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 …

Testimony issued by the Government Accountability Office with an abstract that begins "In 2003, Congress and the administration established a performance-based pay system for Senior Executive Service (SES) members that requires a link between individual and organizational performance and pay. Specifically, agencies are allowed to raise SES pay caps if their systems are certified by the Office of Personnel Management (OPM) with concurrence by the Office of Management and Budget (OMB) as meeting specified criteria. GAO was asked to testify on preliminary results of ongoing work analyzing selected executive branch agencies' policies and procedures for their SES performance-based pay systems in the following areas: (1) factoring organizational performance into senior executive performance appraisal decisions, (2) making meaningful distinctions in senior executive performance, and (3) building safeguards into senior executive performance appraisal and pay systems. GAO selected the U.S. Departments of Defense (DOD), Energy (DOE), State, and the Treasury; the U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC); and the United States Agency for International Development (USAID) based on variations in agency mission, organizational structure, and size of their career SES workforces. To date, GAO has analyzed agencies' SES performance management policies and guidance and analyzed aggregate SES performance appraisal data as provided by …

Near-monodisperse Ni{sub 1-x}Cu{sub x} (x = 0.2-0.8) bimetallic nanocrystals were synthesized by a one-pot thermolysis approach in oleylamine/1-octadecene, using metal acetylacetonates as precursors. The nanocrystals form large-area 2D superlattices, and display a catalytic synergistic effect in the hydrolysis of NaBH{sub 4} to generate H{sub 2} at x = 0.5 in a strongly basic medium. The Ni{sub 0.5}Cu{sub 0.5} nanocrystals show the lowest activation energy, and also exhibit the highest H{sub 2} generation rate at 298 K.

The pore-scale effects of seismic stimulation on two-phase flow are modeled numerically in random 2D grain0pack geometries. Seismic stimulation aims to enhance oil production by sending seismic waves across a reservoir to liberate immobile patches of oil. For seismic amplitudes above a well-defined (analytically expressed) dimensionless criterion, the force perturbation associated with the waves indeed can liberate oil trapped on capillary barriers and get it flowing again under the background pressure gradient. Subsequent coalescence of the freed oil droplets acts to enhance oil movement further because longer bubbles overcome capillary barriers more efficiently than shorter bubbles do. Poroelasticity theory defines the effective force that a seismic wave adds to the background fluid-pressure gradient. The lattice-Boltzmann model in two dimensions is used to perform pore-scale numerical simulations. Dimensionless numbers (groups of material and force parameters) involved in seismic stimulation are defined carefully so that numerical simulations can be applied to field-scale conditions. Using the analytical criteria defined in the paper, there is a significant range of reservoir conditions over which seismic stimulation can be expected to enhance oil production.

This report discusses three Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) long-term options in regard to Clean Air: (1) starting anew with a new strategy with respect to mitigating transported air pollution based on the decision; (2) allowing the states to sort out the issue through Section 126 petitions; and (3) seeking new legislation providing EPA with the statutory authority to implement either CAIR in some form, or an alternative.

This report contains an overview of the continuation of employment benefits for senate restaurant employees.

Drought in the Southeast has brought congressional attention to an ongoing interstate water conflict among Alabama, Florida, and Georgia over water allocation and management of the Apalachicola-Chattahoochee-Flint basin. This report details the Apalachicola-Chattahoochee-Flint ecosystem, consultation under the Endangered Species Act, consultations in 2008, what endangered species need, and related figures.

This report first explores the basic statutory and regulatory framework that governs refugee law. This entails an outline of the requirements an applicant must meet in order to qualify as a refugee, a discussion about the differences between the two main forms of relief for aliens facing removal from the United States, asylum and withholding of removal, and an examination of several important issues and controversies concerning this particular area of refugee law.

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This report provides an overview of the U.S. balance of payments, an explanation of the broader role of capital flows in the U.S. economy, an explanation of how the country finances its trade deficit or a trade surplus, and the implications for Congress and the country of the large inflows of capital from abroad.

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This report provides an overview of international investing patterns and impacts, and ends with considerations on this topic for Congress.

This report provides an overview of the role of the clerk of the house and secretary of the senate with the Honest Leadership and Open Government Act of 2007.

This report describes recent developments in the assistance effort in post-authoritarian Iraq and key issues of potential interest to Congress.

With the end of the Cold War, NATO began to reassess its collective defense strategy and to anticipate possible new missions. The conflicts in the Balkans highlighted the need for more mobile forces, for greater technological equality between the United States and its allies, and for interoperability. At its 2002 summit, NATO approved a new initiative, the Prague Capabilities Commitment (PCC), touted as a slimmed-down, more focused Defense Capabilities Initiative (DCI), with quantifiable goals. Analysts cautioned that the success of PCC would hinge upon increased spending and changed procurement priorities, particularly by the European allies. The 2008 Bucharest summit declaration did not mention PCC, but, in light of NATO missions, particularly in Afghanistan, stressed the urgency of acquiring specific capabilities such as airlift and communications.

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