CBO
Report
CBO’s Recent Publications and Work in Progress as of June 30, 2024
July 12, 2024
In this report, the latest in a quarterly series, CBO highlights its recent publications and summarizes its work in progress.
Cost Estimate
H.J. Res. 127, a joint resolution providing for Congressional disapproval under chapter 8 of title 5, United States Code, of the rule submitted by the Securities and Exchange Commission relating to “The Enhancement and Standardization of Climate-Related Disclosures for Investors”
July 12, 2024
As ordered reported by the House Committee on Financial Services on April 17, 2024
Cost Estimate
H.R. 4297, Bolts Ditch Act
July 12, 2024
As ordered reported by the House Committee on Natural Resources on February 6, 2024
Cost Estimate
H.R. 5770, Water Monitoring and Tracking Essential Resources (WATER) Data Improvement Act
July 12, 2024
As passed by the House of Representatives on July 8, 2024
Cost Estimate
H.R. 6493, Safeguarding Electoral Integrity Act of 2023
July 12, 2024
As reported by the House Committee on House Administration on July 8, 2024
Cost Estimate
H.R. 6874, Department of Veterans Affairs Watching over Electronic Benefits Act
July 12, 2024
As ordered reported by the House Committee on Veterans’ Affairs on May 1, 2024
Cost Estimate
H.R. 8362, a bill to direct the Secretary of State to host regular U.S.-Africa Leaders Summits, and for other purposes
July 12, 2024
As ordered reported by the House Committee on Foreign Affairs on May 16, 2024
Cost Estimate
S. 1852, Sickle Cell Disease and Other Heritable Blood Disorders Research, Surveillance, Prevention, and Treatment Act of 2023
July 12, 2024
As reported by the Senate Committee on Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions on September 6, 2023
Report
Flood Insurance in Communities at Risk of Flooding
July 11, 2024
CBO examines how the share of properties at risk of flooding that are covered by policies purchased through the National Flood Insurance Program varies across communities with different economic and demographic characteristics.
Cost Estimate
H.R. 620, Alzheimer’s Accountability and Investment Act
July 11, 2024
As reported by the House Committee on Energy and Commerce on May 31, 2024
Cost Estimate
H.R. 7187, Protection of Women in Olympic and Amateur Sports Act of 2024
July 11, 2024
As ordered reported by the House Committee on the Judiciary on March 21, 2024
Cost Estimate
S. 3874, Hamas and Palestinian Islamic Jihad International Terrorism Support Prevention Act of 2024
July 11, 2024
As reported by the Senate Committee on Foreign Relations on May 7, 2024
Report
Answers to Questions for the Record Following a Hearing on Social Security’s Finances
July 10, 2024
The Subcommittee on Social Security of the House Committee on Ways and Means convened a hearing at which Phillip L. Swagel, CBO's Director, testified. This document provides CBO’s answers to questions submitted for the record.
Cost Estimate
H.J. Res. 122, a joint resolution providing for Congressional disapproval under chapter 8 of title 5, United States Code, of the rule submitted by the Bureau of Consumer Financial Protection relating to “Credit Card Penalty Fees (Regulation Z)”
July 10, 2024
As ordered reported by the House Committee on Financial Services on April 17, 2024
Cost Estimate
H.R. 6249, Think Differently About Emergencies Act
July 10, 2024
As ordered reported by the Senate Committee on Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs on May 15, 2024
Cost Estimate
H.R. 7439, Strengthening State and Local Efforts to Counter Transnational Repression Act
July 10, 2024
As ordered reported by the House Committee on Homeland Security on April 10, 2024
Cost Estimate
H.R. 8361, Economic Espionage Prevention Act
July 10, 2024
As ordered reported by the House Committee on Foreign Affairs on May 16, 2024
Cost Estimate
H.R. 4551, Protecting Investors’ Personally Identifiable Information Act
July 9, 2024
As ordered reported by the House Committee on Financial Services on May 16, 2024
Cost Estimate
H.R. 8372, Debt Per Taxpayer Information Act
July 9, 2024
As ordered reported by the House Committee on the Budget on May 16, 2024
Report
Monthly Budget Review: June 2024
July 9, 2024
The federal budget deficit was $1.3 trillion in the first nine months of fiscal year 2024, CB0 estimates—$118 billion less than the deficit recorded during the same period last fiscal year.
Report
Testimony on An Update to the Budget and Economic Outlook: 2024 to 2034
July 9, 2024
CBO’s Director, Phillip Swagel, testifies about the agency's most recent analysis of the outlook for the budget and the economy before the Senate Budget Committee.
Working Paper
The Effects of Flood Damage on the Subsidy Cost of Federally Backed Mortgages: Working Paper 2024-04
July 8, 2024
CBO uses data on mortgages and expected flood damage for each residential property in the United States to examine how much flood damage is expected to increase the cost of federally backed mortgages.
FASB
FASB Issues New and Final Chapter of Its Conceptual Framework: Measurement
July 12, 2024
Joint Meeting of the Private Company Council (PCC) and the Small Business Advisory Committee (SBAC)—June 25, 2024
July 11, 2024
GAO
Rental Housing:
Opportunities Exist to Improve Oversight of Assistance to Survivors of Domestic Violence or Sexual Assault
GAO-24-106481
Published: Jul 11, 2024 . Publicly Released: Jul 11, 2024 .
The Department of Housing and Urban Development partners with public housing agencies and private property owners to provide housing assistance that allows families to pay affordable, income-based rent. HUD requires that its housing providers have emergency transfer plans to move survivors of domestic violence or sexual assault from their current subsidized housing unit to one in a new location. Most housing providers we reviewed had...
IT Systems Annual Assessment:
DOD Needs to Strengthen Software Metrics and Address Continued Cybersecurity and Reporting Gaps
GAO-24-106912
Published: Jul 11, 2024 . Publicly Released: Jul 11, 2024 .
DOD spent, or planned to spend, $9.1 billion on IT business programs in FYs 2022-24. In our annual assessment, we reviewed 21 of those programs and found 10 are developing software and using an Agile approach. This is an iterative development process in which software is delivered in increments throughout the project, letting program staff catch errors quickly and get continual user feedback. But 4...
Open GAO Recommendations:
Financial Benefits Could Be Between $106 Billion and $208 Billion
GAO-24-107146
Published: Jul 11, 2024 . Publicly Released: Jul 11, 2024 .
GAO routinely makes 1,200 or more recommendations each year to assist Congress and improve government performance. Typically, over 75% of GAO's recommendations are implemented—i.e., "closed." Many of these recommendations are intended to save money and enhance revenue. Because GAO makes recommendations on an ongoing basis, there is always an inventory of open recommendations. As of March 2024, 5,480 GAO recommendations were open. We estimate that...
DOD Financial Management:
FY 2023 Financial Statement Audit Progress and Challenges
GAO-24-107478
Published: Jul 11, 2024 . Publicly Released: Jul 11, 2024 .
We found that DOD made progress toward achieving a "clean" audit opinion in FY 2023—i.e., when auditors find that financial statements are presented fairly in accordance with accounting principles. This Snapshot summarizes the progress DOD has made. For example, the Marine Corps received a "clean" opinion on its FY 2023 financial statements. However, challenges remain. DOD's Office of Inspector General issued a disclaimer of opinion...
Federal Fisheries Management:
Efforts to Reduce and Monitor Unintentional Catch and Harm Need Better Tracking
GAO-24-106336
Published: Jun 14, 2024 . Publicly Released: Jul 10, 2024 .
The National Marine Fisheries Service tries to minimize bycatch—marine life unintentionally caught or harmed by fishing. Fisheries observers deploy on fishing vessels to count bycatch and NMFS uses this data to make bycatch estimates. But the percentage of fishing trips with observers varies, and estimates are less reliable for fisheries with fewer observers. For instance, only 2% of the fishing trips in the Gulf of...
U.S. Consolidated Financial Statements:
Continued Improvements Needed in Treasury and OMB Preparation Process Controls
GAO-24-107443
Published: Jul 10, 2024 . Publicly Released: Jul 10, 2024 .
We audit the U.S. government's consolidated financial statements annually. Ongoing problems prevent us from determining whether the statements fairly present the government's finances. In our FY 2023 audit, we found that Treasury and OMB improved processes for preparing the financial statements, including addressing three of our recommendations related to the analysis of agencies' financial data. We did not make any new recommendations in this report...
National Nuclear Security Administration:
Actions Needed to Improve Integration of Production Modernization Programs and Projects
GAO-24-106342
Published: Jul 9, 2024 . Publicly Released: Jul 9, 2024 .
The National Nuclear Security Administration plans to invest tens of billions of dollars in its decades-long effort to modernize the facilities and infrastructure needed to produce nuclear weapons. To achieve its modernization goals, NNSA must integrate 8 key programs and 16 related projects managed by separate offices within the agency. But NNSA doesn't follow certain best practices to ensure this integration occurs—specifically for schedules and...
Science & Tech Spotlight:
Textile Recycling Technologies
GAO-24-107486
Published: Jul 9, 2024 . Publicly Released: Jul 9, 2024 .
Disaster Relief Fund:
Lessons Learned from COVID-19 Could Improve FEMA's Estimates
GAO-24-106676
Published: Jul 9, 2024 . Publicly Released: Jul 9, 2024 .
This Q&A report looks at FEMA's oversight of the Disaster Relief Fund, which provides federal assistance for emergencies like the COVID-19 pandemic. As of March 2024, FEMA had committed to spend $125.3 billion from the fund for COVID-19-related assistance like vaccinations, testing sites, and more—and had spent $103.6 billion of it. But FEMA underestimated its COVID-19-related costs. When the fund runs low, FEMA might have...
Substance Misuse Treatment and Recovery:
Federal Guidance Needs to Address Work Arrangements for Those Living in Residential Facilities
GAO-24-106101
Published: Jul 8, 2024 . Publicly Released: Jul 8, 2024 .
For the millions of Americans struggling with substance misuse, residential treatment and recovery facilities may provide much-needed housing and healthcare. Some facilities require residents to have jobs—which can provide financial stability and structure. But working too soon could be detrimental to their recovery, according to Department of Health and Human Services officials. HHS has some guidance on the role of work in treatment and recovery...
Priority Open Recommendations:
Department of Defense
GAO-24-107327
Published: Jun 28, 2024 . Publicly Released: Jul 8, 2024 .
Each year, we make more than 1,000 recommendations to help the federal government save money, address issues on our High Risk List, and significantly improve government operations. This letter to the Department of Defense outlines 90 open recommendations that it should prioritize, including 6 that address barracks and privatized housing. For example, DOD should clarify its guidance on minimum health and safety standards for barracks...
Financial Audit Manual:
Volume 3, July 2024
GAO-24-107280
Published: Jul 8, 2024 . Publicly Released: Jul 8, 2024 .
The Financial Audit Manual (FAM) presents a methodology for performing financial statement audits of federal entities in accordance with professional standards. It is a tool for enhancing accountability over taxpayer-provided resources. This July 2024 revision replaces Financial Audit Manual, Volume 3 (June 2023 version) and contains the Federal Financial Reporting Checklist. The FAM also consists of: Volume 1: the audit methodology Volume 2: detailed implementation...
NOAA Mariner Recruitment and Retention:
Actions Needed to Develop a Strategic Workforce Planning Process
GAO-24-106958
Published: Jul 8, 2024 . Publicly Released: Jul 8, 2024 .
The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration has 15 ships it uses for fisheries research, nautical charting, and other scientific missions. NOAA needs more mariners to support these ships. This Q&A report examines NOAA's recruitment and retention efforts amid a global mariner shortage. For example, a recent effort to address mariner feedback aims to reduce the stretches of time that NOAA mariners spend at sea. NOAA...
Defense Health Care:
DOD Should Improve Accuracy of Behavioral Health Provider Information in TRICARE Directories
GAO-24-106588
Published: Jul 8, 2024 . Publicly Released: Jul 8, 2024 .
DOD's TRICARE program provides health care to active and retired service members and their families. This includes behavioral health care, such as treatment for mental health conditions and substance use disorders. TRICARE beneficiaries can receive care at DOD facilities or through networks of civilian providers. Beneficiaries can find these civilian providers through online directories. We reviewed listings for behavioral health providers in these directories and...
Priority Open Recommendations:
Department of Energy
GAO-24-107308
Published: Jun 28, 2024 . Publicly Released: Jul 8, 2024 .
Each year, we make more than 1,000 recommendations to help the federal government save money, address issues on our High Risk List, and significantly improve government operations. This letter to the Department of Energy outlines 27 open recommendations that it should prioritize. For example, DOE should coordinate processes for providing oversight of large nuclear energy demonstration projects, which involve new types of nuclear reactors. These...
Firefighting Foam:
DOD is Working to Address Challenges to Transitioning to PFAS-Free Alternatives
GAO-24-107322
Published: Jul 8, 2024 . Publicly Released: Jul 8, 2024 .
The Defense Department is required to transition away from using firefighting foam that contains PFAS, a class of chemicals that poses health risks and has been found in drinking water around bases. This kind of foam has been considered the most effective product for suppressing jet fuel fires. The military departments have identified challenges that may slow the transition. These include: Lack of a drop-in...
Nuclear Waste Cleanup:
Closer Alignment with Leading Practices Needed to Improve Department of Energy Program Management
GAO-24-105975
Published: Jun 4, 2024 . Publicly Released: Jul 8, 2024 .
The Department of Energy has spent over $215 billion since 1989 to clean up hazardous and radioactive waste. It estimates that the remaining work will cost about $675 billion more. DOE recognizes that remaining work must be safe and cost-effective and has incorporated some program management leading practices as it implements a cleanup plan. For example, DOE is developing life-cycle cost and schedule estimates to...
K-12 Education:
Differences in Student Arrest Rates Widen when Race, Gender, and Disability Status Overlap
GAO-24-106294
Published: Jul 8, 2024 . Publicly Released: Jul 8, 2024 .
We reviewed the Department of Education's data on school police and the arrest rates of students of different races in the nation's K-12 schools. Students' race and ethnicity, gender, and disability status mattered when it came to rates of arrest and referrals to police. Specifically, the most recent available data (2017-18) showed that Native Hawaiian/Pacific Islander, Black, and American Indian/Alaska Native students were arrested at...
Forest Service:
Fully Following Leading Practices for Agency Reforms Would Strengthen Prescribed Fire Program
GAO-24-106239
Published: Jun 5, 2024 . Publicly Released: Jul 8, 2024 .
The Forest Service is reforming its prescribed fire program. Prescribed fire—or deliberately burning specific areas under managed conditions—is used to mitigate wildfire risk. The agency plans to use prescribed fire more and has been following leading practices to reform its program, but not fully. We found gaps in these areas: Establishing outcome-oriented performance measures Planning to address staffing needs Implementing a reform plan Dedicating staff...
IASB
July 2024 International Accounting Standards Board agenda and meeting papers now available
Meeting
12 July 2024
May 2024 Emerging Economies Group meeting report now available
Meeting
12 July 2024
July 2024 International Sustainability Standards Board agenda and meeting papers now available
Meeting
12 July 2024
Q2 2024 IFRS Interpretations Committee podcast now available
Podcast
8 July 2024
IFRS Foundation Conference 2024—Key highlights
Conference
8 July 2024
Join the staff—new career opportunities available
Careers
5 July 2024
IRS
IRS reminds car dealers and sellers to be aware of phishing scams
IR-2024-186, July 11, 2024 — The Internal Revenue Service would like to remind car dealers and sellers to be aware of evolving phishing and smishing scams that could impact day-to-day operations of the business.
IRS tops $1 billion in past-due taxes collected from millionaires; compliance efforts continue involving high-wealth groups, corporations, partnerships
IR-2024-185, July 11, 2024 — As part of continuing compliance efforts under the Inflation Reduction Act, the Internal Revenue Service today announced the agency has surpassed the $1 billion mark in collections from high-wealth taxpayers with past-due taxes.
Treasury, IRS issue frequently asked questions regarding registration for the Clean Fuel Production Credit
IR-2024-184, July 10, 2024 — The Internal Revenue Service today issued frequently asked questions (FAQs) in Fact Sheet 2024-25 related to which entities must apply for registration for the Clean Fuel Production Credit.
New, evolving scams threaten tax professionals; Security Summit warns extra attention needed on trending threats that could affect businesses, clients
IR-2024-183, July 9, 2024 — The Internal Revenue Service and the Security Summit renewed a warning today to tax professionals to be on the lookout for a variety of new and evolving schemes aimed at stealing business and taxpayer information.
NYS
NYS Tax Department Encourages STAR Credit Recipients in Columbia County to Enroll in Direct Deposit
July 10, 2024
NYS Tax Department Encourages STAR Credit Recipients in Erie and Niagara Counties to Enroll in Direct Deposit
July 10, 2024
SEC
SEC Small Business Advisory Committee to Explore Recent Changes to U.S. Small Business Administration’s Small Business Investment Company Program
2024-84
Washington D.C., July 12, 2024 —The Securities and Exchange Commission’s Small Business Capital Formation Advisory Committee today released the agenda for its meeting on Tuesday, July 30, 2024, which will include an exploration of recent changes to the U.S. Small Business Administration’s (SBA) Small Business Investment Company (SBIC) program. Members of the public can watch the live meeting via webcast on www.sec.gov.
TIGTA
Virtual Currency Tax Compliance Enforcement Can Be Improved
July 10, 2024