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Recommendations Database

GAO’s recommendations database contains report recommendations that still need to be addressed. GAO’s priority recommendations are those that we believe warrant priority attention. We sent letters to the heads of key departments and agencies, urging them to continue focusing on these issues. Below you can search only priority recommendations, or search all recommendations.

Our recommendations help congressional and agency leaders prepare for appropriations and oversight activities, as well as help improve government operations. Moreover, when implemented, some of our priority recommendations can save large amounts of money, help Congress make decisions on major issues, and substantially improve or transform major government programs or agencies, among other benefits.

As of October 25, 2020, there are 4812 open recommendations, of which 473 are priority recommendations. Recommendations remain open until they are designated as Closed-implemented or Closed-not implemented.

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Results:

Subject Term: "Aircraft acquisition program"

2 publications with a total of 4 open recommendations
Download these results in CSV format or XLSX format.
Slot-Controlled Airports: FAA's Rules Could Be Improved to Enhance Competition and Use of Available Capacity
GAO-12-902, Sep 13, 2012
Director: Fleming, Susan A
Phone: (202) 512-2834

2 open recommendations
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Recommendation: To help maximize the use of available capacity at slot-controlled airports, enhance competition through greater airline access to slots, and enhance transparency of slot information, the Secretary of Transportation should direct the FAA Administrator to apply slot rules to individual slots, as opposed to pools of slots within a slot period.

Agency: Department of Transportation
Status: Open

Comments: In January 2015, the FAA issued a Notice of Proposed Rulemaking (NPRM) for the New York City area airports. The proposal included changes to how the FAA would determine compliance with minimum slot usage rules similar to GAO's recommendation and the WSG. Under that concept, a slot would only be considered for a flight or series of flights in a single slot and not potentially applied or averaged to more than one slot. The NPRM was withdrawn by DOT and FAA in April 2016 to allow further evaluation of recent changes in demand, competition, operations, and other factors in the New York City area airports. The FAA and the Office of the Secretary continue to evaluate the circumstances at the New York City area airports and DCA and, if necessary, will consider steps to ensure compliance with minimum slot usage, including future rulemaking. In March 2018, DOT indicated that it has no plans to initiate a rulemaking on this issue. As of June 2019, DOT plans no further action on this recommendation. However, GAO believes this recommendation continues to have merit.
Recommendation: With respect to possible future regulatory action, the DOT Secretary should consider requiring airlines to schedule a certain percentage, or all, of their slot allocations, similar to practices maintained elsewhere in the world.

Agency: Department of Transportation
Status: Open

Comments: The Department concurs that any future rulemaking should consider changes to the minimum slot usage rules to improve slot utilization at the slot controlled airports and provide greater harmonization with industry standards applied at airports outside the U.S. The FAA and the Department of Transportation stated that they will evaluate the circumstances at the New York City area airports and DCA and, if necessary, will consider steps to improve slot utilization, including future rulemaking. As of June 2019, DOT plans no further action on this recommendation. However, GAO believes this recommendation continues to have merit.
Airport Noise Grants: FAA Needs to Better Ensure Project Eligibility and Improve Strategic Goal and Performance Measures
GAO-12-890, Sep 12, 2012
Director: Dillingham, Gerald L
Phone: (202) 512-2834

2 open recommendations
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Recommendation: To better ensure that federal investments effectively address the remaining airport noise problem and to more fully demonstrate the results of AIP noise grants, the Secretary of Transportation should direct FAA to establish a strategic noise reduction goal that aligns with the nature and extent of airport noise and targets the agency's noise grant program.

Agency: Department of Transportation
Status: Open

Comments: In August 2019, FAA officials stated that the FAA's overall noise reduction goal is fundamentally separate from noise mitigation. At the same time, FAA indicated that airport noise is a growing concern and highlighted multiple aspects of the agency's noise-related activities, including providing community workshops associated with changes to air traffic procedures and continued support for noise compatibility planning by airports. The noise grant program continues to be FAA's largest noise-related activity. Until FAA aligns its strategic noise goal with the noise grant program, it is difficult to see how this program's results contribute to the achieving agency objectives.
Recommendation: To better ensure that federal investments effectively address the remaining airport noise problem and to more fully demonstrate the results of AIP noise grants, the Secretary of Transportation should direct FAA to establish performance measures to assess progress toward this goal that better demonstrate the results of the program and provide Congress and FAA's program managers with information to gauge progress and make programmatic decisions.

Agency: Department of Transportation
Status: Open

Comments: In August 2019, FAA officials stated that the FAA's overall noise reduction goal is fundamentally separate from noise mitigation. Absent FAA actions to align this goal with the noise grant program, FAA cannot develop measurements of noise grant program results that gauge progress towards such a goal. Without this information, Congress and FAA program managers cannot make fully informed decisions about what the noise grant program can reasonably be expected to address in the future and the extent to which noise exposure remains a constraint on airport growth.