Government Accountability Office

The U.S. Government Accountability Office (GAO) is an independent, nonpartisan government agency within the legislative branch that provides auditing, evaluative, and investigative services for the United States Congress. It is the supreme audit institution of the federal government of the United States. It identifies its core "mission values" as: accountability, integrity, and reliability. It is also known as the "congressional watchdog". The agency is headed by the Comptroller General of the United States. The comptroller general is appointed by the president with the advice and consent of the Senate. When a vacancy occurs in the office of the comptroller general, Congress establishes a commission to recommend individuals to the president. The commission consists of the following:the speaker of the United States House of Representatives the president pro tempore of the United States Senate the majority and minority leaders of the House of Representatives and the Senate the chair and ranking member of the Senate Committee on Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs the chair and ranking member of the House Committee on Oversight

Some of the key events about Government Accountability Office

1921
Established as the General Accounting Office to improve government financial management after World War I
1921
Failed to prevent the Veterans' Bureau scandal involving corruption and misuse of funds
1946
Expanded role to include auditing of government agencies and programs
1946
Criticized for inadequate oversight of wartime contracts and spending during World War II
1967
Faced accusations of political bias in its investigations of the Vietnam War
1970
Began conducting program evaluations to assess the effectiveness of federal programs
1974
Gained authority to access federal agency records for audits and evaluations
1976
Criticized for insufficient scrutiny of nuclear power plant safety regulations
1983
Questioned for its handling of investigations into defense contractor fraud
1986
Issued first high-risk list identifying federal programs vulnerable to waste, fraud, and abuse
1995
Criticized for inadequate oversight of the savings and loan crisis cleanup
2002
Faced controversy over its delayed reporting on Enron's accounting practices
2004
Changed name to Government Accountability Office to better reflect its mission
2007
Established the Center for Audit Excellence to promote good governance globally
2008
Questioned for insufficient warnings about the impending financial crisis
2010
Launched FraudNet, a system for reporting allegations of fraud, waste, and abuse
2014
Developed the Duplication and Cost Savings web portal to track government efficiency efforts
2014
Criticized for failing to prevent widespread fraud in disability benefits claims
2019
Faced backlash for not providing timely access to documents related to the Trump administration's Ukraine dealings
2020
Provided critical oversight of the federal government's COVID-19 pandemic response

Disclaimer: This material is written based on information taken from open sources, including Wikipedia, news media, podcasts, and other public sources.

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