89-838 98-8 LEAD-BASED PAINT POISONING: CHILDREN IN ADEQUATELY PROTECTED Tests by local health agencies showed that 7 of the 11 section 8 tenant-based residences selected for review contained lead-based paint hazards. Although federal regulations require public housing authorities to test the paint in homes of children with elevated lead levels and to require corrective actions, the four public housing authorities responsible for these residences did not know whether the testing was being done. In addition, local health agencies did not routinely determine whether the children with elevated lead levels whom they had identified resided in section 8 housing; therefore, they did not notify the responsible housing authorities of the children's condition or of the testing that had been performed. (RCED-94-137) June 1994 84 Reports to Congress 22 Testimonies FINANCIAL MANAGEMENT: CFO ACT IS Testimony by the Comptroller General of the United States, Charles A. Bowsher The Chief Financial Officers (CFO) Act of 1990, which requires annual financial reports at selected federal agencies, has helped identify management inefficiencies and weaknesses, expose gaps in how government assets are safeguarded, uncover possible illegal activity, and identify actual and potential savings totaling hundreds of millions of dollars. Because the act's provisions are so relevant to improving government operations, GAO strongly supports expanding its requirements to the 23 major agencies and the government as a whole. (T-AIMD-94-149) SINGLE AUDIT: REFINEMents Can ImPROVE The single audit process, formalized in 1984 legislation, has strengthened state and local governments' financial management practices, thereby enhancing the accountability for federal financial assistance provided to these entities. But several issues limit the usefulness of single audit reports. For example, criteria for selecting entities for single audits and programs that must be tested need to be changed, and access to single audit reports by oversight officials and | program managers needs to be improved. (AIMD-94-133) |