A letter report issued by the Government Accountability Office with an abstract that begins "Over the last decade, Congress has passed legislation requiring the Department of Defense (DOD) to conduct human capital planning efforts for the department's civilian workforce. Specifically, section 115b of Title 10 of the United States Code, enacted in October 2009, requires DOD to develop and submit to congressional defense committees a strategic workforce plan to shape and improve the department's civilian workforce. Among other things, the law requires DOD to report on the mission-critical skills, competencies, and gaps in its existing and future civilian workforces; the appropriate mix of military, civilian, and contractor personnel capabilities; and the department's progress in implementing its strategic workforce plan using results-oriented performance measures. While DOD has addressed some of its reporting requirements to some extent, it has not addressed others."

A letter report issued by the Government Accountability Office with an abstract that begins "Civilian agencies did not fully comply with statutory requirements for compiling fiscal year 2011 service contract inventories. For example, because the information is not currently readily available, the Office of Management and Budget (OMB) directed the 49 agencies that were required to submit inventories to defer the collection of three statutorily required data elements for each contract--the role the services played in achieving agency objectives, the total dollar amount invoiced for services under the contracts, and the number and work locations of contractor and subcontractor personnel. Progress, however, is being made to collect this information for future inventories. OMB directed agencies to start collecting information on the role services play in achieving agency objectives for new contracts awarded on or after March 1, 2012. A proposed Federal Acquisition Regulation rule was published in April 2011 to start collecting the remaining two data elements directly from contractors. We also found several instances where agencies significantly underreported obligations in their inventories, either because they misinterpreted or did not follow OMB guidance. For example, the General Services Administration underreported obligations by approximately $6.4 billion. Without complete and accurate service …

A letter report issued by the Government Accountability Office with an abstract that begins "On September 7, 2011, the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) issued a final rule establishing a transitional work permit program in the Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands (CNMI) for foreign workers not otherwise admissible under federal law. The final rule addressed key requirements of the Consolidated Natural Resources Act of 2008 (CNRA); for example, the rule sets the permit allocations for fiscal years 2011 and 2012. As of July 2012, DHS had processed about half of the petitions for work permits that employers submitted in fiscal year 2012. The DHS decision on its permit allocation for fiscal year 2013 and a Department of Labor (DOL) decision on whether and when to extend the transition period, both required by CNRA, are both pending."

A letter report issued by the Government Accountability Office with an abstract that begins "The Department of Homeland Security (DHS) and the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) have taken steps to implement all seven of the recommendations GAO made in 2006 to improve the Agriculture Quarantine Inspection (AQI) program, but they face challenges in fully implementing four of them. Specifically, DHS and USDA have implemented GAO's recommendations to improve information sharing, review DHS's financial management system for the AQI program, and remove barriers to timely and accurate transfers of AQI user fees--collected for AQI services provided in connection with the arrival of international air passengers and conveyances at U.S. ports. However, DHS and USDA face challenges in fully implementing GAO's recommendations to adopt meaningful performance measures, establish a national risk-based staffing model, improve the agriculture canine program, and revise user fees to cover program costs. For example, in 2006, GAO recommended that DHS and USDA adopt meaningful performance measures for assessing the AQI program's effectiveness at intercepting foreign pests and disease. DHS and USDA have expanded the use of one type of performance measure but have not developed measures for all aspects of the AQI program that are important for …

A letter report issued by the Government Accountability Office with an abstract that begins "Federal agencies have used a variety of mechanisms to implement interagency collaborative efforts, such as the President appointing a coordinator, agencies co-locating within one facility, or establishing interagency task forces. These mechanisms can be used to address a range of purposes including policy development; program implementation; oversight and monitoring; information sharing and communication; and building organizational capacity, such as staffing and training. Frequently, agencies use more than one mechanism to address an issue. For example, climate change is a complex, crosscutting issue, which involves many collaborative mechanisms in the Executive Office of the President and interagency groups throughout government."