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Horrible Trade-Offs in a Pandemic: Lockdowns, Transfers, Fiscal Space, and Compliance
From the Abstract: "In this paper, we develop a heterogeneous agent general equilibrium framework to analyze optimal joint policies of a lockdown and transfer payments in times of a pandemic. In our model, the effectiveness of a lockdown in mitigating the pandemic depends on endogenous compliance. A more stringent lockdown deepens the recession which implies that poorer parts of society find it harder to subsist. This reduces their compliance with the lockdown, and may cause deprivation of the very poor, giving rise to an excruciating trade-off between saving lives from the pandemic and from deprivation. Lump-sum transfers help mitigate this trade-off. We identify and discuss key trade-offs involved and provide comparative statics for optimal policy. We show that, ceteris paribus, the optimal lockdown is stricter for more severe pandemics and in richer countries. We then consider a government borrowing constraint and show that limited fiscal space lowers the optimal lockdown and welfare, and increases the aggregate death burden during the pandemic. We finally discuss distributional consequences and the political economy of fighting a pandemic."
John F. Kennedy School of Government
Hausmann, Ricardo; Schetter, Ulrich
2020-07
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'Alarming Incidents of White Supremacy in the Military - How to Stop it?': Testimony of Heidi L. Beirich, Ph.D., Before the Congress of the United States, House of Representatives, Armed Services Committee, Military Personnel Subcommittee, February 11, 2020
This is the Feburary 11, 2020 testimony of Heidi L. Beirich, Ph.D., Co-Founder Global Project Against Hate and Extremism, on 'Alarming Incidents of White Supremacy in the Military - How to Stop It?,' before the Congress of the United States, House of Representatives, Armed Services Committee, Military Personnel Subcommittee. From the Document: "My testimony will focus on the threat posed by racist extremists in the military and how veterans and currently serving troops have been involved in domestic terrorism and terrorist plots inspired by white supremacy. I will suggest possible policy changes to current regulations and propose investigations into the functioning of current practices used to separate white supremacists from the military. I will also address the growing international terrorism threat posed by veterans and active duty troops holding these views." The full PDF version of the hearing is available at the following web address: [https://www.hsdl.org/?abstract&did=867006]
United States. Congress. House. Committee on Armed Services
Beirich, Heidi
2020-02-11
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Alarming Incidents of White Supremacy in the Military--How to Stop it? Testimony of Mark Pitcavage, Before the U.S. House of Representatives, Armed Services Committee, Subcommittee on Military Personnel, One Hundred and Sixteenth Congress, Second Session, February 11, 2020
This is the Feburary 11, 2020 testimony of Mark Pitcavage, on "Alarming Incidents of White Supremacy in the Military - How to Stop It?" before the U.S. House of Representatives, Armed Services Committee, Subcommittee on Military Personnel. From the testimony of Mark Pitcavage: "Extreme social, political and religious movements pose many problems for the societies in which they are active, particularly when such movements engage in criminal or violent means to achieve their goals. ADL [Anti-Defamation League] has long understood that adherents of extreme causes, such as the white supremacist movement, pose special problems when allowed to exist within key institutions dedicated to protecting the people of the United States. These institutions include first responders, law enforcement, and the military. The unchecked presence of extremists in the military has already led to serious negative consequences for the services themselves as well as for the country and could again." The full PDF version of the hearing is available at the following web address: [https://www.hsdl.org/?abstract&did=867006]
United States. Congress. House. Committee on Armed Services
Pitcavage, Mark
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Human Capital: Agencies Should More Fully Evaluate the Costs and Benefits of Executive Training, Report to the Ranking Member, Committee on the Judiciary, U.S. Senate
From the Highlights: "The federal government annually spends millions of dollars on executive training programs administered by external training providers. GAO [Government Accountability Office] was asked to review the costs and value of this training. This review (1) describes what is known about how much CHCO [Chief Human Capital Officers] Council agencies have spent on executive training offered by external providers and assesses the reliability of available cost data; (2) assesses how CHCO Council agencies evaluate the effectiveness of the training; (3) compares executive training efficiency opportunities identified by agency CHCOs to leading practices; and (4) provides views of career SES [Senior Executive Services] and SES candidates from selected agencies on the value of the training they received. GAO obtained information from CHCO Council agencies through a questionnaire, and selected three of 26 CHCO Council agencies--the Departments of Energy, Treasury, and Veterans Affairs--to provide illustrative examples. GAO based its selection, in part, on workforce size, number of career SES, and total training costs."
United States. Government Accountability Office
2014-01
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Countering Overseas Threats: DOD and State need to Address Gaps in Monitoring of Security Equipment Transferred to Lebanon
From the Highlights: "Since 2009, the United States has allocated $671 million in security-related assistance for Lebanon to train, modernize, and equip the Lebanese Armed Forces and Internal Security Forces. The U.S. government established end-use monitoring programs to ensure that defense equipment is safeguarded. The Foreign Assistance Act prohibits certain assistance to any unit of foreign security forces if the Secretary of State has credible information that such a unit has committed a gross violation of human rights. GAO [Government Accountability Office] was asked to examine U.S. security-related assistance for Lebanon. This report assesses the extent to which the U.S. government (1) disbursed or committed funds allocated for Lebanese security forces in fiscal years 2009 through 2013, (2) implemented end-use monitoring for equipment transferred to Lebanese security forces, and (3) vetted Lebanese recipients of U.S. security-related training for human rights violations. To address these objectives, GAO reviewed laws and regulations, analyzed agency data, and interviewed officials in Washington, D.C., and Beirut, Lebanon."
United States. Government Accountability Office
2014-02
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Social Security Death Data: Addition Action Needed to Address Data Errors and Federal Agency Access, Report to Congressional Requesters
From the Highlights: "As the steward of taxpayer dollars, the federal government must guard against improper payments. Federal agencies may avoid paying deceased beneficiaries by matching their payment data with death data SSA [Social Security Administration] maintains and shares. In addition, recent legislation has established additional requirements for federal agencies to use death data to prevent improper payments. However, the SSA Office of Inspector General has identified inaccuracies in SSA's death data, which could diminish its usefulness to federal agencies. GAO [Government Accountability Office] was asked to examine SSA's death data. This report explores (1) how SSA obtains death reports and steps it takes to ensure death reports are accurate; and (2) factors affecting federal agency access to SSA's death data. In addressing these objectives, GAO interviewed SSA officials and representatives of entities reporting or using the death data. GAO reviewed applicable federal laws, SSA procedures, and reports. GAO also performed independent testing of SSA's death data for certain errors. […] GAO recommends that SSA assess risks associated with inaccuracies; develop and publicize guidance it will use to determine agency access under the Act; and share detailed reimbursement estimates. SSA partially agreed with the recommendations to assess risks and share detailed reimbursement estimates, but did not agree to develop and publicize guidance, stating that each request is unique. GAO believes that the recommendation remains valid as discussed in the report."
United States. Government Accountability Office
2013-11
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Necessary Updates to the Commercial Space Launch Act, Hearing Before the Subcommittee on Space, Committee on Science, Space, and Technology, House of Representatives, One Hundred Thirteenth Congress, Second Session, February 4, 2014
This is the February 4, 2014 hearing on "Necessary Updates to the Commercial Space Launch Act" held before the Subcommittee on Space, Committee on Science, Space, and Technology, House of Representatives. From the charter: "The industry has grown over the years since the passage of the Commercial Space Launch Act of 1984 (P.L. 98-575) thirty years ago, and this law has been amended several times since then. The Commercial Space Launch Act (CSLA) provides authority to the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) to license launches and indemnify launch providers from third-party claims should an accident occur. The law also provides a framework for the FAA's regulatory authority. This hearing will examine the various changes in the industry and what, if any, accompanying changes to the Commercial Space Launch Act may be needed going forward." Statements, letters, and materials submitted for the record include those of the following: George Nield, Alicia Cackley, and Henry Hertzfeld.
United States. Government Printing Office
2014
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Troubled Asset Relief Program: Status of the Wind Down of the Capital Purchase Program, Report to Congressional Committees
From the Highlights: "CPP [Capital Purchase Program] was established as the primary means of restoring stability to the financial system under the Troubled Asset Relief Program (TARP). Under CPP, Treasury invested almost $205 billion in 707 eligible financial institutions between October 2008 and December 2009. CPP recipients have made dividend and interest payments to Treasury on the investments. TARP's authorizing legislation requires GAO [Government Accountability Office] to report every 60 days on TARP activities. This report examines (1) the status of CPP and (2) the financial condition of institutions remaining in the program. To assess the program's status, GAO reviewed Treasury reports on the status of CPP. GAO also used financial and regulatory data to compare the financial condition of institutions remaining in CPP with those that had exited the program and those that did not participate. GAO also obtained information through a questionnaire from CPP participants as of November 20, 2013, and former CPP participants that raised capital in calendar year 2013. GAO received completed questionnaires from 72 of the 104 institutions. GAO provided a draft of this report to Treasury for its review and comment. Treasury generally concurred with GAO's findings."
United States. Government Accountability Office
2014-04
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Paid Tax Return Preparers: In a Limited Study, Preparers Made Significant Errors, Statement of James R. McTigue, Jr., Director Strategic Issues, Testimony Before the Committee on Finance, U.S. Senate
From the Highlights: "For tax year 2011, an estimated 56 percent of about 145 million individual tax returns were completed by a paid preparer. IRS [Internal Revenue Service] has long recognized that preparers' actions have an enormous effect on its ability to administer tax laws effectively and collect revenue that funds the government. Likewise, many taxpayers rely on preparers to provide them with accurate, complete, and fully compliant tax returns. GAO [Government Accountability Office] was asked to review the oversight and quality of paid preparers. This testimony examines (1) how preparers are regulated by IRS and (2) the characteristics of tax returns completed by preparers based on products GAO issued from April 2006 through August 2008 and work conducted from November 2013 to April 2014. GAO reviewed laws, regulations and other guidance and interviewed IRS officials. GAO analyzed IRS Statistics of Income data from tax year 2011, the most recent data available, and the NRP [National Research Program] database, which broadly tracks compliance. To gain insight on the quality of service provided, GAO conducted 19 undercover site visits to commercial preparers in a metropolitan area. Criteria to select the metropolitan area included whether the state regulates preparers and levies an income tax. […] If Congress agrees that significant preparer errors exist, it should consider legislation granting IRS the authority to regulate paid tax preparers. Technical comments from IRS were incorporated into this report."
United States. Government Accountability Office
McTigue, James R., Jr.
2014-04-08
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USDA Litigation: Limited Data Available on USDA Attorney Fee Claims and Payments, Statement of Eileen R. Larence, Director, Homeland Security and Justice, Testimony before the Subcommittee on Conservation, Energy, and Forestry, Committee on Agriculture, House of Representatives
From the Highlights: "In the United States, parties involved in federal litigation generally pay their own attorney fees. There are many exceptions to this general rule where 'fee-shifting' statutes authorize the award of attorney fees to a successful, or prevailing, party. Some of these provisions also apply to the federal government when it loses a case. In 1980, Congress passed EAJA [Equal Access to Justice Act] to allow parties that prevail in cases against federal agencies to seek reimbursement from the federal government for attorney fees, where doing so was not previously authorized. Although all federal agencies are generally subject to, and make payments under, attorney fee provisions, some in Congress have expressed concerns about the use of taxpayer funds to make attorney fee payments with agencies' limited funding. These concerns include that environmental organizations are using taxpayer dollars to fund lawsuits against the government, including against USDA. This statement addresses the extent to which USDA had information available on attorney fee claims and payments made under EAJA and other fee-shifting statutes for fiscal years 2000 through 2010. This statement is based on GAO's [Government Accountability Office] April 2012 report on USDA and the Department of Interior attorney fee claims and payments and selected updates conducted in March 2014. To conduct the updates, among other things, GAO reviewed Forest Service budget documents for fiscal years 2014 and 2105 and interviewed Forest Service officials."
United States. Government Accountability Office
Larence, Eileen R.
2014-03-26
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Information Technology: Leveraging Best Practices and Reform Initiatives Can Help Defense Manage Major Investments, Statement of David A. Powner, Director, Information Technology Management Issues, Testimony Before the Subcommittee on Readiness and Management Support, Committee on Armed Services, U.S. Senate
From the Highlights: "The federal government reportedly plans to spend at least $82 billion on IT [information technology] in fiscal year 2014. Of that, Defense plans to spend over $39 billion--$5.5 billion on classified systems, $9 billion on acquisitions, and $25 billion on operations and maintenance. Given the scale of such planned outlays and the criticality of many of these systems to the security and defense of the nation, it is important that these Defense investments are acquired on time and within budget and that they deliver expected benefits. GAO [Government Accountability Office] has previously reported and testified that federal IT projects too frequently fail and incur cost overruns and schedule slippages while contributing little to mission-related outcomes. Further, GAO has highlighted several examples of Defense investments that have not delivered results within planned cost and schedule estimates. Numerous best practices and administration initiatives are available for agencies that can help them improve the oversight and management of IT acquisitions. GAO is testifying today on how best practices and IT reform initiatives can help Defense better manage major acquisitions and legacy investments. […] GAO has previously made numerous recommendations to OMB [Office of Management and Budget] and federal agencies, including Defense, on key aspects of IT acquisition management, as well as the oversight and management of these investments. Defense generally agreed but has not fully implemented these recommendations."
United States. Government Accountability Office
Powner, David A.
2014-02-26
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Federal Student Loans: Oversight of Defaulted Loan Rehabilitation Needs Strengthening, Statement of Melissa Emrey-Arras, Director, Education, Workforce, and Income Security, Testimony Before the Subcommittee on Higher Education and Workforce Training, Committee on Education and the Workforce, House of Representatives
From the Document: "I am pleased to be here today to discuss our work examining the Department of Education's (Education) efforts to rehabilitate defaulted federal student loans. As of September 2013 about $94 billion--over 11 percent of federal student loan volume in repayment--was in default. Loan rehabilitation allows borrowers who make nine on-time monthly payments within 10 months to have the default removed from their credit reports. Education contracts with collection agencies to assist borrowers with rehabilitation and other options for repaying defaulted student loans. The federal government has an interest in ensuring that the loan rehabilitation process works well given the potential savings from returning defaulted loans to repayment. However, when Education upgraded its defaulted loan information system in October 2011, there were reports that some loans remained in default after borrowers had made enough payments to rehabilitate the loans, raising questions about Education's ability to manage the loan rehabilitation program. You asked us to examine Education's rehabilitation of defaulted student loans. My remarks today will address the following two areas and is based on our report, which is being released at this hearing: (1) how the upgrade of Education's defaulted loan information system affected loan rehabilitation; and (2) how Education oversees collection agencies in implementing loan rehabilitation."
United States. Government Accountability Office
Emrey-Arras, Melissa
2014-03-12
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IRS's Offshore Voluntary Disclosure Program: 2009 Participation by State and Location of Foreign Bank Accounts
From the letter of Director of Tax Issues James R. White to the Honorable Carl Levin, Chairman of the Permanent Senate Subcommittee on Investigations: "This letter transmits information you requested on participants in the Internal Revenue Service's (IRS) 2009 Offshore Voluntary Disclosure Program (OVDP), which offered incentives for taxpayers to disclose their offshore accounts and pay delinquent taxes, interest and penalties. Generally, the program offered somewhat reduced penalties and no risk of criminal prosecution, if eligible taxpayers fully disclosed their previously unreported offshore accounts, and paid taxes due plus interest. Specifically, included is participation data by state and location of foreign bank accounts. This information supplements our March 2013 report. To provide this information, we used analyses from our March 2013 report that were based on six years of tax return data from all 2009 OVDP participants. For the purposes of this review, we determined the data used in our analyses to be reliable. Our data reliability assessment included reviewing relevant documentation, interviewing IRS officials knowledgeable about the data, and testing the data electronically to identify obvious errors or outliers. We conducted this performance audit from June 2011 to March 2013 in accordance with generally accepted government auditing standards. Those standards require that we plan and perform the audit to obtain sufficient, appropriate evidence to provide a reasonable basis for our findings and conclusions based on our audit objectives. We believe that the evidence obtained provides a reasonable basis for our findings and conclusions based on our audit objectives."
United States. Government Accountability Office
White, James R.
2014-01-06
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H.R. 5744, Catastrophic Wildfire Prevention Act of 2012; H.R. 5960, Depleting Risk from Insect Infestation, Soil Erosion, and Catastrophic Fire Act of 2012; and H.R. 6089, Healthy Forest Management Act of 2012, Legislative Hearing Before the Subcommittee on National Parks, Forests and Public Lands of the Committee on Natural Resources, U.S. House of Representatives, One Hundred Twelfth Congress, Second Session, July 20, 2012
This is the July 20, 2012 hearing on the above-mentioned House Resolutions held before the House Subcommittee on National Parks, Forests and Public Lands. From the opening statement of Rob Bishop: "Today we are hearing three bills that aim to bring much-needed solutions to a slow-moving train wreck that has overtaken our public lands. Decades of failed polices and hands-off management of our forests have left the majority of these lands in an unnatural, and unhealthy state. What was once a valuable asset that provided raw material for a growing and prosperous nation, clean water, recreation and numerous other benefits has deteriorated into an extreme liability to western communities and the environment. It is time for a paradigm shift in restoring our landscape so that national forests can once again meet the purposes for which they were established. For decades we've witnessed the problem and have known the solution. While some try to convolute and distract from the debate for their radical agendas, the solution is simple-- we need to remove the volume of fuels that these forests are adding to themselves at a rate of 30% each year. The Native Americans used fire, modern man used forest management; the federal government removed both and now nature is in the process of replacing them with its own scorched earth policy." Statements, letters, and materials submitted for the record include those of the following: Rob Bishop, Mike Coffman, Paul A. Gosar, Edward J. Markey, Gregorio Kilili Camacho Sablan, Scott R. Tipton, David Cook, Dan Gibbs, Tom Jankovsky, Hank Kashdan, Ed Roberson, Joseph Romm, John Doyel Shamley, and Mary Wagner.
United States. Government Printing Office
2013
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Decision-Making for Initial Company Operations: DMICO-Student Manual
From the Document: "'COURSE GOAL'[:] 'Decision-Making for Initial Company Operations' (DMICO) is designed to develop the decision-making skills needed by Company Officers (COs) to accomplish assigned tactics at structure fires. Activities and scenarios are used in this course and are based on structure fires. The students will participate in a walkthrough activity followed by one or more small group, scenario-driven activities for each area covered. 'AUDIENCE, SCOPE AND COURSE PURPOSE'[:] The DMICO course is appropriate for newly appointed COs, firefighters who may have acting CO responsibilities, and firefighters who want to become COs. Students should possess the ability to read and comprehend standard construction plot plans, have pre-existing knowledge of building construction types and National Fire Protection Association (NFPA) codes. 'GRADING METHODOLOGY'[:] Grading methodology is assessed through a Final Examination with a passing score of 80 percent."
United States. Federal Emergency Management Agency
Sexton, Richard; Spangler, Christine; Garcia, Kriss . . .
2018-09
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Alarming Incidents of White Supremacy in the Military--How to Stop it? Hearing Before the Subcommittee on Military Personnel of the Committee on Armed Services, House of Representatives, One Hundred Sixteenth Congress, Second Session, February 11, 2020
This is the February 11, 2020 hearing on "Alarming Incidents of White Supremacy in the Military--How to Stop it?," held before the U.S. House Subcommittee on Military Personnel of the Committee on Armed Services. From the Opening Statement of Jackie Speier: "The Military Personnel Subcommittee will come to order. The hearing today is to discuss a very important issue and one that hopefully we will get some important answers to. This issue could not be more urgent. Three weeks ago, a New York Times article revealed that the FBI [Federal Bureau of Investigation] had arrested seven members of an organization called The Base, a dangerous White supremacist group. They aren't your parents' neo-Nazis. The Base is an accelerationist, paganistic, anarchic group whose name speaks to the admiration for al-Qaida and ISIS [Islamic State of Iraq and Syria]. They hate Jews and African Americans, but they don't like President Trump or the United States either. Their goal is to use terrorism to start a race war and collapse the United States. Triggering societal collapse may be a sick fantasy, but the reality is that domestic terror has claimed more lives than international terror since 9/11. Last week, FBI Director Wray told the Judiciary Committee that he had, quote, ''elevated racially motivated violent extremism to a national threat priority at the same band with homegrown violent extremism and ISIS [Islamic State of Iraq and Syria],'' unquote. Our enemies, especially Russia, exploit these racial tensions to divide and weaken American society. The head of The Base lives in Russia. Russia likely supports White supremacist groups in the United States and Europe, and Russia targets our service members with disinformation. When our enemies take advantage of our vulnerabilities, our national security is threatened and dependent on a sufficient response." Statements, letters, and materials submitted for the record include those of the following: Heidi L. Beirich, Lecia J. Brooks, Joe E. Ethridge, Robert S. Grabosky, Christopher J. McMahon, Stephanie Miller, Mark Pitcavage, and Garry Reid. The 2 hour, 12 minute and 22 second video of the hearing is available at the following link: [https://www.hsdl.org/?abstract&did=852640]
United States. Government Publishing Office
2021
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Impact of Catastrophic Forest Fires and Litigation on People and Endangered Species: Time for Rational Management of Our Nation's Forests, Oversight Hearing Before the Committee on Natural Resources, House of Representatives, One Hundred Twelfth Congress, Second Session, July 24, 2012
This is the Oversight Hearing, "Impact of Catastrophic Forest Fires and Litigation on People and Endangered Species: Time for Rational Management of Our Nation's Forests" held before the Committee on Natural Resources, House of Representatives, on July 24, 2012. From the opening statement of Doc Hastings: "This hearing focuses on the devastating impacts of catastrophic wildfires on people and species, and how Endangered Species Act litigation blocks activities to help prevent or fight forest fires. Each year wildfires damage or destroy an average of 3.7 million acres across the United States, mostly on Federal forest and other public lands, including millions of acres of land that the Federal Government has mandated as critical for endangered species. […] The lack of proper Federal land management imperils neighboring State, local, Tribal, or private lands that are often better managed through thinning, timber sales, and other activities. Why won't the Federal Government more responsibly manage for us? In large part, the answer is in the Endangered Species Act, and the way it is interpreted and the way it and other laws are being abused by environmental groups through endless lawsuits to block local, State, and Federal timber fuels reduction and thinning projects." Statements, letters, and materials submitted for the record include those of the following: Doc Hastings, Edward J. Markey, Alison Berry, Bill Crasper, Rick Dice, and José Varela López.
United States. Government Printing Office
2013
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Guilty Until Proven Innocent? A Study of the Propriety and Legal Authority for the Justice Department's Operation Choke Point, Hearing Before the U.S. House Committee on the Judiciary, Subcommittee on Regulatory Reform, Commercial and Antitrust Law, One Hundred Thirteenth Congress, Second Session, July 17, 2014
This is from the July 17, 2014 hearing, "Guilty Until Proven Innocent? A Study of the Propriety & Legal Authority for the Justice Department's Operation Choke Point," before the U.S. House Committee on the Judiciary, Subcommittee on Regulatory Reform, Commercial and Antitrust Law. From Chairman Goodlatte's Opening Statement: "[T]here is no dispute that consumer fraud is a real phenomenon. Approximately 10.8 percent of American adults fell victim to it in 2011. DOJ [Department of Justice] should enforce the law vigorously on the villains who prey on our most vulnerable. There is also no dispute that Operation Choke Point is cutting off some fraudster access to the banking system. The bipartisan concern is that there is an unacceptable level of collateral damage. On this point, there appears to be a disconnect between statements from top officials and what is happening in practice. The official line is that Operation Choke Point is targeting fraudsters, not the whole industry. But the Committee has received numerous reports of banks severing relationships with law-abiding customers from legitimate industries that the Administration has designated 'High-Risk.'" Statements, letters, and material submitted for the record include those of the following: Stuart F. Delery, Adam J. Levitin, Scott Talbott, David H. Thompson, and Peter G. Weinstock.
United States. Government Printing Office
2014
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Missile Defense: Acquisition Processes Are Improving, but Further Actions Are Needed to Address Standing Issues, Statement of John D. Sawyer, Acting Director, Contracting and National Security Acquisitions, Testimony Before the Subcommittee on Strategic Forces, Committee on Armed Services, House of Representatives
From the Highlights: "Since MDA [Missile Defense Agency] was established in 2002, DOD has spent over $174 billion to develop a network of sensors, interceptors, and command and control capabilities collectively called the Missile Defense System. GAO [Government Accountability Office] has previously reported on MDA's process to acquire assets and capabilities for this system. This statement highlights key findings from GAO's work on missile defense acquisitions. Specifically, this testimony provides information on (1) changes to MDA's acquisition processes; (2) program and flight test cost estimates and reporting; and (3) MDA's implementation of GAO's prior recommendations relevant to missile defense acquisitions. This statement is primarily based on GAO reports issued since 2020 on MDA's requirements and cost estimating process. In addition, the statement draws upon GAO's body of work issued since 2010."
United States. Government Accountability Office
Sawyer, John D.
2022-05-11
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Children Living in Households That Experienced Food Insecurity: United States, 2019-2020
From the Document: "Food insecurity, which affects an estimated 15 million Americans (1), is the limited or uncertain availability of safe and nutritionally adequate foods, or the limited or uncertain ability to acquire acceptable foods in socially acceptable ways (2). Food insecurity has been consistently associated with poor health outcomes in children, including poorer overall health status, acute and chronic health problems, and limited healthcare access (3). This report describes the percentage of children aged 0-17 years living in food-insecure households during the past 30 days by selected sociodemographic and family characteristics using 2019-2020 National Health Interview Survey data."
National Center for Health Statistics (U.S.)
Ullmann, Heidi; Weeks, Julie D.; Madans, Jennifer H.
2022-02
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DHS Asset Forfeiture: Additional Actions Could Help Strengthen Controls over Equitable Sharing, Report to the Ranking Member, Committee on Homeland Security, House of Representatives
From the Highlights: "Every year, DHS components seize millions of dollars in assets during investigations and other activities and contribute forfeited proceeds to the Treasury Forfeiture Fund. Treasury manages the fund, which held about $1.7 billion in assets in fiscal year 2013. DHS components use proceeds primarily to cover forfeiture activity costs, which include sharing proceeds with state and local agencies that participate in DHS investigations through Treasury's equitable sharing program. GAO [Government Accountability Office] was asked to review the management of the fund. This report addresses (1) DHS revenues contributed to and obligations from the fund and (2) the extent to which DHS components have designed controls to help ensure compliance with Treasury's guidance when implementing the equitable sharing program. GAO analyzed financial data from fiscal years 2003 through 2013 on the forfeiture fund; Treasury's equitable sharing guidance; and a sample of 40 DHS equitable sharing packages, selected based on payment amounts and other factors; Sample results are not generalizable but provided information on DHS's compliance with guidance. GAO also interviewed DHS and Treasury officials. […] GAO recommends that Treasury ensure that the basis for DHS equitable sharing determinations is fully documented and develop additional guidance on qualitative factors used to make determinations. Treasury concurred with both recommendations and outlined steps it plans to take to address them."
United States. Government Accountability Office
2014-03
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Opioid Industry Documents [website]
From the Webpage: "The Opioid Industry Documents Archive was created by UCSF [University of California, San Francisco] and Johns Hopkins University in 2021. It preserves and provides permanent public access to previously-internal corporate documents released from opioid litigation and other sources. The documents shed light on the opioid industry during the height of the U.S. opioid crisis."
University of California, San Francisco; Johns Hopkins University
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EMR-ISAC: InfoGram, Volume 22 Issue 19, May 12, 2022
The Emergency Management and Response Information Sharing and Analysis Center's (EMR-ISAC) InfoGram is a weekly publication of information concerning the protection of critical infrastructures relevant to members of the Emergency Services Sector. This issue includes the following articles: "Civil unrest: preparedness and planning resources for fire and EMS [emergency medical services] agencies"; "New mobile app brings timely counterterrorism intelligence to first responders and homeland security professionals"; "Webinar: FirstNet on communications in healthcare settings and special events"; "CISA [Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency]: Alert (AA22-131A) - Protecting Against Cyber Threats to Managed Service Providers and their Customers"; "U.S. Government attributes cyberattacks on SATCOM [satellite communication] networks to Russian state-sponsored malicious cyber actors"; "NIST [National Institute of Standards and Technology] updates cybersecurity guidance for supply chain risk management"; "Critical vulnerability exploited to 'destroy' BIG-IP appliances"; "Ransomware tracker: the latest figures [May 2022]"; and "Tenet says 'cybersecurity incident' disrupted hospital operations."
Emergency Management and Response-Information Sharing and Analysis Center (U.S.)
2022-05-12
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Report on the Troubled Asset Relief Program--May 2022
From the Document: "In October 2008, the Emergency Economic Stabilization Act of 2008 (division A of Public Law 110-343) established the Troubled Asset Relief Program (TARP) to enable the Department of the Treasury to promote stability in financial markets through the purchase and guarantee of 'troubled assets.' Section 202 of that legislation, as amended, requires annual reports from the Office of Management and Budget (OMB) on the costs of the program. The law also requires the Congressional Budget Office to submit its own report within 45 days of the issuance of OMB's report each year. CBO's assessment must discuss three elements: [1] The costs of purchases and guarantees of troubled assets, [2] Information CBO collects and the valuation methods it uses to calculate those costs, and [3] The program's effects on the federal budget deficit and debt."
United States. Congressional Budget Office
2022-05
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Congressional Budget Office Cost Estimate: S. 312, COVID-19 Safer Detention Act of 2021
From the Document: "'The bill would'[:] [1] Allow federal prisoners sentenced before November 1, 1987, to apply for compassionate release[;] [and 2] Shorten certain elderly prisoners' sentences by applying credits for good conduct time to eligibility for early release[.] 'Estimated budgetary effects would mainly stem from'[:] [1] Reductions in discretionary spending by the federal Bureau of Prisons because some prisoners would be released earlier than under current law[;] [and 2] Increases in direct spending for health care, Social Security, and other federal benefits[.] 'Areas of significant uncertainty include'[:] [1] Projecting the number of elderly incarcerated prisoners and the number who would be eligible for release from prison[;] [2] Projecting whether prisoners would be confined in residential reentry centers or at home, and the difference in costs between those options compared with confinement in federal prisons[;] [and 3] Estimating the number of offenders released under the act who would receive federal benefits[.]"
United States. Congressional Budget Office
2022-05-12
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FEMA's Waiver Authority Under the Disaster Recovery Reform Act of 2018
From the Document: "Several challenges limited our ability to fulfill the mandate in Section 1216 of the 'Disaster Recovery Reform Act of 2018' (DRRA). For instance, the Federal Emergency Management Agency's (FEMA) data system does not capture Individuals and Households Program (IHP) assistance data in a manner that allows us to accurately calculate a percentage of distributions made in error in any 12-month period. In addition, the amount of data required to conduct the audit represents millions of rows of data, as well as underlying supporting documents. These efforts require considerable resources for FEMA to provide, and the Office of Inspector General to review, the IHP information. Facing these limitations, we adopted an alternate approach to estimate FEMA's percentage of distributions made in error. Specifically, we analyzed FEMA's IHP Recoupment Processing Executive Summary for fiscal years 2015 through 2019 and concluded that, for these fiscal years, FEMA's percentage of distributions identified for recoupment was, on average, less than 1 percent -- well below the DRRA's 4 percent threshold."
United States. Department of Homeland Security. Office of Inspector General
2022-05-10
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Congressional Budget Office Cost Estimate: S. 1858, Community Disaster Loan Act of 2005
From the Summary: "S. 1858 (enacted as Public Law 109-88) authorizes the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) to make loans to local governments using up to $750 million of the funds provided by the second emergency supplemental appropriation act to meet immediate needs arising from the consequences of Hurricane Katrina (Public Law 109-62). This act also authorizes FEMA to spend $1 million of such funds to administer the loans. CBO [Congressional Budget Office] expects that about half of the spending on the loans will replace spending on other activities from funds provided in the supplemental appropriation act; however, CBO does not expect that FEMA will spend all of the funds appropriated for hurricane relief between 2006 and 2010. Because the legislation provides a new use for those funds, CBO expects that more of the appropriated resources will be spent during that period. Therefore, CBO estimates that S. 1858 will increase direct spending by $375 million over the 2006-2010 period but have no net impact over the 2006-2015 period."
United States. Congressional Budget Office
2005-11-03
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Congressional Budget Office Cost Estimate: H.R. 1472, Integrated Public Alert and Warning System Modernization Act of 2015
From the Summary: "House of Representatives 1472 (H.R. 1472) would authorize appropriations totaling $38 million over the 2016-2018 period for the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) to modernize the Integrated Public Alert and Warning System (IPAWS). The bill also would establish a committee to develop and submit recommendations for improving the system. The CBO [Congressional Budget Office] estimates that implementing H.R. 1472 would cost $37 million over the next five years, assuming appropriation of the necessary amounts. Enacting this legislation would not affect direct spending or revenues; therefore, pay-as-you-go procedures do not apply. H.R. 1472 contains no intergovernmental or private-sector mandates as defined in the Unfunded Mandates Reform Act (UMRA) and would not affect the budgets of state, local or tribal governments."
United States. Congressional Budget Office
2015-04-27
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Historical Spending for the Federal Disaster Relief Account
This document is a register of the Federal Emergency Management Agency's "Disaster Relief" Account. It contains budgetary information for the years 1976-2005.
United States. Congressional Budget Office
2005-09-07?
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Estimating Excess Mortality Due to the COVID-19 Pandemic: A Systematic Analysis of COVID-19-Related Mortality, 2020-21
From the Summary: "Mortality statistics are fundamental to public health decision making. Mortality varies by time and location, and its measurement is affected by well known biases that have been exacerbated during the COVID-19 [coronavirus disease 2019] pandemic. This paper aims to estimate excess mortality from the COVID-19 pandemic in 191 countries and territories, and 252 subnational units for selected countries, from Jan 1, 2020, to Dec 31, 2021."
Elsevier Science Ltd; Lancet
Wang, Haidong; Paulson, Katherine R.; Pease, Spencer A. . . .
2022-03-10
