Official U.S. Representation at Government-Sponsored Public	 
Policy Forums (21-OCT-05, GAO-06-89R).				 
                                                                 
The U.S. government annually sponsors thousands of conferences,  
symposiums, seminars, and other policy-related forums that	 
involve individuals and organizations from outside the U.S.	 
government. These forums present opportunities for U.S. and	 
foreign audiences to discuss public policy issues and are	 
designed to advance U.S. government interests. For example, some 
forums are intended to educate participants about official U.S.  
government positions and policies on issues of public concern,	 
such as the war in Iraq, development of alternative energy	 
sources, human trafficking, and protection of endangered species.
Other forums serve as venues for soliciting input on policy	 
issues from the public and from selected external experts,	 
including academics, scientists, journalists, and representatives
of nongovernmental organizations. Congress requested information 
on these forums, noting that official U.S. representation at the 
forums is important for ensuring that they achieve their	 
objectives. This letter provides information on forums sponsored 
by the Departments of State, Defense, Energy, and Interior from  
2001 through 2004. For the policy-related forums sponsored by	 
these four departments, we (1) determined the extent to which	 
U.S. government officials participated in the forums, and (2)	 
identified the departmental policies and procedures governing	 
participation by U.S. officials at these events.		 
-------------------------Indexing Terms------------------------- 
REPORTNUM:   GAO-06-89R 					        
    ACCNO:   A40077						        
  TITLE:     Official U.S. Representation at Government-Sponsored     
Public Policy Forums						 
     DATE:   10/21/2005 
  SUBJECT:   Foreign policies					 
	     International relations				 
	     Public diplomacy					 
	     Public officials					 
	     Conferences					 
	     Policies and procedures				 

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GAO-06-89R

     

     * Official U.S. Representation at DOE Policy Forums
     * Policies and Practices Governing Participation by U.S. Offic
     * Department of the Interior Policy Forums
          * Official U.S. Representation at Interior Policy Forums
          * Policies and Practices Governing Participation by U.S. Offic
     * Enclosure I
     * Enclosure II
     * Enclosure III
     * PDF6-Ordering Information.pdf
          * Order by Mail or Phone

United States Government Accountability Office Washington, DC 20548

October 21, 2005

The Honorable Trent Lott Chairman Committee on Rules and Administration
United States Senate

The Honorable Gordon H. Smith United States Senate

Subject: Official U.S. Representation at Government-Sponsored Public
Policy Forums

The U.S. government annually sponsors thousands of conferences,
symposiums, seminars, and other policy-related forums that involve
individuals and organizations from outside the U.S. government. These
forums present opportunities for U.S. and foreign audiences to discuss
public policy issues and are designed to advance U.S. government
interests. For example, some forums are intended to educate participants
about official U.S. government positions and policies on issues of public
concern, such as the war in Iraq, development of alternative energy
sources, human trafficking, and protection of endangered species. Other
forums serve as venues for soliciting input on policy issues from the
public and from selected external experts, including academics,
scientists, journalists, and representatives of nongovernmental
organizations.

You requested information on these forums, noting that official U.S.
representation at the forums is important for ensuring that they achieve
their objectives. This letter provides information on forums sponsored by
the Departments of State, Defense, Energy, and Interior from 2001 through
2004. 1 For the policy-related forums sponsored by these four departments,
we (1) determined the extent to which U.S. government officials
participated in the forums, and (2) identified the departmental policies
and procedures governing participation by U.S. officials at these events.

To meet these objectives, we distributed questionnaires, tailored to each
department, requesting specific information about the policy forums they
funded or hosted from 2001 through 2004. We collected information on the
title, date, location, and purpose of each forum as well as an indication
of whether a U.S. official participated in the event. We did not implement
the questionnaire at the Department of Energy as this department routinely
collects the information we were seeking in a central database. We also
interviewed key officials throughout the departments about their policies
and

1

Unless otherwise noted, years cited in this report refer to calendar
years.

informal practices governing policy forums and compared them with actual
practices, as reported to us through the questionnaires. Because the
questionnaires we used reflected each department's unique organizational
structure, mission, and operations, the data are not comparable across
departments. For increased assurance that the data the departments
reported to us were reliable, we obtained additional documentation on
selected forums and conducted independent research using publicly
available data sources. For each department, we determined that the data
were sufficiently reliable for assessing the overall extent of
participation by U.S. officials at policy forums. A more detailed
description of our scope and methodology is included in Enclosure I. We
conducted our work between January 2005 and September 2005 in accordance
with generally accepted government auditing standards.

                                    Summary

The Departments of State, Defense, Energy, and Interior sponsored a wide
variety of policy forums from 2001 through 2004 as part of their programs
and missions within the United States and throughout the world. The four
departments' data showed that

U.S.
           officials participated in virtually all of these events. For
           example, of the approximately 8,800 policy forums the Department
           of State (State) reported sponsoring during this period, about 97
           percent were attended by U.S. government officials from State or
           another federal agency; the remaining forums did not include a

U.S.
           government official, primarily due to personnel and resource
           constraints. According to the public affairs officer at the U.S.
           embassy in France, for instance, the increased demand for speakers
           to discuss U.S. policies on terrorism had been particularly heavy,
           precluding embassy officials from accompanying some guest experts
           before French audiences. In these cases, the public affairs
           officers determined that the objectives of the forum could be met
           without official U.S. government representation. State public
           diplomacy officials do not believe that the relatively small
           number of events held without official U.S. participation posed an
           undue risk to State's foreign policy goals. The Departments of
           Defense, Energy, and Interior, which sponsored thousands of forums
           during this period, each reported fewer than five instances in
           which no U.S. official participated in policy forums they
           sponsored. While official representation at policy forums does not
           guarantee that government policies and positions were presented,
           each of the four departments reported that U.S. officials were
           nearly always on hand to speak on behalf of the government if it
           was necessary and appropriate.

None of the four departments had written policies requiring U.S. officials
to attend or actively promote U.S. policies and positions at
government-sponsored forums. However, departmental policies and practices
were designed to ensure that such forums did not undermine the
departments' missions. For example, State has rules and operating guidance
in place that are intended to prevent department-sponsored speakers from
misrepresenting U.S. policies and positions, such as requiring many guest
speakers to be vetted by the department's International Information
Programs office. Also, the Department of Defense (DOD) requires its
agencies to ensure that all forums co-sponsored with nonfederal entities
are closely related to DOD's missions.

Existing policies and procedures at the departments were aimed at limiting
the costs-particularly travel costs-associated with larger forums rather
than ensuring a minimum level of U.S. participation at all forums.
Specifically, three of the four agencies required special high-level
management review for events involving the travel of 25 to 30 or more
attendees.

                                   Background

Conferences, symposiums, seminars, and other policy forums are convened
and funded under the four departments' many different programs and
missions. Their management is thus highly diffused across the agencies and
offices of the departments we reviewed. Of the four departments, only the
Department of Energy maintains a central database with management
information on the forums the department sponsors.

The extent to which the departments sponsor these forums varies. Sometimes
departments host forums in their entirety, providing the venue and
hospitality, setting the agenda, inviting the speakers and participants,
and even funding participants' travel expenses. Departments also
co-sponsor forums with other organizations, providing partial funding or
in-kind logistical support. In planning a conference, federal travel
regulations require agencies to establish internal policies to ensure that
they minimize administrative, travel, and staff time costs.

In addition, each department in our review sponsors Federal Advisory
Committees, whose meetings provide a formal and ongoing venue for a
selected group of external experts to share their views on national policy
issues with department officials. By law, a designated federal official
must convene and chair (or attend) all Federal Advisory Committee meetings
and approve the agenda. 2

                       Department of State Policy Forums

State sponsored a wide variety of policy forums and federal advisory
committee meetings, and about 97 percent of the nearly 8,800 forums we
identified were attended by an official U.S. representative from State or
another federal agency. Most forums also included a federal official on
the agenda of the event. State has no written policies requiring U.S.
officials to attend or actively promote U.S. policies. However, according
to agency officials we interviewed, operating guidance, rules, and
informal practices help mitigate the risk that speakers might misrepresent
U.S. policies and positions. Also, a specific and higher-level approval
process is prescribed for forums that require 25 or more people to travel.

5 U.S.C. app. 2 S:10.

Official U.S. Representation at State Department Forums

From 2001 through 2004, State reported sponsoring 8,772 conferences,
seminars, and other forums designed to allow people and organizations from
outside the U.S. government to exchange views on foreign affairs and other
public policy issues. Policy forums constitute a major component of
State's public diplomacy and public affairs efforts. Embassies and other
overseas posts frequently sponsor policy forums designed to help meet
their objectives for furthering U.S. interests within the host country.
For example, posts sponsor U.S. government officials, private U.S.
citizens such as academics and commentators, and others to participate in
conferences and other forums. Sponsored guests make speeches and share
their expertise and opinions about current events and policy issues. For
example, the U.S. embassy in Algeria sponsored a senior judge from the
U.S. Court of Appeals 9th Circuit to speak on judicial reform; the embassy
in Brazil sponsored a U.S. journalist and commentator to speak on the U.S.
elections in 2004; and the embassy in Guatemala hosted an International
Conference on Drug Abuse Prevention attended by seven U.S. drug experts.
The Bureau of Public Affairs also sponsors and arranges forums within the
United States at which State officials speak to local audiences on U.S.
foreign policies concerning certain countries or geographic regions of the
world, and on specific topics such as arms control, counterterrorism, and
demining.

In addition, State sponsors many forums, primarily in Washington, to seek
input from nongovernmental experts when formulating policies, positions,
and approaches. For example, State's Bureau of Intelligence and Research
frequently convenes experts to provide ambassadors, State officials, and
other government officials with a variety of viewpoints on a certain issue
or country situation. Such forums have included a conference on organized
crime in Latin America, a seminar on the Israeli elections and coalition
prospects, and a workshop on international oceanographic research. In
addition, at meetings of State's 21 Federal Advisory Committees, outside
experts provide input to the department on a host of foreign policy and
foreign affairs management issues, such an international economic policy,
overseas schools, and cultural diplomacy. Also, the Secretary's Open Forum
provides a venue for individuals from outside the department or the U.S.
government to make presentations on foreign policy topics, primarily to
State Department staff. The Open Forum was established in 1967 during U.S.
involvement in the Vietnam conflict to strengthen the American foreign
policy process by encouraging creative thinking on vital policy issues,
including presentations of differing visions and viewpoints. Both critics
and supporters of U.S. policy have made speeches through this forum.

U.S.
           government officials participated in virtually all State-sponsored
           policy forums. According to data provided by the State Department,
           State and other federal officials attended about 97 percent of
           these events and were thus on hand to discuss official

U.S.
           policies and positions if necessary and appropriate. Furthermore,
           State reported that a U.S. official was included formally on the
           agenda as a speaker, participant, or chair for about 72 percent of
           all the policy forums we identified.

According to the data provided by State, attendance by State officials
differed somewhat depending on whether the forum was sponsored by a
Washington-based office or by embassy or other overseas post. For all but
two of the 3,028 policy forums sponsored by a Washington-based office, at
least one State or other U.S. government official attended the event. This
includes all 420 meetings of State's Federal Advisory Committees. Of the
5,744 forums sponsored by the overseas posts and their corresponding
geographic bureaus 3 from 2001 through 2004, about 95 percent were
attended by a State official or other U.S. government official with
authority to speak on behalf of the U.S. government.

State officials we spoke to at posts overseas cited various reasons for
not including

        U.S.
                official participation in about 5 percent of the forums they
                sponsored. Public affairs officers at several posts told us
                that their posts did not always have enough foreign service
                officers, travel funds, or other resources necessary to
                attend the events. For example, the public affairs officer in
                France indicated that in the wake of the September 11, 2001,
                terrorist attacks, the embassy experienced a surge in its
                speaker programs, leaving it shorthanded in trying to attend
                all of its sponsored events. As a result, in some instances
                the embassy sponsored guest speakers to participate in
                various policy forums throughout the country without a
                foreign service officer in attendance. The press officer in
                Kazakhstan noted that in many cases forums were held in
                regional cities outside the capital, where travel was
                difficult and usually required 2 to 3 days. Thus, the
                extended absence of a foreign service officer from the
                embassy would adversely impact a small post's operations.
                Some State officials emphasized that, depending on a forum's
                purpose, official U.S. positions and policies may not always
                be explicitly presented or discussed, even if

U.S.
           officials participated. One public affairs officer explained that
           embassy representatives may want to maintain a low profile to
           avoid the appearance of U.S. influence on the discussion. This
           might be true, for example, if the event's purpose was to
           highlight the importance of free speech. Similarly, a Bureau of
           Intelligence and Research official indicated that the Bureau's
           events are more productive in gathering information when
           participating U.S. officials encourage diverse viewpoints, rather
           than debating or challenging viewpoints if they conflict with
           official U.S. positions. At events attended primarily by State
           officials, such as the Secretary's Open Forum events, active
           promotion of U.S. policies is usually unnecessary, according to
           officials responsible for arranging these events. Attendees are
           assumed to be well versed in U.S. foreign policy by virtue of
           their positions within the Department.

Policies and Practices Governing Participation by U.S. Officials in State
Department Policy Forums

We found no written policies that require State officials to attend or
actively promote

U.S. policy and positions at department-sponsored policy forums. According
to senior officials throughout State, the forums are key instruments in
advancing U.S.

This includes the bureaus for African Affairs, East Asian and Pacific
Affairs, European and Eurasian Affairs, Near Eastern Affairs, Western
Hemispheric Affairs, and South Asian Affairs.

foreign policy, both domestically and overseas. As such, these officials
indicated that it is important that these events be managed effectively by
State officials. Although State does not have written policies stating how
this management is to be carried out, other existing guidance and
practices we observed are designed to ensure that the events meet the
department's overall mission and objectives.

State's written policies governing the sponsorship of policy forums are
aimed at controlling the cost of conferences and do not require the
attendance of a minimum number of U.S. officials. As of July 2004, State
requires conferences, workshops, and meetings that require the travel of
25 or more persons to be specifically approved by the Under Secretary of
Management. The sponsoring office must justify the event, specifying the
benefits to the department, anticipated outcomes, cost, timing, and
security considerations. According to the officials responsible for
managing this approval process, the Under Secretary for Management would
usually not comment on the content of the conference, the agenda, or the
choice of speakers or official attendees, as these decisions are delegated
to Assistant Secretaries for the bureaus and offices arranging the event.

While State does not have a written policy mandating the promotion of U.S.
policy at policy forums, State directives are designed to help ensure that
department officials do not contradict official U.S. policies and
positions at department-sponsored policy forums. State's Foreign Affairs
Manual includes procedures requiring employees' public comments and
writings to be pre-cleared by appropriate State officials. Although
extemporaneous remarks made at conferences do not require formal
preclearance according to the Manual, department officials are expected
not to make remarks that are inconsistent with official U.S. policy. One
senior State official we spoke to indicated that the department selects
its representatives for international conferences carefully to help ensure
that these directives are followed.

With regard to State-sponsored guest speakers overseas, departmental
practices are designed to help ensure that these speakers do not
misrepresent U.S. policies and undermine public diplomacy and public
affairs objectives. According to an official from the International
Information Programs Office, it is common practice for that office to
research the writings and public statements of speaker candidates to
verify that they hold views generally "sympathetic" to official U.S.
policy. In addition, State's training materials for public affairs
officers state that "[w]hen a speaker departs from [U.S. government]
policy, he or she should, without question, acknowledge this divergence to
the audience. If such a distinction is not made in the course of a
speaker's presentation, the [public affairs officer] should clarify this
point to the audience." Senior public diplomacy officers indicated that
this practice is particularly important when sensitive foreign policy
topics are discussed.

State officials agreed that not sending a foreign service officer to a
policy forum may increase the risk that U.S. policies will be
misrepresented. However, the public diplomacy officers at State's
geographic bureaus indicated that this risk was acceptable to them, given
the infrequency with which this occurs, the limited staffing and resources
at overseas posts to attend all events, and the confidence they have in
the speakers they invite.

Several public affairs officers at overseas posts stated that there are
other means at their disposal-short of participating in events with guest
speakers-for mitigating the risk that the speakers will undermine U.S.
public diplomacy objectives. Officials at some posts indicated that
speakers are often selected or recommended by the posts based on a proven
track record of effective presentations that are well received and that
support the posts' objectives. Also, when speakers are scheduled to
participate in a series of forums, a foreign service officer or other post
staff member may attend an initial speech to ascertain the nature of the
speaker's future remarks. Furthermore, public affairs officers said that
the ambassador and other foreign service officers may brief the speaker
upon arrival in-country on the posts' objectives, priorities, and
sensitive subjects. Finally, several public affairs officers we consulted
indicated that when they could not send a foreign service officer to
accompany a guest speaker, they would frequently send a locally employed
foreign national staff member to observe the event and report on it to
embassy and departmental management.

                      Department of Defense Policy Forums

Almost all of the more than 2,500 DOD-sponsored forums we identified
involved the direct participation of U.S. government officials. The 57 DOD
organizations we surveyed reported three forums that did not include a
federal official on the agenda. DOD has a directive stating that forums
co-sponsored with nonfederal entities should be relevant to agency
missions, as well as additional defense agency directives that say
agencies should manage events appropriately. However, these directives do
not require DOD officials to be included on conference agendas or to
actively promote

U.S. policies and positions.

Official U.S. Representation at DOD Forums

DOD sponsors a range of conferences, symposiums, and other forums designed
to share ideas with people and organizations outside the U.S. government.
A number of DOD officials stated that the forums the department sponsors
do not usually involve a direct debate of U.S. government policy, but are
sessions held to discuss the implementation of U.S. policies. From
calendar year 2001 through 2004, DOD reported sponsoring over 2,500 events
addressing a range of environmental, economic, medical, political,
technological, and security-related issues. Some forums-such as the
Defense Environmental Forum, the Defense Procurement Conference, and the
Navy Occupational Health and Preventive Medicine Conference-addressed
specific DOD operational policies and issues. Other forums-such as the
South Asia Stability Seminar and the International Rivals
Conference-addressed broader international security issues. DOD also
sponsored meetings of 71 Federal Advisory Committees to obtain input from
external experts on a variety of defense-related subjects, such as
military compensation and nuclear weapons surety.

In response to our survey, 57 DOD organizations reported that U.S.
government officials participated in virtually all of the 1,349 forums
that they sponsored from 2001 through 2004. (See encl. II for a list of
the DOD organizations we surveyed.) Three forums (less than 0.5 percent)
did not include a federal government official on the agenda as a chair,
moderator, speaker, or panelist. Two of these three forums were related to
U.S. policy. The first forum was a workshop titled "U.S. Assessments of
the Soviet and Post-Soviet Russian Economy: Lessons Learned and Not
Learned." The second event was a workshop titled "The Middle East Youth
Culture Project." Both events were the final presentations of researchers
who were under contract with a sponsoring DOD organization. According to a
DOD official, these workshops were designed to generate input for the
Secretary of Defense's long-term planning efforts. According to officials
we interviewed, DOD officials were not on the agenda when these events
took place because DOD officials did not conduct the research and attended
only to hear the results. The only other forum DOD reported that did not
have a U.S. government representative on the agenda was a retirement
training seminar for government employees, which did not involve a
discussion of U.S. government policy. In addition to the forums the DOD
organizations we surveyed reported to us, the department hosted 1,159
meetings of its Federal Advisory Committees in this time period, which by
law requires U.S. official participation. 4

Policies and Practices Governing Participation by U.S. Officials in DOD
Forums

None of the DOD organizations we surveyed reported any written
requirements for including U.S. officials on the agenda of
government-sponsored forums or promoting

U.S. policies and positions at these events. We did, however, identify a
DOD regulation 5 that requires DOD organizations co-sponsoring a
conference with nonfederal entities to ensure that the forum is relevant
to the mission of the sponsoring DOD organization. Other defense agency
directives we identified address such issues as how information should be
released to the public and an organization's fiscal responsibility for
organizing or attending conferences. However, none of these directives
included requirements for agenda content or prior approval of planned
presentations.

In addition to the written directives, several DOD organizations we
surveyed indicated that they have practices in place whereby high-level
management officials review and approve conference agendas. For example,
one DOD organization indicated that agendas are approved by the office's
director when event funding is required. Another DOD office reported that
its forums are subject to a legal review and a review by a six-member
committee that oversees conference planning and agenda development. An
Army organization stated that all event plans and agendas are reviewed and
approved by a senior official.

4

5 U.S.C. app. 2 S:10.

5

Joint Ethics Regulation, DOD 5500.7-R, S:3.206(b).

                       Department of Energy Policy Forums

The Department of Energy (DOE) sponsors an array of forums that addressed
many scientific, technical, and public policy topics. Of the nearly 1,300
forums we identified, three did not include a DOE or other federal
official and directly addressed policy issues. DOE has written policies
and procedures governing its sponsorship of conferences, particularly
those involving the travel of 30 or more department officials. However,
none of the directives relating to department-sponsored forums require
attendance by DOE officials or the promotion of U.S. policies and
positions.

Official U.S. Representation at DOE Policy Forums

Based on data compiled in DOE's conference management database and other
public sources, DOE sponsored nearly 1,300 forums (including conferences,
symposiums, workshops, meetings, and retreats) during fiscal years 2001
through 2004. 6 Many of these forums addressed highly scientific and
technical issues, such as the High Efficiency Thermoelectric Workshop and
the Carbon Sequestration Conference. Some forums addressed the policy
implications of energy technologies. Other forums explored international
energy issues, such as the conferences on International Partnership for
the Hydrogen Economy and on U.S.-Norwegian Bilateral Cooperation in Carbon
Sequestration, Hydrogen, and New Energy Technologies. In addition, DOE
sponsored 23 Federal Advisory Committees, which held 491 meetings in this
period on a range of topics, including fusion energy and nonproliferation.

The U.S. government was officially represented at almost all the
DOE-sponsored forums we identified. According to information we obtained
from DOE and other public sources, four of the forums we identified were
not attended by at least one

U.S. government official. Three of the four forums were workshops
sponsored by the Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory's Center for
Global Security Research. 7 Attendance at all three forums-two "Living
with Risk" workshops and an "Agro-Terrorism: What Is the Threat?"
workshop-was restricted to invited guests. Although Lawrence Livermore
employees attended the workshops, no DOE or other federal agency official
was identified on the agenda as a speaker or participant during the
regular sessions. (A Department of Agriculture official did participate as
a dinner speaker at the Agro-Terrorism workshop.) The Center sponsored the
two "Living with Risk" workshops to develop a methodology for evaluating
risk; the findings of the workshops are expected to be published in early
2006. Center officials stated that they plan to hold a conference to
present the findings to decision makers, including DOE officials,
following publication. The remaining forum with no official U.S.

6

DOE's conference management database collects data on DOE-sponsored
conferences on a fiscal year basis.

7

The University of California operates Lawrence Livermore National
Laboratory under contract with DOE. Laboratory personnel are University of
California employees. The Center for Global Security Research was formed
in 1996 to study ways that technology can improve national security by
bringing technology and policy experts together.

representation was not focused on policy issues; it was a meeting between
DOE contractor employees and industry representatives to discuss technical
issues related to the development of advanced vehicle technology.

Policies and Practices Governing Participation by U.S. Officials in DOE
Forums

DOE policies and procedures do not require U.S. officials to be included
on the agenda or to actively promote U.S. policies and positions at
government-sponsored forums. However, a DOE order on conference management
establishes requirements to minimize costs and attendance at conferences
sponsored by DOE or its contractors. Under this order, each conference
must be approved in advance by the head or Principal Deputy within the
sponsoring organization or by a higher-level manager if the forum involves
travel by 30 or more DOE or contractor employees. The order also requires
that DOE units establish points of contact and submit a list of all
sponsored conferences held in the prior calendar year to the DOE Executive
Secretariat for inclusion in its conference management database.

                    Department of the Interior Policy Forums

U.S. officials participated in virtually all of the more than 1,200 policy
forums we identified that were sponsored by the nine bureaus and offices
of the Department of Interior. Interior reported only four policy forums
where it could not document the involvement of a federal official.
Departmental policies and procedures relating to the sponsorship of forums
do not address U.S. official representation or the promotion of U.S.
policies and positions. However, if more than 30 employees are expected to
travel to attend the forum, departmental policy requires higher-level
management scrutiny.

Official U.S. Representation at Interior Policy Forums

Interior's nine bureaus and offices reported sponsoring more than 1,200
policy forums relating to their respective missions. For example, the Fish
and Wildlife Service sponsored such conferences as the Annual North
American Wildlife and Natural Resources Conference, the Wildlife Society's
Annual Meeting, and the Wildlife Habitat Council Annual Symposium. Forums
sponsored by the Minerals Management Service addressed issues such as the
management of offshore oil drilling, transport, equipment, and facilities.
The Office of Surface Mining sponsored technical forums on the use and
disposal of coal combustion by-products, bat conservation in coal mines,
and reclamation and reforestation of mined land. Interior also sponsored
meetings of 108 Federal Advisory Committees to discuss issues such as
invasive species control and the protection of Native American graves.

Interior reported that four of the forums we identified for 2001 through
2004 did not involve participation by a U.S. government official. These
included a U.S. Geological Survey workshop of Gulf Coast state geological
surveys. According to the U.S. Geological Survey, this was a workshop for
officials from different states to develop a framework for cooperative
studies for subsequent discussion with U.S. Geological Survey officials.
In addition, the National Park Service cosponsored a conference of the
Preservation Alliances of West Virginia, but Interior officials did not
attend because travel funds were not available. The conference discussed
economic development prospects for restoring downtown commerce in
Lewisburg, West Virginia. In addition, National Park Service officials had
not documented, and thus could not verify, whether federal officials had
attended two other conferences it sponsored. A U.S. official was included
formally on the agenda as a speaker, participant, or chair for about 94
percent of the policy forums Interior reported to us. Participation by an
Interior official was required by law for all 1,029 of the Federal
Advisory Committee meetings the department sponsored from 2001 through
2004. 8

In addition to these forums, officials from Interior and its bureaus
participated in more than a thousand other public meetings, for which we
did not gather specific information, which were held throughout the United
States from 2001 through 2004. These public meetings included permit
reviews, regulatory proceedings relating to the National Environmental
Policy Act and the Endangered Species Act, and the National Park Service's
management planning and partnership meetings. Many of these public
meetings were held with local residents and other members of the public to
obtain their views or explain the department's policies and actions
regarding public land use. The active involvement of Interior officials is
required for official public meetings or public hearings held as part of
the regulatory or policy actions of the department, according to senior
Interior officials.

Policies and Practices Governing Participation by U.S. Officials in
Interior Forums

Interior does not have any written policies relating to the attendance by
U.S. officials or the promotion of U.S. policies and positions at
department-sponsored policy forums. However, departmental regulations
establish a formal approval process for funding conferences and other
forums and specify that the Program Assistant Secretary or the Deputy
Assistant Secretary must approve forums to be attended by 30 or more
federal government employees in travel status.

Some of Interior's bureaus reported other policies and practices to help
ensure that the forums they sponsor support the department's missions. For
example, according to the National Park Service, informal criteria require
that a sponsored forum be mission-related, cost effective, and not
perceived by the public as inappropriate or wasteful. The Bureau of
Reclamation's recently issued directives and standards state that the
conference's executive sponsor is responsible for all content and
logistics and require the Director of the Office of Program and Policy
Services to maintain an inventory of conferences and prepare a summary of
conferences held in the past year.

5 U.S.C. app. 2 S:10.

                                Agency Comments

We provided a draft of this letter to the Departments of State, Defense,
Energy, and Interior for their comment. They provided technical
corrections, which we incorporated into the letter as appropriate, but
they had no further comments.

                                    - - - -

We are sending copies of this letter to the Secretaries of State, Defense,
Energy, and Interior. In addition, the letter will be available at no
charge on the GAO Web site at http://www.gao.gov . If you have any
questions regarding this letter, please contact Joseph Christoff at (202)
512-8979 or [email protected]. Key contributors to this report are listed
in Enclosure III.

Joseph A. Christoff Director, International Affairs and Trade

Derek B. Stewart Director, Defense Capabilities and Management

Director, Natural Resources and Environment Enclosures

                                  Enclosure I

                             Scope and Methodology

To identify policy-related forums sponsored by these four departments and
determine the extent to which U.S. government officials participated, we
undertook a data collection approach specific to each department, given
their differences in organization, mission, and operations.

        * To obtain data on the Department of State (State), we designed a
          questionnaire to collect information on the policy forums sponsored
          by the 30 bureaus and offices involved primarily in foreign policy
          issues. We consulted with State officials familiar with the
          department's organizational structure and missions, in particular
          its public diplomacy and public affairs missions. Our questionnaire
          addressed events hosted or funded by the departments that involved
          an open discussion of policy issues with participants from outside
          the
        * U.S. government. We specifically excluded many routine contacts
          between departmental officials and external audiences, such as
          speeches, public hearings, and diplomatic contacts. In February
          2005, we pre-tested the questionnaire at selected offices and then
          fully distributed it, with minor revisions, throughout the
          department in March 2005. To obtain information on overseas events,
          the department queried all embassies and overseas posts using our
          questionnaire and reported the information to us. We received
          responses to our questionnaire from 26 bureaus. We relied on the
          department to report specific information about each forum,
          including the purpose of the event, the nature of government
          sponsorship, and attendance by U.S. officials. We determined that,
          given the large number of policy forums sponsored throughout the
          time period under review and the highly decentralized recordkeeping
          for many of these forums, collection and review of the agendas from
          all of these forums would not be feasible. Instead, we obtained the
          name and contact information for one official associated with each
          forum. We analyzed the questionnaire results to obtain a listing of
          events at which no U.S. official participated and obtained
          additional information on these events, including an agenda when
          possible, from the designated contact. We also interviewed, in oral
          and in written form, officials knowledgeable with these events to
          obtain further descriptions or clarifications, as needed.
        * To obtain data on the Department of Defense (DOD), we revised the
          questionnaire that had been distributed at State and pre-tested it
          at selected DOD organizations in March and April 2005. Through our
          pre-testing, we determined that DOD officials consistently found
          our use of the term "policy forum" and our instruction to report
          information about sponsored events that "discussed or debated U.S.
          government policies" as not applicable to their operations. They
          thus provided no information in response to the questionnaire.
          Therefore, we revised our reporting criteria by eliminating the
          "policy forum" and the "policy debate" requirement, thereby
          widening the scope of forums DOD officials could report on the
          questionnaire. We made
        * those revisions to the questionnaire before distributing it to 57
          selected DOD organizations in May 2005. Given DOD's size, we
          determined that it would not be feasible to distribute the
          questionnaire, particularly with its widened scope, to all
          organizations within the department. Based on our professional
          judgment, we identified a non-probability sample of 57 DOD
          organizations that we believed would be more likely to sponsor
          events that could be interpreted as policy related, and we
          distributed the questionnaire only to those organizations. We also
          limited distribution of the questionnaire to organizations headed
          by officials at the Assistant Secretary level or above because we
          had determined in pre-testing that operational field units and
          other similarly decentralized DOD organizations were unlikely to
          sponsor events where policy was debated. (See encl. II for a
          listing of the DOD organizations we surveyed for this review.)
          Additionally, we eliminated routine and professional training of
          U.S. agency and military personnel. National Defense University
          courses were specifically excluded due to this organization's focus
          on academic freedom and the practice of non-attribution to
          encourage multiple viewpoints and not to discourage controversy. We
          analyzed the information provided on the questionnaires and
          obtained additional information on those events that DOD reported
          as unattended by a U.S. government official.
     o The Department of Energy (DOE) maintains a centralized database of
       conferences and other forums that contained the data we needed to meet
       our objectives. We therefore did not use a questionnaire. In addition
       to clearly policy-related forums, this database contained information
       on internal meetings involving only DOE and DOE contractor personnel,
       highly technical conferences, and events targeted to the DOE
       laboratories' client community to discuss, for example, small business
       or technology transfer opportunities. For those DOE-sponsored forums
       that appeared to be policy related and for which the database showed
       that no DOE official attended, we obtained an agenda and used a
       questionnaire to get supplementary information.
     o To obtain data on the Department of the Interior (Interior), we
       revised the questionnaire previously distributed at State and
       pre-tested it with all nine Interior bureaus in March and April 2005.
       Based on our pre-testing, we determined that it would not be feasible
       to collect specific information on the wide range of hearings and
       public meetings the department sponsors in its regulatory capacity
       because records generally are kept at local offices with no
       centralized reporting. We therefore excluded this category of policy
       forum from our review and distributed our questionnaire to all bureaus
       in June 2005. We analyzed the results of the questionnaire and
       obtained additional information on those events reported as unattended
       by a U.S. government official.

For all four departments, we also obtained information on Federal Advisory
Committee meetings from the General Services Administration's online
database pertaining to these events, which we determined was reliable for
the purposes of our review. Since participation by federal officials is
required by law for these meetings, we did not obtain documentation from
the departments about U.S. representation at each of these events. 9

For increased assurance that the data the departments reported to us were
sufficiently reliable, we conducted independent research using Internet
resources, including the Washington Daybook, published by Federal
Information and News Dispatch, Inc., which reports publicly available
information on governmentsponsored policy forums and other events held in
the Washington, D.C., area. We requested additional information on those
forums we identified that the departments had not reported to us. Because
of the different methodological approaches we used at the four
departments, data on policy forums were not necessarily comparable among
the departments. Furthermore, given the decentralized and sometimes
informal nature of recordkeeping on policy forums, the completeness of the
information we obtained from some offices was limited. Agencies reported
potential gaps in the data and, thus, could not guarantee that all
government-sponsored forums were captured in the data they reported. In
particular, our validation of the DOE database suggested that some
underreporting may have occurred for this department. However, in our
analysis of the data we collected we found a very high degree of
consistency regarding the participation by U.S. officials at the
government-sponsored forums reported. This analysis suggested that the
potential underreporting at DOE and the other departments would not
materially affect our findings on official attendance at the conferences.
Therefore, we judged that for the purpose of determining the overall
extent of participation by U.S. government officials in these events, the
information we obtained from all four departments was sufficiently
reliable.

To identify the departmental policies governing participation by U.S.
government officials at these events, we interviewed officials throughout
the four departments in our review. We obtained descriptions, in either
written or oral form, from a wide variety of officials responsible for
organizing policy forums, of the formal policies and procedures and the
informal practices that they typically employ. We analyzed the
questionnaire responses to identify those forums that did not comply with
departmental policies or practices regarding participation by U.S.
officials. We found this to be the case only with some State-sponsored
forums held at overseas posts without official attendance by a State
official. We then conducted further interviews with State officials at the
geographic bureaus and posts that sponsored those forums to identify and
understand variance with stated policy or common practice. We did not test
departments' compliance with policies relating to other aspects of
managing forums, such as requirements for obtaining special approval for
forums involving the travel of 25 people or more.

We conducted our work between January 2005 and September 2005 in
accordance with generally accepted government auditing standards.

5 U.S.C. App. 2 S:10.

                Enclosure II DOD Offices and Agencies Contacted

Under Secretary of Defense for Acquisition, Technology, and Logistics

     o Director, Defense Research and Engineering
     o Director, Acquisition Resource and Analysis
     o Director, Small and Disadvantaged Business Utilization
     o Director, Defense Systems
     o Director, Defense Procurement and Acquisition Policy
     o Director, International Cooperation
     o Deputy Under Secretary of Defense (International Technology Security)
     o Deputy Under Secretary of Defense (Laboratories and Basic Sciences)
     o Deputy Under Secretary of Defense (Logistics Materiel Readiness)
     o Assistant to the Secretary of Defense (Nuclear, Chemical, and
       Biological Defense Programs)
     o Deputy Under Secretary of Defense (Advanced Systems and Concepts)
     o Deputy Under Secretary of Defense (Industrial Policy)
     o Deputy Under Secretary of Defense (Installations and Environment)
     o Deputy Under Secretary of Defense (Science and Technology)

Under Secretary of Defense (Personnel and Readiness)

     o Principal Deputy Under Secretary of Defense (Personnel and Readiness)
     o Assistant Secretary of Defense (Health Affairs)
     o Assistant Secretary of Defense (Reserve Affairs)
     o Deputy Under Secretary of Defense (Readiness)
     o Deputy Under Secretary of Defense (Program Integration)

Under Secretary of Defense for Policy

     o Assistant Secretary of Defense (International Security Affairs)
     o Assistant Secretary of Defense (Homeland Defense)
     o Assistant Secretary of Defense (Special Operations and Low-Intensity
       Conflict)
     o Assistant Secretary of Defense (International Security Policy)

Under Secretary of Defense Intelligence

Assistant Secretary of Defense (Network and Information Integration)

Assistant Secretary of Defense (Legislative Affairs)

Assistant Secretary of Defense (Public Affairs)

Director, Force Transformation

Director, Net Assessment Defense Agencies

     o Defense Security Cooperation Agency
     o Defense Threat Reduction Agency
     o Defense Logistics Agency
     o Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency

DOD Field Activities

     o Office of Economic Adjustment
     o TRICARE Management Activity

Office of the Secretary of the Army

     o Chief of Public Affairs
     o Deputy Under Secretary of the Army
     o Chief of Staff, Army
     o Office of the Assistant Chief of Staff for Installation Management
     o Assistant Secretary of the Army (Installations and Environment)
     o Assistant Secretary of the Army (Acquisition, Logistics, and
       Technology)
     o Assistant Secretary of the Army (Civil Works)
     o Assistant Secretary of the Army (Manpower and Reserve Affairs)
     o Chief, Army Reserve
     o Chief, National Guard Bureau

Secretary of the Air Force

     o Office of Public Affairs
     o Under Secretary of the Air Force
     o Office of the Assistant Secretary (Acquisition)
     o Deputy Under Secretary (International Affairs)
     o Office of the Assistant Secretary (Manpower and Reserve Affairs)
     o Office of the Assistant Secretary (Installations, Environment, and
       Logistics)

Office of the Secretary of the Navy

     o Under Secretary of the Navy
     o Chief of Naval Operations
     o Chief of Information
     o Assistant Secretary of the Navy (Installations and Environment)
     o Assistant Secretary of the Navy (Manpower and Reserve Affairs)
     o Assistant Secretary of the Navy (Research, Development, and
       Acquisition)

                                 Enclosure III

GAO Contact and Staff Acknowledgments

GAO Contact       Joseph Christoff, (202) 512-8979                         
Acknowledgments    Key contributors to this correspondence include Rebecca 
                          Beale, Richard Boudreau, Renee Brown, Lynn Cothern, 
                     Richard Cheston, Martin De Alteriis, Lynn Johnson,       
                     Stephen Lord, Grace Lui, James Michels, David Moser,     
                     Donald Pless, and Clifton Spruill.                       

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