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
61 - 80 of 58103 Reports
Released on
Army Modernization: Production Challenges for Stryker Upgrade Reinforce Need to Follow Acquisition Leading Practices in Future Efforts [Reissued with revisions on Apr. 3, 2024]
The Army's Stryker combat vehicle is an 8-wheeled armored vehicle that transports infantry into combat. To respond to increased competition from Russia, the Army tried to rapidly upgrade its existing Strykers to have increased firepower. But in doing so, the Army didn't fully analyze and address potential production risks. As a result, it had hardware and software issues with the upgraded Strykers. Our leading practices...
Gas Pipeline Safety: Better Data and Planning Would Improve Implementation of Regulatory Changes
About 300,000 miles of gas transmission pipelines cross the nation. Pipelines and related equipment failure can cause incidents of harm to people or property. The Pipeline and Hazardous Materials Safety Administration recently issued rules to strengthen gas transmission safety regulations. Among other things, these rules require pipeline operators to assess more miles of pipeline than before and keep better records. Our Q&A report found that...
Released on
Nuclear Power Plants: NRC Should Take Actions to Fully Consider the Potential Effects of Climate Change
Climate change is likely to exacerbate natural hazards—such as floods and drought. The risks to nuclear power plants from such hazards include damage to systems and equipment that ensure safe operation. The Nuclear Regulatory Commission's oversight process includes addressing safety risks at these plants. However, NRC doesn't fully consider potential increases in risk from climate change. For example, NRC mostly uses historical data to identify...
Released on
2020 Census: The Bureau Adapted Approaches for Addressing Unexpected Results and Developing Annual Population Estimates
The 2020 Census was conducted during the COVID-19 pandemic, so the Census Bureau had to revise some of its data collection activities. This may have led to some unexpected census results. State, local, and tribal governments can challenge some of those results. For example, the Bureau received 74 cases challenging population counts of group quarters—e.g., university housing. The Bureau also received 123 cases challenging housing...
2023 Lobbying Disclosure: Observations on Compliance with Requirements
To make government lobbying more transparent, paid lobbyists and firms must: Register with Congress File reports on who lobbied and what they did each quarter File semiannual reports on political contributions We assess compliance with these requirements in a sample of reports. As in past years, most lobbyists filed but some omitted information. For example, 23% of quarterly reports listed lobbyists who didn't disclose their...
Released on
Small Business Research Programs: Increased Performance Standards Likely Affect Few Businesses Receiving Multiple Awards
Small businesses are important drivers of economic growth, but they can face challenges accessing capital to fund research and development. To help, federal agencies award funding to small businesses. These awards are competitive, yet some businesses have received multiple awards. This has raised concerns about crowding out new businesses. In 2022, Congress increased standards for small businesses that receive the highest numbers of awards—like requiring...
Released on
Patient-Centered Outcomes Research Institute: Review of the Audit of the FY 2023 Financial Statements
The Patient-Centered Outcomes Research Institute is a federally funded, nonprofit corporation that was established to fund and evaluate research aimed at helping patients, doctors, and policymakers make better health care decisions. PCORI is required to have its financial statements audited annually, and we're required to review those audits. PCORI's auditor issued an unmodified (clean) opinion on its fiscal year 2023 financial statements, concluding that these...
Army Corps of Engineers: Actions Needed to Better Align Management of Real Estate Administrative Fees with Key Practices
The Army Corps of Engineers manages the real estate at its infrastructure projects nationwide that businesses, state governments, and others can work with the Corps to use. For example, a business can lease land on a lake to run a marina. Users pay fees to the Corps to cover the costs of reviewing applications and overseeing uses. We testified about concerns with the fees' consistency...
International Mail: Effects of Rate Increases and Other Factors on USPS and Domestic Stakeholders
The United States Postal Service delivers mail to and from countries around the world. In 2017, we reported that USPS lost money delivering international mail to U.S. customers. USPS has been able to cover its costs by increasing certain international mailing rates. But USPS has handled significantly less international mail since 2017. Stakeholders said that higher mailing rates, COVID-19 restrictions, and new customs laws contributed...
Veterans Community Care Program: Additional Information on VA Statutory Appointment Timeliness Measurements is Needed
VA's community care program refers eligible veterans to a health care provider in their community if they can't access care at a VA facility. VA has had challenges scheduling community care appointments in a timely way. So, Congress required VA to measure elapsed time between and across points in the care process, specifically when: Care is requested A referral is sent to a community care...
Ukraine: Status of Foreign Assistance
In response to the 2022 Russian invasion of Ukraine, four U.S. agencies have allocated $44.1 billion from supplemental funding and other funds to address the economic and humanitarian needs of people affected by the crisis. This Q&A report examines the status of these funds and State's role in coordinating it. State doesn't have a systematic, comprehensive approach to specifically track this funding. For example, State...
Driver Assistance Technologies: NHTSA Should Take Action to Enhance Consumer Understanding of Capabilities and Limitations
Driver assistance technologies are increasingly included in new vehicles. But drivers who don't understand these technologies may increase their risk of accidents by turning off safety features or over-relying on convenience features. The New Car Assessment Program is one way the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration educates drivers on vehicle technology. NHTSA's proposed updates to the program could help people better understand these technologies, but...
Released on
Maternal and Infant Health: HHS Should Strengthen Processes for Measuring Program Performance
The U.S. has the highest rates of maternal and infant death of developed countries. The Healthy Start program tries to address this with 3 goals: Reduce infant death rates Improve maternal health Reduce racial and ethnic disparities in health outcomes The Department of Health and Human Services collects data to measure the program's progress on reducing infant deaths and improving maternal health. HHS said it...
Veterans Health Care: Improvements Needed in Patient Tracking for Non-Biological Implantable Medical Devices
What happens when there's a recall of a pacemaker, hip implant, or other implantable medical device—after it's already in a patient? If the patient is a veteran, the Veterans Health Administration needs to ensure that health care providers can contact them for follow-up care. But VHA's policies don't ensure that all such devices are effectively trackable. For example, if VHA needed to identify all patients...
Bureau of Indian Education: Improved Oversight of Schools' COVID-19 Spending is Needed
The Bureau of Indian Education and its schools used $1.5 billion in federal COVID-19 relief funds to Give students laptops and resources for distance learning Buy COVID tests and supplies The bureau monitors schools' COVID spending in several ways, such as reviewing financial reports and collecting financial information from school visits. The bureau's policy calls for additional oversight of schools at high risk for financial...
Released on
Space Acquisitions: Analysis of Two DOD Reports to Congress
The Department of Defense plans to spend billions on space technology, such as satellites, that could help the U.S. Space Force contribute to national security and more. But in its space acquisitions, DOD has historically struggled with ballooning costs, schedule overruns, and fragmented leadership. This Q&A report discusses two reports that DOD and the Air Force, which oversees the Space Force, released in 2020 and...
Military Readiness: Comprehensive Approach Needed to Address Service Member Fatigue and Manage Related Efforts
When service members don't get enough sleep, it can affect their performance. Fatigue has led to fatal accidents and hundreds of millions of dollars in damage to ships, vehicles, and aircraft. For over a decade, Department of Defense surveys have found that the majority of service members report sleeping less than 6 hours a night—despite DOD recommending 7 or more. DOD has developed guidance on...
Improper Payments: Information on Agencies' Fiscal Year 2023 Estimates
Improper payments—those that should not have been made or were made in the incorrect amount—have consistently been a government-wide issue. Since fiscal year 2003, federal agencies reported about $2.7 trillion in total improper payments. In FY 2023 alone, federal agencies made $236 billion in improper payments, a decrease of about $11 billion from the prior fiscal year. This Q&A report shows that this estimate doesn't...
Released on
Science & Tech Spotlight: At-Home Tools to Diagnose Alzheimer's, Parkinson's, and Related Diseases
Neurodegenerative diseases affect about 7 million people in the U.S., with cases expected to increase. This Spotlight covers cognitive assessment apps and wearable sensors designed for home use. They can collect data on patients' cognitive and motor abilities and help detect symptoms of Alzheimer's and other neurodegenerative diseases. Doctors can use data from these tools to diagnose diseases earlier and more accurately, and these tools...
Clinical Research: FDA Should Evaluate Its Efforts to Recruit and Retain Its Inspection Workforce
The FDA oversees clinical trials and other research involving human subjects, mostly for drugs trying to get FDA approval. This includes conducting inspections in hospitals and other healthcare settings in the U.S. and abroad. Recruiting and retaining investigators for these inspections has been a challenge—partly due to low compensation and heavy travel. This has resulted in fewer inspections and a less experienced workforce. FDA has...