Government Accountability Office (GAO)

The Government Accountability Office (GAO) is an agency of the U.S. federal government that reports to Congress and bills itself as independent and nonpartisan. Founded in 1921 as the General Accounting Office, its was renamed the Government Accountability Office (GAO) in 2004.

The GAO is assigned to monitor various governmental agencies and their expenses. It studies the effectiveness of governmental expenditures, focusing primarily on the executive branch. The GAO seeks to make government more accountable and effective in managing programs and spending tax dollars. The current budget for the GAO is approximately $500 million per year, and the office has a staff of slightly more than 3,000 people.

Because the GAO principally monitors the programs of the executive branch, it is specifically removed from the purview of the executive. The comptroller general of the United States heads the GAO. A special congressional committee recommends candidates for controller, the president nominates the controller, and the Senate confirms the controller for a single term of 15 years. The professional staff of the GAO is organized into teams such as “health care,” “defense capabilities,” and “acquisition and sourcing management.” The GAO is headquartered in Washington, D.C., and has 11 other offices in major cities across the United States.

As examples of its work, the GAO has recently issued reports on federal farm programs, crop insurance, the food stamp program, bankruptcy reform, Hispanic representation in the federal workforce, nuclear security, human trafficking, and intercollegiate athletics. All of the GAO's reports appear on its Web site, and the public may request free printed copies of the reports as well.

The creation and dissemination of such a wide range of studies requires a variety of professional staff members, and the GAO offers career paths for analysts, information technology specialists, financial auditors, economists, attorneys, and communication analysts. It is not at all unusual for the GAO to issue a report on some highly technical practice of government; maintaining such a capability requires the GAO to have a staff of experts in many fields.

In spite of a long and generally well-maintained reputation for objectivity, the GAO does come under repeated criticism. Critics generally object to findings in specific reports rather than to the overall quality or objectivity of the agency. Nonetheless, conflict with Congress did lead to a significant reduction in the budget and staffing of the GAO; 2007 budget and staffing levels were about 27% lower than the peak levels of 1995.