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Please note: GAO does not issue press releases for most of our reports. Each report contains a “Highlights” page which includes the key information as well as contact details. For the list of our most recently issued reports, see Past Week’s Reports and Testimonies.
GAO Tools for Your Research:
PLEASE NOTE:
GAO does not issue press releases for most of our reports.
Each report contains a “Highlights” page which includes the key information as well as contact details.
For the list of our most recently issued reports, see Past Week’s Reports and Testimonies.
Please note: GAO does not issue press releases for most of our reports. Each report contains a “Highlights” page which includes the key information as well as contact details. For the list of our most recently issued reports, see Past Week’s Reports and Testimonies.
Other GAO Press Releases:
GAO Issues First Annual Report on the Federal Government's Fiscal Health
Washington, D.C. (January 17, 2017) – Beginning an effort to examine the nation’s fiscal heath at the start of each year, the U.S. Government Accountability Office (GAO) today issued its first annual outlook on the nation’s fiscal future. The work warns of mounting debt and other challenges, urges prompt action to address those challenges, and is designed to help inform Congress and the incoming administration. GAO encourages the development of a long-term plan that will address levels of federal spending and investments and the options to obtain needed resources.
“I remain deeply concerned about our government’s unsustainable long-term fiscal path,” said Gene Dodaro, Comptroller General of the United States and head of the GAO. “Our new report provides a frank assessment of the fiscal problems confronting the nation. Health care expenditures and net interest are now the main drivers of growing federal spending, and without policy changes, the debt-to-GDP ratio is projected to reach historic levels within 15-25 years,” he said.
“The Congress and incoming Administration face serious economic, security, and social challenges that will require difficult policy choices in the short term about the level of federal spending and investments as well as ways to obtain needed resources. They also face a government heavily leveraged in debt by historic norms and on an unsustainable long-term path. Decisions over the near term to enhance economic growth and address national policies need to be accompanied by a fiscal plan to put the national government on a more long-term sustainable path. I hope GAO’s findings will serve to sound the alarm and spur a longer-term approach to help turn things around,” Dodaro added.
Available on GAO’s website, the new report—The Nation’s Fiscal Health: Action Is Needed to Address the Federal Government’s Fiscal Future—discusses significant changes to the nation’s fiscal condition in fiscal year 2016, long-term simulations of the federal debt, and fiscal risks placing additional pressure on the federal budget. GAO also identifies steps that federal agencies can take to improve things, such as reducing improper payments; closing the tax gap; eliminating duplication, overlap, and fragmentation in federal programs; and producing better information on program and fiscal operations to strengthen decision-making.
GAO’s fiscal health report draws on the just-issued Financial Report of the U.S. Government and GAO’s audit of the government’s consolidated financial statements for fiscal years 2016 and 2015. For more information, contact Chuck Young, Managing Director of GAO Public Affairs, at youngc1@gao.gov or 202-512-4800.
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The Government Accountability Office, known as the investigative arm of Congress, is an independent, nonpartisan agency that exists to support Congress in meeting its constitutional responsibilities. GAO also works to improve the performance of the federal government and ensure its accountability to the American people. The agency examines the use of public funds; evaluates federal programs and policies; and provides analyses, recommendations, and other assistance to help Congress make informed oversight, policy, and funding decisions. GAO provides Congress with timely information that is objective, fact-based, nonideological, fair, and balanced. GAO’s commitment to good government is reflected in its core values of accountability, integrity, and reliability.
Jan 17, 2017
Washington, D.C. (January 17, 2017) – Beginning an effort to examine the nation’s fiscal heath at the start of each year, the U.S. Government Accountability Office (GAO) today issued its first annual outlook on the nation’s fiscal future. The work warns of mounting debt and other challenges, urges prompt action to address those challenges, and is designed to help inform Congress and the incoming administration....
Jan 12, 2017
WASHINGTON, D.C. (January 12, 2017) —The U.S. Government Accountability Office (GAO) did not render an opinion on the federal government’s consolidated financial statements for fiscal year 2016 due to deficiencies that have plagued prior financial statements—persistent financial management problems at the Department of Defense (DOD), the government’s inability to account for and reconcile certain transactions...
Dec 15, 2016
Washington, D.C. (December 15, 2016) – The U.S. Government Accountability Office (GAO) has improved its scores in the Partnership for Public Service’s list of the best places to work in the federal government, rising to second place among mid-size agencies and tied with the Peace Corps. Also for the third year in a row, the congressional watchdog agency was again first in its support of diversity in the mid-size ...
Nov 10, 2016
GAO Identifies Its Priority Recommendations By Agency and Topic WASHINGTON, DC (November 10, 2016) — To help make the upcoming presidential and congressional transitions as informed as possible, the U.S. Government Accountability Office (GAO) has launched a new mobile app that provides users easy access to the watchdog agency’s priority recommendations for improving government operations. “GAO has organize...
Sep 22, 2016
WASHINGTON, DC (September 22, 2016) — Gene L. Dodaro, Comptroller General of the United States and head of the U.S. Government Accountability Office (GAO), today announced the appointment of two new members to the Governing Board of the Patient-Centered Outcomes Research Institute (PCORI): Russell Howerton, MD, Chief Medical Officer and Vice President of Clinical Operations at Wake Forest Baptist Medical Cent...
Aug 11, 2016
Third Volume in Series to Help Manage Government Projects WASHINGTON, D.C. (August 11, 2016) – The U.S. Government Accountability Office (GAO) today issued for public review a draft version of a new guide to help federal, state, and local government agencies more reliably assess technology readiness for projects of all sizes. The Technology Readiness Assessment Guide: Best Practices for Evaluating the Readines...
Jun 2, 2016
WASHINGTON, DC (June 2, 2016) – Gene L. Dodaro, Comptroller General of the United States and head of the U.S. Government Accountability Office (GAO), today announced the appointment of five new members to the Medicare Payment Advisory Commission (MedPAC), as well as the reappointment of one current member. “MedPAC provides valuable advice to policymakers on key issues relating to Medicare,” Dodaro said. ”GA...
May 5, 2016
WASHINGTON, DC (May 5, 2016) – Gene L. Dodaro, Comptroller General of the United States and head of the U.S. Government Accountability Office (GAO), today announced the appointment of three new members to the Health Information Technology (HIT) Policy Committee. The new appointees are: James S. (Jamie) Ferguson, who will fill the position representing payers; Carolyn Petersen, who will fill the position of an adv...
Apr 25, 2016
WASHINGTON, D.C. (April 25, 2016) – In a move to enhance accountability across the globe, representatives of the U.S. Government Accountability Office’s (GAO) Center for Audit Excellence and the U.S. Agency for International Development (USAID) today signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) that establishes a framework for collaboration on training and technical assistance efforts. The goal of the a...
Mar 15, 2016
The following is a statement from Kenneth E. Patton, Managing Associate General Counsel for Procurement Law at GAO, regarding today’s decision resolving a protest filed by General Dynamics Land Systems, B-412525, B-412525.2, March 15, 2016. On March 15, 2016, the U.S. Government Accountability Office (GAO) denied a protest filed by General Dynamics Land Systems, of Sterling Heights, Michigan, challenging the aw...
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