Pilot projects suggest that telecommunication and computing technologies can play a role in revitalizing Native American communities, as such technologies are already doing in other distressed areas of the United States. Prior OTA studies have found, however, that the potential use of telecommunications to significantly improve socioeconomic conditions is far from assured. OTA will include, as part of the study process, direct involvement of Native Americans and tribal and village organizations through interviews, advisory panel meetings, workshops, outreach meetings, and, to the extent practical, site visits. Another form of information gathering that will be used in this study is computer networking. Fred Wood 228-6790.
Services now account for three-quarters of U.S. employment and output.
But many service jobs offer low pay, few benefits, and limited prospect for advancement. As a whole, lagging productivity in the services appears to put downward pressure on U.S. GDP per capita and wage levels. Steve Herzenberg 228-6350. Wire transfer of funds creates voluminous records, especially at a few major money centerbanks and some Federal Reserve Banks. Attempts to detect characteristic patterns from these data bases that might indicate systematic money laundering are promising, but are frustrated by the vastness of the data and by laws and policies designed to protect financial privacy.