The Work of the Comptroller General and His Reporting to the Congress of the United States

GAO, headed by the Comptroller General, is an independent agency within the legislative branch of the Government with oversight responsibilities over the executive branch. Its objectives are to provide information and advice to Congress by answering specific requests for assistance and using its own discretion in undertaking audits and evaluations. In 1975, GAO reorganized to provide for greater specialization by using the "Lead Division Concept" which assigned responsibilities in 35 key "issue areas." Governmental auditing has changed over the past 12years through new techniques such as the computer and because of the emergence of program results auditing. This has necessitated the expansion of GAO professional audit staff to include specialists in various disciplines and the use of outside experts.