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Iran: U.S. Concerns and Policy Responses

Description: Much of the debate over U.S. policy toward Iran has centered on the nature of the current regime; some believe that Iran, a country of about 70 million people, is a threat to U.S. interests because hardliners in Iran's regime dominate and set a policy direction intended to challenge U.S. influence and allies in the region. President George W. Bush, in his January 29, 2002, State of the Union message, labeled Iran part of an "axis of evil" along with Iraq and North Korea. This report discusses h… more
Date: July 10, 2009
Creator: Katzman, Kenneth
Partner: UNT Libraries Government Documents Department
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Bureau of Prisons: Methods for Cost Estimation Largely Reflect Best Practices, but Quantifying Risks Would Enhance Decision Making

Description: A letter report issued by the Government Accountability Office with an abstract that begins "The Department of Justice's (DOJ) Federal Bureau of Prisons (BOP) is responsible for the custody and care of about 209,000 federal inmates--a population which has grown by 44 percent over the last decade. In fiscal years 2008 and 2009, the President requested additional funding for BOP because costs for key operations were at risk of exceeding appropriated funding levels. Government Accountability Offic… more
Date: November 10, 2009
Creator: United States. Government Accountability Office.
Partner: UNT Libraries Government Documents Department
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Telecommunications: FCC Needs to Improve Oversight of Wireless Phone Service

Description: A letter report issued by the Government Accountability Office with an abstract that begins "Americans increasingly rely on wireless phones, with 35 percent of households now primarily or solely using them. Under federal law, the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) is responsible for fostering a competitive wireless marketplace while ensuring that consumers are protected from harm. States also have authority to oversee some aspects of service. As requested, this report discusses consumers' … more
Date: November 10, 2009
Creator: United States. Government Accountability Office.
Partner: UNT Libraries Government Documents Department
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United States Merchant Marine Academy: Internal Control Weaknesses Resulted in Improper Sources and Uses of Funds; Some Corrective Actions Are Under Way

Description: A letter report issued by the Government Accountability Office with an abstract that begins "The U.S. Merchant Marine Academy (Academy), a component of the Department of Transportation's Maritime Administration (MARAD), is one of five U.S. service academies. The Academy is affiliated with 14 non-appropriated fund instrumentalities (NAFI) and two foundations. GAO was asked to determine whether there (1) were any potentially improper or questionable sources and uses of funds by the Academy, inclu… more
Date: August 10, 2009
Creator: United States. Government Accountability Office.
Partner: UNT Libraries Government Documents Department
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Human Capital: Opportunities Exist to Build on Recent Progress to Strengthen DOD's Civilian Human Capital Strategic Plan

Description: A letter report issued by the Government Accountability Office with an abstract that begins "Having the right number of civilian personnel with the right skills is critical to achieving the Department of Defense's (DOD) mission. With more than 50 percent of its civilian workforce (about 700,000 civilians) eligible to retire in the next few years, DOD may be faced with deciding how to fill numerous mission-critical positions--some involving senior leadership. The National Defense Authorization A… more
Date: February 10, 2009
Creator: United States. Government Accountability Office.
Partner: UNT Libraries Government Documents Department
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Latin America and the Caribbean: Fact Sheet on Leaders and Elections

Description: This fact sheet tracks the current heads of government in Central and South America, Mexico, and the Caribbean. It provides the dates of the last and next elections for the head of government and the national independence date for each country.
Date: March 10, 2009
Creator: Gomez-Granger, Julissa & Sullivan, Mark P.
Partner: UNT Libraries Government Documents Department
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Financial Audit: IRS's Fiscal Years 2009 and 2008 Financial Statements

Description: A letter report issued by the Government Accountability Office with an abstract that begins "Because of the significance of Internal Revenue Service (IRS) collections to overall federal receipts and, in turn, to the consolidated financial statements of the U.S. government, which Government Accountability Office (GAO) is required to audit, and Congress's interest in financial management at IRS, GAO audits IRS's financial statements annually to determine whether (1) the financial statements are f… more
Date: November 10, 2009
Creator: United States. Government Accountability Office.
Partner: UNT Libraries Government Documents Department
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Voters With Disabilities: More Polling Places Had No Potential Impediments Than in 2000, but Challenges Remain

Description: A letter report issued by the Government Accountability Office with an abstract that begins "Voting is fundamental to our democratic system, and federal law generally requires polling places to be accessible to all eligible voters, including those with disabilities. In response, states and localities have implemented provisions and practices addressing the accessibility of polling places. However, during the 2000 federal election, GAO found that only 16 percent of polling places had no potentia… more
Date: June 10, 2009
Creator: United States. Government Accountability Office.
Partner: UNT Libraries Government Documents Department
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Employee Misclassification: Improved Coordination, Outreach, and Targeting Could Better Ensure Detection and Prevention

Description: A letter report issued by the Government Accountability Office with an abstract that begins "When employers improperly classify workers as independent contractors instead of employees, those workers do not receive protections and benefits to which they are entitled, and the employers may fail to pay some taxes they would otherwise be required to pay. The Department of Labor (DOL) and Internal Revenue Service (IRS) are to ensure that employers comply with several labor and tax laws related to wo… more
Date: August 10, 2009
Creator: United States. Government Accountability Office.
Partner: UNT Libraries Government Documents Department
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Tax Gap: Limiting Sole Proprietor Loss Deductions Could Improve Compliance but Would Also Limit Some Legitimate Losses

Description: A letter report issued by the Government Accountability Office with an abstract that begins "Sole proprietors, who own unincorporated businesses by themselves, underreported their net income by 57 percent or $68 billion for 2001, according to the Internal Revenue Service's (IRS) most recent estimate. The underreporting includes both understated receipts and overstated expenses and may result in losses that can be deducted against income from other sources, such as wages. GAO was asked to (1) de… more
Date: September 10, 2009
Creator: United States. Government Accountability Office.
Partner: UNT Libraries Government Documents Department
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Army Working Capital Fund: Actions Needed to Improve Budgeting for Carryover at Army Ordnance

Description: A letter report issued by the Government Accountability Office with an abstract that begins "From fiscal years 2004 through 2008, new orders received by the eight Army ordnance activities increased from $788 million to $1.5 billion. To the extent that the ordnance activities do not complete work at year end, the ordered and funded work is carried over into the next fiscal year. While past congressional defense committees recognized the need for carryover, the committees have on occasion raised … more
Date: June 10, 2009
Creator: United States. Government Accountability Office.
Partner: UNT Libraries Government Documents Department
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2009 Tax Filing Season: IRS Met Many 2009 Goals, but Telephone Access Remained Low, and Taxpayer Service and Enforcement Could Be Improved

Description: A letter report issued by the Government Accountability Office with an abstract that begins "The Internal Revenue Service's (IRS) filing season is an enormous undertaking that includes processing tax returns, issuing refunds, and responding to taxpayer questions. IRS's efforts to ensure compliance begin during the filing season. GAO was asked to assess IRS's 2009 filing season performance, identify ways to reduce taxpayers' use of short-term, high-interest refund anticipation loans (RAL) offere… more
Date: December 10, 2009
Creator: United States. Government Accountability Office.
Partner: UNT Libraries Government Documents Department
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Recovery Act: Status of States' and Localities' Use of Funds and Efforts to Ensure Accountability

Description: A letter report issued by the Government Accountability Office with an abstract that begins "This report is the fourth in a series responding to a mandate under the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009 (Recovery Act). As of November 27, 2009, $69.1 billion, or about one quarter of the approximately $280 billion of total Recovery Act funds for programs administered by states and localities, had been paid out. The largest programs were the Medicaid Federal Medical Assistance Percentage … more
Date: December 10, 2009
Creator: United States. Government Accountability Office.
Partner: UNT Libraries Government Documents Department
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Financial Audit: Bureau of the Public Debt's Fiscal Years 2009 and 2008 Schedules of Federal Debt

Description: A letter report issued by the Government Accountability Office with an abstract that begins "GAO is required to audit the consolidated financial statements of the U.S. government. Because of the significance of the federal debt held by the public to the governmentwide financial statements, GAO audits the Bureau of the Public Debt's (BPD) Schedules of Federal Debt annually. The audit of these schedules is done to determine whether, in all material respects, (1) the schedules are reliable and (2)… more
Date: November 10, 2009
Creator: United States. Government Accountability Office.
Partner: UNT Libraries Government Documents Department
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International Trade: Four Free Trade Agreements GAO Reviewed Have Resulted in Commercial Benefits, but Challenges on Labor and Environment Remain

Description: A letter report issued by the Government Accountability Office with an abstract that begins "Since 2001, Congress has approved free trade agreements (FTA) with 14 countries. Most were negotiated under Trade Promotion Authority (TPA), which aims to lower trade barriers while strengthening the capacity of trading partners to promote respect for workers' rights and to protect the environment. The Office of the United States Trade Representative (USTR) is responsible for overseeing implementation o… more
Date: July 10, 2009
Creator: United States. Government Accountability Office.
Partner: UNT Libraries Government Documents Department
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Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac: Analysis of Options for Revising the Housing Enterprises' Long-term Structures

Description: A letter report issued by the Government Accountability Office with an abstract that begins "Congress established Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac (the enterprises) with two key housing missions: (1) provide stability in the secondary market for residential mortgages (also in periods of economic stress) and (2) serve the mortgage credit needs of targeted groups such as low-income borrowers. To accomplish these goals, the enterprises issued debt and stock, purchased mortgages from lenders with the pro… more
Date: September 10, 2009
Creator: United States. Government Accountability Office.
Partner: UNT Libraries Government Documents Department
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Service by a Member of Congress in the U.S. Armed Forces Reserves

Description: This report will analyze the legal issues related to Members of Congress serving in the Armed Forces Reserves during their congressional tenure. It will discuss previous congressional action regarding Members' simultaneous service as well as federal legislation addressing the status of Reservists. It will also analyze court decisions related to challenges to simultaneous service.
Date: June 10, 2009
Creator: Brougher, Cynthia
Partner: UNT Libraries Government Documents Department
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Defense Acquisitions: How DOD Acquires Weapon Systems and Recent Efforts to Reform the Process

Description: This report will outline the Department of Defense's (DOD) defense acquisition structure, discuss recent major reports addressing defense acquisition, and consider recent DOD efforts to improve how the department acquires weapon systems. This report also includes a description of recent congressional efforts to reform DOD's acquisition process.
Date: July 10, 2009
Creator: Schwartz, Moshe
Partner: UNT Libraries Government Documents Department
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Trends in Discretionary Funding

Description: Discretionary spending is essentially all spending on federal wages and salaries. Discretionary spending is often divided into defense, domestic discretionary, and international outlays. Defense and domestic discretionary spending compose nearly all of discretionary spending. The Obama Administration contends that many domestic priorities have been underfunded and has proposed some cuts in defense spending. The current economic and financial turmoil, which has led to several major federal inter… more
Date: June 10, 2009
Creator: Austin, D. Andrew & Levit, Mindy R.
Partner: UNT Libraries Government Documents Department
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FEMA's Pre-Disaster Mitigation Program: Overview and Issues

Description: Pre-Disaster Mitigation (PDM), as federal law and a program activity, began in 1997. Congress established a pilot program, which FEMA named "Project Impact," to test the concept of investing prior to disasters to reduce the vulnerability of communities to future disasters. From its beginnings as "Project Impact" to its current state, the PDM program has grown in its level of appropriated resources and the scope of participation nationwide. Along with that growth have come issues for Congression… more
Date: July 10, 2009
Creator: McCarthy, Francis X. & Keegan, Natalie
Partner: UNT Libraries Government Documents Department
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The Global Financial Crisis: Analysis and Policy Implications

Description: The world has entered a global recession that is causing widespread business contraction, increases in unemployment, and shrinking government revenues. The crisis has exposed fundamental weaknesses in financial systems worldwide, demonstrated how interconnected and interdependent economies are today, and has posed vexing policy dilemmas. This report describes the financial crisis in detail, including various countries' methods of coping with and adapting to the situation; the role of Congress i… more
Date: July 10, 2009
Creator: Nanto, Dick K.
Partner: UNT Libraries Government Documents Department
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U.S. Military Stop Loss Program: Key Questions and Answers

Description: Stop Loss is a frequently misunderstood DOD force management program that retains servicemembers beyond their contractually agreed-to separation date. Because of the involuntary nature of this extension, some critics have referred to the program as a "backdoor draft" or "involuntary servitude". This report outlines the history of Stop Loss, current issues relating to Stop Loss, and the possible future directions of the program.
Date: July 10, 2009
Creator: Henning, Charles A.
Partner: UNT Libraries Government Documents Department
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China-U.S. Relations: Current Issues and Implications for U.S. Policy

Description: The bilateral relationship between the U.S. and the People's Republic of China (PRC) is vitally important, touching on a wide range of areas including, among others, economic policy, security, foreign relations, and human rights. This report addresses relevant policy questions in current U.S.-China relations, discusses trends and key legislation in the current Congress, and provides a chronology of developments and high-level exchanges.
Date: July 10, 2009
Creator: Dumbaugh, Kerry
Partner: UNT Libraries Government Documents Department
open access

Latin America and the Caribbean: Fact Sheet on Leaders and Elections

Description: This fact sheet tracks the current heads of government in Central and South America, Mexico, and the Caribbean. It provides the dates of the last and next elections for the head of government and the national independence date for each country.
Date: July 10, 2009
Creator: Sullivan, Mark P. & Gomez-Granger, Julissa
Partner: UNT Libraries Government Documents Department
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