A letter report issued by the General Accounting Office with an abstract that begins "The Department of Defense (DOD) reported on its Office of Management and Budget Circular A-76 studies in July 2000. GAO found that DOD generally complied with the reporting requirements that Congress had imposed on it. DOD took steps to ensure that the information it provided on 286 A-76 studies was complete and accurate. GAO determined that the information was generally consistent with data it had collected on other A-76 studies. However, because of historical weaknesses in DOD's database from which the data were obtained, GAO could not be sure of the data's accuracy. Overall, DOD reported that the A-76 studies over the five year period saved about $290 million in fiscal year 1999. GAO's work showed that savings were being achieved, but limitations in DOD's baseline cost data made it difficult to determine precisely how much was being saved. In addition, DOD reported that 40 percent of the A-76 studies resulted in contracts with the private sector. At the same time, the report indicated that only 23 percent of the studies resulted in outside contracts in 1999. This was considerably lower than in earlier years when …

A letter report issued by the General Accounting Office with an abstract that begins "Pursuant to a congressional request, GAO provided information on U.S. and European defense contractors' business alliances, focusing on: (1) the types alliances companies are establishing and their reasons for forming alliances; (2) why companies prefer certain types of alliances over others; and (3) whether U.S. laws, regulations, policies, and practices influence a company's decision to form an alliance or its choice of a type of alliance."

A letter report issued by the General Accounting Office with an abstract that begins "Pursuant to a congressional request, GAO provided information on the H-1B program's implementation and implications for the American workforce, focusing on: (1) the jobs that H-1B workers are filling in the United States and the characteristics of those workers; (2) the adequacy of the H-1B visa program's implementation and enforcement; and (3) efforts underway to improve information technology (IT) skills in the American workforce."

A letter report issued by the General Accounting Office with an abstract that begins "Pursuant to a congressional request, GAO reviewed health care plans' withdrawal from the Medicare Choice program, focusing on the: (1) geographic distribution and the distribution among plans of enrollees affected by the recent plan withdrawals; (2) factors associated with plans that terminated or reduced their participation in the program; and (3) likely role of payment rates in affecting plans' decisions."

A letter report issued by the General Accounting Office with an abstract that begins "Pursuant to a congressional request, GAO provided information on efforts to recover Medicare's overpayments, focusing on: (1) how the Health Care Financing Administration (HCFA) and its contractors identify potential overpayments, and whether techniques used by recovery auditors would improve overpayment identification; (2) how well HCFA and its contractors collect overpayments once they are identified, and whether the services of recovery auditors would improve HCFA collection efforts; and (3) what challenges HCFA would face if it were required to hire recovery auditors to augment its overpayment identification and collection activities."

Other written product issued by the General Accounting Office with an abstract that begins "Pursuant to a legislative requirement, GAO reviewed the Securities and Exchange Commission's (SEC) new rule on selective disclosure and insider trading. GAO noted that: the new rule would address three issues: (a) the selective disclosure by various issuers of material nonpublic information; (b) when insider trading liability arises in connection with a trader's "use" or "knowing possession" of material nonpublic information; (c) when the breach of a family or other nonbusiness relationship may give rise to liability under the misappropriation theory of insider trading; and (d) SEC complied with applicable requirements in promulgating the rule."

A letter report issued by the General Accounting Office with an abstract that begins "Pursuant to a congressional request, GAO examined the timeliness with which the Customs Service Office of Regulations and Rulings (OR&R) issues rulings on such things as the proper classification and valuation of imported goods focusing on: (1) OR&R's response time for issuing headquarters rulings on imported goods, and, if delays occurred, reasons why they occurred; and (2) whether the Legal Case Inventory System (LCIS) is an effective tool for measuring the timeliness of OR&R's headquarters rulings."

Testimony issued by the General Accounting Office with an abstract that begins "Pursuant to a congressional request, GAO discussed the U.S. Postal Services' (USPS) electronic commerce (e-commerce) initiatives, focusing on USPS': (1) e-commerce initiatives that have been implemented or are being developed; (2) goals and strategies for the e-commerce area; (3) processes for approving these initiatives; and (4) expected performance and results to date related to e-commerce initiatives."

A letter report issued by the General Accounting Office with an abstract that begins "Pursuant to a congressional request, GAO reviewed the U.S. Postal Service's (USPS) electronic commerce (e-commerce) initiatives, focusing on USPS': (1) e-commerce initiatives that have been implemented or are being developed; (2) goals and strategies for the e-commerce area; (3) processes for approving these initiatives; and (4) expected performance and results to date related to e-commerce."

Correspondence issued by the General Accounting Office with an abstract that begins "Pursuant to a legislative requirement, GAO provided information on the Financial Management Service's (FMS) controls over safeguarding of assets and documenting disbursements and reconciliation of reports as well as the results of previously suggested improvements."

Other written product issued by the General Accounting Office with an abstract that begins "Pursuant to a legislative requirement, GAO reviewed the Office of Personnel Management's (OPM) new rule on health insurance premium conversion. GAO noted that: (1) the interim rule enables federal employees to pay Federal Employees Health Benefits premiums with pre-tax dollars, as provided by statutory law; and (2) OPM complied with applicable requirements in promulgating the rule."

A letter report issued by the General Accounting Office with an abstract that begins "Pursuant to a congressional request, GAO provided information on the expansion of Medicare beneficiaries' access to prescription drugs, focusing on the: (1) federal drug price discounts available to federal and nonfederal purchasers and the size of those discounts; and (2) potential effects that extending such discounts to nonfederal purchasers may have on outpatient drug prices paid by federal and nonfederal purchasers."

A letter report issued by the General Accounting Office with an abstract that begins "Pursuant to a congressional request, GAO reviewed the impact of organized crime and public sector corruption on the efforts of the international community to rebuild Bosnia and meet the benchmarks for the withdrawal of North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO) forces, focusing on: (1) how organized crime and public sector corruption might affect the successful implementation of the General Framework Agreement for Peace in Bosnia and Herzegovina (Dayton Agreement) in Bosnia; (2) whether the international community's anticorruption efforts have improved Bosnia's law enforcement and judicial system and reduced corruption; and (3) whether international assistance resources are being safeguarded and whether such assistance is being used by Bosnia in place of domestic revenues lost due to crime and corruption."

Correspondence issued by the General Accounting Office with an abstract that begins "Pursuant to a legislative requirement, GAO reviewed the relationship between the Department of Commerce and the Internet Corporation for Assigned Names and Numbers (ICANN), focusing on: (1) whether the formation of ICANN was in accordance with the Administrative Procedure Act (APA) and the Government Corporation Control Act; (2) how ICANN's interim board was selected and what role Commerce played in the selection of board members; (3) whether Commerce has the authority to enter into agreements with ICANN and to participate in ICANN activities; (4) what the legal basis is for the expenditures of funds by the Department for its participation in ICANN proceedings; (5) whether, under Office of Management and Budget Circular A-25, ICANN, as a project partner with Commerce, has authority to impose fees on Internet users to cover ICANN's operating costs; and (6) whether Commerce has the legal authority to transfer control of the authoritative root server to ICANN."

A letter report issued by the General Accounting Office with an abstract that begins "Pursuant to a congressional request, GAO provided information on the Federal Reserve Banks' (FRB) computer control vulnerabilities."

Correspondence issued by the General Accounting Office with an abstract that begins "Pursuant to a congressional request, GAO provided information on the use of the Internet to facilitate the submission and resolution of federal customer complaints, focusing on the: (1) type and extent of web-based complaint mechanisms provided by 32 federal agencies which handle 90 percent of the federal government's contact with the public; and (2) status of two federal efforts to develop central Internet-based gateways: www.consumer.gov and FirstGov."

A letter report issued by the General Accounting Office with an abstract that begins "Pursuant to a legislative requirement, GAO reviewed the Department of Defense's (DOD) base closure accounts and its budget request for base closure activities, focusing on: (1) how trends in base realignment and closure appropriations in recent years and estimates for future years compare to the fiscal year (FY) 2001 budget request; and (2) unliquidated obligations and unobligated balances from prior years' appropriations and the extent to which DOD considered these balances and obligations in preparing the FY 2001 budget request."

Correspondence issued by the General Accounting Office with an abstract that begins "Pursuant to a congressional request, GAO provided information on the usage of the social security number (SSN) for purposes not related to social security and the implication of restricting such usage, focusing on: (1) whether the SSN should become a national identifier; (2) whther it is feasible to enact, administer, and enforce a law that restricts the use of SSNs; (3) how have SSN proof requirements changed over time; (4) does the public benefit from the widespread use of SSNs and the sharing of personal information; (5) whether a private business can decline to provide service to someone who refused to disclose his or her SSN; (6) what are the possible effects on businesses of restricting their use of SSNs; (7) how has the high-tech economy affected SSN use; (8) why information brokers need people's SSNs; and (9) whether another identifier would take its place should the use of SSNs be restricted by federal law."

Correspondence issued by the General Accounting Office with an abstract that begins "Pursuant to a congressional request, GAO provided information on short- and long-form questionnaire response rates, focusing on the: (1) 2000 Census; (2) 1998 Census Dress Rehearsal; (3) 1990 Census; and (4) 1988 Census Dress Rehearsal."

A chapter report issued by the General Accounting Office with an abstract that begins "Pursuant to a congressional request, GAO reviewed issues relating to mutual fund fees, focusing on: (1) the trend in mutual fund advisers' costs and profitability; (2) the trend in mutual fund fees; (3) how mutual funds compete; (4) how fees are disclosed to fund investors and how industry participants view these disclosures; and (5) what mutual fund directors' responsibilities are regarding fees and how industry participants view directors' activities."

Correspondence issued by the General Accounting Office with an abstract that begins "Pursuant to a congressional request, GAO followed up on its report on the high-interest direct loans made by the Rural Housing Service (RHS), focusing on whether a significant number of borrowers continue to pay above-market interest rates on direct single-family housing loans."

A letter report issued by the General Accounting Office with an abstract that begins "Pursuant to a congressional request, GAO provided information on the Department of Defense's (DOD) authority, which was established under Section 845 of the Fiscal Year 1994 National Defense Authorization Act, to use nonstandard contracting approaches to procure research and development services, focusing on: (1) the extent to which DOD has used Section 845 agreements; (2) the benefits reported from their use; (3) how DOD tailored these agreements to address issues normally governed by standard contract provisions; and (4) recent DOD efforts to provide additional guidance on their use."

A letter report issued by the General Accounting Office with an abstract that begins "Pursuant to a congressional request, GAO reviewed five foreign countries' efforts to combat terrorism, focusing on: (1) how other governments are organized to combat terrorism; and (2) how they allocate their resources to combat terrorism."

Other written product issued by the General Accounting Office with an abstract that begins "Pursuant to a legislative requirement, GAO reviewed the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration's (NHTSA) major rule on average fuel economy standards, known as Corporation Average Fuel Economy (CAFE) standards, for non-passenger automobiles manufactured in model year 2002. GAO noted that: (1) the rule requires NHTSA to prescribe the same light truck CAFE standard for model year 2002 that applies to model year 2001; (2) the rules would continue the 20.7 miles per gallon standard established in model year 2001; and (3) NHTSA complied with applicable requirements in promulgating the rule."