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GAO-11-318SP Opportunities to Reduce Potential Duplication In United States Government Accountability Office Report to Congressional Addressees GAO March 2011 Opportunities to Reduce Potential Duplication in Government Programs, Save Tax Dollars, and Enhance Revenue GAO-11-318SP Contents Letter 1 Section I GAO Identified Areas of Potential Duplication, Overlap, and Fragmentation, Which, if Effectively Addressed, Could Provide Financial and Other Benefits 5 Section II Other GAO-Identified Cost-Saving and Revenue-Enhancing Areas 155 Appendix I List of Congressional Addressees 334 Appendix II Objectives, Scope, and Methodology 336 Page i GAO-11-318SP Abbreviations AC Bureau of Arms Control AFR Agency Financial Report AFV alternative fuel vehicle AHLTA Armed Forces Health Longitudinal Technology Application ARS Agricultural Research Service ATF Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives AUR Automated Underreporter Program BEA business enterprise architecture BEST Border Enforcement Security Task Force BLM Bureau of Land Management BOEMRE Bureau of Ocean Energy Management, Regulation and Enforcement BPA blanket purchase agreement BRAC base realignment and closure CBP Customs and Border Protection CDE Community Development Entities CFDA Catalog of Federal Domestic Assistance CDFI Community Development Financial Institution CERP Commander’s Emergency Response Program CIO Chief Information Officer CMS Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services COBRA Consolidated Omnibus Budget Reconciliation Act of 1985 Commerce Department of Commerce Corrosion Office Office of Corrosion Policy and Oversight DHS Department of Homeland Security DLA Defense Logistics Agency DNDO Domestic Nuclear Detection Office DOD Department of Defense DOT Department of Transportation DSH Disproportionate Share Hospital EAS Essential Air Service Education Department of Education EDA Economic Development Administration EHR Electronic Health Record Energy Department of Energy EPA Environmental Protection Agency EPAct Energy Policy Act FAM Foreign Affairs Manual Page ii GAO-11-318SP FBI Federal Bureau of Investigation FCC Federal Communications Commission FDA Food and Drug Administration FEMA Federal Emergency Management Agency FFS fee-for-service FMCSA Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration FPDS-NG Federal Procurement Data System-Next Generation FSIS Food Safety and Inspection Service FSSI Federal Strategic Sourcing Initiative FTA Federal Transit Administration FTHBC First-Time Homebuyer Credit Fund Universal Service Fund GAGAS generally accepted government auditing standards GHG greenhouse gas GPO Government Pension Offset GPRA Government Performance and Results Act GSA General Services Administration HHA home health agency HHS Department of Health and Human Services HUBZone Historically Underutilized Business Zone HUD Department of Housing and Urban Development IBET Integrated Border Enforcement Team IED improvised explosive device IG Inspector General Interior Department of the Interior IPERA Improper Payments Elimination and Recovery Act IRS Internal Revenue Service ISN Bureau of International Security and Nonproliferation ISR intelligence, surveillance, and reconnaissance IT information technology JIEDDO Joint IED Defeat Organization Justice Department of Justice Labor Department of Labor MAS Multiple Award Schedule MEA math error authority MHS Military Health System MPPR multiple procedure payment reduction NAFTA North American Free Trade Agreement NASA National Aeronautics and Space Administration NMTC New Markets Tax Credit NP Bureau of Nonproliferation NSLP National School Lunch Program Page iii GAO-11-318SP OFPP Office of Federal Procurement Policy OMB Office of Management and Budget ONRR Office of Natural Resources and Revenue O&S operating and support PAR Performance and Accountability Report PBL performance-based logistics PMS Payment Management System RAC recovery audit contractor RFS renewable fuel standard ROI return on investment S&T Science and Technology Directorate SBA Small Business Administration SNAP Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program SPOT Screening of Passengers by Observation Techniques SSA Social Security Administration State Department of State STEM science, technology, engineering, and mathematics TANF Temporary Assistance for Needy Families Treasury Department of the Treasury TSA Transportation Security Administration USAC Universal Service Administrative Company USAID U.S. Agency for International Development USDA Department of Agriculture USICH U.S. Interagency Council on Homelessness VA Department of Veterans Affairs VC Bureau of Verification and Compliance VCI Bureau of Verification, Compliance and Implementation VEETC Volumetric Ethanol Excise Tax Credit VistA Veterans Health Information Systems and Technology Architecture WEP Windfall Elimination Provision WIA Workforce Investment Act WIC Special Supplemental Nutrition Program for Women, Infants, and Children This is a work of the U.S. government and is not subject to copyright protection in the United States. The published product may be reproduced and distributed in its entirety without further permission from GAO. However, because this work may contain copyrighted images or other material, permission from the copyright holder may be necessary if you wish to reproduce this material separately. Page iv GAO-11-318SP Comptroller General of the United States United States Government Accountability Office Washington, DC 20548 March 1, 2011 Congressional Addressees: This is GAO’s first annual report to Congress in response to a new statutory requirement that GAO identify federal programs, agencies, offices, and initiatives, either within departments or governmentwide, which have duplicative goals or activities. Congress asked GAO to conduct this work and to report annually on our findings.1 This work will inform government policymakers as they address the rapidly building fiscal pressures facing our national government. GAO’s most recent update of its annual simulations of the federal government’s fiscal outlook underscores the need to address the long-term sustainability of the federal government’s fiscal policies. 2 Since the end of the recent recession, the gross domestic product has grown slowly and unemployment has remained at a high level. While the economy is still recovering and in need of careful attention, there is widespread agreement on the need to look not only at the near term but also at steps that begin to change the long-term fiscal path as soon as possible without slowing the recovery. With the passage of time, the window to address the challenge narrows and the magnitude of the required changes grows. GAO’s simulations show continually increasing levels of debt that are unsustainable over time absent changes in current fiscal policies. The objectives of this report are to (1) identify federal programs or functional areas where unnecessary duplication, overlap, or fragmentation exists, the actions needed to address such conditions, and the potential financial and other benefits of doing so; and (2) highlight other opportunities for potential cost savings or enhanced revenues. To meet these objectives, we are including 81 areas for consideration based on related GAO work. This report is divided into two sections. Section I presents 34 areas where agencies, offices, or initiatives have similar or overlapping objectives or provide similar services to the same populations; or where government missions are fragmented across multiple agencies or 1Pub. L. No. 111-139, § 21, 124 Stat. 29 (2010), 31 U.S.C. § 712 Note. 2GAO, The Federal Government’s Long-Term Fiscal Outlook: Fall 2010 Update, GAO-11-201SP (Washington, D.C.: Nov. 15, 2010). Additional information on the federal fiscal outlook, federal debt, and the outlook for the state and local government sector is available at: www.gao.gov/special.pubs/longterm/. Page 1 GAO-11-318SP programs. These areas span a range of government missions: agriculture, defense, economic development, energy, general government, health, homeland security, international affairs, and social services. Within and across these missions, this report touches on hundreds of federal programs, affecting virtually all major federal departments and agencies. Overlap and fragmentation among government programs or activities can be harbingers of unnecessary duplication. Reducing or eliminating duplication, overlap, or fragmentation could potentially save billions of tax dollars annually and help agencies provide more efficient and effective services. The areas identified in this report are not intended to represent the full universe of duplication, overlap, or fragmentation within the federal government. We will continue to identify additional issues in future reports. Given today’s fiscal environment, Section II of this report summarizes 47 additional areas—beyond those directly related to duplication, overlap, or fragmentation—describing other opportunities for agencies or Congress to consider taking action that could either reduce the cost of government operations or enhance revenue collections for the Treasury. These cost- savings and revenue opportunities also span a wide range of federal government agencies and mission areas. The issues raised in both sections were drawn from GAO’s prior and ongoing work. Many of the issues included in this report are focused on activities that are contained within single departments or agencies. In those cases, agency officials can generally achieve cost savings or other benefits by implementing existing GAO recommendations or by undertaking new actions
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