Reports & Testimonies
GAO’s reports and testimonies give Congress, federal agencies, and the public timely, fact-based, non-partisan information that can improve government operations and save taxpayers billions of dollars.
Most Recent Reports
101 - 120 of 58088 Reports
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Special Operations Forces: Documented Policies and Workforce Planning Needed to Strengthen Civilian Oversight
The Office of the Assistant Secretary of Defense for Special Operations and Low-Intensity Conflict provides civilian oversight of U.S. special operations forces. However, we found that the office doesn't have enough staff to effectively oversee these forces. It had 56 staff members as of September 2023. The office had finalized a staffing plan to reach 69 employees by early 2024, but it has said that...
Science & Tech Spotlight: Wearable Technologies in the Workplace
In 2022, workers in warehousing, manufacturing, and construction experienced over 700,000 nonfatal injuries and over 2,000 fatal accidents. This Spotlight discusses how companies are deploying technologies worn on the body to try to improve safety and productivity. These wearable technologies vary in size and function. Technologies such as exoskeletons—which can provide physical support to the user's body during repetitive overhead work—are already in use in...
Child Care: Selected States Are Taking Steps to Sustain Program Changes Implemented with COVID-19 Funding
The Child Care and Development Fund provides grants to states to subsidize child care for low-income families. Congress gave this program an extra $52 billion in FYs 2020 and 2021 to help with the COVID-19 pandemic . We talked to state officials that help administer this program in 5 states: Michigan, Nevada, New Mexico, New York, and Tennessee. They told us that they used this...
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International Military Students: DOD and State Should Assess Vetting Implementation and Strengthen Information Sharing
The Department of Defense offers education and training to foreign military personnel—known as international military students—at U.S. DOD sites. After a student killed 3 people at a base in Florida in 2019, DOD implemented security procedures for vetting these students. Some stakeholders in the vetting process have found opportunities for improvement. For example, manual processes and unclear roles may delay information sharing among involved agencies...
VA Health Care: Organization of the Office of Mental Health and Suicide Prevention
In this Q&A report, we review how the Department of Veterans Affairs has organized its suicide prevention program. In 2017, VA combined its suicide prevention and mental health programs into one office. Officials said that this facilitated internal coordination, but that suicide prevention staff had less autonomy to make decisions. VA decided to move the suicide prevention program back into a separate office in 2023—in...
DOD Reviews and Responses to GAO Reports: Second Semiannual Report Examining Delays
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 second in a series of 4, details the timeliness of DOD's...
Biomedical Research: Actions Needed to Adopt Collaboration Practices to Address Research Duplication
The federal government has long invested in biomedical research through different Department of Health and Human Services agencies. This report, the first in a series, looks at potential duplication of research efforts across four such agencies. The agencies have practices in place to avoid unnecessary research duplication. For example, agency staff regularly meet to share priorities and identify duplicative work. In addition, the newest health...
Weapon System Sustainment: DOD Identified Operating and Support Cost Growth but Needs to Improve the Consistency and Completeness of Information to Congress
DOD spends billions of dollars a year to operate and maintain its weapon systems. These "sustainment" costs—such as for repair parts or personnel—account for about 70% of a weapon system's total cost. DOD reports to Congress on these costs annually. We looked at DOD's FY 2022 sustainment reviews, and found that 7 out of 16 weapon systems had sustainment cost growth above the thresholds identified...
Nuclear Weapons: Information on the National Nuclear Security Administration's Research Plan for Plutonium and Pit Aging
A plutonium pit is the central core of a nuclear weapon—the part that triggers the explosion. All the weapons in the nation's nuclear stockpile contain them. But most of the plutonium pits in the stockpile are at least 30 years old. Radioactive decay can affect the performance of these pits as they age. The National Nuclear Security Administration is responsible for the stockpile's performance, safety...
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Countering Violent Extremism: FBI and DHS Need Strategies and Goals for Sharing Threat Information with Social Media and Gaming Companies
Domestic terrorists pose a significant threat to the U.S., according to the FBI and the Department of Homeland Security. Domestic terrorists often use online platforms—such as social media and gaming—to communicate radical ideas to a wide audience and mobilize likeminded people. The FBI and DHS have some tools for sharing information with and receiving information from social media and gaming companies on threats related to...
Trusted Traveler Programs: DHS Has Enrollment Processes, but CBP Should Provide Additional Information on Reconsiderations
Millions of travelers have enrolled in DHS trusted traveler programs—including Customs and Border Protection's Global Entry—which allow preapproved low-risk travelers to be quickly processed at airports or other ports of entry. There are clear processes for enrolling in these programs and for reconsideration if membership is denied or revoked. But if CBP denies or revokes membership, it doesn't tell travelers how to seek more information...
Evictions: National Data Are Limited and Challenging to Collect
Estimates suggest that millions of renters are evicted each year, but there's little comprehensive data on evictions. Estimates are primarily based on 2 sources: court records and surveys. But these sources collect different data and may not paint the whole picture. Court records only represent filed evictions—not informal ones. Question design, response rate, and more affect survey accuracy. Federal and local stakeholders suggested that eviction...
Justice40: Use of Leading Practices Would Strengthen Efforts to Guide Environmental Justice Initiative
Some U.S. communities face heavy socioeconomic and environmental burdens like high rates of poverty, disease, and pollution. The Justice40 Initiative goal is for 40% of benefits from certain federal grants and programs to flow to disadvantaged communities. The Executive Office of the President collaborated with federal agencies, nonfederal entities, and federally recognized Tribes to develop Justice40 guidance and tools, such as a tool to identify...
Autism Research and Support Services: Federal Interagency Coordination and Monitoring Efforts Could Be Further Strengthened
We also published an " Easy Read " version of this report. Easy Read is a way of making written information easier to understand. We published the Easy Read version to make our report more accessible to certain people with autism and other intellectual and developmental disabilities. To promote the health and well-being of people with autism, the National Institutes of Health helps coordinate the...
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Aviation Security: Transportation Security Administration Could Further Improve Officer Engagement
TSA's nearly 50,000 officers play an important role in keeping potentially dangerous items off airplanes. But TSA officers' engagement—their sense of purpose on the job—has historically ranked among the lowest across the federal government. Employees who feel engaged tend to be more innovative, productive, and committed in their jobs. TSA has taken steps to address key drivers of officer dissatisfaction, such as by setting up...
DOD Fraud Risk Management: Enhanced Data Analytics Can Help Manage Fraud Risks
The cost and scope of DOD's contracting activity—e.g., contracts on major weapon systems, support for military bases, IT and consulting services—makes it inherently susceptible to fraud. To fight fraud, DOD has a Fraud Reduction Task Force and an antifraud strategy document. DOD's updated 2023 strategy didn't include data analytics as a method for managing fraud risk, contrary to leading practices. Data analytics includes techniques such...
Head Start: Opportunities Exist to Better Align Resources with Child Poverty
Head Start programs served nearly 790,000 young children in 2021-2022, but the number of low-income children eligible for services far exceeds that number. We found that Head Start availability varies widely by state and county and doesn't closely align with child poverty. Almost all Head Start funding is allocated according to a congressionally mandated formula that doesn't account for changes in state population or poverty...
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Sexual Harassment: Actions Needed to Improve Prevention Training for Federal Civilian Employees
Sexual harassment remains an issue in federal agencies. In a 2021 survey of federal employees, 12% reported that they had experienced sexual harassment in the prior 2 years. All the agencies we reviewed require their federal employees to complete some sexual harassment prevention training. However, they could take steps to make their training more effective—such as clearly describing how to report misconduct in their training...
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Ridesharing and Taxi Safety: Information on Assaults against Drivers and Passengers
Many people rely on ridesharing and taxi services, but there's growing concern about assaults on drivers and passengers. While there are no federal requirements to collect data on assaults in rideshare and taxi vehicles, we found: 6 federal databases have some data on assaults on drivers—one database reported 19 fatal assaults in 2019 3 ridesharing companies publicly report on fatal physical assaults and the most...
Small Business Administration: Targeted Outreach about Disaster Assistance Could Benefit Rural Communities
This Q&A report explores the Small Business Administration's Disaster Loan Program, which helps businesses, homeowners, renters, and nonprofits in urban and rural communities recover after a disaster. But some rural communities may not know about the assistance or how to get it due to specific challenges in those areas, such as intermittent cellular or internet service. SBA has new outreach efforts—such as portable centers that...