattern of oil company mergers in the United States in recent years? (3) What effects have mergers had on market concentration and wholesale gasoline prices? To address these questions, GAO relied on previous reports, including (1) a 2005 GAO primer on gasoline prices, (2) a 2005 GAO report on the proliferation of special gasoline blends, and (3) a 2004 GAO report on mergers in the U.S. petroleum industry. GAO also collected updated data from a number of sources that we deemed …

Testimony issued by the General Accounting Office with an abstract that begins "GAO discussed its fiscal year (FY) 2001 budget request."

Testimony issued by the General Accounting Office with an abstract that begins "In May 2000, United Airlines proposed acquiring US Airways and divesting part of those assets to create a new airline to be called DC Air. More recently, American Airlines has proposed buying Trans World Airlines (TWA), along with certain assets from United. These proposals have raised questions about how such consolidation within the airline industry could affect competition in general and consumers in particular. Congress, the Department of Justice, and the Department of Transportation need to answer several questions in evaluating the proposed mergers. For example, questions remain about whether American's purchase of financially-strapped TWA represents the last anticompetitive means to preserve its assets. The proposals by American, TWA, United, US Airways, and DC Air constitute the most significant recent changes that have occurred in the airline industry, and the outcome of these decisions could have both positive and negative effects for consumers for years to come. This testimony summarizes a December report (GAO-01-212)."

Testimony issued by the General Accounting Office with an abstract that begins "Pursuant to a congressional request, GAO discussed its report on adverse drug events (ADE), focusing on the: (1) different types and causes of ADEs; (2) evidence on the overall incidence and cost of ADEs in the United States; and (3) measures that have been proposed to reduce the number and severity of ADEs."

Testimony issued by the General Accounting Office with an abstract that begins "Pursuant to a congressional request, GAO discussed selected performance challenges within federal agencies and programs and possible changes to congressional oversight models to help address such problems, focusing on: (1) the federal services that could be better provided by the private sector; (2) the federal subsidies to individuals, business, or states and local governments are no longer needed or are poorly targeted; (3) the overlapping or fragmented programs that could be consolidated or better coordinated; (4) the federal facilities or locations that are outmoded, ineffective, or excess to requirement; and (5) what areas major federal capital investments could be more cost effective in."

Testimony issued by the General Accounting Office with an abstract that begins "People are the federal government's most valuable asset in managing for results. The importance of human capital is underscored by the many links GAO has identified between agencies' human capital shortfalls and the programmatic challenges. A consensus has yet to emerge on broad-based federal human capital legislative reform. However, even in the absence of fundamental legislative reform, federal agencies need to take a more strategic and integrated approach to human capital management and to maximize their efforts in such areas as workforce planning, recruiting and retention, succession planning, training and professional development, and performance management and rewards, within the context of current law. Just as modern performance management principles have been brought to federal financial management, information technology management, and results-oriented goal-setting and performance measurement, so they must be brought to federal human capital management. Congress, the Office of Management and Budget, the Office of Personnel Management, the agencies, and other interested parties must work together to make this happen."

Other written product issued by the Government Accountability Office with an abstract that begins "Research on public opinion shows that while the public is aware of the Federal Government's long-term fiscal challenge, it does not have a good handle on the size and implications of this challenge. In addition, the public consistently ranks our long-term fiscal challenge as low priority relative to other issues, such as the current state of the economy. This gap in public understanding of the nature and magnitude of the long-term fiscal challenge--and how to bridge it--was the subject of GAO's December 2, 2004, forum on the long-term fiscal challenge. The forum sought to move beyond "the usual suspects" to expand the circle of concern. The forum sought to create a space within which a rich and meaningful dialogue could take place on how to better communicate the long-term fiscal challenge to the public. To achieve this kind of dialogue, participants were a select group of individuals drawn not only from budget and policy experts but also from other key groups both in Washington and from "beyond the Beltway." These included opinion leaders from a variety of sectors. All brought a commitment to thinking ahead and …

A statement of record issued by the General Accounting Office with an abstract that begins "Pursuant to a congressional request, GAO discussed the National Plan for Information Systems Protection, focusing on: (1) a detailed overview of the plan; (2) opportunities for sharpening the plan's proposals for improving the federal government's security programs; and (3) the challenges facing the government in building the public-private partnerships necessary for comprehensive infrastructure protections."

This report documents the identification of strategies to leverage public and private resources for the development of an adequate national security workforce as part of the National Security Preparedness Project (NSPP).There are numerous efforts across the United States to develop a properly skilled and trained national security workforce. Some of these efforts are the result of the leveraging of public and private dollars. As budget dollars decrease and the demand for a properly skilled and trained national security workforce increases, it will become even more important to leverage every education and training dollar. The leveraging of dollars serves many purposes. These include increasing the amount of training that can be delivered and therefore increasing the number of people reached, increasing the number and quality of public/private partnerships, and increasing the number of businesses that are involved in the training of their future workforce.