A letter report issued by the General Accounting Office with an abstract that begins "The key to a successful census is meticulous planning as it helps ensure greater cost-effectiveness. However, the 2000 and previous censuses have been marked by poor planning, which unnecessarily raised the costs and risks of those efforts. GAO was asked to (1) review the U.S. Census Bureau's (Bureau) current plans for 2010 and whether they might address shortcomings of the 2000 Census, (2) analyze the Bureau's cost estimates, and (3) review the rigor of the Bureau's 2010 planning process."

A letter report issued by the General Accounting Office with an abstract that begins "In the 1990 and 2000 Censuses, U.S. military and federal civilian employees overseas were included in the numbers used for apportioning Congress. Currently, the U.S. Census Bureau (Bureau) is assessing the practicality of counting all Americans abroad by holding a test census in France, Kuwait, and Mexico. GAO was asked to (1) assess the soundness of the test design, and (2) examine what past court decisions have held about Americans' rights and obligations abroad."

Guidance issued by the General Accounting Office with an abstract that begins "This publication supersedes GAO-04-218G, Acquisition/Financial Systems Interface Requirements: Checklist for Reviewing Systems under the Federal Financial Management Improvement Act (Exposure Draft), December 2003. The Federal Financial Management Improvement Act of 1996 (FFMIA) requires that agencies implement and maintain financial management systems that substantially comply with federal financial management system requirements. These requirements are described in detail in the Office of Management and Budget's (OMB) guidance and in the Federal Financial Management System Requirements series issued by the Joint Financial Management Improvement Program (JFMIP). JFMIP intends for its requirements series to promote understanding of key financial management systems concepts and requirements, to provide a framework for establishing integrated financial management systems that support program and financial managers, and to describe specific requirements of financial management systems."

Correspondence issued by the General Accounting Office with an abstract that begins "On February 25, 2004, Congress heard testimony at a hearing entitled "The Key to Homeland Security: The New Human Resources System." This report responds to additional questions posed by Senator Akaka and Senator Lautenberg."

A letter report issued by the General Accounting Office with an abstract that begins "In October 2001, in response to the Taliban regime's protection of al Qaeda terrorists who attacked the United States, coalition forces forcibly removed the regime from Afghanistan. In December 2002, Congress passed the Afghanistan Freedom Support Act authorizing assistance funds to help Afghanistan rebuild a stable, democratic society. The act directed GAO to monitor the implementation of U.S. humanitarian and development assistance. This report analyzes, for fiscal years 2002-2003, (1) U.S. obligations and expenditures in Afghanistan, (2) results of assistance projects, (3) the assistance coordination mechanisms and strategy, and (4) major obstacles that affected the achievement of U.S. goals."

Correspondence issued by the General Accounting Office with an abstract that begins "In the wake of September 11, 2001, Congress enacted the Homeland Security Act of 2002. Title VIII, subtitle F, section 852 of the act provided for a temporary set of emergency procurement flexibilities intended to address the immediate needs for procurement of property (other than real property) or services to be used to defend against or recover from terrorist threats, including nuclear, biological, chemical, or radiological attacks. These flexibilities, which expired on November 24, 2003, included (1) increasing the threshold for simplified acquisition procedures in support of humanitarian, peacekeeping, or contingency operations from $100,000 to $200,000 for contracts awarded and performed within the United States and, for contracts awarded and performed, or purchases to be made outside the United States, to $300,000; (2) increasing the micro-purchase threshold from $2,500 to $7,500 to allow agencies the use of purchase cards above the current limit; (3) waiving certain provisions of law and the dollar threshold related to commercial item procurements; and (4) requiring the head of an agency, when appropriate, to use streamlined acquisition authorities and procedures authorized by law for a procurement referred to in section 852. Section 852 …

A letter report issued by the General Accounting Office with an abstract that begins "The Air Force depot maintenance activity group in-house operations generate about $5 billion in annual revenue principally by repairing aircraft, missiles, engines, and other assets. In doing so, the group operates under the working capital fund concept, where customers are to be charged the anticipated costs of providing goods and services to them. The group's average price for in-house work almost doubled between fiscal years 2000 and 2004 from $119.99 per hour to $237.84 per hour. GAO was asked to determine (1) what factors were primarily responsible for the price increase, (2) if the prices charged recovered the reported actual costs of performing the work, and (3) if the Air Force has taken effective steps to improve efficiency and control the activity group's costs."

A letter report issued by the General Accounting Office with an abstract that begins "Diesel engine emissions pose health risks, but one major source--heavy-duty diesel vehicles--is critical for our economy. To reduce risks, the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) has set stringent emissions standards for diesel engines. In 1998, EPA found that some engine makers were violating standards, so they agreed to build engines that meet 2004 standards early, by October 2002. EPA has set even more stringent standards for 2007. GAO was asked to (1) assess the October 2002 deadline's effects on industry and emissions, and (2) obtain stakeholders' views on the readiness of technology for the 2007 standards and EPA's efforts to ensure this. GAO analyzed information from EPA, 10 large trucking companies, the engine makers subject to the early deadline, and other stakeholders."

Testimony issued by the General Accounting Office with an abstract that begins "Approximately 6,600 miles of Alaska's coastline and many of the low-lying areas along the state's rivers are subject to severe flooding and erosion. Most of Alaska's Native villages are located on the coast or on riverbanks. In addition to the many federal and Alaska state agencies that respond to flooding and erosion, Congress established the Denali Commission in 1998 to, among other things, provide economic development services and meet infrastructure needs in rural Alaska communities. This testimony is based on GAO's report, Alaska Native Villages: Most Are Affected by Flooding and Erosion, but Few Qualify for Federal Assistance (GAO-04-142, December 12, 2003). Specifically, GAO identified (1) the number of Alaska Native villages affected by flooding and erosion, (2) the extent to which federal assistance has been provided to those villages, (3) the efforts of nine villages to respond to flooding and erosion, and (4) alternatives that Congress may wish to consider when providing assistance for flooding and erosion."

Testimony issued by the General Accounting Office with an abstract that begins "The U.S. government's framework for preventing, detecting, and prosecuting money laundering has been expanding through additional pieces of legislation since its inception in 1970 with the Bank Secrecy Act (BSA). The purpose of the BSA is to prevent financial institutions from being used as intermediaries for the transfer or deposit of money derived from criminal activity and to provide a paper trail for law enforcement agencies in their investigations of possible money laundering. The most recent changes arose in October 2001 with the passage of the USA PATRIOT Act, which, among other things, extends antimoney laundering (AML) requirements to other financial service providers previously not covered under the BSA. GAO was asked to testify on its previous work and the ongoing work it is doing for the Senate Committee on Banking, Housing, and Urban Affairs on the depository institution regulators' BSA examination and enforcement process."

A letter report issued by the General Accounting Office with an abstract that begins "Antibiotic resistance is a growing public health concern; antibiotics used in animals raised for human consumption contributes to this problem. Three federal agencies address this issue--the Department of Health and Human Services' (HHS) Food and Drug Administration (FDA) and Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), and the Department of Agriculture (USDA). GAO examined (1) scientific evidence on the transference of antibiotic resistance from animals to humans and extent of potential harm to human health, (2) agencies' efforts to assess and address these risks, (3) the types of data needed to support research on these risks and extent to which the agencies collect these data, (4) use of antibiotics in animals in the United States compared with its key agricultural trading partners and competitors, and (5) information on how use has affected trade."

A letter report issued by the General Accounting Office with an abstract that begins "The Office of the Architect of the Capitol (AOC) plays an important role in supporting the effective functioning of Congress and its neighboring institutions. In January 2003, GAO conducted a comprehensive management review of AOC's operations and made 35 recommendations to help AOC establish a strategic management and accountability framework, improve its management infrastructure and internal control, and address longstanding concerns. In February 2003, the Conference Report mandated GAO to monitor progress being made on the implementation of the 35 management review recommendations."

A letter report issued by the General Accounting Office with an abstract that begins "Assisted living facilities provide help with activities of daily living in a residential setting for individuals who cannot live independently but do not require 24-hour skilled nursing care. In 2002, over 36,000 assisted living facilities served approximately 900,000 residents. The states establish and enforce licensing standards for these institutions. Because states have taken widely differing approaches to regulating and supporting assisted living, they can potentially learn from each other's experiences as they consider changes to their own policies. GAO was asked to review challenges faced by consumers and providers of assisted living and seek out notable state initiatives addressing those challenges in three selected areas: (1) disclosure of full and accurate information to consumers, (2) state assistance to providers to meet licensing requirements, and (3) procedures for addressing residents' complaints. We identified specific examples of individual programs in Florida, Texas, Washington, Georgia, and Massachusetts that highlighted different approaches in these three areas, which other states might wish to consider emulating."

Correspondence issued by the General Accounting Office with an abstract that begins "In response to the September 11, 2001, terrorist attacks on the United States, the Congress enacted the Air Transportation Safety and System Stabilization Act (Stabilization Act) that provided, among other things, $5 billion in emergency assistance to compensate the nation's air carriers for losses incurred as a result of the attacks. Pursuant to a previous congressional request, we monitored the Department of Transportation's (DOT) progress in administering the emergency assistance program. As a result of our work, we reported on the payment process DOT employed to administer the program, details on the losses claimed by the air carriers, and the payments disbursed under the program. Now, Section 824 of the Vision 100 Century of Aviation Reauthorization Act requires that we report on the criteria and procedures used by DOT to compensate air carriers under the Stabilization Act emergency assistance program with a particular focus on whether it is appropriate to compensate air carriers for the decrease in value (asset impairment) of their aircraft after September 11, 2001, and to ensure that comparable air carriers receive comparable percentages of the maximum compensation payable. DOT published its criteria and procedures …

A letter report issued by the General Accounting Office with an abstract that begins "Over the years, the traveling public, flight attendants, and the medical community have raised questions about how airliner cabin air quality contributes to health effects, such as upper respiratory infections. Interest in cabin air quality grew in 2003 when a small number of severe acute respiratory syndrome (SARS) infections may have occurred on board aircraft serving areas that were experiencing outbreaks of the disease. In 2001, a National Research Council report on airliner cabin air quality and associated health effects recommended that additional research be done on the potential health effects of cabin air. GAO reviewed what is known about the health effects of cabin air, the status of actions recommended in the 2001 National Research Council report, and whether available technologies should be required to improve cabin air quality."

Testimony issued by the General Accounting Office with an abstract that begins "The security of U.S. commercial aviation is a long-standing concern, and substantial efforts have been undertaken to strengthen it. One such effort is the development of a new Computer-Assisted Passenger Prescreening System (CAPPS II) to identify passengers requiring additional security attention. The development of CAPPS II has raised a number of issues, including whether individuals may be inappropriately targeted for additional screening and whether data accessed by the system may compromise passengers' privacy. GAO was asked to summarize the results of its previous report that looked at (1) the development status and plans for CAPPS II; (2) the status of CAPPS II in addressing key developmental, operational, and public acceptance issues; and (3) additional challenges that could impede the successful implementation of the system."

Testimony issued by the General Accounting Office with an abstract that begins "Securing commercial aviation is a daunting task--with hundreds of airports and thousands of flights daily carrying millions of passengers and pieces of baggage. In an effort to strengthen the security of commercial aviation, the Transportation Security Administration (TSA) was created and charged with making numerous enhancements to aviation security, including federalizing passenger and baggage screening and screening checked baggage using explosive detection systems. To assess the progress of passenger and baggage screening operations, GAO was asked to describe TSA's efforts to (1) hire and deploy passenger and baggage screeners, (2) train the screening workforce, (3) measure screener performance in detecting threat objects, and (4) leverage and deploy screening equipment and technologies."

Testimony issued by the General Accounting Office with an abstract that begins "One of the primary functions of any security system is the control of people moving into or out of protected areas, such as physical buildings, information systems, and our national border. Technologies called biometrics can automate the identification of people by one or more of their distinct physical or behavioral characteristics. The term biometrics covers a wide range of technologies that can be used to verify identity by measuring and analyzing human characteristics--relying on attributes of the individual instead of things the individual may have or know. Since the September 11, 2001, terrorist attacks, laws have been passed that require a more extensive use of biometric technologies in the federal government. In 2002, GAO conducted a technology assessment on the use of biometrics for border security. GAO was asked to testify about the issues that it raised in the report, the current state of the technology, and the application of biometrics to aviation security."

A letter report issued by the General Accounting Office with an abstract that begins "The security of U.S. commercial aviation is a long-standing concern, and substantial efforts have been undertaken to strengthen it. One of these efforts is the development of a new Computer-Assisted Passenger Prescreening System (CAPPS II) to identify passengers requiring additional security attention. The development of CAPPS II has raised a number of issues, including whether individuals may be inappropriately targeted for additional screening, and whether data accessed by the system may compromise passengers' privacy. GAO was asked to determine (1) the development status and plans for CAPPS II; (2) the status of CAPPS II in addressing key developmental, operational, and public acceptance issues; and (3) other challenges that could impede the successful implementation of the system."

Correspondence issued by the General Accounting Office with an abstract that begins "After the terrorist attacks of September 11, 2001, the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) issued flight restrictions to prevent flights over certain areas, to include stadiums, in response to increased concerns about the threat posed by terrorists using aircraft as a weapon. Beginning in December 2001, FAA's Air Traffic Division Director of Air Traffic Services, and later the Transportation Security Administration (TSA), implemented processes to allow certain pilots and aircraft to operate over these events by waiving flight restrictions. However, in February 2003, Congress passed legislation that for 1 year prevented aerial advertising pilots from flying near stadium airspace during certain sporting events by suspending the waiver process. In January 2004, Congress passed legislation continuing this restriction indefinitely. In the event that the restriction on waivers for aerial advertising near stadiums is repealed, the House Appropriations Committee, Subcommittee on Homeland Security, asked that we (1) describe the results of FAA and TSA threat assessments conducted relevant to aerial advertising operations and (2) identify FAA's and TSA's processes for mitigating the identified threat, determine whether established processes were followed, and identify factors that may limit their effectiveness."

A letter report issued by the General Accounting Office with an abstract that begins "In the 2 years since passage of the Aviation and Transportation Security Act (ATSA), the Transportation Security Administration (TSA) has primarily focused its efforts on improving aviation security through enhanced passenger and baggage screening. The act also contained provisions directing TSA to take actions to improve the security of airport perimeters, access controls, and airport workers. GAO was asked to assess TSA's efforts to: (1) evaluate the security of airport perimeters and the controls that limit access into secured airport areas, (2) help airports implement and enhance perimeter security and access controls by providing them funding and technical guidance, and (3) implement measures to reduce the potential security risks posed by airport workers."

Testimony issued by the General Accounting Office with an abstract that begins "The security of the nation's commercial aviation system has been a long-standing concern. Following the events of September 11, 2001, Congress enacted numerous aviation security improvements designed to strengthen aviation security, including the development of a passenger prescreening system and the federalization of airport screeners. Despite these changes, challenges continue to face the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) and the Transportation Security Administration (TSA) efforts to improve aviation security. GAO was asked to summarize the results of previous and ongoing aviation security work. These include: (1) the development of CAPPS II to assist in identifying high-risk passengers, (2) the management of passenger and baggage screening programs, (3) the operations of the Federal Air Marshal Service, and (4) other aviations security related efforts, such as cargo, that remain a concern."

Testimony issued by the General Accounting Office with an abstract that begins "The terrorist attacks of September 11, 2001, resulted in fundamental changes in the way the United States screens airport passengers and their property. One of the most significant changes was the shift from using private screeners to using federal screeners at all but five commercial airports in the United States. These five airports are part of a pilot program, where private screeners perform screening functions. The mission of the Private Screening Pilot Program, as defined by the Transportation Security Administration (TSA), is to test the effectiveness of increased operational flexibility at the airport level that contractors may provide. GAO was asked to describe (1) the challenges and limitations of the private screening pilot program, (2) the operational flexibilities TSA has provided to the private screening companies, and (3) the performance of private and federal screeners in detecting threat objects. This testimony is based on our prior and ongoing work on TSA airport passenger and baggage screeners."

Other written product issued by the General Accounting Office with an abstract that begins "This is a best practices pamphlet discussing the highlights of the knowledge-based approach to improving weapons acquisition. It reviews the manufacturing processes through three phases, (1) technology development, (2) product development, and (3) production."