A letter report issued by the Government Accountability Office with an abstract that begins "Under the Medicare Part D program, prescription drug coverage is provided through plans sponsored by private companies. Beneficiaries, their appointed representatives, or physicians can ask sponsors to cover prescriptions restricted under their plan--a process known as a coverage determination--and can appeal denials to the sponsor and the independent review entity (IRE). GAO was asked to review (1) the processes for sponsors' coverage determination decisions and the approval rates, (2) the processes for appealing coverage denials and the approval rates at the sponsor and IRE levels, and (3) the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services' (CMS) efforts to inform the public about sponsors' performance and oversee sponsors' processes. GAO visited seven sponsors that account for over half of Part D enrollment. GAO also interviewed and obtained data from CMS and IRE officials."

A letter report issued by the Government Accountability Office with an abstract that begins "In 2008, the Department of Treasury (Treasury) plans to spend approximately $3 billion on information technology (IT) investments--the third largest planned IT expenditure among civilian agencies. To more effectively manage such investments, in 2005 the Office of Management and Budget required agencies to use earned value management (EVM). EVM is a project management approach that, if implemented appropriately, provides objective reports of project status, produces early warning signs of impending schedule delays and cost overruns, and provides unbiased estimates of a program's total costs. GAO was asked to assess whether the department and its key component agencies (1) have the policies in place to effectively implement EVM and (2) are adequately using EVM techniques to manage critical system investments. GAO compared agency policies to best practices identified in the Cost Assessment Guide and reviewed the implementation of key EVM practices for several investments."

A letter report issued by the Government Accountability Office with an abstract that begins "Competitive sourcing is aimed at promoting competition between federal employees and the private sector as a way to improve government operations. Key work activities--those that are either inherently governmental or core to the agency's mission--are generally exempt from competitions. In fiscal year 2004, Congress began placing spending limitations on the Forest Service's competitive sourcing program because of concerns about how the program was managed. Also, like other agencies, the Forest Service must report annually to Congress on the savings achieved from any competitions it conducted. GAO was asked to determine the extent to which the Forest Service has (1) plans and guidance to help implement its competitive sourcing program effectively and (2) sufficient cost data to ensure that it complied with its spending limitations and accurately reported its savings to Congress for fiscal years 2004 through 2006. To answer these objectives, GAO examined the agency's strategic plan, guidance, and available cost data for competitive sourcing and interviewed key agency officials."

A letter report issued by the Government Accountability Office with an abstract that begins "Under the Visa Waiver Program (VWP), citizens from 27 countries can travel to the United States visa free. Terrorism concerns involving VWP country citizens have led some to suggest eliminating or suspending the program, while the executive branch is considering adding countries to it. Legislation passed in 2007 led the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) to develop its Electronic System for Travel Authorization (ESTA), to screen VWP country citizens before they travel to the United States; if found ineligible, travelers will need to apply for a visa. GAO reviewed how (1) program elimination or suspension, (2) program expansion, and (3) ESTA could affect visa demand, resource needs, and revenues. We collected traveler, staffing, facilities, and cost data from the Department of State (State), DHS, and embassy officials and developed estimates related to the three scenarios above."

A letter report issued by the Government Accountability Office with an abstract that begins "The National Wildlife Refuge System, which is administered by the Fish and Wildlife Service in the Department of the Interior, comprises 585 refuges on more than 96 million acres of land and water that preserve habitat for waterfowl and other migratory birds, threatened and endangered species, and other wildlife. Refuges also provide wildlife-related activities such as hunting and fishing to nearly 40 million visitors every year. GAO was asked to (1) describe changing factors that the refuge system experienced from fiscal years 2002 through 2007, including funding and staffing changes, and (2) examine how habitat management and visitor services changed during this period. We surveyed all refuges; visited 19 refuges in 4 regions; and interviewed refuge, regional, and national officials. In commenting on a draft of this report, the Department of the Interior made technical comments that we have incorporated as appropriate. GAO is not making recommendations in this report."

A letter report issued by the Government Accountability Office with an abstract that begins "The Department of Homeland Security's (DHS) Secure Border Initiative (SBI) is a multiyear, multibillion-dollar program to secure the nation's borders through, among other things, new technology, increased staffing, and new fencing and barriers. The technology component of SBI, which is known as SBInet, involves the acquisition, development, integration, and deployment of surveillance systems and command, control, communications, and intelligence technologies. GAO was asked to determine whether DHS (1) has defined the scope and timing of SBInet capabilities and how these capabilities will be developed and deployed, (2) is effectively defining and managing SBInet requirements, and (3) is effectively managing SBInet testing. To do so, GAO reviewed key program documentation and interviewed program officials, analyzed a random sample of requirements, and observed operations of a pilot project."

A letter report issued by the Government Accountability Office with an abstract that begins "For decades, numerous federal reports have described serious weaknesses in USDA's civil rights programs--in particular, in resolving discrimination complaints and providing minority farmers with access to programs. In 2002, Congress authorized the position of Assistant Secretary for Civil Rights (ASCR) at USDA to provide leadership for resolving these long-standing problems. GAO was asked to assess USDA's efforts to (1) resolve discrimination complaints, (2) report on minority participation in farm programs, and (3) strategically plan its efforts. GAO also reviewed experiences of other federal agencies to develop options for addressing the issues. This report is based on new and prior work, including analysis of ASCR's discrimination complaint management, strategic planning, and interviews with officials of USDA and other agencies, as well as 20 USDA stakeholder groups."

A letter report issued by the Government Accountability Office with an abstract that begins "The Department of Homeland Security (DHS) has relied on service acquisitions to meet its expansive mission. In fiscal year 2006, DHS spent $12.7 billion to procure services. To improve service acquisition outcomes, federal procurement law establishes a preference for a performance-based approach, which focuses on developing measurable outcomes rather than prescribing how contractors should perform services. GAO was asked to (1) evaluate the implementation of a performance-based approach in the context of service acquisitions for major, complex investments, and (2) identify management challenges that may affect DHS's successful acquisitions for major investments, including those using a performance-based approach. GAO reviewed judgmentally selected contracts for eight major investments at three DHS components totaling $1.53 billion in fiscal years 2005 and 2006; prior GAO and DHS Inspector General reviews; management documents and plans; and related data, including 138 additional contracts for basic services."

A letter report issued by the Government Accountability Office with an abstract that begins "Public Law No. 110-28 directed GAO to review how the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) develops its disaster cost estimates. Accordingly, GAO addressed the following questions: (1) What is FEMA's process for developing and refining its cost estimates for any given disaster? (2) From 2000 through 2006, how close have cost estimates been to the actual costs for noncatastrophic (i.e., federal costs under $500 million) natural disasters? (3) What steps has FEMA taken to learn from past experience and improve its management of disaster-related resources and what other opportunities exist? To accomplish this, GAO reviewed relevant FEMA documents and interviewed key officials. GAO also obtained and analyzed disaster cost data and determined that they were sufficiently reliable for the purposes of this review."

A letter report issued by the Government Accountability Office with an abstract that begins "The Defense Contract Audit Agency (DCAA) under the Department of Defense (DOD) Comptroller plays a critical role in contractor oversight by providing auditing, accounting, and financial advisory services in connection with DOD and other federal agency contracts and subcontracts. DCAA has elected to follow generally accepted government auditing standards (GAGAS). These standards provide guidelines to help government auditors maintain competence, integrity, objectivity, and independence in their work. GAO investigated hotline complaints it received related to alleged failures to comply with GAGAS on 14 DCAA audits. Specifically, it was alleged that (1) working papers did not support reported opinions, (2) supervisors dropped findings and changed audit opinions without adequate evidence, and (3) sufficient work was not performed to support audit conclusions and opinions. GAO also investigated issues related to the quality of certain forward pricing reports. GAO investigators interviewed over 50 individuals, reviewed the working papers and related documents for 14 audits issued from 2003 through 2007 by two DCAA field offices, and reviewed documentation on audit issues at a third DCAA office. GAO did not reperform the audits to validate the completeness and accuracy of DCAA's …

A letter report issued by the Government Accountability Office with an abstract that begins "Through its Financial and Logistics Integrated Technology Enterprise (FLITE) initiative, the Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) is developing a new system that is intended to fulfill the critical need for a modernized and integrated financial and asset management capability. FLITE is the successor to an earlier initiative that the department undertook--the Core Financial and Logistics System (CoreFLS)--which was discontinued in 2004. GAO was asked to determine (1) the department's overall plan for developing FLITE, (2) the status of its development efforts, (3) VA oversight of this initiative, and (4) whether lessons learned from the CoreFLS initiative have been considered and incorporated into the plan for developing FLITE. To achieve these objectives, GAO analyzed program documentation against relevant policies and best practices and interviewed program and project officials."

A letter report issued by the Government Accountability Office with an abstract that begins "In 2006, the federal government spent about $59 billion on Medicare Advantage (MA) plans, an alternative to the original Medicare fee-for-service (FFS) program. Although health plans were originally envisioned in the 1980s as a potential source of Medicare savings, such plans have generally increased program spending. Payments to MA plans have been estimated to be 12 percent greater than what Medicare would have spent in 2006 had MA beneficiaries been enrolled in Medicare FFS. Some policymakers are concerned about the cost of the MA program and its contribution to overall spending on the Medicare program, which already faces serious long-term financial challenges. MA plans receive a per member per month (PMPM) payment to provide services covered under Medicare FFS. Almost all MA plans receive an additional Medicare payment, known as a rebate. Plans use rebates and sometimes additional beneficiary premiums to fund benefits not covered under Medicare FFS, reduce premiums, or reduce beneficiary cost sharing. This report examines for 2007 (1) MA plans' projected rebate allocations; (2) additional benefits MA plans commonly covered and their costs; (3) MA plans' projected cost sharing; and (4) MA plans' …

A letter report issued by the Government Accountability Office with an abstract that begins "State and local governments provide an array of services to their residents, such as primary and secondary education, libraries, police and fire services, social programs, roads and other infrastructure, public colleges and universities, and more. These subnational governments may face fiscal stress similar to the federal government. Given the nature of the partnership among levels of government in providing services to Americans and the economic interrelationships among levels of government, understanding potential future fiscal conditions of the state and local government sector is important for federal policymaking. To provide Congress and the public with this broader context, we developed a fiscal model of the state and local sector. This report describes this model and provides (1) simulations of the state and local government sector's long-term fiscal outlook, (2) an analysis of the underlying causes of potential fiscal difficulties for the sector, (3) a discussion of the extent to which the long-term simulations are sensitive to alternative assumptions, and (4) an examination of how the state and local government sector could add to future federal fiscal challenges. The potential fiscal outcomes of the state and local government …

A letter report issued by the Government Accountability Office with an abstract that begins "In 1999, as a part of federal efforts to restructure the electricity industry, the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC) began encouraging the voluntary formation of Regional Transmission Organizations (RTO)--independent entities to manage regional networks of electric transmission lines. FERC oversees six RTOs that cover part or all of 35 states and D.C. and serve over half of U.S. electricity demand. As electricity prices increase, stakeholders-- organizations and individuals with financial and regulatory interest in the electricity industry--have voiced concerns about RTO benefits and how RTO expenses and decisions influence electricity prices. GAO was asked to review (1) RTO expenses and key investments in property, plant, and equipment from 2002 to 2006, the most current data available; (2) how RTOs and FERC review RTO expenses and decisions that may affect electricity prices; and (3) the extent to which there is consensus about RTO benefits. To do so, GAO reviewed documentation and data and spoke with FERC officials and experts."

A letter report issued by the Government Accountability Office with an abstract that begins "The Food and Drug Administration (FDA), an agency within the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS), oversees the safety and effectiveness of human drugs marketed in the United States, including those manufactured in foreign establishments. FDA inspects foreign establishments in order to ensure that the quality of drugs is not jeopardized by poor manufacturing processes. This report examines (1) the extent to which FDA has accurate data on the number of foreign establishments subject to inspection, (2) the frequency of foreign inspections, and (3) oversight by FDA to ensure that foreign establishments correct serious problems identified during inspections. GAO analyzed information from FDA databases, reviewed inspection reports which identified serious deficiencies, and interviewed FDA officials."

A letter report issued by the Government Accountability Office with an abstract that begins "The Department of Energy (DOE) proposes under the Global Nuclear Energy Partnership (GNEP) to build facilities to begin recycling the nation's commercial spent nuclear fuel. GNEP's objectives include reducing radioactive waste disposed of in a geologic repository and mitigating the nuclear proliferation risks of existing recycling technologies. DOE originally planned a small engineering-scale demonstration of advanced recycling technologies being developed by DOE national laboratories. While DOE has not ruled out this approach, the current GNEP strategic plan favors working with industry to demonstrate the latest commercially available technology in full-scale facilities and to do so in a way that will attract industry investment. DOE has funded four industry groups to prepare proposals for full-scale facilities. DOE officials expect the Secretary of Energy to decide on an approach to GNEP by the end of 2008. GAO evaluated the extent to which DOE would address GNEP's objectives under (1) its original engineering-scale approach and (2) the accelerated approach to building full-scale facilities. GAO analyzed DOE plans and industry proposals and interviewed DOE and industry officials concerning the pros and cons of both approaches."

A letter report issued by the Government Accountability Office with an abstract that begins "America's port infrastructure is vital to U.S. foreign trade and a bulwark for national security. One way the federal government funds port-related programs is to levy user fees. GAO was asked to examine (1) what is known about the way selected fees assessed on air and sea port users are set, collected, used, and reviewed and (2) the effects of these attributes on program operations. GAO examined the Harbor Maintenance Fee (HMF), the Merchandise Processing Fee (MPF), and the Customs, Immigration, and Agricultural Quarantine Inspection (AQI) user fees assessed on air and cruise passengers and commercial vessels using criteria that have often been used to assess user fees and taxes--equity, efficiency, revenue adequacy, and administrative burden."

The authors present measurements of the relative branching ratios, Dalitz plot structures and CP-asymmetry values in the three-body singly Cabibbo-suppressed decays D{sup 0} {yields} {pi}{sup -}{pi}{sup +}{pi}{sup 0} and D{sup 0} {yields} K{sup -}K{sup +}{pi}{sup 0} using data collected by the BABAR detector at the PEP-II asymmetric-energy ring at SLAC. The author applies the results of the D{sup 0} {yields} {pi}{sup -}{pi}{sup +}{pi}{sup 0} analysis to extracting CP-violation parameters related to the CKM angle {gamma} (or {phi}{sub 3}) using the decay B{sup -} {yields} D{sub {pi}{sup +}{pi}{sup -}{pi}{sup 0}} K{sup -}.

This report provides the technical justification for locating a large detector underground in a US based Deep Underground Science and Engineering Laboratory. A large detector with a fiducial mass greater than 100 kTon will most likely be a multipurpose facility. The main physics justification for such a device is detection of accelerator generated neutrinos, nucleon decay, and natural sources of neutrinos such as solar, atmospheric and supernova neutrinos. The requirement on the depth of this detector will be guided by the rate of signals from these sources and the rate of backgrounds from cosmic rays over a very wide range of energies (from solar neutrino energies of 5 MeV to high energies in the range of tens of GeV). For the present report, we have examined the depth requirement for a large water Cherenkov detector and a liquid argon time projection chamber. There has been extensive previous experience with underground water Cherenkov detectors such as IMB, Kamioka, and most recently, Super-Kamiokande which has a fiducial mass of 22 kTon and a total mass of 50 kTon at a depth of 2700 meters-water-equivalent. Projections for signal and background capability for a larger and deeper (or shallower) detectors of this type can …

In March of 2007 a document was issued, see attachment I, that defined the test protocol and required welding for the Kansas City Plant to change cutting oils from the recently approved 50:50 oil to an oil with similar characteristics but with different chemistry, additives, and possibly a different vendor due to plans by the current vendor to stop preparing the oils that are used in the KCP 50:50 mix. The KCP manufactured stems with the existing 50:50 oil blend in late FY07 and SRNL welded the stems and evaluated them in agreement with the test plan. This report provides all the data from these set-up and test welds. Set-up welds were shot and low and high voltages (currents) to ensure the window limits were applicable and then additional welds were made to validate the window. The purpose of this report is to ensure that the agreed upon path forward is still applicable.

Paired-end library sequencing has been proven useful in scaffold construction during de novo assembly of genomic sequences. The ability of generating mate pairs with 8 Kb or greater insert sizes is especially important for genomes containing long repeats. While the current 454 GS LT Paired-end library preparation protocol can successfully construct libraries with 3 Kb insert size, it fails to generate longer insert sizes because the protocol is optimized to purify shorter fragments. We have made several changes in the protocol in order to increase the fragment length. These changes include the use of Promega column to increase the yield of large size DNA fragments, two gel purification steps to remove contaminated short fragments, and a large reaction volume in the circularization step to decrease the formation of chimeras. We have also made additional changes in the protocol to increase the overall quality of the libraries. The quality of the libraries are measured by a set of metrics, which include levels of redundant reads, linker positive, linker negative, half linker reads, and driver DNA contamination, and read length distribution, were used to measure the primary quality of these libraries. We have also assessed the quality of the resulted mate pairs …

This month's issue has the following articles: (1) Science and Security in Sharp Focus--Commentary by William H. Goldstein; (2) Extending the Search for Extrasolar Planets--The Gemini Planet Imager will delve deep into the universe to identify planets that cannot be detected with current instrumentation; (3) Standardizing the Art of Electron-Beam Welding--The Laboratory's EBeam Profiler makes electron-beam welds consistent and improves quality control; (4) Molecular Building Blocks Made of Diamonds--Livermore physicists are exploring the electrical properties of diamondoids, tiny molecules of diamond; and (5) Animation Brings Science to Life--Animation helps scientists and engineers effectively communicate their ideas and research in a visually compelling way.

This project focused on the microbial physiology and biochemistry of heterotrophic hyperthermophiles with respect to mechanisms by which these organisms process polypeptides and polysaccharides under normal and stressed conditions. Emphasis is on two model organisms, for which completed genome sequences are available: Pyrococcus furiosus (growth Topt of 98°C), an archaeon, and Thermotoga maritima (growth Topt of 80°C), a bacterium. Both organisms are obligately anaerobic heterotrophs that reduce sulfur facultatively. Whole genome cDNA spotted microarrays were used to follow transcriptional response to a variety of environmental conditions in order to identify genes encoding proteins involved in the acquisition, synthesis, processing and utilization of polypeptides and polysaccharides. This project provided new insights into the physiological aspects of hyperthermophiles as these relate to microbial biochemistry and biological function in high temperature habitats. The capacity of these microorganisms to produce biohydrogen from renewable feedstocks makes them important for future efforts to develop biofuels.

To grow, develop, adapt, and reproduce, plants have evolved mechanisms to regulate the uptake, translocation and sorting of calcium ions into different cells and subcellular compartments. Yet how plants accomplish this remarkable feat is still poorly understood. The spatial and temporal changes in intracellular [Ca2+] during growth and during responses to hormonal and environmental stimuli indicate that Ca2+ influx and efflux transporters are diverse and tightly regulated in plants. The specific goals were to determine the biological roles of multiple Ca pumps (ECAs) in the model plant Arabidopsis thaliana. We had pioneered the use of K616 yeast strain to functionally express plant Ca pumps, and demonstrated two distinct types of Ca pumps in plants (Sze et al., 2000. Annu Rev Plant Biol. 51,433). ACA2 represented one type that was auto-inhibited by the N-terminal region and stimulated by calmodulin. ECA1 represented another type that was not sensitive to calmodulin and phylogenetically distinct from ACAs. The goal to determine the biological roles of multiple ECA-type Ca pumps in Arabidopsis has been accomplished. Although we demonstrated ECA1 was a Ca pump by functional expression in yeast, the in vivo roles of ECAs was unclear. A few highlights are described. ECA1 and/or ECA4 are …