    Department of Veterans Affairs' Lack of Timely and Accurate
    Information on Unexpended Balances Limits Effective Management
    and Congressional Oversight (16-MAY-07, GAO-07-410R).

    The Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) holds about 5 percent of
    the real property owned by the federal government in terms of
    building floor area, including such facilities as hospitals and
    office buildings. VA's responsibility for managing its real
    property includes the construction of its facilities and
    cemeteries. Because these construction projects can span several
    years, VA is authorized to carry forward fund balances from year
    to year in its construction accounts. VA is responsible for
    keeping track of and managing these balances to ensure that any
    unexpended balances that remain after construction projects are
    completed are redirected to other construction project needs
    within the agency. VA's budgets for new construction exist in two
    accounts--Major Construction and Minor Construction--which are
    funded as separate line items within the appropriation. For
    purposes of this report, we refer to the Major and Minor
    Construction accounts as VA's construction accounts. Construction
    projects undertaken to replace existing facility components are
    funded through the Non-Recurring Maintenance (NRM) portion of the
    Medical Facilities budget account. For purposes of this report,
    we refer to the NRM as VA's facility account. Under the
    Comptroller General's authority to conduct evaluations on his own
    initiative, and as part of a continued effort to assist Congress
    in overseeing real property management issues, we examined VA's
    management of unexpended construction balances. Specifically, we
    addressed the following question: To what extent does VA have
    readily available information about unexpended balances in its
    construction and facility accounts to effectively manage these
    funds?
    -------------------------Indexing Terms-------------------------
    REPORTNUM:   GAO-07-410R
        ACCNO:   A69691
      TITLE:     Department of Veterans Affairs' Lack of Timely and
    Accurate Information on Unexpended Balances Limits Effective
    Management and Congressional Oversight
         DATE:   05/16/2007
      SUBJECT:   Budget obligations
    	     Budget outlays
    	     Budgeting
    	     Facility construction
    	     Financial management
    	     Financial statements
    	     Funds management
    	     Program evaluation
    	     Reporting requirements
    	     Unexpended budget balances
    	     Unobligated budget balances
    	     Veterans benefits
    	     Policies and procedures

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    GAO-07-410R

         * [1]VA Lacks Readily Available, Accurate Data on Unexpended Bala
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    May 16, 2007

    Congressional Committees

    Subject: Department of Veterans Affairs' Lack of Timely and Accurate
    Information on Unexpended Balances Limits Effective Management and
    Congressional Oversight

    *** End of document. ***