Government Accounting Office

GAO to Audit Fluor Contract: The federal government's top financial watchdog agency will launch a probe into allegations of financial irregularities and safety problems in a major nuclear cleanup program managed by a Fluor Corp. subsidiary. A Government Accounting Office official said the agency will also examine the quality of the Energy Department's oversight of the $2.2-billion contract at the government's former nuclear processing plant in Fernald, Ohio.

WASHINGTON - The U.S. government could end up pocketing a $15.1-billion profit from the bailout of insurance giant American International Group Inc., according to a new estimate by the Government Accountability Office. The report came as the Treasury Department this week continued to wind down its stake in AIG, which the government rescued from collapse in late 2008 with a multi-step infusion of $125 billion in taxpayer money to stabilize the company. The Treasury Department said this week that it agreed to sell $5.75 billion worth of shares to reduce the government's ownership stake to 61% from 70%. The sale, which could be final as early as this week, includes about $750 million from underwriters that exercised their option to buy additional shares.

The head of the General Accounting Office said Tuesday that he is "deeply troubled" by efforts of the banking industry and the Bush Administration "to weaken" new bank regulatory reforms. Comptroller General Charles A. Bowsher has become increasingly outspoken in his attacks on what he views as dangerous efforts by the Bush Administration to undercut the work of financial regulators.

Despite recalls of defective medical devices that have caused devastating injuries and millions of dollars in medical costs, the Food and Drug Administration is under industry pressure to speed up its approval process. That pressure comes as a new Government Accountability Office report criticized the way the FDA handled approval of high-risk devices, such as defective artificial hips made by Johnson & Johnson that left shredded metal in patients. More than 90,000 artificial hips were recalled last summer after studies showed that about 1 out of 8 recipients needed to have them replaced.

The head of the General Accounting Office on Tuesday accused the Bush Administration of trying to weaken federal regulation of troubled banks, touching off a bitter round of partisan name-calling at the Senate Banking Committee. Comptroller General Charles A. Bowsher, speaking in unusually blunt terms, told the committee that he was "dumbfounded" to read about an attack on regulation by Assistant Treasury Secretary John Robson.

The government will issue a report soon blaming some of the nation's largest accounting firms for failing to uncover fraud and mismanagement at savings and loan institutions that will cost taxpayers tens of billions of dollars, according to industry sources.

Record-keeping was in such a mess at the National Park Service that congressional investigators found a vacuum cleaner valued on the agency's books at $800,000 and a fire engine at one penny. The Park Service doesn't collect enough information to tell where its limited resources can be best spent to protect the federal property it oversees, according a report by the General Accounting Office, Congress' investigating arm.

A congressional panel accused the Food and Drug Administration Wednesday of "inexcusably negligent and complacent" oversight of the bottled water industry, noting that, despite its high price, bottled water may be less safe than tap water. Rep. John D. Dingell (D-Mich.) said a review by his House subcommittee determined that microbiological contamination exceeding allowed levels was found in nearly one-third of the bottled water samples tested by the FDA in a 1990 survey.

The federal government's top financial watchdog agency said Monday that it will investigate allegations of financial irregularities and safety problems in a major nuclear cleanup program managed by a Fluor Corp. subsidiary. A General Accounting Office official said his agency also will examine the quality of the U.S. Department of Energy's oversight of the $2.2-billion contract at the government's former nuclear processing plant in Fernald, Ohio.

A new report by undercover government investigators bolsters longstanding concerns that companies promising to help consumers overwhelmed by credit card and other debts often turn out to be financial predators that charge high fees but deliver little or nothing in return. When investigators for the Government Accountability Office posed as distressed consumers seeking help, so-called debt management companies gave them wildly exaggerated descriptions of the firms' success rates and sometimes promised savings of as much as 50 cents on the dollar, Gregory Kutz, the GAO official who ran the investigation, told Congress on Thursday.

Beware if the firm running your 401(k) plan offers investment "education," the Government Accountability Office says in a new report. Many 401(k) plans offer broad guidance to help workers make investment decisions. The advice typically comes under the rubric of "education" and stops short of recommending specific investments. But what's portrayed as education actually may be a sales pitch, the study says. Many firms that run 401(k) plans have financial incentives to push certain investments.

California's two U.S. senators and several local House members Thursday called on Congress' investigative arm to launch a sweeping probe into the Forest Service's response to last summer's disastrous Station fire. In asking for the investigation by the Government Accountability Office, which typically grants such requests, the lawmakers recommended a broad examination of the Forest Service's decisions and tactics. Those include the use of aircraft early in the fight and the question of whether everything possible was done to protect homes that burned in Big Tujunga Canyon.

A new report by undercover government investigators bolsters longstanding concerns that companies promising to help consumers overwhelmed by credit card and other debts often turn out to be financial predators that charge high fees but deliver little or nothing in return. When investigators for the Government Accountability Office posed as distressed consumers seeking help, so-called debt management companies gave them wildly exaggerated descriptions of the firms' success rates and sometimes promised savings of as much as 50 cents on the dollar, Gregory Kutz, the GAO official who ran the investigation, told Congress on Thursday.

The federal agency responsible for overseeing oil drilling near the coast of Alaska was rebuked by government overseers Wednesday for failing to share potentially important environmental information with all staffers drafting policy on oil and gas development. The Government Accountability Office, in a report to Congress, also criticized the federal Minerals Management Service's Alaska office for failing to adopt a set of comprehensive guidelines for determining whether proposed developments comply with federal environmental law. Reviewers found that much data on proposed oil development -- some of which oil companies consider proprietary -- is distributed only on a "need to know" basis and doesn't reach all staff analysts reviewing projects.

GAO to Audit Fluor Contract: The federal government's top financial watchdog agency will launch a probe into allegations of financial irregularities and safety problems in a major nuclear cleanup program managed by a Fluor Corp. subsidiary. A Government Accounting Office official said the agency will also examine the quality of the Energy Department's oversight of the $2.2-billion contract at the government's former nuclear processing plant in Fernald, Ohio.

The federal government's top financial watchdog agency said Monday that it will investigate allegations of financial irregularities and safety problems in a major nuclear cleanup program managed by a Fluor Corp. subsidiary. A General Accounting Office official said his agency also will examine the quality of the U.S. Department of Energy's oversight of the $2.2-billion contract at the government's former nuclear processing plant in Fernald, Ohio.

WASHINGTON - The U.S. government could end up pocketing a $15.1-billion profit from the bailout of insurance giant American International Group Inc., according to a new estimate by the Government Accountability Office. The report came as the Treasury Department this week continued to wind down its stake in AIG, which the government rescued from collapse in late 2008 with a multi-step infusion of $125 billion in taxpayer money to stabilize the company. The Treasury Department said this week that it agreed to sell $5.75 billion worth of shares to reduce the government's ownership stake to 61% from 70%. The sale, which could be final as early as this week, includes about $750 million from underwriters that exercised their option to buy additional shares.

The federal agency responsible for overseeing oil drilling near the coast of Alaska was rebuked by government overseers Wednesday for failing to share potentially important environmental information with all staffers drafting policy on oil and gas development. The Government Accountability Office, in a report to Congress, also criticized the federal Minerals Management Service's Alaska office for failing to adopt a set of comprehensive guidelines for determining whether proposed developments comply with federal environmental law. Reviewers found that much data on proposed oil development -- some of which oil companies consider proprietary -- is distributed only on a "need to know" basis and doesn't reach all staff analysts reviewing projects.

Record-keeping was in such a mess at the National Park Service that congressional investigators found a vacuum cleaner valued on the agency's books at $800,000 and a fire engine at one penny. The Park Service doesn't collect enough information to tell where its limited resources can be best spent to protect the federal property it oversees, according a report by the General Accounting Office, Congress' investigating arm.

The head of the General Accounting Office said Tuesday that he is "deeply troubled" by efforts of the banking industry and the Bush Administration "to weaken" new bank regulatory reforms. Comptroller General Charles A. Bowsher has become increasingly outspoken in his attacks on what he views as dangerous efforts by the Bush Administration to undercut the work of financial regulators.