Reference - General

GAO has issued several reports on the establishment of AFRICOM and its components. In 2008, we testified that DOD had made progress in transferring activities, staffing the command, and establishing an interim headquarters for AFRICOM but had not yet fully estimated the additional costs...

The primary federal laws that govern how EPA regulates pesticides in the United States are FIFRA and the Federal Food, Drug, and Cosmetic Act (FFDCA). Under FIFRA implementing regulations, EPA is to review applications for pesticide products and register those that it determines will...

In 2005, the DOD Comptroller established the FIAR Directorate, consisting of the FIAR Director and his staff, to develop, manage, and implement a strategic approach for addressing financial management deficiencies, achieving audit readiness, and integrating those efforts with other initiatives. Also in 2005, DOD...

FAS administers USDA's five market development programs on behalf of the Commodity Credit Corporation, which is owned and operated by the U.S. government. The programs provide matching funds to support U.S. industry efforts to build, maintain, and expand commercial overseas markets for U.S. agricultural...

A variety of federal farm programs provide benefits to participants, including payments, to help protect against the risks of low crop prices or bad weather, among other hardships. These payments are made in accordance with individual program rules to participants who own agricultural land...

The West Bank and Gaza are comprised of about 2,400 square miles and have a combined population of 4.3 million people. The Palestinian Authority and Israel administer areas within the West Bank, and the Hamas-controlled de facto authorities operate in Gaza.Author: Government Accountability OfficeISBN-10:...

As the Army transitions away from major wartime operations, it faces fiscal constraints and a complex and growing array of security challenges. The Army will be smaller and senior leaders recognize that the core of a smaller yet still highly capable force is having...

The U.S. manufacturing sector comprises businesses that are engaged in the mechanical, physical, or chemical transformation of materials, substances, or components into new products, including sectors such as machinery, textiles, apparel, food production, and chemicals. However, U.S. policy makers have become focused on competing...

All Army and Marine Corps training -whether for individuals or units -is task-based, and each task has an associated set of conditions and standards. For example, the conditions may specify daytime or nighttime training, and the standard, a measure of a unit's or individual's...

The NGJ is DOD's program to replace the ALQ-99 tactical jamming system. The ALQ-99 is a five-pod jamming system that is capable of automatically processing, and jamming radio frequency signals. It counters a variety of threats in low-, mid-, and high-band frequency ranges.Author: Government...

Responsibility for designing and carrying out federal export promotion programs is widely dispersed. Numerous federal agencies have offices across the country and overseas and operate a wide variety of programs that are intended, at least in part, to assist U.S. companies in entering foreign...

U.S. agencies have different responsibilities related to international regulatory cooperation. For example, Commerce, State, USTR, OMB, and USDA have government-wide responsibilities. Their roles and responsibilities are determined primarily through statutes and executive orders. U.S. treaty obligations also influence their activities, as shown in table...

In 1999, total Gulf of Mexico oil production reached an estimated 494 million barrels after hovering around 300 million barrels a year for much of the decade. The increase has come from the deepwater and was highlighted in late 1999, when oil production from...

OJP's bureaus and offices provide grants and other awards to various organizations, including state and local governments, universities, and private entities, which are intended to develop the nation's capacity to prevent and control crime, administer justice, and assist crime victims. Within OJP, NIJ serves...

Traditionally, a drug is compounded, through the process of mixing, combining, or altering ingredients, to create a customized drug tailored to the medical needs of an individual patient upon receipt of a prescription.Author: Government Accountability OfficeISBN-10: 1503215458ISBN-13: 9781503215450Publisher: Createspace Independent Publishing PlatformLanguage: EnglishPublished: 12/31/2014Pages:...

Each year, millions of visitors come to the United States legally on a temporary basis.Generally, nonimmigrants wishing to visit the United States gain permission to apply for admission to the country through one of two ways.Author: Government Accountability OfficeISBN-10: 1503215431ISBN-13: 9781503215436Publisher: Createspace Independent Publishing...

There are no specific government-wide training standards or training requirements for the federal grant workforce; however, the administration has taken some steps toward developing such standards. Between 2004 and 2011, a work group within the administration's Grants Policy Committee (GPC) studied the issue of...

Various laws and directives guide DHS's role in critical infrastructure protection, including the Homeland Security Act of 2002, as amended, the Homeland Security Presidential Directive/HSPD-7,13 and most recently, Presidential Policy Directive/PPD-21, which was issued on February 12, 2013.Author: Government Accountability OfficeISBN-10: 1503215415ISBN-13: 9781503215412Publisher: Createspace...

Section 482 of Title 10 of the United States Code requires DOD to report quarterly to Congress on military readiness. The report is due to Congress not later than 45 days after the end of each calendar-year quarter (i.e. by May 15th, August 14th,...

An NSA is a customized contract between USPS and a specific entity- often a mailer or foreign postal operator-typically lasting a year or more. NSAs provide customer-specific rates-generally lower prices on specific mail products-in exchange for meeting volume targets and mail preparation requirements. The...

The U.S. aerospace industry contributes to the nation's economic health and national security. The industry's wide-ranging activities-including aircraft manufacturing and commercial aviation-make it a major contributor to U.S. economic growth. DOT and the FAA (an administration of DOT) each play a policy and regulatory...

The concept for the LCS emerged in the late 1990s and early 2000s as the Navy was trying to address two main needs. First, it had identified existing and emerging capability gaps in its ability to defeat large numbers of hostile small boats, sea...

The mineral-rich DRC, Africa's second-largest country, has been plagued by cycles of violence and instability. Since 1998, violent conflicts, poverty, and disease have killed more than 5.4 million people in the country, according to estimates by the International Rescue Committee. The DRC was colonized...

In addition to CBP, various agencies have responsibilities for facilitating trade at land ports of entry and conducting inspections of commercial vehicles. GSA oversees design, construction, and maintenance for all ports of entry in consultation with CBP. In consultation with GSA, CBP develops an...

The Department of Labor oversees a number of employment and training programs administered by state and local workforce boards and one-stop career centers established under the Workforce Investment Act of 1998 (WIA). The green jobs training programs Labor has overseen were created under the...

In response to a congressional request in 2005, the National Academies gathered a group of business, government, and academic leaders to identify steps the leaders thought would ensure that the United States is a leader in science and engineering and can compete, prosper, and...

State's Foreign Service promotion process is governed by the Foreign Affairs Manual (FAM), the Foreign Service Act, and the Procedural Precepts for the Foreign Service Selection Boards-referred to as the procedural precepts.Author: Government Accountability OfficeISBN-10: 1503201333ISBN-13: 9781503201330Publisher: Createspace Independent Publishing PlatformLanguage: EnglishPublished: 12/31/2014Pages: 40Format:...

Investment advisers provide a wide range of investment advisory services and help individuals and institutions make financial decisions. From individuals and families seeking to plan for retirement or save for college to large institutions managing billions of dollars, clients seek the services of investment...

Bankruptcy is a federal court procedure conducted under the Code. The goals of bankruptcy are to give individuals and businesses a "fresh start" by eliminating or restructuring debts they cannot fully repay and help creditors receive some payment in an equitable manner. The filing...

We conducted this performance audit from February 2012 to March 2013 in accordance with generally accepted government auditing standards. Those standards require that we plan and perform the audit to obtain sufficient, appropriate evidence to provide a reasonable basis for our findings and conclusions...

SEC is composed of a five-member Commission that oversees SEC operations and provides final approval over staff interpretation of federal securities laws, proposals for new or amended rules to govern securities markets, and enforcement activities. The Commission, which is headed by the SEC chairman,...

Recent financial and economic conditions have prompted greater scrutiny of government spending, highlighting the important role oversight and law enforcement agencies play in identifying and eliminating fraud, waste, and abuse. A number of government oversight and law enforcement agencies are using data analytics-which involve...

Federal elder justice programs are administered and funded through a complex intergovernmental structure. The Older Americans Act of 1965 (OAA) established the Administration on Aging (AoA) within the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) as the chief federal advocate for older Americans and...

This testimony is based on several reports issued in 2013. In January 2013, we issued our report on the results of our audit of the U.S. government's fiscal years 2012 and 2011 consolidated financial statements, which along with the financial statements, are contained in...

NRC issues licenses for commercial nuclear power reactors to operate for up to 40 years and allows these licenses to be renewed for up to an additional 20 years. There is no set limit on the number of times a reactor's operating license can...

Created in 2008, CPP was the primary initiative under TARP to help stabilize the financial markets and banking system by providing capital to qualifying regulated financial institutions through the purchase of senior preferred shares and subordinated debt.Author: Government Accountability OfficeISBN-10: 1503199703ISBN-13: 9781503199705Publisher: Createspace Independent...

The federal government plays a role in overseeing Internet pharmacy activity to the extent that these entities engage in interstate commerce or violate federal laws. However, states have traditionally regulated the practice of pharmacy and the practice of medicine. State boards of pharmacy license...

This report discusses (1) the number, location, and financial characteristics of properties that continue to receive subsidized rates compared with full-risk rate properties; (2) the information needed to estimate the historic cost of subsidies and establish rates for previously subsidized policies that reflect the...

Remaining proved reserves in the Gulf of Mexico Outer Continental Shelf (OCS) as of December 31, 1995, have been estimated to be 2.33 billion barrels of oil and 27.51trillion cubic feet of gas. These reserves are recoverable from 754 proved active fields. Unproved reserves...

The National Flood Insurance Act of 1968 established NFIP as an alternative to providing direct disaster relief after floods.9 9Pub. L. No. 90-448, Title XIII, 1302, 82 Stat. 476, 572 (Aug. 1, 1968). NFIP, which makes federally backed flood insurance available to residential property...

Individuals seeking to enter the United States illegally may attempt to avoid screeining procedures at ports of entry by crossing the border in areas between these ports, including Indian reservations, many of which have been vulnerable to illicit cross-border threat activity, such as drug...

Through our three annual reports, we have identified 162 areas in which there are opportunities to reduce fragmentation, overlap, or duplication or to achieve cost savings or enhance revenue. (Appendix I presents a summary of the areas we identified in our three annual reports.)...

The base of the federal corporate income tax includes net income from business operations (receipts, minus the costs of purchased goods, labor, interest, and other expenses). It also includes net income that corporations earn in the form of interest, dividends, rent, royalties, and realized...

According to the 2010 Quadrennial Defense Review Report, a component of DOD's strategy to prevent and deter conflict is to help build the capacity of partners to maintain and promote stability, and such an approach requires working closely with U.S. allies and partner nations...

M&O contractors operate and maintain NNSA's three national security laboratories, as well as the infrastructure necessary to support the nuclear weapons stockpile and the capabilities to conduct the scientific, technical, engineering, and production activities that ensure the continued safety and reliability of the stockpile.Author:...

In the early 1960s, the Secretary of Defense, at the President's direction, developed and implemented a base closure program, with minimal consultation with Congress. This program resulted in hundreds of base closures and realignments, including closure of more than 60 major bases. Subsequently, in...

Our prior work has found that DOD's approach to managing service acquisition has tended to be reactive and has not fully addressed key factors for success at either the strategic or transactional level. The strategic level is where the enterprise sets the direction or...

Army Industrial Operations provides services for a variety of customers, including the Army, the Navy, the Air Force, non-DOD agencies, and foreign countries. The majority of the work is for the Army. Industrial Operations relies on sales revenue from customers to finance its continuing...

Improvised explosive devices have caused numerous injuries and fatalities among U.S. and coalition forces while carrying out operations in Iraq and Afghanistan. To mitigate this threat, DOD has taken a number of actions, such as deploying its expeditionary forensic capabilities. In 2003, DOD established...

Program evaluations are systematic studies that use research methods to address specific questions about program performance. Evaluation is closely related to performance measurement and reporting. Whereas performance measurement entails the ongoing monitoring and reporting of program progress toward preestablished goals, program evaluation typically assesses...