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Category Archives: Government Operations
Our Guide to Tech Readiness
The development of cutting-edge technologies is critical to many of the government’s most costly acquisition projects, including new weapons, satellites, nuclear facilities, and homeland security systems. The federal government spends billions of dollars acquiring these technologies. However, these technologies can … Continue reading
Posted in Government Operations, Information Technology, Science and Technology
Tagged acquisition planning, Acquisition procedures, Acquisition strategy, best practices, critical technologies, Federal acquisitions, homeland security, IT acquisitions, Nuclear facilities, satellites, Science Technology Assessment and Analytics, software, STAA, technology assessment, weapon systems
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Federal Information Security: There’s Work to Do
Just about every federal government operation—from processing taxes and protecting national parks to coordinating military operations and delivering foreign aid—relies in some way on computers. Protecting government computer systems and the information stored in them is vital, and a 2014 … Continue reading
Posted in Government Operations, Information Security
Tagged cybersecurity, Department of Agriculture, Department of Commerce, Department of Education, Department of Homeland Security, Department of Housing and Urban Development, Department of Justice, Department of Labor, Department of State, Department of the Treasury, Environmental Protection Agency, Federal Communications Commission, Federal Retirement Thrift Investment Board, Greg Wilshusen, High Risk List, High-risk issues, information security, Information security management, Information security regulations, information systems, information technology, Information technology and cybersecurity, Merit Systems Protection Board, National Aeronautics and Space Administration, National Institute of Standards and Technology, Office of Management and Budget, Presidio Trust, Small Business Administration, Social Security Administration
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GAO’s 2019 Performance and Accountability Report — A Record Year in Financial Benefits
Every year, we report on how we’ve supported Congress and improved the performance and accountability of the federal government. This year, we are happy to report that we saved the government a record $214.7 billion—that’s $338 dollars for every dollar … Continue reading
The DATA Act: Checking in on Spending Transparency
Federal agencies spend over $4 trillion a year. But how that money is spent isn’t always easy to track. That’s one reason why Congress passed the DATA Act—requiring agencies not only to publicly report spending data on USAspending.gov, but also … Continue reading
Posted in Auditing and Financial Management, Budget and Spending, Government Operations
Tagged Budget data, Data elements, Data integrity, data quality, Defense procurement, Federal funding accountability, Federal procurement, federal spending, Federal spending transparency, Financial accountability, Financial Management and Assurance, FMA, Medicare spending, Michelle Sager, Office of Management and Budget, Paula Rascona, SI, strategic issues
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Digging Deep on the 2020 Census with GAO’s New Podcast Series
Today we’re introducing a new breed of GAO podcast — Watchdog Report: Deep Dig. While our traditional podcast tends to zero in on the bottom line of one of our new reports, Deep Dig will explore broader issues we examine, … Continue reading
Disclosing Wrongdoing: How to Improve Protections for Federal Whistleblowers
Whistleblowers help protect the government from waste, fraud, and abuse by reporting potential wrongdoing. Because there’s a risk of reprisal, such as being fired or reassigned, it’s important to safeguard whistleblowers’ identities and the information they provide. For National Whistleblower … Continue reading
Posted in Fraud, Government Operations
Tagged Brenda Farrell, CNSA, Congress, contractors, DCM, Department of Defense, Department of Veterans Affairs, DOD, DODIG, FAIS, federal whistleblowers, fraud waste abuse, inspectors general, Internal Revenue Service, IRS, James R. McTigue Jr., Kathy Larin, Michelle Sager, misconduct, NASA, reprisal, Shelby Oakley, SI, VA, veterans, whistleblower, whistleblower protection, whistleblower retaliation
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Following the Paper Trail of Federal Retirement Processing
The Office of Personnel Management receives over 100,000 federal retirement applications each year. But the time it takes to process these applications can often be delayed. In fact, between 2014 and 2017, OPM didn’t meet its goal of processing most … Continue reading
Posted in Government Operations, Human Capital
Tagged agency guidance, federal employees, federal retirement, HR, human resources, IT modernization, Office of Personnel Management, OPM, paper-based systems, payroll, retirement, retirement application process, retirement eligibility, SI, staffing, Yvonne Jones
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Federal Government Contracting for Fiscal Year 2018 (infographic)
With tax season over, now is a good time to look at how the government uses your tax dollars. About 40% of the government’s discretionary spending goes to contracts for goods and services covering everything from health care to hand … Continue reading
Posted in Budget and Spending, Government Operations, Homeland Security, Infographic, National Defense, Science and Technology
Tagged Bill Woods, budget, CNSA, competitive bids, contracting, defense spending, Department of Defense, Department of Homeland Security, DHS, DOD, federal spending, government contracting, high risk list, NASA, small business
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GAO’s Guide to Saving the Government Billions of Dollars: Reducing Fragmentation, Overlap, and Duplication in Federal Programs
Today we released our 9th annual report on fragmentation, overlap, and duplication in the federal government, adding 98 new actions that Congress or federal agencies can take to improve government programs. For example: The Department of Energy could avoid spending … Continue reading
Posted in Budget and Spending, Duplication and Cost Savings, Government Operations, Podcast
Tagged Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services, cost savings, Department of Defense, Department of Energy, Department of Homeland Security, duplication, fragmentation, Jessica Lucas-Judy, overlap, quantum computing, SI, synthetic biology
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The Future of the Federal Workforce
For Public Service Recognition Week, we’re celebrating the valuable contributions federal employees—including our GAO colleagues—provide to our country every day. This week is also a good time to think about how the government can manage its workforce in the future. … Continue reading