Recent GAO reports

From the Government Accountability Office (GAO):

FEDERAL OVERSIGHT OF FOOD SAFETY: FDA Has Provided Few Details on the Resources and Strategies Needed to Implement its Food Protection Plan, GAO-08-909T (pdf, 18pp/384kB), June 12, 2008

In Nov. 2007, the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) issued its Food Protection Plan, a framework for improving food safety. FDA is responsible for about 80 percent of the U.S. food supply, both domestic and imported. This GAO testimony is critical of FDA's lack of specificity on the resources and strategies required to implement the plan but supports its focus on evaluating and prioritizing risks of certain food and animal feeds as an effective way to target scarce resources.


YOUNG ADULTS WITH SERIOUS MENTAL ILLNESS: Some States and Federal Agencies Are Taking Steps to Address Their Transition Challenges, GAO-08-678 (pdf, 88pp/1.27MB), June 23, 2008

GAO estimates there are at least 2.4 million young adults--ages 18-26, and excluding the homeless, institutionalized, and incarcerated--with a serious mental illness that can affect their education and employment. GAO did this study for information on their number and demographics, the challenges they face, how certain states provide assistance, and how the federal government supports state programs. GAO visited four states--Connecticut, Maryland, Massachusetts, and Mississippi--that have programs specifically to assist these youths.


National Response Framework: FEMA Needs Policies and Procedures to Better Integrate Non-Federal Stakeholders in the Revision Process, GAO-08-768 (pdf, 42pp/380kB), June 11, 2008

In Jan. 2008, the Dept. of Homeland Security (DHS) published the National Response Framework (NRF), a guide for federal, state, local, and tribal governments, and NGOs and private entities to respond to all disasters. Through its Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA), DHS is responsible for heading the joint effort between federal, state, and local governments to catastrophe response. GAO found that DHS did not collaborate with non-federal stakeholders as fully as required by the Post-Katrina Emergency Management Reform Act, Title VI of P.L. 109-295 (pdf, 109pp.), at 120 Stat. 1394, and recommends that FEMA develop policies and procedures to do so for future NRF revisions.


HOMELAND SECURITY: First Responders' Ability to Detect and Model Hazardous Releases in Urban Areas Is Significantly Limited, GAO-08-180 (pdf, 79pp/1.29 MB), June 27, 2008

GAO found that local first responders lack the tools to identify and track the dispersion of chemical, biological, radiological or nuclear (CBRN) materials released in urban areas either accidentally or by terrorists. GAO made its findings after evaluating, among other assessments, Top Officials (TOPOFF), terrorism preparedness exercises conducted from 2000 to 2007. In 2004 DHS established the Interagency Modeling and Atmospheric Assessment Center (IMAAC) to coordinate dispersion modeling and hazard prediction products during CBRN incidents, but problems with conflicting information remain.

One country, one card, one hearing

The Sacramento Bee reported Sunday on the U.S. Department of Homeland Security (DHS) proposal for states to enhance driver's licenses and identification cards to minimum standards. DHS publishes the proposed rule and a questions and answers page on their website.

The Bee writes [my emphasis]:

On Tuesday, both sides will have their say when the U.S. Department of Homeland Security holds the nation's only public hearing on the 2005 Real ID Act [P.L. 109-13] on the campus of the University of California, Davis.

State officials from throughout the nation are scheduled to attend the four-hour town hall meeting, which begins at 10 a.m in Freeborn Hall.

Considered by many to be a de facto national identity card, Real ID further alarms with the threat of pervasive ID theft and the all too real, staggering costs to states to implement such a system.

It's uncertain where the money will come from. The Real ID Act allows states to use some of their homeland security funding, but critics say this would increase vulnerability elsewhere.

On February 28, U.S. Sens. Daniel Akaka, D-Hawaii, and John Sununu, R-N.H. introduced legislation (S. 717) that would repeal the Real ID Act's requirement for nationally standardized driver's license data and systems.

To repeal title II of the REAL ID Act of 2005, to restore section 7212 of the Intelligence Reform and Terrorism Prevention Act of 2004, which provides States additional regulatory flexibility and funding authorization to more rapidly produce tamper- and counterfeit-resistant driver's licenses, and to protect privacy and civil liberties by providing interested stakeholders on a negotiated rulemaking with guidance to achieve improved 21st century licenses to improve national security.

Cybersecurity - Homeland Security's role

The Government Accountability Office (GAO) recently testified before two House subcommittees on the role of the Dept. of Homeland Security (DHS) in cybersecurity and recovery from Internet disruptions. Under the Homeland Security Act of 2002, PL 107-296 (pdf, 187p.), and federal policy, DHS is responsible for the security of the nation's cyberspace, which includes Internet recovery. GAO sees DHS impeded in fulfilling its role as the government's focal point in both areas.

Cybersecurity. DHS has made progress in 13 key cybersecurity reponsibilities, e.g., the release of its National Infrastructure Protection Plan (NIPP) in June 2006, but none have been completely met. GAO sees DHS facing "a particular challenge in attaining the organizational stability and leadership it needs to gain the trust of the stakeholders in the cybersecurity world" - government as well as the private sector.

Internet recovery. GAO was asked to summarize its earlier report on this subject. It found that DHS has begun initiatives on a public/private recovery plan but its efforts are neither complete nor comprehensive. Key challenges include: (1) diffuse control of the Internet's many networks, (2) lack of consensus on DHS's role, (3) legality of DHS's ability to restore Internet service, (4) reluctance of the private sector to share information, and (5) again, leadership and organizational problems.

Critical Infrastructure Protection: DHS Leadership Needed to Enhance Cybersecurity, GAO-06-1087T, September 13, 2006
      Full testimony (pdf, 160KB, 24p.)
      Highlights (pdf, 44KB, 1p.)
      Abstract (html)

Internet Infrastructure: Challenges in Developing a Public/Private Recovery Plan, GAO-06-1100T, September 13, 2006
      Full testimony (pdf, 144KB, 26p.)
      Highlights (pdf, 44KB, 1p.)
      Abstract (html)

Earlier GAO report:
Internet Infrastructure: DHS Faces Challenges in Developing a Joint Public/Private Recovery Plan, GAO-06-672 (pdf, 2.5MB, 81p.), June 16, 2006