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U.S. Coins: The Federal Reserve Banks Are Fulfilling Coin Demand, but Optimal Inventory Ranges Are Undefined

Description: A letter report issued by the Government Accountability Office with an abstract that begins "Federal Reserve Banks fulfill the coin demand of the nation's depository institutions--which include commercial banks, savings and loan associations, and credit unions--by ordering new coins from the U.S. Mint and managing coins held in inventory at the Reserve Banks and in coin terminals. Reliably estimating the demand for coins and efficiently managing the inventory of circulated coins is important to… more
Date: March 21, 2008
Creator: United States. Government Accountability Office.
Partner: UNT Libraries Government Documents Department
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Overstay Tracking: A Key Component of Homeland Security and a Layered Defense

Description: A letter report issued by the General Accounting Office with an abstract that begins "Each year, millions of visitors, foreign students, and immigrants come to the United States. Foreign visitors may enter on a legal temporary basis--that is, with an authorized period of admission that expires on a specific date--either (1) with temporary visas (generally for tourism, business, or work) or, in some cases, (2) as tourists or business visitors who are allowed to enter without visas. (The latter i… more
Date: May 21, 2004
Creator: United States. General Accounting Office.
Partner: UNT Libraries Government Documents Department
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Small Business Administration: Agency Should Assess Resources Devoted to Contracting and Improve Several Processes in the 8(a) Program

Description: A letter report issued by the Government Accountability Office with an abstract that begins "The Small Business Administration (SBA) helps small businesses gain access to federal contracting opportunities and helps socially and economically disadvantaged small businesses, known as 8(a) firms, by providing management and contracting assistance. SBA negotiates agency-specific goals to ensure that the federal government meets the statutory goal of awarding 23 percent of contract dollars to small b… more
Date: November 21, 2008
Creator: United States. Government Accountability Office.
Partner: UNT Libraries Government Documents Department
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VA Health Care: Guidance Needed for Determining the Cost to Collect from Veterans and Private Health Insurers

Description: A letter report issued by the Government Accountability Office with an abstract that begins "During a May 2003 congressional hearing, questions were raised about the accuracy of the Department of Veterans Affairs' (VA) reported costs for collecting payments from veterans and private health insurers for its Medical Care Collections Fund (MCCF). Congress also had questions about VA's practice of using third-party collections to satisfy veterans' first-party debt. GAO's objectives were to determin… more
Date: July 21, 2004
Creator: United States. Government Accountability Office.
Partner: UNT Libraries Government Documents Department
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Flood Insurance: Opportunities Exist to Improve Oversight of the WYO Program

Description: A letter report issued by the Government Accountability Office with an abstract that begins "Since 2004, private insurance companies participating in the Federal Emergency Management Agency's (FEMA) Write-Your-Own (WYO) program have collected an average of $2.3 billion in premiums annually and, of this amount, have been paid or allowed to retain an average of $1 billion per year. Questions have been raised about FEMA's oversight of the program in light of the debts FEMA has incurred since the 2… more
Date: August 21, 2009
Creator: United States. Government Accountability Office.
Partner: UNT Libraries Government Documents Department
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Immigration Benefits: Improvements Needed to Address Backlogs and Ensure Quality of Adjudications

Description: A letter report issued by the Government Accountability Office with an abstract that begins "Long-standing backlogs of immigration benefit applications result in delays for immigrants, their families, and prospective employers who participate in the legal immigration process. In response to a statutory mandate to eliminate the backlog, the U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) set a goal of September 30, 2006, to eliminate the backlog and adjudicate all applications within 6 months.… more
Date: November 21, 2005
Creator: United States. Government Accountability Office.
Partner: UNT Libraries Government Documents Department
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Student Financial Aid: Need Determination Could Be Enhanced through Improvements in Education's Estimate of Applicants' State Tax Payments

Description: A letter report issued by the Government Accountability Office with an abstract that begins "In 2003, the Department of Education (Education) proposed an update to the state and other tax allowance, a part of the federal need analysis for student financial aid. Most federal aid as well as some state and institutional aid is awarded based on the student's cost of attendance less the student's and/or family's ability to pay these costs--known as the expected family contribution (EFC). The allowan… more
Date: January 21, 2005
Creator: United States. Government Accountability Office.
Partner: UNT Libraries Government Documents Department
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Fair Housing: Opportunities to Improve HUD's Oversight and Management of the Enforcement Process

Description: A letter report issued by the General Accounting Office with an abstract that begins "Discrimination in housing on the basis of race, sex, family status, and other grounds is illegal in the United States. Each year, the Department of Housing and Urban Development's Office of Fair Housing and Equal Opportunity (FHEO) and related agencies carry out enforcement activities for several thousand complaints of housing discrimination. The timeliness and effectiveness of the enforcement process have bee… more
Date: April 21, 2004
Creator: United States. General Accounting Office.
Partner: UNT Libraries Government Documents Department
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Defense Management: DOD Needs to Improve Program Management, Policy, and Testing to Enhance Ability to Field Operationally Useful Non-lethal Weapons

Description: A letter report issued by the Government Accountability Office with an abstract that begins "Nonlethal weapons (NLW) provide an alternative when lethal force is undesirable. The Department of Defense (DOD) defines NLW as those that are explicitly designed and primarily employed to incapacitate personnel or materiel, while minimizing fatalities, permanent injury to personnel, and undesired damage to property and the environment. DOD created the Joint Non-Lethal Weapons Program in 1996 to have ce… more
Date: April 21, 2009
Creator: United States. Government Accountability Office.
Partner: UNT Libraries Government Documents Department
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Military Operations: Fiscal Year 2004 Costs for the Global War on Terrorism Will Exceed Supplemental, Requiring DOD to Shift Funds from Other Uses

Description: A letter report issued by the Government Accountability Office with an abstract that begins "To support the Global War on Terrorism in fiscal year 2004, the Congress appropriated $65 billion to the Department of Defense (DOD) in an emergency supplemental appropriations act. To assist the Congress in its oversight role, GAO reviewed (1) the adequacy of current funding for fiscal year 2004 war-related activities and (2) actions DOD is undertaking to cover anticipated shortfalls, if any. Based on … more
Date: July 21, 2004
Creator: United States. Government Accountability Office.
Partner: UNT Libraries Government Documents Department
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Federal Real Property: Most Public Benefit Conveyances Used as Intended, but Opportunities Exist to Enhance Federal Oversight

Description: A letter report issued by the Government Accountability Office with an abstract that begins "Under the public benefit conveyance (PBC) program, state or local governments and certain nonprofits can obtain surplus real property for public uses. The General Services Administration (GSA) has responsibility for the program but has delegated authority to the Department of Defense (DOD) for properties disposed of as part of the Base Realignment and Closure (BRAC) process. Several "sponsoring agencies… more
Date: June 21, 2006
Creator: United States. Government Accountability Office.
Partner: UNT Libraries Government Documents Department
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Business Modernization: NASA's Challenges in Managing Its Integrated Financial Management Program

Description: A letter report issued by the General Accounting Office with an abstract that begins "The National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) spends 90 percent--$13 billion--of its budget on contractors. Yet since 1990, GAO has designated NASA's contract management as a high-risk area--in part because the agency failed to implement a financial management system to provide information needed to make key program decisions. In April 2000, NASA initiated its most recent effort to implement an effe… more
Date: November 21, 2003
Creator: United States. General Accounting Office.
Partner: UNT Libraries Government Documents Department
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Defense Acquisitions: Timely and Accurate Estimates of Costs and Requirements Are Needed to Define Optimal Future Strategic Airlift Mix

Description: A letter report issued by the Government Accountability Office with an abstract that begins "The Department of Defense's (DOD) C-5 Galaxy and C-17 Globemaster III aircraft play key roles in transporting weapons and other cargo. Since September 2001, these aircraft have delivered over 2.4 million tons of cargo to staging and operating bases in Iraq and Afghanistan. Yet determining the number and mix to meet current and future airlift requirements has become increasingly challenging given distinc… more
Date: November 21, 2008
Creator: United States. Government Accountability Office.
Partner: UNT Libraries Government Documents Department
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Federal Chief Information Officers: Responsibilities, Reporting Relationships, Tenure, and Challenges

Description: A letter report issued by the Government Accountability Office with an abstract that begins "Although the federal government has invested substantially in information technology (IT), its success in managing information resources has varied. Agencies have taken steps to implement modern strategies, systems, and management policies and practices, but they still face significant information and technology management challenges. Recognizing the key role of the chief information officer (CIO) in he… more
Date: July 21, 2004
Creator: United States. Government Accountability Office.
Partner: UNT Libraries Government Documents Department
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Tobacco Settlement: States' Allocations of Fiscal Year 2004 and Expected Fiscal Year 2005 Payments

Description: A letter report issued by the Government Accountability Office with an abstract that begins "In the 1990s, states sued major tobacco companies to obtain reimbursement for health impairments caused by the public's use of tobacco. In 1998, 46 states and four of the nation's largest tobacco companies signed a Master Settlement Agreement (MSA) that requires the tobacco companies to make annual payments to the states in perpetuity as reimbursement for past tobacco-related health care costs. The MSA … more
Date: March 21, 2005
Creator: United States. Government Accountability Office.
Partner: UNT Libraries Government Documents Department
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Department of Labor: Better Cost Assessments and Departmentwide Performance Tracking Are Needed to Effectively Manage Competitive Sourcing Program

Description: A letter report issued by the Government Accountability Office with an abstract that begins "Competition between federal and private organizations to provide services--referred to as "competitive sourcing"--can be one way to help achieve greater efficiency in government. Under guidance from the Office of Management and Budget (OMB), competitive sourcing has been implemented at various executive branch agencies over the years. As required under the Consolidated Appropriations Act, 2008 and direc… more
Date: November 21, 2008
Creator: United States. Government Accountability Office.
Partner: UNT Libraries Government Documents Department
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Peacekeeping: Cost Comparison of Actual UN and Hypothetical U.S. Operations in Haiti

Description: A letter report issued by the Government Accountability Office with an abstract that begins "The UN employs about 85,000 military and civilian personnel in peacekeeping operations in 16 countries. The United States has provided about $1 billion annually to support UN peacekeeping operations. In addition, the United States has led and participated in many such operations. UN reports and congressional hearings have raised concerns about accountability for UN peacekeeping operations and the need f… more
Date: February 21, 2006
Creator: United States. Government Accountability Office.
Partner: UNT Libraries Government Documents Department
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Public Accounting Firms: Required Study on the Potential Effects of Mandatory Audit Firm Rotation

Description: A letter report issued by the General Accounting Office with an abstract that begins "Following major failures in corporate financial reporting, the Sarbanes-Oxley Act of 2002 was enacted to protect investors through requirements intended to improve the accuracy and reliability of corporate disclosures and to restore investor confidence. The act included reforms intended to strengthen auditor independence and to improve audit quality. Mandatory audit firm rotation (setting a limit on the period… more
Date: November 21, 2003
Creator: United States. General Accounting Office.
Partner: UNT Libraries Government Documents Department
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Defense Trade: Information on U.S. Weapons Deliveries to the Middle East

Description: A letter report issued by the General Accounting Office with an abstract that begins "The U.S. military assistance programs provided $74 billion in military equipment, services, and training to countries in the Middle East from fiscal years 1991 through 2000. The Foreign Military Sales and Foreign Military Financing programs account for about 96 percent of the value of military items in the U.S. delivered to the region. The U.S. weapon systems delivered include F-16 and F/A-18 fighter aircraft;… more
Date: September 21, 2001
Creator: United States. General Accounting Office.
Partner: UNT Libraries Government Documents Department
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U.S. Postal Service: Update on E-Commerce Activities and Privacy Protections

Description: A letter report issued by the General Accounting Office with an abstract that begins "Management of the U.S. Postal Service's (USPS) e-commerce program has been fragmented, and implementation of e-commerce initiatives has varied at different business units. Overall, USPS' performance in this area has fallen short of expectations. Last year, the Postmaster General announced a sweeping management restructuring that changed both the reporting structure and program managers. USPS also revised its p… more
Date: December 21, 2001
Creator: United States. General Accounting Office.
Partner: UNT Libraries Government Documents Department
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Bank Secrecy Act: Increased Use of Exemption Provisions Could Reduce Currency Transaction Reporting While Maintaining Usefulness to Law Enforcement Efforts

Description: A letter report issued by the Government Accountability Office with an abstract that begins "To aid law enforcement efforts against financial crimes, under the Bank Secrecy Act (BSA) depository institutions must file the Treasury Department's Financial Crimes Enforcement Network's (FinCEN) currency transaction report (CTR) form on their customers' cash transactions of more than $10,000. While FinCEN's regulations allow institutions to exempt certain customers, over 15 million CTRs were filed in… more
Date: February 21, 2008
Creator: United States. Government Accountability Office.
Partner: UNT Libraries Government Documents Department
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U.S. Postal Service: Mail Processing Realignment Efforts Under Way Need Better Integration and Explanation

Description: A letter report issued by the Government Accountability Office with an abstract that begins "Major changes in the mailing industry have reinforced the need for the U.S. Postal Service (USPS) to reduce costs and increase efficiency. In its 2002 Transformation Plan, USPS proposed doing so by realigning its mail processing network. The objectives of this requested report are to (1) describe the status of the initiatives USPS has developed for realignment; (2) evaluate how the planning, impacts, an… more
Date: June 21, 2007
Creator: United States. Government Accountability Office.
Partner: UNT Libraries Government Documents Department
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Credit Cards: Customized Minimum Payment Disclosures Would Provide More Information to Consumers, but Impact Could Vary

Description: A letter report issued by the Government Accountability Office with an abstract that begins "The Bankruptcy Abuse Prevention and Consumer Protection Act of 2005 requires that credit card issuers (issuers) include in all cardholder billing statements a generic warning, or "disclosure," about the potential financial consequences of consistently making only the minimum payment due on a credit card. However, some have urged that consumers should instead receive "customized" disclosures in their bil… more
Date: April 21, 2006
Creator: United States. Government Accountability Office.
Partner: UNT Libraries Government Documents Department
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Workplace Safety and Health: OSHA Could Improve Federal Agencies' Safety Programs with a More Strategic Approach to Its Oversight

Description: A letter report issued by the Government Accountability Office with an abstract that begins "Federal workers' compensation costs exceeded $1.5 billion in 2004, with approximately 148,000 new claims filed that year. Because of concerns for the safety of federal workers, as well as the costs associated with unsafe workplaces, GAO described the characteristics of federal agencies' safety programs and the implementation challenges they face, and assessed how well the Occupational Safety and Health … more
Date: April 21, 2006
Creator: United States. Government Accountability Office.
Partner: UNT Libraries Government Documents Department
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