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                    Most Recent Reports**1 - 20 of 1243 Reports**
	
	

	
	  **Released on   Mar 13, 2024**
          Freedom of Information Act: Additional Guidance and Reliable Data Can Help Address Agency Backlogs
    GAO-24-106535
      Published:   Mar 7, 2024
. 
        Publicly Released:   Mar 13, 2024
.
    The Freedom of Information Act requires federal agencies to provide public access to government information. Agencies generally must process FOIA requests within 20 working days, but the government-wide backlog of requests grew over the last decade. Agency FOIA officers cited factors such as staffing challenges and complex requests as contributing to backlogs. The Justice Department, which helps agencies administer FOIA, could improve its backlog guidance...
      **Released on   Mar 11, 2024**
          Science & Tech Spotlight: Combating Deepfakes
    GAO-24-107292
      Published:   Mar 11, 2024
. 
        Publicly Released:   Mar 11, 2024
.
    Deepfakes are videos, audio, or images that seem real but have been manipulated with AI. They've been used to try to influence elections and to create non-consensual pornography. Researchers are developing new ways to detect deepfakes, such as AI models that spot color abnormalities. And authentication methods, like digital watermarks, can help prove that a video or image has been altered. But simply detecting deepfakes...
      **Released on   Feb 29, 2024**
          International Military Students: DOD and State Should Assess Vetting Implementation and Strengthen Information Sharing
    GAO-24-106421
      Published:   Feb 29, 2024
. 
        Publicly Released:   Feb 29, 2024
.
    The Department of Defense offers education and training to foreign military personnel—known as international military students—at U.S. DOD sites. After a student killed 3 people at a base in Florida in 2019, DOD implemented security procedures for vetting these students. Some stakeholders in the vetting process have found opportunities for improvement. For example, manual processes and unclear roles may delay information sharing among involved agencies...
      **Released on   Feb 28, 2024**
          Countering Violent Extremism: FBI and DHS Need Strategies and Goals for Sharing Threat Information with Social Media and Gaming Companies
    GAO-24-106262
      Published:   Jan 31, 2024
. 
        Publicly Released:   Feb 28, 2024
.
    Domestic terrorists pose a significant threat to the U.S., according to the FBI and the Department of Homeland Security. Domestic terrorists often use online platforms—such as social media and gaming—to communicate radical ideas to a wide audience and mobilize likeminded people. The FBI and DHS have some tools for sharing information with and receiving information from social media and gaming companies on threats related to...
      **Released on   Feb 20, 2024**
          401(k) Plans: Additional Federal Actions Would Help Participants Track and Consolidate Their Retirement Savings
    GAO-24-103577
      Published:   Jan 18, 2024
. 
        Publicly Released:   Feb 20, 2024
.
    Investing in employer-sponsored 401(k) plans is the most common way American workers save for retirement. However, people can face challenges tracking their 401(k) accounts when they transfer jobs. Some countries use pension dashboards that allow participants to see and manage all their current and old plan savings in one place. This could be useful in the U.S., but Congress would need to authorize a federal...
      **Released on   Jan 29, 2024**
          Artificial Intelligence: GAO's Work to Leverage Technology and Ensure Responsible Use
    GAO-24-107237
      Published:   Jan 30, 2024
. 
        Publicly Released:   Jan 29, 2024
.
    Artificial intelligence generally refers to computer systems that can solve problems and perform tasks that have traditionally required human intelligence. We testified about how GAO plans to use AI internally to enhance our effectiveness and efficiency. For example, we recently began deployment of a large language model as a tool to synthesize past reports, assist with editorial reviews, and scan congressional documents. By developing such...
      **Released on   Jan 25, 2024**
          Grants Management: Action Needed to Ensure Consistency and Usefulness of New Data Standards
    GAO-24-106164
      Published:   Jan 25, 2024
. 
        Publicly Released:   Jan 25, 2024
.
    The federal government spent roughly $1.2 trillion on grants in 2022. But it's hard to track and manage this spending because agencies collect data in different ways. The Grant Reporting Efficiency and Agreements Transparency (GREAT) Act may help—setting standards for agency data collection throughout the government. The Office of Management and Budget and the Department of Health and Human Services identified 540 data elements—such as...
      **Released on   Jan 18, 2024**
          Foreign Investments in U.S. Agricultural Land: Enhancing Efforts to Collect, Track, and Share Key Information Could Better Identify National Security Risks
    GAO-24-106337
      Published:   Jan 18, 2024
. 
        Publicly Released:   Jan 18, 2024
.
    Foreign investment in U.S. agricultural land grew to about 40 million acres in 2021, per USDA estimates. This can pose national security risks—such as when foreign interests buy land near U.S. military installations. USDA annually publishes data on agricultural land investments, which DOD, Treasury, and other agencies may review for risks. DOD noted that it needs more specific and timely data. USDA needs to collect...
      **Released on   Dec 12, 2023**
          Artificial Intelligence: Agencies Have Begun Implementation but Need to Complete Key Requirements
    GAO-24-105980
      Published:   Dec 12, 2023
. 
        Publicly Released:   Dec 12, 2023
.
    Artificial intelligence is rapidly changing the world and could improve government operations. For example, federal agencies can use AI to analyze drone photos and large datasets. But safeguards are needed to manage AI risks. Federal law and guidance have several requirements for agencies implementing AI, but they haven't all been met. For example, there's no government-wide guidance on how agencies should acquire and use AI...
      **Released on   Jul 11, 2023**
          Small Business Administration: Exploring Potential Use of Blockchain
    GAO-23-106051
      Published:   Jul 11, 2023
. 
        Publicly Released:   Jul 11, 2023
.
    Data and recorded transactions can be stored in a shared, tamper-resistant, decentralized digital ledger known as "blockchain." This Q&A looks at whether blockchain could help the Small Business Administration work more efficiently. For example, SBA's annual reports to Congress are often up to 16 months late. Blockchain could speed up the reporting process by eliminating the need to manually verify data and fix errors or...
      **Released on   Jun 29, 2023**
          Artificial Intelligence: DOD Needs Department-Wide Guidance to Inform Acquisitions
    GAO-23-105850
      Published:   Jun 29, 2023
. 
        Publicly Released:   Jun 29, 2023
.
    The Department of Defense is developing artificial intelligence capabilities—computer systems that can do tasks that normally require human intellect. The private sector has been acquiring AI for years. Thirteen private companies told us about their AI acquisition practices. For example, some companies mentioned the importance of considering intellectual property and data rights when negotiating contracts for AI projects. Although parts of DOD are already using...
      **Released on   Jun 26, 2023**
          Counterterrorism: Action Needed to Further Develop the Information Sharing Environment
    GAO-23-105310
      Published:   Jun 26, 2023
. 
        Publicly Released:   Jun 26, 2023
.
    Federal agencies have started projects to improve how they share terrorism-related information with the intelligence community and other public and private partners. However, there hasn't been a Program Manager to review or assess the impact of these projects since 2017. As a result, it's unclear if these programs are meeting the priority objectives set in the national information-sharing strategy. Conflicting changes to the law have...
      **Released on   Jun 22, 2023**
          Data Science: NIH Needs to Implement Key Workforce Planning Activities
    GAO-23-105594
      Published:   Jun 22, 2023
. 
        Publicly Released:   Jun 22, 2023
.
    The National Institutes of Health—a leader in the support of biomedical research—faces a shortage of employees with data science expertise. NIH needs this expertise to handle the growing amount of increasingly complex data from advances in research. NIH plans to enhance its data science workforce, but it hasn't examined the skills of existing staff to determine what it needs to reach its goals. Until NIH...
      **Released on   Jun 13, 2023**
          Science & Tech Spotlight: Generative AI
    GAO-23-106782
      Published:   Jun 13, 2023
. 
        Publicly Released:   Jun 13, 2023
.
    Generative AI systems—like ChatGPT and Bard—create text, images, audio, video, and other content. This Spotlight examines the technology behind these systems that are surging in popularity. These systems are trained to recognize patterns and relationships in massive datasets and can quickly generate content from this data when prompted by a user. These growing capabilities could be used in education, government, medicine, law, and other fields...
      **Released on   May 18, 2023**
          Electronic Health Records: VA Needs to Address Management Challenges with New System
    GAO-23-106731
      Published:   May 18, 2023
. 
        Publicly Released:   May 18, 2023
.
    Veterans Affairs is in the process of replacing its IT system used to maintain veterans' health records—and has deployed its new system to a few locations. But the new system has presented issues for some users. For example, many users said that they weren't adequately trained to use it. They also said that having to use the new system had decreased morale and job satisfaction...
      **Released on   May 16, 2023**
          Artificial Intelligence: Key Practices to Help Ensure Accountability in Federal Use
    GAO-23-106811
      Published:   May 16, 2023
. 
        Publicly Released:   May 16, 2023
.
    Artificial intelligence is a rapidly evolving technology that presents operational and workforce challenges for the federal government. We testified on our key practices for the responsible use of AI in federal agencies. The practices are organized around four principles—governance, data, performance, and monitoring. For example, "monitoring" calls for agencies to ensure AI systems remain reliable and relevant over time. Also, there is a severe shortage...
      **Released on   May 9, 2023**
          Electronic Health Records: Challenges with VA's New System Call for Management Improvements
    GAO-23-106785
      Published:   May 9, 2023
. 
        Publicly Released:   May 9, 2023
.
    Veterans Affairs is in the process of replacing its IT system used to maintain veterans' health records—and has deployed its new system to a few locations. We testified that the new system has presented issues for some users. For example, many users said that they weren't adequately trained to use the new system. Users also said that the pharmacy-related part of the system contributed to...
      **Released on   Feb 27, 2023**
          Data Center Optimization: Agencies Continue to Report Progress
    GAO-23-105946
      Published:   Feb 27, 2023
. 
        Publicly Released:   Feb 27, 2023
.
    In 2010, the Office of Management and Budget began an effort to reduce the number of duplicative or outdated federal data centers. Legislation and other OMB efforts have followed. Our progress review found: Agencies closed 58 data centers in FY 2021 Agencies expected to close 78 centers in FY 2022 22 of 24 agencies met their savings goals for FY 2021, identifying $612 million in...
      **Released on   Dec 20, 2022**
          Information Management: Agencies Need to Streamline Electronic Services
    GAO-23-105562
      Published:   Dec 20, 2022
. 
        Publicly Released:   Dec 20, 2022
.
    Federal agencies must obtain written consent from individuals before disclosing their personal information. The Office of Management and Budget issued guidance that outlined agencies' responsibilities for accepting digital access and consent forms. Agencies were to implement the requirements in this guidance by November 2021. We found that, as of August 2022, only 1 of the 17 agencies that we reviewed had done so (the Securities...
      **Released on   Dec 15, 2022**
          Chief Data Officer Council: Progress in Strengthening Federal Evidence-Based Policymaking
    GAO-23-105514
      Published:   Dec 15, 2022
. 
        Publicly Released:   Dec 15, 2022
.
    In 2019, the government created the position of Chief Data Officer at each federal agency, along with a government-wide council made up of these and other officials. Since that time, the Chief Data Officer Council has worked to improve how the federal government collects and uses data, and agencies have built on these efforts. For example, the Council released a training development guide in June...
    
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