2014 Annual Report: Additional Opportunities to Reduce Fragmentation, Overlap, and Duplication and Achieve Other Financial Benefits
GAO-14-343SP
Published: Apr 08, 2014. Publicly Released: Apr 08, 2014.
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Highlights
Improving Efficiency and Effectiveness
GAO's 2014 Annual Report identified 11 new areas of fragmentation, overlap, and duplication in federal programs and activities. GAO also identified 15 new opportunities for cost savings and revenue enhancement. Related work and GAO's Action Tracker—a tool that tracks progress on GAO's specific suggestions for improvement—are available here.
What GAO Found
In its 2014 report, GAO presents 64 actions that the executive branch or Congress could take to improve efficiency and effectiveness across 26 areas that span a broad range of government missions and functions.
- GAO suggests 19 actions to address evidence of fragmentation, overlap, or duplication in 11 new areas across the government missions of defense, health, income security, information technology, and international affairs.
- GAO also presents 45 opportunities for executive branch agencies or Congress to take actions to reduce the cost of government operations or enhance revenue collections for the Treasury across 15 areas of government.
Defining Fragmentation, Overlap, and Duplication
Recommendations
Matter for Congressional Consideration
| Matter | Status | Comments |
|---|---|---|
| Congress should consider passing legislation to require the Social Security Administration (SSA) to offset Disability Insurance (DI) benefits for any Unemployment Insurance (UI) benefits received in the same period. | In April 2014, the Government Accountability Office (GAO) recommended that Congress consider implementing legislation that would mandate the Social Security Administration (SSA) to offset Disability Insurance (DI) benefits by any Unemployment Insurance (UI) benefits received during the same period. The Social Security Disability Insurance and Unemployment Benefits Double Dip Elimination Act was first introduced during the 114th Congress in 2015 as bills S.2005 and H.R.918, but the bills were not enacted then. These bills would have implemented the GAO recommendation at that time. During the 117th Congress, the Double Dip Elimination Act was introduced and referred to the House Committee on Ways and Means, but was not enacted during that congressional session. The bill, identified as H.R. 3971, was proposed in 2021. Two bills in the current 118th Congress have been introduced that could address this matter: Section 4 of H.R. 6427 and section 4 of S. 3316 both prohibit payment of Social Security disability benefits based on receipt of unemployment compensation. H.R. 6427 was referred to the House Committee on Ways and Means and S. 3316 was referred to the Senate Committee on Finance, but no further action was taken. According to the Office of Management and Budget, implementing such legislation could save $2.18 billion over ten years for the Social Security Disability Insurance program. | |
| Unless the Department of Energy (DOE) can demonstrate a demand for new Advanced Technology Vehicles Manufacturing (ATVM) loans and viable applications, Congress may wish to consider rescinding all or part of the remaining $4.3 billion in credit subsidy appropriations. | In December 2020, Congress passed and the President signed legislation rescinding part of the ATVM program's remaining credit subsidy appropriations, as GAO had suggested in April 2014. Specifically, the Consolidated Appropriations Act, 2021 rescinded about $1.9 billion of the ATVM program's remaining $4.3 billion in credit subsidy appropriations (Pub. L. No. 116-260, 134 Stat. 1182, 1367 (Dec. 27, 2020)). Congress now has the opportunity to use the funds for other priorities. |
Full Report
GAO Contacts
Orice Williams Brown
Managing Director, Office of Congressional Relations
Congressional Relations
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Topics
Defense operationsDisability benefitsExecutive agenciesFederal agenciesFiscal policiesInformation technologyInternational relationsPaymentsProductivity in governmentProgram evaluationProgram managementTaxesDuplication of effortProgram goals or objectivesSavings estimates