Reports & Testimonies

The U.S. and its allies face terrorism and other security threats. The U.S. government helps partner nations address such threats through security cooperation programs. One such program requires DOD and the State Department to jointly plan and develop "train and equip" projects—for example, training crisis response teams or providing military trucks for troop transport. But DOD hasn't worked with State to specify how and when...

Lakes and rivers in Alaska often serve as key transportation corridors. Many of these waterways and the lands below them—including their beds, banks, and natural resources—are managed by the federal government. But under federal law, a state owns submerged lands beneath waters that were navigable as of the date of statehood—1959 for Alaska. This Q&A describes the processes for resolving ownership of submerged lands and...

Reserve Officers' Training Corps (ROTC) programs are DOD's largest source of military officers. As such, ROTC programs can help cultivate diversity in the military. The population of military officers from ROTC programs became more diverse by race, ethnicity, and gender from academic years 2011-2021. For example, the percentage of officers who were White men decreased by 9.4%, while the populations of Blacks or African Americans...

The National Telecommunications and Information Administration has a new program offering grants for projects that increase tribal access to broadband internet. Some applicants received full project funding in the first round of funding, while others received "equitable distribution grants"—grants up to $500,000 instead of the amount they requested. But NTIA didn't provide constructive feedback to the equitable distribution grant recipients. Feedback could help them improve...

The Department of Homeland Security spends billions of dollars each year on major purchases like new Coast Guard ships and systems for screening travelers. For these programs to succeed, DHS must manage acquisition risks—potential negative effects on program cost, schedule, or performance. We found that DHS's acquisition risk management guidance generally follows best practices developed by GAO and others, but that there's room for improvement...

The Department of Labor's Job Corps is the nation's largest residential, educational, career and technical training program for low-income youth. Illegal drugs are not allowed at Job Corps' centers, and students must be tested for drug use when they arrive. Students testing positive must receive drug intervention services—to help them understand their substance use and how to abstain from it—and be retested. Students who test...

The Nuclear Regulatory Commission licenses nuclear reactors. In the coming years, the agency expects an increase in licensing applications for advanced nuclear reactors that may provide benefits like faster and cheaper electricity production. NRC has begun updating its regulations and processes to include these reactors—but has had difficulty hiring and retaining the staff needed to license them. Although NRC has offered recruitment and retention incentives...

In 2016, Congress directed the Defense Health Agency to run military medical facilities. As part of the multiyear transition of these facilities to DHA oversight, the agency set up 22 offices to manage facilities that it grouped into 36 U.S. "markets" and 2 overseas regions. But staffing the offices has been hard. DHA estimated it needs over 1,400 personnel to do so—which exceeds expected resources...

Many children affected by trauma receive services through more than one system, such as child welfare and health care. Communities need to develop and coordinate programs, policies, and practices to ensure that children receive services that address trauma-related needs and actively avoid re-traumatizing them. To help communities, one initiative lets multiple federal agencies combine their funding to create partnership programs for grant recipients serving children...

Agencies rely on IT systems to screen job applicants and manage employee data from background checks and other vetting activities. This helps to minimize the risks of having untrustworthy people in sensitive federal positions. In 2015, a cybersecurity incident compromised this data in federal systems. The Department of Defense has since taken over responsibility for most federal personnel vetting and is developing a new IT...

The National Transportation Safety Board investigates and reports on the probable causes of transportation accidents and issues recommendations to improve safety. NTSB reports having about the same number of employees as it had 20 years ago. But the transportation sector has experienced tremendous growth and technological advancement in that time. While NTSB has taken steps to improve its management and operations, it needs to do...

Congress gave almost $40 billion in block grants to help homeowners with, among other things, repairing or rebuilding homes damaged by natural disasters from 2017 to 2019. The Department of Housing and Urban Development administers the grants. But these grants are vulnerable to fraud. For example, some households approved for funds didn't report assistance from FEMA that could impact their award. Also, HUD monitors individual...

The National Nuclear Security Administration plans to invest over $30 billion in its major projects to modernize the research and production infrastructure supporting the nation's nuclear weapons stockpile. This is our first biennial assessment of NNSA's major projects. As of March 2023, NNSA's major projects collectively exceeded their cost estimates by over $2 billion. They also surpassed their collective schedules by almost 10 years. Cost...

We examined the Department of Health and Human Services' funding options to help address immediate needs of a public health emergency or threat. HHS has used a fund designated for infectious disease emergencies and threats like COVID-19 and Ebola. The fund can't be used for other types of health threats that arise, for example, from floods. HHS has another fund for any kind of public...

We audit the U.S. government's consolidated financial statements annually. Ongoing problems prevent us from determining whether the statements fairly present the government's finances. Treasury has made significant progress in addressing some of the issues we've found in the preparation processes—including the review of selected treaties and other international agreements. But additional actions are needed to address our prior recommendations. Our 5 new recommendations address remaining...

Before we issue reports, we send them to the agencies we've audited for review and comment. For reports containing sensitive or classified information, we also ask the agency to let us know what can or cannot be released publicly. Delays in these reviews can delay the issuance of our reports. This Q&A report, the first in a series of 4, details the timeliness of DOD's...

Telework—also known as remote work or “work from home”—became an important part of the national response to the COVID-19 pandemic. We looked at changes in telework and its effects on worker productivity and business performance. In the U.S., the percentage of workers who teleworked for most of the week increased from 5.7% in 2019 to 17.9% in 2021, but most workers continued in-person work. Telework...

Each year, we make more than 1,000 recommendations to help the federal government save money, address issues on our High Risk List and significantly improve government operations. This letter to the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation outlines 2 open recommendations that it should prioritize. For example, FDIC should work with other federal banking regulators to communicate appropriate uses of alternative data sources—such as rent or utility...

Each year, we make more than 1,000 recommendations to help the federal government save money, address issues on our High Risk List , and significantly improve government operations. This letter to the Federal Reserve outlines 4 open recommendations to prioritize. For example, the Federal Reserve should work with other federal banking regulators to communicate appropriate uses of alternative data sources—such as rent or utility payments—in...

Each year, we make more than 1,000 recommendations to help the federal government save money, address issues on our High Risk List , and significantly improve government operations. This letter to the Securities and Exchange Commission outlines one open recommendation that it should prioritize. For example, recent bankruptcies and fraud involving blockchain -related products and services—e.g., cryptocurrencies—raised concerns about consumer risk. SEC and the other...