Fiscal Year 1994 Budget Estimates for the General Accounting Office

GAO discussed its fiscal year (FY) 1994 appropriation request. GAO requested: (1) about $497 million, an 11-percent increase over its FY 1992 appropriation request; (2) restoration of FY 1993 reductions in training and permanent personnel transfer expenditures; (3) minimum funding to continue asbestos abatement and renovations so that staff in rental space can return to the GAO building; and (4) sufficient funding for telecommunications equipment, microcomputers, and computer software applications for its pilot computer network. GAO noted that: (1) since 1988, its workload has increased by various measures without any staff increases; (2) in FY 1992, its work resulted in significant government financial benefits and nonmonetary improvements in government operations; (3) it will need additional funding to address major issues of concern, continue work on long-standing problems, and assess the costs and effectiveness of other federal programs; (4) it instituted a quality management initiative to better respond to its increasingly large and complex workload; (5) it is reviewing its policies and practices and making changes to ensure that its work remains nonpartisan; (6) it established an audit advisory committee composed of non-GAO personnel to provide advice and some oversight on its financial operations; and (7) it has an internal and an external quality review system. GAO also discussed its transition reports and high-risk series reports, which focused on problems and improvements in government operations.