A Guide to Sources for Identifying General Accounting Office Reports

This publication is a description of various sources, including printed materials and computerized database files, and how they can be used to identify GAO reports. GAO has used several systems (A-Numbers, B-Numbers, division numbers, and I-Numbers) to identify its reports, decisions, and other documents. Before fiscal year 1975, it was necessary to know the exact date a report was issued to obtain a copy, as A-Numbers, B-Numbers, and I-Numbers represented subject areas and were not unique identifying numbers. In 1975, GAO began assigning a division number in conjunction with the A-Number or B-Number. The division number is unique to an individual report. It includes the acronym for the division which issued the report, the last two digits of the year in which the report was issued, and a sequentially assigned number. Assistance in identifying GAO reports can be obtained from the GAO Document Handling and Information Services Facility (DHISF). DHISF has developed a bibliographic database which is used to generate and photocompose the GAO Documents journal. The database can be used for searching and retrieving information on documents published by GAO. Access points to the database include subject, agency/organization concerned, congressional relevance, GAO issue area, and budget functions. It includes information beginning with fiscal year 1977 through the present date.