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Protecting the U.S. Perimeter: Border Searches Under the Fourth Amendment

Description: This report first outlines the statutes authorizing certain federal officers to conduct warrantless searches. It then addresses the scope of the government's constitutional authority to search and seize persons and property at the border. It also describes the varying levels of suspicion generally required for each type of border search as interpreted by the courts. Finally, this report lists several bills before the 111th Congress that address border searches. This report does not address inte… more
Date: June 29, 2009
Creator: Kim, Yule
Partner: UNT Libraries Government Documents Department
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The Army's Future Combat System (FCS): Background and Issues for Congress

Description: This report describes the Future Combat System (FCS) program, which was to be the Army's major research, development, and acquisition program consisting of 14 manned and unmanned systems linked by an extensive communications and information network. This report describes the proposed restructuring of the FCS program, announced by Secretary of Defense Gates in April 2009, which includes modernizing outdated equipment and re-evaluating vehicle design strategy. This report will be superseded by a … more
Date: May 29, 2009
Creator: Feickert, Andrew
Partner: UNT Libraries Government Documents Department
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School Facilities: Physical Conditions in School Districts Receiving Impact Aid for Students Residing on Indian Lands

Description: A letter report issued by the Government Accountability Office with an abstract that begins "State and local governments spend billions of dollars annually on the construction, renovation, and maintenance of public school facilities, yet concerns persist about the condition of some school facilities, particularly in school districts serving students residing on Indian lands. The Department of Education's (Education) Impact Aid Program provides funding to school districts that are adversely impa… more
Date: October 29, 2009
Creator: United States. Government Accountability Office.
Partner: UNT Libraries Government Documents Department
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Financial Audit: Independent and Special Counsel Expenditures for the Six Months Ended March 31, 2006

Description: A letter report issued by the Government Accountability Office with an abstract that begins "This report presents the results of our audits of expenditures reported by one office of independent counsel and one office of special counsel for the 6 months ended March 31, 2006. The Department of Justice and independent counsels are required under 28 U.S.C. 594 (d)(2), (h) and 596 (c)(1) to report on a semiannual basis the expenditures from a permanent, indefinite appropriation established within th… more
Date: September 29, 2006
Creator: United States. Government Accountability Office.
Partner: UNT Libraries Government Documents Department
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Border Security: Actions Needed to Strengthen Management of Department of Homeland Security's Visa Security Program

Description: A letter report issued by the Government Accountability Office with an abstract that begins "The Homeland Security Act of 2002 required that the Department of Homeland Security's on-site personnel in Saudi Arabia review all visa applications. The act also authorized the expansion of the Visa Security Program to other embassies and consulates to provide expert advice and training to consular officers, among other things. Given the congressional interest in effective implementation of the Visa Se… more
Date: July 29, 2005
Creator: United States. Government Accountability Office.
Partner: UNT Libraries Government Documents Department
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Insurance Sales to Military Personnnel: Additional Actions Needed to Prevent Improper Life Insurance Sales and Pay Allotment Transactions

Description: A letter report issued by the Government Accountability Office with an abstract that begins "Concerns over unsuitable insurance products and inappropriate sales practices directed at servicemembers have prompted legislative and regulatory changes to address these concerns. Congress asked GAO to assess oversight efforts by the Department of Defense (DOD), the National Association of Insurance Commissioners (NAIC), and state insurance regulators. In this report, GAO (1) describes actions to impro… more
Date: May 29, 2009
Creator: United States. Government Accountability Office.
Partner: UNT Libraries Government Documents Department
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Equal Employment Opportunity: The Policy Framework in the Federal Workplace and the Roles of EEOC and OPM

Description: A letter report issued by the Government Accountability Office with an abstract that begins "The federal government has created a framework to provide for EEO by prohibiting unlawful discrimination based on such factors as race, color, religion, gender, national origin, age, and disability, and offers redress when discrimination and retaliation have occurred. To further EEO and help bring about a diverse workforce, federal agencies are required to carry out affirmative employment and minority r… more
Date: April 29, 2005
Creator: United States. Government Accountability Office.
Partner: UNT Libraries Government Documents Department
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Drug Control: Aviation Program Safety Concerns in Colombia Are Being Addressed, but State's Planning and Budgeting Process Can Be Improved

Description: A letter report issued by the Government Accountability Office with an abstract that begins "The Department of State supports foreign governments' efforts to eradicate illicit drug crops. In recent years, State's Office of Aviation has maintained aircraft and provided support for the aerial eradication program of the Colombian National Police. However, eradication aircraft are often shot at from the ground requiring helicopter gunships and a search and rescue helicopter to accompany each missio… more
Date: July 29, 2004
Creator: United States. Government Accountability Office.
Partner: UNT Libraries Government Documents Department
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Crop Insurance: Opportunities Exist to Reduce the Costs of Administering the Program

Description: A letter report issued by the Government Accountability Office with an abstract that begins "The U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) administers the federal crop insurance program with private insurance companies, which, in turn, work with insurance agencies that sell crop insurance. In 2008, according to USDA, the program cost $6.5 billion, including about $2.0 billion in allowances to insurance companies to cover their administrative and operating (A&O) expenses, such as salaries and sales … more
Date: April 29, 2009
Creator: United States. Government Accountability Office.
Partner: UNT Libraries Government Documents Department
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Small Business Administration: Additional Steps Should Be Taken to Address Reforms to the Disaster Loan Program and Improve the Application Process for Future Disasters

Description: A letter report issued by the Government Accountability Office with an abstract that begins "After the Small Business Administration (SBA) was widely criticized for its performance following the 2005 Gulf Coast hurricanes, the agency took steps to reform the Disaster Loan Program and Congress enacted the Small Business Disaster Response and Loan Improvements Act of 2008 (Act). GAO was asked to determine (1) the extent to which SBA addressed the Act's requirements, and (2) how SBA's response to … more
Date: July 29, 2009
Creator: United States. Government Accountability Office.
Partner: UNT Libraries Government Documents Department
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Traumatic Brain Injury: Better DOD and VA Oversight Can Help Ensure More Accurate, Consistent, and Timely Decisions for the Traumatic Injury Insurance Program

Description: A letter report issued by the Government Accountability Office with an abstract that begins "In 2005, Congress created a traumatic injury insurance benefit program, known as TSGLI, to help servicemembers with traumatic brain injury and other serious injuries with the financial burdens that they and their families face. The Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) administers the program, in collaboration with the Department of Defense (DOD), while the branches of service are responsible for deciding… more
Date: January 29, 2009
Creator: United States. Government Accountability Office.
Partner: UNT Libraries Government Documents Department
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Information Security: Securities and Exchange Commission Needs to Continue to Improve Its Program

Description: A letter report issued by the Government Accountability Office with an abstract that begins "In carrying out its mission to ensure that securities markets are fair, orderly, and efficiently maintained, the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) relies extensively on computerized systems. Integrating effective information security controls into a layered control strategy is essential to ensure that SEC's financial and sensitive information are protected from inadvertent or deliberate misuse, d… more
Date: February 29, 2008
Creator: United States. Government Accountability Office.
Partner: UNT Libraries Government Documents Department
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DOD Business Systems Modernization: Billions Being Invested without Adequate Oversight

Description: A letter report issued by the Government Accountability Office with an abstract that begins "Despite its significant investment in business systems, the Department of Defense (DOD) continues to have long-standing financial and business management problems that preclude the department from producing reliable and timely information for making decisions and for accurately reporting on its billions of dollars of assets. GAO was asked to (1) identify DOD's fiscal year 2005 estimated funding for its … more
Date: April 29, 2005
Creator: United States. Government Accountability Office.
Partner: UNT Libraries Government Documents Department
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Community Services Block Grant Program: HHS Should Improve Oversight by Focusing Monitoring and Assistance Efforts on Areas of High Risk

Description: A letter report issued by the Government Accountability Office with an abstract that begins "The Community Services Block Grant (CSBG) provided over $600 million to states in fiscal year 2005 to support over 1,000 local antipoverty agencies. The Department of Health and Human Services's (HHS) Office of Community Services (OCS) is primarily responsible for overseeing this grant; states have oversight responsibility for local agencies. At the request of Congress, GAO is providing information on (… more
Date: June 29, 2006
Creator: United States. Government Accountability Office.
Partner: UNT Libraries Government Documents Department
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Airport Finance: Observations on Planned Airport Development Costs and Funding Levels and the Administration's Proposed Changes in the Airport Improvement Program

Description: A letter report issued by the Government Accountability Office with an abstract that begins "To address the strain on the aviation system, the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) has proposed transitioning to the Next Generation Air Transportation System (NextGen). To fund this system and to make its costs to users more equitable, the Administration has proposed fundamental changes in the way that FAA is funded. As part of the reauthorization, the Administration proposes major changes in the … more
Date: June 29, 2007
Creator: United States. Government Accountability Office.
Partner: UNT Libraries Government Documents Department
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Nursing Homes: Federal Actions Needed to Improve Targeting and Evaluation of Assistance by Quality Improvement Organizations

Description: A letter report issued by the Government Accountability Office with an abstract that begins "In 2002, CMS contracted with Quality Improvement Organizations (QIO) to help nursing homes address quality problems such as pressure ulcers, a deficiency frequently identified during routine inspections conducted by state survey agencies. CMS awarded $117 million over a 3-year period to the QIOs to assist all homes and to work intensively with a subset of homes in each state. Homes' participation was vo… more
Date: May 29, 2007
Creator: United States. Government Accountability Office.
Partner: UNT Libraries Government Documents Department
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Homeland Security: Federal Protective Service Could Better Measure the Performance of Its Control Centers

Description: A letter report issued by the Government Accountability Office with an abstract that begins "The Department of Homeland Security's Federal Protective Service (FPS) through its control centers (MegaCenters) helps provide for the security and protection of federally owned and leased facilities. This report (1) identifies the services MegaCenters provide, (2) determines how FPS assesses MegaCenter performance and whether FPS links MegaCenter performance measures to FPS-wide measures, and (3) exami… more
Date: September 29, 2006
Creator: United States. Government Accountability Office.
Partner: UNT Libraries Government Documents Department
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Registered Apprenticeship Programs: Labor Can Better Use Data to Target Oversight

Description: A letter report issued by the Government Accountability Office with an abstract that begins "Between 2002 and 2012 nearly 850,000 jobs will open in the construction industry; experts predict that there will not be enough skilled workers to fill them. This has heightened concerns about program outcomes and program quality in the nation's apprenticeship system and the U.S. Department of Labor's oversight of it. GAO assessed (1) the extent to which Labor monitors registered apprenticeship programs… more
Date: August 29, 2005
Creator: United States. Government Accountability Office.
Partner: UNT Libraries Government Documents Department
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Depot Maintenance: DOD Needs Plan to Ensure Compliance with Public- and Private-Sector Funding Allocation

Description: A letter report issued by the Government Accountability Office with an abstract that begins "Under 10 U.S.C. 2466, the military departments and defense agencies can use no more than 50 percent of annual depot maintenance funding for work performed by private-sector contractors. DOD also must submit two reports to the Congress annually on the division of depot maintenance funding between the public and private sectors--one about the percentage of funds spent in the previous 2 fiscal years (prior… more
Date: September 29, 2004
Creator: United States. Government Accountability Office.
Partner: UNT Libraries Government Documents Department
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Transportation Security: DHS Should Address Key Challenges before Implementing the Transportation Worker Identification Credential Program

Description: A letter report issued by the Government Accountability Office with an abstract that begins "The Transportation Security Administration (TSA) is developing the Transportation Worker Identification Credential (TWIC) to ensure that only workers that do not pose a terrorist threat are allowed to enter secure areas of transportation facilities. TSA completed TWIC program testing in June 2005 and is moving forward with implementing the program in the maritime sector by the end of this year. To evalu… more
Date: September 29, 2006
Creator: United States. Government Accountability Office.
Partner: UNT Libraries Government Documents Department
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Financial Audit: American Battle Monuments Commission's Financial Statements for Fiscal Years 2007 and 2006

Description: A letter report issued by the Government Accountability Office with an abstract that begins "In accordance with 36 U.S.C. 2103, GAO is responsible for conducting audits of the agencywide financial statements of the American Battle Monuments Commission (the Commission). GAO audited the financial statements of the Commission for the fiscal years ended September 30, 2007, and 2006. The audits were done to determine whether, in all material respects, (1) the Commission's financial statements were p… more
Date: February 29, 2008
Creator: United States. Government Accountability Office.
Partner: UNT Libraries Government Documents Department
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Defense Contracting: Improved Insight and Controls Needed over DOD's Time-and-Materials Contracts

Description: A letter report issued by the Government Accountability Office with an abstract that begins "Under time-and-materials contracts, payments to contractors are made based on the number of labor hours billed at hourly rates and, if applicable, other direct costs. Because of the risk they pose to the government, their use is supposed to be limited to cases where no other contract type is suitable. GAO was asked to identify trends in the Department of Defense's (DOD) obligations under time-and-materi… more
Date: June 29, 2007
Creator: United States. Government Accountability Office.
Partner: UNT Libraries Government Documents Department
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Debt Collection Improvement Act of 1996: Major Data Sources Inadequate for Implementing the Debtor Bar Provision

Description: A letter report issued by the General Accounting Office with an abstract that begins "The Debt Collection Improvement Act of 1996 seeks to maximize collections of delinquent nontax debt owed to the federal government. However, the act also seeks to reduce losses by requiring proper screening of potential borrowers and information sharing within and among federal agencies. The major information sources of data on delinquent federal debtors are credit bureau reports, the Department of Housing and… more
Date: March 29, 2002
Creator: United States. General Accounting Office.
Partner: UNT Libraries Government Documents Department
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Gun Control: Implementation of the National Instant Criminal Background Check System

Description: A letter report issued by the General Accounting Office with an abstract that begins "Pursuant to a congressional request, GAO provided information on a wide variety of topics related to the permanent provisions (phase II) of the Brady Handgun Violence Prevention Act, focusing on: (1) statistics on background checks, denials, and appeals; (2) enforcement actions; (3) the National Instant Criminal Background Check System's (NICS) operations; and (4) pawnshop issues."
Date: February 29, 2000
Creator: United States. General Accounting Office.
Partner: UNT Libraries Government Documents Department
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