Year: 2020
Science & Tech Spotlight: Contact Tracing Apps
Why This Matters
Contact tracing can help reduce transmission rates for infectious diseases like COVID-19 by identifying and notifying people who may have been exposed. … Read More
Climate Change: USAID Is Taking Steps to Increase Projects’ Resilience, but Could Improve Reporting of Adaptation Funding
What GAO Found
The U.S. Agency for International Development (USAID) provided at least $810 million to directly and indirectly support climate adaptation from fiscal years … Read More
Surface Transportation Security: TSA Has Taken Steps to Improve its Surface Inspector Program, but Lacks Performance Targets
What GAO Found
According to the Transportation Security Administration (TSA) Surface Transportation Security Inspector Operations Plan (TSA’s plan), surface transportation security inspectors—known as surface inspectors—are … Read More
Housing: Preliminary Analysis of Homeownership Trends for Nine Cities
What GAO Found
Following a decade of decline, including after the 2007–2009 financial crisis, the national homeownership rate started to recover in 2016 (see figure).… Read More
Climate Resilience: Actions Needed to Ensure DOD Considers Climate Risks to Contractors as Part of Acquisition, Supply, and Risk Assessment
What GAO Found
The Department of Defense (DOD) has not routinely assessed climate-related risks faced by its contractors as part of its acquisition and supply … Read More
Nuclear Weapons: Action Needed to Address the W80-4 Warhead Program’s Schedule Constraints
What GAO Found
The National Nuclear Security Administration (NNSA), a separately organized agency within the Department of Energy (DOE), has identified a range of risks … Read More
K-12 Education: School Districts Need Better Information to Help Improve Access for People with Disabilities
What GAO Found
Two-thirds of U.S. public school districts have schools with physical barriers that may limit access for people with disabilities, according to GAO’s … Read More
Missile Defense: Assessment of Testing Approach Needed as Delays and Changes Persist
What GAO Found
In fiscal year 2019, the Missile Defense Agency (MDA) delivered many of the Ballistic Missile Defense System (BMDS) assets it planned and … Read More
Lake Ontario-St. Lawrence River Plan: Improved Communication and Adaptive Management Strategy Could Help Address Stakeholder Concerns
What GAO Found
The International Joint Commission’s (IJC) process for developing and selecting the Lake Ontario-St. Lawrence River Plan 2014 (Plan 2014) was generally consistent … Read More
Sexual Harassment: VA Needs to Better Protect Employees
What GAO Found
According to data from the most recent Merit Systems Protection Board (MSPB) survey in 2016, an estimated 22 percent of Department of … Read More
F-35 Sustainment: DOD Needs to Address Key Uncertainties as It Re-Designs the Aircraft’s Logistics System
What GAO Found
The Autonomic Logistics Information System (ALIS) is integral to supporting F-35 aircraft operations and maintenance. However, F-35 personnel at 5 locations GAO … Read More
Financial Company Bankruptcies: Congress and Regulators Have Updated Resolution Planning Requirements
What GAO Found
Since 2015, Congress has not changed parts of the U.S. Bankruptcy Code (Code) related to financial companies or the Orderly Liquidation Authority … Read More
Defense Contractors: Information on Violations of Safety, Health, and Fair Labor Standards
What GAO Found
GAO’s analysis of federal data found that about 1 percent of companies with Department of Defense (DOD) contracts were cited for willful … Read More
VA Health Care: Actions Needed to Improve Oversight of Graduate Medical Education Reimbursement
What GAO Found
The Department of Veterans Affairs’ (VA) Veterans Health Administration (VHA) provides training to more than 45,000 medical and dental residents annually through … Read More
Three Tribal Officials Charged in Bribery Scheme
Two current tribal government officials and one former tribal government official of the Three Affiliated Tribes of the Mandan, Hidatsa, and Arikara Nation (MHA Nation) … Read More
Japanese Shipping Company Fined $1.5 Million for Concealing Illegal Discharges of Oily Water
Misuga Kaiun Co. Ltd. (MISUGA), a Japanese-based company engaged in international shipping, was sentenced yesterday in federal court before U.S. District Court Judge Paul G. … Read More
Researcher Pleaded Guilty to Conspiring to Steal Scientific Trade Secrets from Ohio Children’s Hospital to Sell in China
Crime is Another Example of Economic Malfeasance Related to the Peoples Republic of China Accommodating Theft of Commercial Products They Cannot Field Organically
Former Ohio
Justice Department Settles with Private School to Ensure Compliance with the ADA
The Justice Department today reached a settlement agreement with Ridgewood Preparatory School (Ridgewood) to ensure that students with disabilities are not discriminated against in the … Read More
Statement from Attorney General William P. Barr on Introduction of Lawful Access Bill in the House of Representatives
Today, Attorney General William P. Barr issued the following statement on the introduction of a bill in the U.S. House of Representatives that would give … Read More
Owner of New York Tax Preparation Business Pleads Guilty to Conspiring to File False Returns
WASHINGTON – A Queens, New York return preparer pleaded guilty today to conspiracy to defraud the United States by filing false returns, announced Principal Deputy … Read More
Justice Department Settles with School District to Resolve Disability Discrimination Complaint
The Justice Department today announced that it reached an agreement with Spencer East Brookfield Regional School District in Spencer, Massachusetts to resolve the department’s lawsuit … Read More
The Impact of the Pandemic on Pregnancy: A Research Response
Maternal health and health disparities are key priorities for the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS). Our commitment continues through ongoing research at … Read More
Execution Rescheduled for Federal Inmate Convicted of Brutally Murdering a Grandmother and her Nine-Year-Old Granddaughter
Attorney General William P. Barr today directed the Federal Bureau of Prisons to reschedule the execution of Lezmond Mitchell, a federal death-row inmate who was … Read More
Statement Of AAG Makan Delrahim Thanking Participants In Workshop On Competition In The Licensing Of Public Performance Rights In The Music Industry
On Wednesday July 29, the Justice Department’s Antitrust Division concluded its two-day virtual workshop on competition in the licensing of public performance rights in the … Read More
University of Arkansas Professor Indicted for Wire Fraud and Passport Fraud
The Department of Justice announced today that Simon Saw-Teong Ang, 63, of Fayetteville, Arkansas, was indicted by a federal grand jury in the Western District … Read More
Florida Man Sentenced to Three Years in Prison for Obstructing the IRS
A Florida man was sentenced to 36 months in prison today for corruptly obstructing the due administration of the internal revenue laws, announced Principal Deputy … Read More
Florida Man Charged with COVID Relief Fraud, Health Care Fraud and Money Laundering
A Florida man has been charged regarding allegations that he fraudulently obtained a Paycheck Protection Program (PPP) loan and an Economic Injury Disaster Loan (EIDL), … Read More
Operation Legend Expanded to Cleveland, Detroit, and Milwaukee
Today, the expansion of Operation Legend was announced in Cleveland, Detroit, and Milwaukee. Operation Legend is a sustained, systematic and coordinated law enforcement initiative in … Read More
Bankruptcy Filings Fall 11.8 Percent for Year Ending June 30
Despite a sharp rise in unemployment related to the coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic, personal and business bankruptcy filings fell 11.8 percent for the 12-month period ending … Read More
