Social Security: Costs Associated with the Administration's	 
Efforts to Promote Program Reforms (10-AUG-07, GAO-07-621R).	 
                                                                 
Congress requested that GAO identify the official Social Security
reform public speaking events and other promotion initiatives	 
involving administration officials, and their costs to the	 
federal government, since January 2005. As you know, the Social  
Security Board of Trustees is projecting in its 2007 report that 
as early as 2017 Social Security benefit payments will exceed tax
revenues. After that time, the gap between costs and tax revenues
grows continuously, and unless action is taken to close this gap,
it is currently estimated that the Social Security trust funds	 
will be depleted by 2041. In his 2005 State of the Union Address,
the President emphasized the need to reform Social Security, and 
he announced his intention to work with the Congress to achieve  
reforms. On March 2, 2005, the Secretary of the Treasury	 
announced the "60 Stops in 60 Days" tour in which the President  
and other administration officials would speak to the public	 
about the need for reform in a series of town hall meetings	 
across the country in an attempt to gain popular support for	 
program reforms. Congress asked us to include events such as	 
those associated with the "60 Stops in 60 Days" tour and	 
initiatives such as the Social Security Information Center (SSIC)
established at the Department of the Treasury (Treasury) to	 
provide a focal point for the administration's Social Security	 
reform activities. To answer Congress's question about the list  
of public speaking events and other promotion initiatives, we	 
relied upon information supplied by the Social Security 	 
Administration (SSA), Treasury, and the Executive Office of the  
President (EOP), including information posted to Treasury's and  
the White House's Web sites. To answer Congress's question about 
the cost of the public speaking events and other promotion	 
initiatives, we focused our work on the activities of SSA,	 
Treasury, and EOP, which accounted for approximately 75 percent  
of the public speaking events.					 
-------------------------Indexing Terms------------------------- 
REPORTNUM:   GAO-07-621R					        
    ACCNO:   A74227						        
  TITLE:     Social Security: Costs Associated with the 	      
Administration's Efforts to Promote Program Reforms		 
     DATE:   08/10/2007 
  SUBJECT:   Administrative costs				 
	     Cost analysis					 
	     Documentation					 
	     Interagency relations				 
	     Presidential messages				 
	     Reimbursements to government			 
	     Reporting requirements				 
	     Travel costs					 
	     Interagency agreements				 
	     Reimbursements					 

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GAO-07-621R

   

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August 10, 2007

The Honorable Henry A. Waxman
Chairman
Committee on Oversight and Government Reform
House of Representatives

Subject: Social Security: Costs Associated with the Administration's
Efforts to Promote Program Reforms

Dear Mr. Chairman:

You requested that we identify the official Social Security reform public
speaking events and other promotion initiatives involving administration
officials, and their costs to the federal government, since January 2005.
As you know, the Social Security1 Board of Trustees is projecting in its
2007 report that as early as 2017 Social Security benefit payments will
exceed tax revenues. After that time, the gap between costs and tax
revenues grows continuously, and unless action is taken to close this gap,
it is currently estimated that the Social Security trust funds will be
depleted by 2041. In his 2005 State of the Union Address, the President
emphasized the need to reform Social Security, and he announced his
intention to work with the Congress to achieve reforms. On March 2, 2005,
the Secretary of the Treasury announced the "60 Stops in 60 Days" tour2 in
which the President and other administration officials would speak to the
public about the need for reform in a series of town hall meetings across
the country in an attempt to gain popular support for program reforms.
Your request asked us to include events such as those associated with the
"60 Stops in 60 Days" tour and initiatives such as the Social Security
Information Center (SSIC) established at the Department of the Treasury
(Treasury) to provide a focal point for the administration's Social
Security reform activities.

To answer your question about the list of public speaking events and other
promotion initiatives, we relied upon information supplied by the Social
Security Administration (SSA), Treasury, and the Executive Office of the
President (EOP), including information posted to Treasury's and the White
House's Web sites.3 To answer your question about the cost of the public
speaking events and other promotion initiatives, we focused our work on
the activities of SSA, Treasury, and EOP, which accounted for
approximately 75 percent of the public speaking events. In addition to
data obtained from SSA, Treasury, and EOP, we received information
pertaining to EOP activities from the United States Air Force (Air Force),
and the Departments of Labor (Labor) and Health and Human Services (HHS).
We specifically asked the Air Force to provide cost data related to the
President's and Vice President's use of Air Force One and Air Force Two in
traveling to promote Social Security reform. We asked Labor and HHS to
confirm the costs reported by EOP as being reimbursed by Labor and HHS
through interagency agreements supporting the President's and Vice
President's public speaking events. As agreed with your office, we did not
ask the agencies that participated in a minimal number of public speaking
events to verify their events or to provide us with costs related to those
agencies' speaking events. Also, we did not determine Secret Service and
other security costs or the salaries of the government officials, such as
the President and Vice President, who participated in the Social Security
reform events within the context of performing their larger duties, which
we view as fixed costs.4 We obtained and reviewed interagency agreement
data from EOP, Treasury, Labor, and HHS supporting presidential and vice
presidential public speaking events; travel data related to public
speaking events from SSA, Treasury, EOP, and the Air Force; and activity
and cost data related to other promotion initiatives from Treasury.

1Officially, Social Security is called the Old-Age, Survivors, and
Disability Insurance program.

2This is the name given to the administration's plan to schedule at least
60 events across the country over a 60-day period to promote Social
Security reform.

3 [3]www.strengtheningsocialsecurity.gov , [4]www.treas.gov , and
[5]www.whitehouse.gov

Except for the records access limitation discussed below, we performed our
work in accordance with generally accepted government auditing standards
from June 2005 through June 2007 in Washington, D.C., and are reporting
the information obtained from Treasury, SSA, EOP, the Air Force, Labor,
and HHS. Although we cannot provide reasonable assurance that the costs
are complete and fully supported, we found that the data provided by these
agencies were sufficiently reliable to substantially meet our objectives.

While EOP provided certain cost information, it withheld from us the
detailed source records showing how the funds transferred pursuant to the
interagency agreements with Treasury, HHS, and Labor were spent as well as
the travel documentation we requested. EOP provided some summary and other
cost data on April 25, 2007, which was after the scheduled end of field
work and about 3 weeks into the 30-day agency comment period in which the
agencies involved in this review had the opportunity to comment on a draft
of this report. The information EOP provided was in response to our
written request for the information first made in August 2006. EOP stated
that much of the requested information contained personal information for
EOP personnel (such as Social Security Numbers, personal contact
information, and credit card numbers). EOP also stated that some of the
information could pose security concerns (such as travel patterns,
identities of vendors used, and names used for arranging White
House-related travel and supplies). We disagree with EOP's decision to
withhold this information from GAO, but decided to report this limitation
on our work without initiating the process to enforce our right of access
to EOP financial and related information under 31 U.S.C. S 716(a) because
of the disproportionate amount of time and resources needed to pursue this
matter and the limited amount of funds involved. Under the circumstances,
we decided that it was appropriate to report EOP's decision to withhold
basic financial and related information and have the Congress decide
whether to pursue this matter further as part of its own oversight and
investigative agenda. A full description of our scope and methodology,
including the limitation on our work, can be found in enclosure I.

4Fixed costs are those costs which would have been incurred whether or not
the officials participated in the Social Security reform events.

Results in Brief

We identified 228 public speaking events to promote the Social Security
reform initiative, of which there were 40 presidential events, 7 vice
presidential events, and 122 events with officials from EOP, SSA, or
Treasury. As agreed with your office, we primarily focused on these 169
events (almost 75 percent of the 228 public speaking events) and are
reporting cost information we obtained for these events. We also
identified many other promotion initiatives, including radio addresses and
interviews and the establishment of a Treasury Web site.

The direct and incremental costs for the 169 events and other initiatives
were a reported $2,588,367 for staging, travel, and other direct costs.
The largest portion was for reported reimbursements to EOP from Treasury,
HHS, and Labor for staging costs totaling $1,651,460, while reported
travel costs included $437,887 for the use of Air Force One and Air Force
Two, $369,838 for EOP officials' travel, and $66,794 for travel by
Treasury and SSA officials. EOP reported $62,388 in other direct costs to
support its public speaking events. Treasury reported an additional
$222,608 in other initiative costs to establish and operate its SSIC and
Strengthening Social Security Web site, bringing the total reported costs
to $2,810,975.

In addition to reporting the scope limitation imposed by EOP which
prevents us from providing reasonable assurance that the costs reported to
us are complete and fully supported, we are reporting a deficiency we
found in how Treasury handled its interagency agreements with EOP.
Treasury did not have supporting documentation for amounts it reimbursed
EOP under the interagency agreements to pay for staging costs associated
with Social Security reform events. We are making a recommendation to
Treasury that it strengthen its guidance on obtaining, reviewing, and
retaining supporting documentation for reimbursements under interagency
agreements.

We requested comments on a draft of this report from the Director, Office
of Administration, EOP; the Secretary of the Treasury; the Commissioner of
Social Security; and the Secretary of Defense. EOP did not provide
comments but did provide certain data we requested, which was incorporated
into the report as appropriate. Treasury provided oral comments in which
it agreed with our facts but would not say whether it agreed or disagreed
with our recommendation. Instead, Treasury said it would review its
procedures with respect to the processing of interagency agreements. We
received written comments from SSA in which it requested that we modify
our report to emphasize its role in educating the public about solvency
issues rather than promoting any particular plan to achieve solvency. We
did not incorporate any changes based upon this comment as GAO does not
believe such a distinction is warranted. SSA also provided minor technical
corrections, which were incorporated into the report as appropriate. The
Department of Defense stated that it agreed with the facts contained in
the report.

Background

Social Security provides protection against the loss of earnings due to
retirement, death, or disability. According to the 2007 Social Security
Board of Trustees Report (Trustees Report), there were 49 million
beneficiaries at the end of 2006. Total benefits paid during 2006 amounted
to $546 billion. The Trustees Report goes on to state that under current
law, the cost of Social Security will soon begin to increase faster than
the program's income, because of the aging baby boom generation, expected
low fertility, and increasing life expectancy. The Board of Trustees
projected a long-range (75 year) funding shortfall in the Social Security
Trust Funds of $4.7 trillion in present value, absent program reforms. For
the infinite future, the Board projects a funding shortfall of $13.6
trillion in present value dollars.

In 2005, the President began promoting Social Security reform, including
hundreds of public speaking events by administration officials across the
country to educate the public about the Social Security solvency issues
and gain popular support for his plan to reform Social Security. A large
part of the costs of this initiative were paid by Treasury, HHS, and Labor
through reimbursements to EOP, under interagency agreements covering event
staging costs for many of the President's and Vice President's public
speaking events around the country. Interagency agreements like those
entered into by Treasury and EOP are permitted by the Economy Act,5 which
allows one department or agency to use the materials, supplies,
facilities, and personnel of another. Under this authority, the agency
requesting the goods or services (the ordering agency, or Treasury in this
case) agrees to reimburse the agency providing the goods or services (the
performing agency, or EOP in this case) the actual costs incurred by the
performing agency, including both direct and indirect costs. The ordering
agency is accountable to the Congress for expenses it incurs against
appropriations made to it, and the performing agency is accountable for
the proper use of the ordering agency's funds.

Social Security Reform Public Speaking Events and Other Promotion
Initiatives

On the basis of information obtained from Treasury, SSA, and EOP,
including information obtained from their Web sites, we identified 228
public speaking events conducted by eight agencies.6 Table 1 summarizes
the 228 identified public speaking events attended by agency and EOP
officials. These events were primarily town hall meetings conducted across
the country before various groups. Enclosure II provides the date and
location of each event and the name of the administration official who was
a primary speaker.

5 31 U.S.C. SS 1535-1536.

6HHS identified 2 other events for which it stated it reimbursed
$59,749.47 to EOP for costs associated with Social Security reform events,
which are not included in the report totals. We could not obtain
corroborating evidence that there were Social Security reform events in
Cleveland, Ohio on
January 27, 2005, and in Maple Grove, Minnesota on June 17, 2005.

Table 1: Number and Percentage of Social Security Reform Agenda Public
Speaking Events by Agency

Agency                            Number of              Percentage of all 
                                     events                  disclosed events 
Social Security Administration                 73                    32.0% 
Executive Office of the President              57                     25.0 
Department of the Treasury                     39                     17.1 
Department of Labor                            16                      7.0 
Small Business Administration                  16                      7.0 
Department of Commerce                         13                      5.7 
Department of Health and Human                  8                      3.5 
Services                                                                   
Department of Housing and Urban                 6                      2.7 
Development                                                                
Total                                         228                   100.0% 

Source: GAO analysis of Treasury, SSA, and EOP data.

In addition to these 228 public speaking events, the President, Vice
President, and agency officials also conducted radio addresses, television
and radio interviews, and Internet question-and-answer sessions to promote
Social Security reform. As part of these other promotion initiatives,
Treasury established and staffed the Social Security Information Center
(SSIC) in February 2005, which administered the Strengthening Social
Security Web site and coordinated many of the activities to promote
reform, including identifying administration officials who were available
to speak at reform events and posting summaries of the events to the Web
site. According to Treasury officials, SSIC was shut down at the end of
August 2005, and its staff was assigned to other duties within Treasury.7
Enclosure III lists the other promotion initiatives we identified,
including the date and type of initiative and the key administration
officials involved.

Identified Costs of Promoting Social Security Reform

As agreed with your office, our review focused on EOP, Treasury, and SSA,
as officials from these agencies participated in 169, or almost 75
percent, of the 228 Social Security reform public speaking events. Of
these 169 events, 40 featured the President, 7 featured the Vice
President, and 122 featured officials from EOP, SSA, or Treasury. As shown
in table 2, the direct and incremental costs to the U.S. government
reported to us totaled $2,810,975, of which $2,588,367 was reported as
expenses related to the public speaking events. Reimbursements to EOP from
Treasury, HHS, and Labor for event staging costs totaled $1,651,460.
Travel costs were the next largest category totaling a reported $874,519,
including $437,887 reported by the Air Force for the use of Air Force One
and Air Force Two to transport the President and Vice President to and
from the Social Security reform events. EOP reported an additional
$369,838 in travel costs, with SSA and Treasury reporting a combined
$66,794 in travel costs. EOP also reported $62,388 in other direct costs
to support its public speaking events. Finally, Treasury reported $222,608
in costs to establish and operate its SSIC and Web site. The costs are
discussed in greater detail below, including limitations on the data.
Also, as discussed previously, the costs we identified do not include
Secret Service and other security costs or the salaries of administration
officials participating in the events within the context of performing
their larger duties, which we view as fixed costs. Finally, SSA and
Treasury officials told us that when officials from their agencies were
invited to speak at events hosted by private sector organizations, the
agencies only paid for travel expenses.

7The Strengthening Social Security Web site was still available at
[6]www.strengtheningsocialsecurity.gov as of July 25, 2007.

Table 2: Reported Social Security Reform Costs

Cost category                                          Amount (in dollars) 
EOP event staging costs reimbursed through interagency          $1,651,460 
agreements with Treasury, HHS, and Labor                                   
Air Force One and Air Force Two costs for                          437,887 
                                                                             
presidential and vice presidential travela                                 
EOP travel costs                                                   369,838 
SSA travel costs                                                    45,898 
Treasury travel costs                                               20,896 
EOP other direct costs                                              62,388 
Subtotal: reported public speaking event costs                   2,588,367 
Treasury's Social Security Information Center (SSIC)               222,608 
and Strengthening Social Security Web site costs                           
Total                                                           $2,810,975 

Sources: SSA, Treasury, EOP, Labor, HSS, and the Air Force.

aReported fiscal year 2005 fuel costs, which accounted for nearly 90
percent of the Air Force's total reported costs, were $6,462 per flight
hour for the VC-25 (the Boeing 747 used to transport the President to most
of the Social Security reform events) and $1,325 per flight hour for the
C-32A (the Boeing 757 that was primarily used to transport the Vice
President).

Costs Related to EOP Participation. We have identified staging, travel,
and other direct costs for the public speaking events with EOP
participation. The staging costs were reimbursed to EOP by Treasury, HHS,
and Labor pursuant to interagency agreements. Air Force incurred direct
travel costs for the use of Air Force One and Air Force Two in
transporting the President and Vice President to and from their public
speaking events. In addition to the amounts reported by the Air Force, EOP
reported its own travel costs. Finally, EOP reported having other direct
costs to support its public speaking events.

We determined that EOP had interagency agreements with Treasury, HHS, and
Labor. In accordance with the agreements, these agencies agreed to
reimburse EOP for staging costs associated with 36 events in which the
President or Vice President participated. The agreements authorized a
transfer of funds to EOP of up to $1,871,625. Respectively, Treasury, HHS,
and Labor disbursed $703,177, $440,688, and $507,595 for a total of
$1,651,460 to EOP for these events. Enclosure IV provides additional
details on the costs reimbursed through these interagency agreements. In
order to confirm the interagency agreement cost data submitted by EOP, we
asked Treasury, Labor, and HHS to report on the amounts transferred by
those agencies. However, we could not determine whether the transferred
funds were actually used to pay for the costs of staging the events as
stated in the agreements.8

Although we requested detailed source records (i.e., invoices, receipts,
etc.) that would show what was purchased with these transferred funds, EOP
withheld this documentation and Treasury officials said they did not
receive supporting documentation from EOP and, therefore, could not
provide the information. EOP stated in its April 25, 2007, letter that
"much of the underlying data (such as the requested receipts, invoices,
and travel vouchers) contains personal information for Executive Office of
the President personnel (such as social security numbers, personal contact
information, and credit card numbers), as well as certain information that
could represent security concerns (such as travel patterns, the identities
of vendors used, and names/pseudonyms used for arranging White
House-related travel and supplies)," and, therefore, it would not provide
the source documents. We disagree with EOP's decision to withhold this
information and believe that it is inconsistent with current law. GAO has
a statutory right of access to this information9 and our work often
involves reviewing information that is sensitive or classified and we have
procedures for handling and protecting such information. However, given
the nature of this request and the amounts involved, GAO decided not to
pursue this records access issue.

8As discussed in enc. I, because Labor and HHS were not asked to report
the costs associated with events with their agency officials based upon
our decision to review the agencies with significant numbers of public
speaking events and the fact that any additional information we might have
obtained from Labor and HHS would not fully remove the records access
limitation imposed by EOP, we only asked that Labor and HHS confirm the
amounts reported by EOP.

Further, because Treasury was party to the interagency agreements, we
expected that Treasury would possess or have immediate access to such
documentation as a normal course of doing business. The Economy Act, under
which Treasury entered into the agreements to reimburse EOP for its
staging costs, requires that the reimbursement be based upon the actual
cost of goods or services provided.10 When coupled with Office of
Management and Budget Circular No. A-123, Management's Responsibility for
Internal Control, and our Standards for Internal Control in the Federal
Government,11 which require that all transactions be clearly documented
and that documentation be properly maintained and managed and readily
available for examination,12 we believe it would be prudent for Treasury
to receive, review, and retain supporting documentation that would allow
Treasury officials to ensure that the goods or services were received and
that payments are properly certified in accordance with Treasury's own
guidance.13 Additional Treasury guidance, such as the Treasury Financial
Management Service's Federal Intragovernmental Transactions Accounting
Policy Guide,14 states that each agency is responsible for documenting and
supporting the information recorded in its accounting records related to
intragovernmental transactions. Without the availability of adequate
documentation, Treasury lacks reasonable assurance of its compliance with
the Economy Act and that its appropriations are used for purposes
authorized by law.

Reported travel costs associated with EOP's participation totaled
$807,725, including $437,887 reported by the Air Force for direct,
incremental mission costs incurred to fly the President and Vice President
aboard Air Force One and Air Force Two. The Air Force reported that it
flew 39 missions in support of the Social Security reform initiative.
Mission costs included fuel, travel expenses of Air Force personnel, and
miscellaneous mission expenses. As discussed previously, this figure does
not include security costs or the salaries of the flight crews, as these
were not incremental costs. Separately, EOP reported that its personnel
incurred $369,838 in direct travel costs relating to 46 of the 57 EOP
events. Finally, EOP reported $62,388 in other direct costs. We were
unable to review the travel authorizations and travel vouchers for EOP's
travel and the receipts for the miscellaneous costs because EOP withheld
certain information, as described above. We also cannot provide reasonable
assurance based on the information provided by EOP that its reported
travel costs are complete since EOP stated for 7 events that we had
identified that its records reflected no events and expenses on those
particular days.15 However, we identified these events from either
Treasury or White House Web sites and, for most of these events, have
transcripts or other support showing that the events did occur.

931 U.S.C. S 716(a).

1031 U.S.C. S 1535(b).

11GAO, Standards for Internal Control in the Federal Government,
GAO/AIMD-00-21.3.1 (Washington, D.C.: November 1999).

12See also chapter 2 of title VII of GAO's Policy and Procedures Manual
for Guidance of Federal Agencies, which provides guidance on agencies'
responsibilities with regard to reimbursements between agencies.

13Department of the Treasury, Procurement Services Division, Customer's
Guide To Processing Payable Interagency Agreements (IAA) (January 2006),
p. 9.

14Department of the Treasury, Financial Management Service, Federal
Intragovernmental Transactions Accounting Policy Guide (Washington, D.C.
August 2006).

Costs Related to SSA Participation. For the 73 public speaking events in
which an SSA official was a primary speaker, we identified $45,898 in
travel costs.16 According to an SSA official, SSA had no other costs
related to the administration's promotion of Social Security reform. We
reviewed all associated travel vouchers for proper approvals and to ensure
the vouchers agreed with the reported amounts, and selected a statistical
sample17 of these vouchers to test travel authorizations and supporting
documentation for proper approvals and support for claimed amounts. We
found that these costs were adequately supported.

Costs Related to Treasury Participation. For the 39 public speaking events
and other initiatives in which a Treasury official was a primary speaker,
we identified $20,896 in travel costs.18 We reviewed the associated travel
authorizations and travel vouchers for proper approvals and support for
claimed amounts, and found that these costs were adequately supported.
Treasury officials indicated that Treasury also had costs associated with
its SSIC and Web site totaling $222,608. These costs included the salaries
of personnel19 dedicated to the SSIC and information technology costs.

15The EOP events with no reported expenses include the President's events
on May 4 and 13, and
June 8, 14, and 23, 2005; Noam Neusner's April 2, 2005 event; and Keith B.
Hennessey's March 7, 2005, event. The reported expenses do include travel
expenses for 8 events that EOP reported it could not tie to the specific
Social Security reform events we identified based upon its review of
travel expense files. Those events include Joshua B. Bolten's April 4,
2005, event, Allan B. Hubbard's events on
March 24 and 28, 2005, Keith B. Hennessey's March 30, 2005, event, and
Brian Reardon's April 25, 2005, event.

16SSA did not report costs for local travel.

17Refer to enc. I, Scope and Methodology, for details related to the
statistical sample.

18Identified Treasury travel expenses included $3,063 for travel to "Teach
Children to Save Day" events, which are listed in enclosure III. While not
the primary focus of these events, Social Security reform was discussed.
Many of the initiatives were conducted in Washington, D.C., or in
conjunction with other events and therefore did not likely have
significant additional travel expenses. Treasury did not report costs for
local travel.

19The salary expenses associated with the assignments to the SSIC were
considered direct and incremental because newly hired employees were
initially assigned full-time to the SSIC.

Conclusions and Recommendation for Executive Action

We identified hundreds of events geared toward educating the public about
Social Security solvency issues and reform ideas as well as associated
costs reported by Treasury, SSA, EOP, Labor, HHS, and the Air Force
totaling about $2.8 million. We could not test the validity of some of
those costs because EOP withheld certain key information and Treasury did
not have supporting documentation for amounts it reimbursed EOP under the
interagency agreements. We are, therefore, unable to provide reasonable
assurance that the costs reported to us are complete and fully supported.
While we continue to assert that we have a right to the supporting
documentation denied us by EOP, we have decided to report the limitation
without initiating the process to enforce our right to these documents
because of the disproportionate amount of time and resources needed to
pursue this matter and the limited amount of the funds involved.

To strengthen Treasury's oversight of its interagency agreements, GAO
recommends that the Secretary of the Treasury direct the Chief Financial
Officer of the department to strengthen the department's guidance to
clarify that sufficient documentation to support reimbursements made
through interagency agreements is to be obtained, reviewed, and retained.

Agency Comments and Our Evaluation

EOP did not provide comments but did provide certain data related to our
August 2006 request. The information contained therein was incorporated
into the report.

In oral comments, Treasury agreed with the facts contained in this report
but did not say whether it agreed or disagreed with GAO's recommendation.
Rather, Treasury stated that it would review its procedures with respect
to the processing of interagency agreements.

In written comments on a draft of this report, which are reprinted in
enclosure V, SSA stated that it strongly believes that the body of the
report should be modified to indicate the involvement of SSA's
representatives and the funds spent on those activities were to provide
solvency education to the public rather than to promote any particular
plan to achieve solvency. GAO does not believe such a distinction is
warranted. Solvency issues are integral to any discussion of modifications
to Social Security and the events identified in the report were, among
other things, used to promote the President's reform agenda as evidenced
by their inclusion on Treasury's Strengthening Social Security Web site.
SSA's comments also included minor technical corrections, which were
incorporated into the report as appropriate.

The Department of Defense orally commented that the agency agreed with the
facts contained in the report.

                                  - - - - - -

As agreed with your office, unless you publicly announce its contents
earlier, we plan no further distribution of this report until 30 days from
its date. At that time, we will send copies of this report to the
appropriate House and Senate committees; the Director of Administration,
EOP; the Secretary of the Treasury; the Commissioner of Social Security;
the Secretary of Defense; the Secretary of Labor; the Secretary of Health
and Human Services; and other interested parties. Copies will be made
available to others upon request. In addition, this report will also be
available at no charge on GAO's Web site at [7]http://www.gao.gov .

This report was prepared under the direction of Jeffrey C. Steinhoff,
Managing Director, Financial Management and Assurance, who may be reached
at

(202) 512-2600 or at [8][email protected] if you or your staff have any
questions regarding it. Contact points for our Offices of Congressional
Relations and Public Affairs may be found on the last page of this report.
Major contributors to this report include Phillip W. McIntyre, Assistant
Director; Michelle L. Smith; and Edward F. Tanaka.

Sincerely yours,

David M. Walker

Comptroller General of the United States

Enclosure I

Scope and Methodology

To address your inquiry, we first identified the universe of public
speaking events and other initiatives reported on the Department of the
Treasury's (Treasury) Web site dedicated to the President's Social
Security reform agenda, [9]www.strengtheningsocialsecurity.gov , the
general Treasury Web site, [10]www.treas.gov , and the White House Web
site, [11]www.whitehouse.gov , and collected basic event data from these
Web sites. Because the Social Security Administration (SSA), Treasury, and
the Executive Office of the President (EOP) accounted for approximately 75
percent of all identified events,1 we requested financial records and
other documentation for the events attended by officials from SSA,
Treasury, and EOP.2 We requested additional information concerning EOP
activities from the United States Air Force (Air Force) regarding the use
of Air Force One and Air Force Two, and asked the Departments of Labor
(Labor) and Health and Human Services (HHS) to report on interagency
agreement costs those agencies reimbursed to EOP for many of the
President's and Vice President's speaking events. We received information
from SSA, Treasury, EOP, Air Force, Labor, and HHS. We also conducted
interviews with officials from SSA, Treasury, and the Air Force. We did
not ask the agencies that participated in a minimal number of speaking
engagements (like Labor and HHS) to report their events or to provide us
with costs related to those agencies' speaking events. We also did not
determine the costs of the Secret Service, other security, and the
salaries of government officials who participated in the Social Security
reform events within the context of performing their larger duties. Except
as discussed below, salaries were considered fixed costs because they
would have been incurred whether or not the officials participated in the
Social Security reform events.

We reviewed information and documentation from SSA, Treasury, and EOP,
which we used to compile the lists of public speaking events and other
reform initiatives. See enclosures II and III, respectively. EOP was
unable to fully verify the completeness and accuracy of our list of EOP
public speaking events. It stated in its April 2007 submittal that it did
not have records for some of the events we identified. For the events that
EOP could not verify, we are including the ones we identified from data
contained on either the White House or Treasury Web sites. For most of
these events, we have transcripts or other support showing that these
events did occur.

For the staging costs reimbursed to EOP through interagency agreements, we
compared amounts reported by EOP with those reported by Treasury, Labor,
and HHS. We reviewed Treasury's interagency agreements with EOP for
Treasury approvals but could not test for adequate support because
Treasury did not have support and EOP did not provide the requested
support. EOP's decision to withhold the requested documentation hindered
our ability to provide reasonable assurance that the reported costs are
complete and fully supported. Although we did not perform detailed tests
at Labor and HHS because any results from those tests would not have fully
eliminated the records access limitation, we did ask Labor and HHS to
report on the amounts transferred to EOP under the interagency agreements.

1The remaining events were attended by officials from five other agencies
including the Departments of Commerce, Health and Human Services (HHS),
Housing and Urban Development, and Labor (Labor), and the Small Business
Administration.

2In our request for EOP information and documentation, we asked EOP to
report nontravel and nonstaging expenses if they amounted to more than
$2,500.

We reviewed SSA and Treasury travel authorizations and vouchers for proper
approvals and support for claimed amounts. For SSA travel, we reviewed 100
percent of the travel vouchers for proper approvals and to ensure the
vouchers supported the reported amounts. We also selected a statistical
sample of 15 SSA travel vouchers totaling $11,510 from a population of 60
vouchers totaling $45,8983 to test for proper travel authorizations and
adequate support (i.e., hotel bills, airline tickets, etc.). We found no
exceptions during testing.4 For Treasury travel, we reviewed 100 percent
of the trips for proper approvals and for adequate support.

In addition to SSA and Treasury travel cost data, we received information
from the Air Force and EOP pertaining to EOP travel. The Air Force
calculated and provided mission cost data for presidential and vice
presidential events in which Air Force One and Air Force Two were used. To
assess the reasonableness of the data, we applied analytic procedures and
interviewed an Air Force official. For the travel and other miscellaneous
costs reported by EOP, we could not perform tests because EOP withheld the
requested records.

Finally, our review of Treasury costs related to the Social Security
Information Center (SSIC) and Web site was limited to analytic procedures
focusing on the salaries of Treasury employees dedicated to the SSIC,
which constituted the majority of the SSIC costs. The salary expenses
associated with the assignments to the SSIC were considered direct and
incremental because newly hired employees were initially assigned
full-time to the SSIC.

Except for the limitation related to EOP's withholding of detailed source
records which affected our ability to provide reasonable assurance that
the reported costs are complete and fully supported, we performed our work
in accordance with generally accepted government auditing standards from
June 2005 through June 2007 in Washington, D.C. This report reflects the
information we were able to obtain from Treasury, SSA, EOP, the Air Force,
Labor, and HHS. Through our review of supporting documentation,
interviews, and analytical procedures, we found that the data provided by
Treasury, SSA, EOP, the Air Force, Labor, and HHS were sufficiently
reliable to substantially meet our objectives and therefore could be
reported with disclosed limitations about the completeness of the costs
and adequacy of the supporting documentation. While EOP provided certain
cost information, it withheld from us the detailed source records showing
how the funds transferred pursuant to the interagency agreements with
Treasury, HHS, and Labor were spent as well as the travel documentation we
requested. EOP provided some summary and other cost data on April 25,
2007, which was after the scheduled end of field work and about 3 weeks
into the 30-day agency comment period in which the agencies involved in
this review had the opportunity to comment on a draft of this report. The
information EOP provided was in response to our written request for
information first made in August 2006. We could not confirm whether the
transferred funds were actually used to pay for costs of staging the
events as stated in the agreements but we are reporting the interagency
agreement reimbursements because Treasury, Labor, and HHS reported to us
that they had reimbursed EOP for costs associated with Social Security
reform events. Further, we are including EOP reported amounts for travel
and miscellaneous costs although we were unable to review the supporting
documentation.

3These vouchers represent 73 of the events attended by SSA officials in
support of the Social Security reform initiative.

4We are 95-percent confident that the error rate associated with sampling
error inherent in statistical sampling is less than or equal to 1 percent,
plus or minus 5 percent.

We decided to report the limitation on our work without initiating the
process to enforce our right of access to EOP financial and related
information under 31 U.S.C. S 716(a) because of the disproportionate
amount of time and resources needed to pursue this matter and the limited
amount of the funds involved. Under the circumstances, we decided that it
was appropriate to report that EOP withheld basic financial and related
information and have the Congress decide whether to pursue this matter
further as part of its own oversight and investigative agenda.

We requested comments on a draft of this report from the Director, Office
of Administration at EOP; the Secretary of the Treasury; the Commissioner
of Social Security; and the Secretary of Defense.

Enclosure II

228 Identified Social Security Reform Public Speaking Events

                                 Administration                               
Date      Location of event   official             Agency                  
                                                      Executive Office of the 
1/11/2005 Washington, D.C.    George W. Bush       President               
                                                      Executive Office of the 
1/13/2005 Washington, D.C.    Richard B. Cheney    President               
                                                      Executive Office of the 
2/3/2005  Great Falls, Mont.  George W. Bush       President               
                                                      Executive Office of the 
2/3/2005  Fargo, N.Dak.       George W. Bush       President               
                                                      Executive Office of the 
2/4/2005  Omaha, Nebr.        George W. Bush       President               
                                                      Executive Office of the 
2/4/2005  Little Rock, Ark.   George W. Bush       President               
                                                      Executive Office of the 
2/4/2005  Tampa, Fla.         George W. Bush       President               
                                                      Executive Office of the 
2/8/2005  Detroit, Mich.      George W. Bush       President               
                                                      Department of the       
2/9/2005  Washington, D.C.    John W. Snow         Treasury                
                                                      Executive Office of the 
2/10/2005 Blue Bell, Pa.      George W. Bush       President               
                                                      Executive Office of the 
2/10/2005 Raleigh, N.C.       George W. Bush       President               
                                                      Executive Office of the 
2/16/2005 Portsmouth, N.H.    George W. Bush       President               
                                                      Department of the       
2/18/2005 New York, N.Y.      John W. Snow         Treasury                
             Ft. Lauderdale,                          Department of the       
2/18/2005 Fla.                Mark J. Warshawsky   Treasury                
                                 James B. Lockhart,   Social Security         
2/19/2005 Tucson, Ariz.       III                  Administration          
                                                      Social Security         
2/21/2005 Atlanta, Ga.        Andrew Biggs         Administration          
                                 James B. Lockhart,   Social Security         
2/22/2005 Philadelphia, Pa.   III                  Administration          
                                 James B. Lockhart,   Social Security         
2/23/2005 Cincinnati, Ohio    III                  Administration          
                                 James B. Lockhart,   Social Security         
2/23/2005 Sharonville, Ohio   III                  Administration          
                                                      Department of the       
2/24/2005 Tampa, Fla.         John W. Snow         Treasury                
                                 James B. Lockhart,   Social Security         
2/24/2005 Houston, Tex.       III                  Administration          
                                                      Department of the       
2/25/2005 Jacksonville, Fla.  John W. Snow         Treasury                
                                                      Department of the       
3/3/2005  Fayetteville, Ark.  John W. Snow         Treasury                
                                                      Executive Office of the 
3/4/2005  Notre Dame, Ind.    George W. Bush       President               
                                                      Executive Office of the 
3/4/2005  Westfield, N.J.     George W. Bush       President               
                                                      Department of the       
3/4/2005  New Orleans, La.    John W. Snow         Treasury                
                                 James B. Lockhart,   Social Security         
3/4/2005  Allendale, Mich.    III                  Administration          
                                 James B. Lockhart,   Social Security         
3/4/2005  Muskegon, Mich.     III                  Administration          
                                 James B. Lockhart,   Social Security         
3/5/2005  Cadillac, Mich.     III                  Administration          
                                 James B. Lockhart,   Social Security         
3/5/2005  Manistee, Mich.     III                  Administration          
                                 James B. Lockhart,   Social Security         
3/5/2005  Ludington, Mich.    III                  Administration          
                                                      Executive Office of the 
3/7/2005  Westminster, Md.    Keith Hennessey      President               
                                                      Department of the       
3/8/2005  Washington, D.C.    John W. Snow         Treasury                
             Fort Lauderdale,                                                 
3/8/2005  Fla.                Eric Stewart         Department of Commerce  
3/8/2005  Boca Raton, Fla.    Eric Stewart         Department of Commerce  
                                 James B. Lockhart,   Social Security         
3/8/2005  New Orleans, La.    III                  Administration          
                                                      Department of the       
3/9/2005  Washington, D.C.    John W. Snow         Treasury                
                                 James B. Lockhart,   Social Security         
3/9/2005  New Orleans, La.    III                  Administration          
                                 James B. Lockhart,   Social Security         
3/9/2005  New Orleans, La.    III                  Administration          
                                                      Department of the       
3/10/2005 Albuquerque, N.Mex. John W. Snow         Treasury                
                                                      Department of the       
3/10/2005 Albuquerque, N.Mex. John W. Snow         Treasury                
                                                      Executive Office of the 
3/10/2005 Montgomery, Ala.    George W. Bush       President               
                                                      Executive Office of the 
3/10/2005 Louisville, Ky.     George W. Bush       President               
                                                      Department of the       
3/11/2005 San Antonio, Tex.   John W. Snow         Treasury                
                                                      Executive Office of the 
3/11/2005 Memphis, Tenn.      George W. Bush       President               
                                                      Executive Office of the 
3/11/2005 Shreveport, La.     George W. Bush       President               
3/11/2005 London, England     Elaine L. Chao       Department of Labor     
                                 James B. Lockhart,   Social Security         
3/11/2005 Orlando, Fla.       III                  Administration          
                                                      Department of the       
3/12/2005 Philadelphia, Pa.   Anna Escobedo Cabral Treasury                
                                                      Department of the       
3/15/2005 Washington, D.C.    Mark J. Warshawsky   Treasury                
3/15/2005 Charlotte, N.C.     Eric Stewart         Department of Commerce  
3/16/2005 Hickory, N.C.       Eric Stewart         Department of Commerce  
3/16/2005 Gastonia, N.C.      Eric Stewart         Department of Commerce  
                                                      Executive Office of the 
3/18/2005 Pensacola, Fla.     George W. Bush       President               
                                                      Executive Office of the 
3/18/2005 Orlando, Fla.       George W. Bush       President               
                                                      Executive Office of the 
3/18/2005 Orlando, Fla.       George W. Bush       President               
                                                      Small Business          
3/21/2005 Columbia, S.C.      Melanie R. Sabelhaus Administration          
                                                      Executive Office of the 
3/21/2005 Tucson, Ariz.       George W. Bush       President               
                                                      Small Business          
3/21/2005 Pasadena, Calif.    Hector V. Barreto    Administration          
                                                      Executive Office of the 
3/21/2005 Bakersfield, Calif. Richard B. Cheney    President               
                                                      Executive Office of the 
3/21/2005 Denver, Colo.       George W. Bush       President               
                                 James B. Lockhart,   Social Security         
3/21/2005 Lakewood, Colo.     III                  Administration          
                                 James B. Lockhart,   Social Security         
3/21/2005 Lakewood, Colo.     III                  Administration          
                                 James B. Lockhart,   Social Security         
3/21/2005 Castle Rock, Colo.  III                  Administration          
                                 James B. Lockhart,   Social Security         
3/21/2005 Grand View, Colo.   III                  Administration          
                                 Timothy S.           Department of the       
3/21/2005 Atlanta, Ga.        Bitsberger           Treasury                
3/21/2005 Green Bay, Wis.     William H. Lash, III Department of Commerce  
                                                      Social Security         
3/21/2005 Edgefield, S.C.     Michel N. Korbey     Administration          
                                                      Social Security         
3/21/2005 Aiken, S.C.         Michel N. Korbey     Administration          
                                                      Social Security         
3/21/2005 North Augusta, S.C. Michel N. Korbey     Administration          
                                 James B. Lockhart,   Social Security         
3/22/2005 Aurora, Colo.       III                  Administration          
                                 James B. Lockhart,   Social Security         
3/22/2005 Denver, Colo.       III                  Administration          
                                                      Executive Office of the 
3/22/2005 Reno, Nev.          Richard B. Cheney    President               
                                                      Executive Office of the 
3/22/2005 Albuquerque, N.Mex. George W. Bush       President               
                                                      Executive Office of the 
3/22/2005 Albuquerque, N.Mex. George W. Bush       President               
                                                      Small Business          
3/22/2005 Memphis, Tenn.      Melanie R. Sabelhaus Administration          
                                                      Small Business          
3/22/2005 San Dimas, Calif.   Hector V. Barreto    Administration          
                                                      Small Business          
3/22/2005 Los Angeles, Calif. Hector V. Barreto    Administration          
                                                      Social Security         
3/22/2005 Abbeville, S.C.     Michel N. Korbey     Administration          
                                                      Social Security         
3/22/2005 Greenwood, S.C.     Michel N. Korbey     Administration          
                                 Timothy S.           Department of the       
3/22/2005 Oxford, Miss.       Bitsberger           Treasury                
                                                      Department of Health    
3/23/2005 Atlanta, Ga.        Michael O. Leavitt   and Human Services      
                                                      Social Security         
3/23/2005 Seneca, S.C.        Michel N. Korbey     Administration          
                                                      Social Security         
3/23/2005 Anderson, S.C.      Michel N. Korbey     Administration          
                                                      Social Security         
3/23/2005 Easley, S.C.        Michel N. Korbey     Administration          
                                                      Executive Office of the 
3/24/2005 Battle Creek, Mich. Richard B. Cheney    President               
                                                      Executive Office of the 
3/24/2005 Pittsburgh, Pa.     Richard B. Cheney    President               
                                                      Social Security         
3/24/2005 Stanton, Del.       Jo Anne B. Barnhart  Administration          
                                                      Department of the       
3/24/2005 Wilmington, Del.    John W. Snow         Treasury                
                                                      Department of the       
3/24/2005 Kennett Square, Pa. John W. Snow         Treasury                
3/24/2005 Little Rock, Ark.   Carlos M. Gutierrez  Department of Commerce  
3/24/2005 St. Louis, Mo.      Carlos M. Gutierrez  Department of Commerce  
                                                      Executive Office of the 
3/24/2005 Springfield, Mo.    Allan B. Hubbard     President               
                                                      Executive Office of the 
3/24/2005 Ozark, Mo.          Allan B. Hubbard     President               
                                                      Executive Office of the 
3/24/2005 Mo.                 Allan B. Hubbard     President               
                                                      Executive Office of the 
3/24/2005 Mo.                 Allan B. Hubbard     President               
                                                      Social Security         
3/24/2005 Clinton, S.C.       Michel N. Korbey     Administration          
                                                      Social Security         
3/24/2005 Saluda, S.C.        Michel N. Korbey     Administration          
                                                      Social Security         
3/24/2005 McCormick, S.C.     Michel N. Korbey     Administration          
                                 James B. Lockhart,   Social Security         
3/25/2005 Billings, Mont.     III                  Administration          
                                                      Department of the       
3/28/2005 Portland, Ore.      John W. Snow         Treasury                
                                                      Executive Office of the 
3/28/2005 Noblesville, Ind.   Allan B. Hubbard     President               
                                                      Department of the       
3/29/2005 Bellevue, Wash.     Robert S. Nichols    Treasury                
                                 James B. Lockhart,   Social Security         
3/29/2005 Manhattan, Kans.    III                  Administration          
                                 James B. Lockhart,   Social Security         
3/29/2005 Topeka, Kans.       III                  Administration          
                                                      Department of the       
3/30/2005 Bozeman, Mont.      John W. Snow         Treasury                
                                                      Executive Office of the 
3/30/2005 Cedar Rapids, Iowa  George W. Bush       President               
                                 James B. Lockhart,   Social Security         
3/30/2005 Colusa, Calif.      III                  Administration          
                                 James B. Lockhart,   Social Security         
3/30/2005 Willows, Calif.     III                  Administration          
                                 James B. Lockhart,   Social Security         
3/30/2005 Redding, Calif.     III                  Administration          
                                 James B. Lockhart,   Social Security         
3/30/2005 Red Bluff, Calif.   III                  Administration          
                                                      Social Security         
3/30/2005 Woodstock, Ga.      Michel N. Korbey     Administration          
                                                      Executive Office of the 
3/30/2005 Charlotte, N.C.     Keith Hennessey      President               
                                                      Department of Health    
3/30/2005 Portland, Maine     Michael O. Leavitt   and Human Services      
3/30/2005 Flagstaff, Ariz.    Steven J. Law        Department of Labor     
3/30/2005 Flagstaff, Ariz.    Steven J. Law        Department of Labor     
                                 James B. Lockhart,   Social Security         
3/31/2005 Chico, Calif.       III                  Administration          
                                 James B. Lockhart,   Social Security         
3/31/2005 Magalia, Calif.     III                  Administration          
                                 James B. Lockhart,   Social Security         
3/31/2005 Yuba City, Calif.   III                  Administration          
                                 James B. Lockhart,   Social Security         
3/31/2005 Woodland, Calif.    III                  Administration          
                                                      Department of the       
3/31/2005 Bismarck, N.Dak.    John W. Snow         Treasury                
                                                      Department of the       
3/31/2005 Bismarck, N.Dak.    John W. Snow         Treasury                
             West Palm Beach,                         Department of Housing   
3/31/2005 Fla.                Alphonso R. Jackson  and Urban Development   
                                                      Small Business          
3/31/2005 Delray Beach, Fla.  Melanie R. Sabelhaus Administration          
3/31/2005 Pittsburgh, Pa.     Elaine L. Chao       Department of Labor     
                                                      Social Security         
3/31/2005 Baton Rouge, La.    Michel N. Korbey     Administration          
                                                      Social Security         
3/31/2005 Roswell, Ga.        Michel N. Korbey     Administration          
                                 James J. Courtney,   Social Security         
3/31/2005 Peachtree City, Ga. Jr.                  Administration          
3/31/2005 Las Vegas, Nev.     Steven J. Law        Department of Labor     
4/1/2005  Miami, Fla.         Carlos M. Gutierrez  Department of Commerce  
                                                      Small Business          
4/1/2005  Jupiter, Fla.       Melanie R. Sabelhaus Administration          
                                                      Social Security         
4/1/2005  Newark, Del.        Jo Anne B. Barnhart  Administration          
                                                      Social Security         
4/1/2005  Lake Charles, La.   Michel N. Korbey     Administration          
                                                      Small Business          
4/1/2005  Las Vegas, Nev.     Hector V. Barreto    Administration          
                                                      Department of the       
4/1/2005  San Antonio, Tex.   Anna Escobedo Cabral Treasury                
                                 James B. Lockhart,   Social Security         
4/2/2005  Fairfield, Conn.    III                  Administration          
                                                      Executive Office of the 
4/2/2005  Baltimore, Md.      Noam Neusner         President               
                                 James B. Lockhart,   Social Security         
4/3/2005  Darien, Conn.       III                  Administration          
                                                      Department of the       
4/4/2005  Washington, D.C.    John W. Snow         Treasury                
4/4/2005  Dallas, Tex.        Elaine L. Chao       Department of Labor     
4/4/2005  Manchester, N.H.    Steven J. Law        Department of Labor     
                                                      Social Security         
4/4/2005  Fairfax, Va.        Jo Anne B. Barnhart  Administration          
                                                      Small Business          
4/4/2005  Waterbury, Conn.    Melanie R. Sabelhaus Administration          
                                                      Executive Office of the 
4/4/2005  Dumont, N.J.        Joshua B. Bolten     President               
                                                      Executive Office of the 
4/5/2005  Parkersburg, W.Va.  George W. Bush       President               
                                                      Executive Office of the 
4/5/2005  Parkersburg, W.Va.  George W. Bush       President               
                                                      Small Business          
4/5/2005  Philadelphia, Pa.   Melanie R. Sabelhaus Administration          
                                                      Small Business          
4/6/2005  Richmond, Va.       Hector V. Barreto    Administration          
                                                      Social Security         
4/6/2005  Orlando, Fla.       Michel N. Korbey     Administration          
                                                      Department of Housing   
4/7/2005  Cleveland, Ohio     Alphonso R. Jackson  and Urban Development   
4/11/2005 Cincinnati, Ohio    Elaine L. Chao       Department of Labor     
                                                      Department of Health    
4/11/2005 Philadelphia, Pa.   Michael O. Leavitt   and Human Services      
                                                      Department of the       
4/11/2005 Aiken, S.C.         Arnold Havens        Treasury                
                                                      Department of the       
4/11/2005 Aiken, S.C.         Arnold Havens        Treasury                
4/12/2005 Flagstaff, Ariz.    Eric Stewart         Department of Commerce  
                                                      Small Business          
4/12/2005 Atlanta, Ga.        Hector V. Barreto    Administration          
4/12/2005 Flagstaff, Ariz.    Eric Stewart         Department of Commerce  
                                                      Department of Health    
4/13/2005 Chicago, Ill.       Michael O. Leavitt   and Human Services      
                                                      Small Business          
4/13/2005 New Orleans, La.    Hector V. Barreto    Administration          
                                 Dominic "Dan"        Department of the       
4/13/2005 Providence, R.I.    Iannicola, Jr.       Treasury                
                                                      Department of the       
4/14/2005 Cartersville, Ga.   Anna Escobedo Cabral Treasury                
                                                      Department of the       
4/14/2005 Rome, Ga.           Anna Escobedo Cabral Treasury                
                                                      Department of the       
4/14/2005 Smyrna, Ga.         Anna Escobedo Cabral Treasury                
                                                      Small Business          
4/14/2005 Columbus, Ga.       Hector V. Barreto    Administration          
                                                      Executive Office of the 
4/15/2005 Kirtland, Ohio      George W. Bush       President               
                                                      Executive Office of the 
4/15/2005 Pemberton, N.J.     Richard B. Cheney    President               
                                 James B. Lockhart,   Social Security         
4/16/2005 Decatur, Ga.        III                  Administration          
                                                      Executive Office of the 
4/18/2005 Columbia, S.C.      George W. Bush       President               
4/18/2005 Charlotte, N.C.     Elaine L. Chao       Department of Labor     
4/18/2005 Aurora, Colo.       Steven J. Law        Department of Labor     
                                                      Social Security         
4/18/2005 Baltimore, Md.      Michel N. Korbey     Administration          
                                                      Small Business          
4/18/2005 Yonkers, N.Y.       Thomas M. Sullivan   Administration          
             St. Petersburg,                                                  
4/19/2005 Fla.                Elaine L. Chao       Department of Labor     
                                                      Department of Health    
4/19/2005 Denver, Colo.       Michael O. Leavitt   and Human Services      
                                                      Department of the       
4/20/2005 New York, N.Y.      John W. Snow         Treasury                
                                                      Department of Health    
4/20/2005 Seattle, Wash.      Michael O. Leavitt   and Human Services      
                                                      Executive Office of the 
4/21/2005 Washington, D.C.    George W. Bush       President               
4/22/2005 Louisville, Ky.     Elaine L. Chao       Department of Labor     
4/22/2005 Las Cruces, N.Mex.  Carlos M. Gutierrez  Department of Commerce  
4/22/2005 Albuquerque, N.Mex. Carlos M. Gutierrez  Department of Commerce  
                                                      Department of Housing   
4/23/2005 Houston, Tex.       Alphonso R. Jackson  and Urban Development   
                                 James B. Lockhart,   Social Security         
4/25/2005 Mandeville, La.     III                  Administration          
             Lancaster County,                        Executive Office of the 
4/25/2005 Pa.                 Brian Reardon        President               
                                                      Executive Office of the 
4/26/2005 Galveston, Tex.     George W. Bush       President               
                                                      Department of the       
4/26/2005 Philadelphia, Pa.   Mark J. Warshawsky   Treasury                
4/27/2005 New Orleans, La.    Elaine L. Chao       Department of Labor     
                                                      Department of Housing   
4/27/2005 St. Louis, Mo.      Alphonso R. Jackson  and Urban Development   
                                 James B. Lockhart,   Social Security         
4/27/2005 New Orleans, La.    III                  Administration          
4/27/2005 New Orleans, La.    Elaine L. Chao       Department of Labor     
                                                      Department of Health    
4/28/2005 Kansas City, Mo.    Michael O. Leavitt   and Human Services      
                                 James B. Lockhart,   Social Security         
4/28/2005 New York, N.Y.      III                  Administration          
             Fort Washington,                         Social Security         
4/28/2005 Md.                 Michel N. Korbey     Administration          
                                                      Executive Office of the 
4/29/2005 Falls Church, Va.   George W. Bush       President               
4/29/2005 Bowling Green, Ky.  Elaine L. Chao       Department of Labor     
                                                      Department of Health    
4/29/2005 Dallas, Tex.        Michael O. Leavitt   and Human Services      
                                                      Department of Housing   
4/29/2005 Hartford, Conn.     Alphonso R. Jackson  and Urban Development   
                                 James B. Lockhart,   Social Security         
4/29/2005 Hartford, Conn.     III                  Administration          
                                                      Department of Housing   
4/30/2005 New York, N.Y.      Alphonso R. Jackson  and Urban Development   
                                                      Executive Office of the 
5/2/2005  Smyrna, Ga.         Richard B. Cheney    President               
                                                      Executive Office of the 
5/3/2005  Canton, Miss.       George W. Bush       President               
                                                      Department of the       
5/3/2005  Washington, D.C.    John W. Snow         Treasury                
                                                      Executive Office of the 
5/4/2005  Washington, D.C.    George W. Bush       President               
5/4/2005  New Orleans, La.    Elaine L. Chao       Department of Labor     
                                 James B. Lockhart,   Social Security         
5/7/2005  Los Angeles, Calif. III                  Administration          
                                                      Department of the       
5/9/2005  Hartford, Conn.     John W. Snow         Treasury                
                                                      Social Security         
5/11/2005 Orlando, Fla.       Michel N. Korbey     Administration          
                                                      Department of the       
5/12/2005 Davis, Calif.       Anna Escobedo Cabral Treasury                
                                                      Executive Office of the 
5/13/2005 Washington, D.C.    George W. Bush       President               
                                 James B. Lockhart,   Social Security         
5/16/2005 Lakewood, Va.       III                  Administration          
                                                      Executive Office of the 
5/19/2005 Milwaukee, Wis.     George W. Bush       President               
                                                      Small Business          
5/20/2005 San Diego, Calif.   Hector V. Barreto    Administration          
                                                      Department of the       
5/23/2005 Washington, D.C.    John W. Snow         Treasury                
                                                      Executive Office of the 
5/24/2005 Greece, N.Y.        George W. Bush       President               
                                                      Social Security         
6/1/2005  Orange, Va.         Jo Anne B. Barnhart  Administration          
                                                      Executive Office of the 
6/2/2005  Hopkinsville, Ky.   George W. Bush       President               
                                 James B. Lockhart,   Social Security         
6/2/2005  Glen Allen, Va.     III                  Administration          
                                 James B. Lockhart,   Social Security         
6/6/2005  New York, N.Y.      III                  Administration          
                                                      Executive Office of the 
6/8/2005  Washington, D.C.    George W. Bush       President               
             University Park,                         Executive Office of the 
6/14/2005 Pa.                 George W. Bush       President               
                                 James B. Lockhart,   Social Security         
6/18/2005 Ann Arbor, Mich.    III                  Administration          
             St. Petersburg,                          Social Security         
6/18/2005 Fla.                Michel N. Korbey     Administration          
                                 James B. Lockhart,   Social Security         
6/21/2005 Boston, Mass.       III                  Administration          
                                                      Executive Office of the 
6/23/2005 Silver Spring, Md.  George W. Bush       President               
                                 James B. Lockhart,   Social Security         
6/27/2005 Clifton Park, N.Y.  III                  Administration          
                                                      Department of the       
6/27/2005 Trumbull, Conn.     John W. Snow         Treasury                
                                 James B. Lockhart,   Social Security         
6/29/2005 Kearney, Neb.       III                  Administration          
                                 James B. Lockhart,   Social Security         
6/30/2005 Medford, Ore.       III                  Administration          
                                                      Department of the       
7/6/2005  Omaha, Neb.         John W. Snow         Treasury                

Sources: Department of the Treasury, Social Security Administration, and
the Executive Office of the President.

Enclosure III

Other Social Security Reform Promotion Initiatives

                                      Administration                          
Date        Type of initiative     official            Agency              
                                                          Executive Office of 
12/11/2004  Radio address          George W. Bush      the President       
                                                          Executive Office of 
1/11/2005   Internet questions     Charles P. Blahous  the President       
                                                          Executive Office of 
1/15/2005   Radio address          George W. Bush      the President       
                                                          Department of the   
2/3/2005    Internet questions     John W. Snow        Treasury            
                                                          Executive Office of 
2/5/2005    Radio address          George W. Bush      the President       
                                                          Executive Office of 
2/12/2005   Radio address          George W. Bush      the President       
                                                          Executive Office of 
2/26/2005   Radio address          George W. Bush      the President       
               Various media                              Department of the   
3/3/2005    interviews             John W. Snow        Treasury            
                                                          Executive Office of 
3/7/2005    Internet questions     Charles P. Blahous  the President       
                                                          Executive Office of 
3/8/2005    Radio interview        Richard B. Cheney   the President       
                                                          Executive Office of 
3/10/2005   Radio interview        Joshua B. Bolten    the President       
                                                          Executive Office of 
3/10/2005   Radio interview        Karl Rove           the President       
2/14/2005 - Social Security                            Department of the   
8/31/2006   Information Center     Treasury Staff      Treasury            
                                                          Executive Office of 
3/12/2005   Radio address          George W. Bush      the President       
                                                          Executive Office of 
3/16/2005   Radio interview        Nicolle Devenish    the President       
                                                          Executive Office of 
3/18/2005   Radio interview        Daniel J. Bartlett  the President       
               Social Security        James B. Lockhart,  Social Security     
3/23/2005   Trustees meeting       III                 Administration      
               Social Security                            Department of the   
3/23/2005   Trustees report speech John W. Snow        Treasury            
                                      James B. Lockhart,  Social Security     
3/23/2005   23 Radio interviews    III                 Administration      
                                                          Executive Office of 
3/30/2005   Radio interview        George W. Bush      the President       
                                                          Executive Office of 
4/5/2005    Internet questions     Charles P. Blahous  the President       
               Social Security Radio                                          
4/6/2005    Day                    Multiple officials  Various             
                                                          Executive Office of 
4/7/2005    Radio interview        Richard B. Cheney   the President       
                                                          Small Business      
4/13/2005   Radio interview        Hector V. Barreto   Administration      
                                                          Department of the   
4/15/2005   Internet questions     John W. Snow        Treasury            
               Teach Children to Save                     Department of the   
4/26/2005   Day                    23 officials        Treasury            
                                                          Executive Office of 
4/29/2005   Internet questions     Catherine J. Martin the President       
                                                          Executive Office of 
4/30/2005   Radio address          George W. Bush      the President       
               Anniversary of                             Department of the   
5/2/2005    President's commission John W. Snow        Treasury            
               Various media          James B. Lockhart,  Social Security     
5/9/2005    interviews             III                 Administration      
               Social Security                            Department of the   
5/19/2005   Economic Roundtable    John W. Snow        Treasury            
                                                          Department of the   
5/19/2005   Newspaper article      John W. Snow        Treasury            
                                                          Executive Office of 
6/2/2005    Radio interview        Catherine J. Martin the President       
               Various media          James B. Lockhart,  Social Security     
6/6/2005    interviews             III                 Administration      
                                                          Executive Office of 
6/8/2005    Internet questions     Charles P. Blahous  the President       
                                                          Executive Office of 
6/14/2005   Radio interview        Allan B. Hubbard    the President       

Sources: Department of the Treasury, Social Security Administration, and
the Executive Office of the President.

Enclosure IV

EOP Events Covered by Interagency Agreements and the Amounts Reimbursed by
Agency

    Event     President   Event   Reimbursed  
  location    (POTUS)/    date      amount    
                Vice               (dollars)  
              President                       Department                            
                (VP)              Department   of Health                            
                                    of the     and Human  Department                
                                   Treasury    Services    of Labor       Total     
Washington,                                                                         
D.C.            POTUS   1/11/2005  $56,404.83       $0.00       $0.00    $56,404.83 
Washington,                                                                         
D.C.             VP     1/13/2005   10,625.00        0.00        0.00     10,625.00 
Great Falls,                                                                        
Mont.           POTUS    2/3/2005        0.00   19,613.18   84,974.97    104,588.15 
Fargo, N.Dak.   POTUS    2/3/2005   77,621.20        0.00    3,464.07     81,085.27 
Omaha, Neb.     POTUS    2/4/2005   79,536.86        0.00        0.00     79,536.86 
Little Rock,                                                                        
Ark.            POTUS    2/4/2005        0.00   40,475.47    4,047.55     44,523.02 
Tampa, Fla.     POTUS    2/4/2005   16,295.44        0.00   56,672.04     72,967.48 
Blue Bell,                                                                          
Pa.             POTUS   2/10/2005   46,707.91   23,353.96        0.00     70,061.87 
Raleigh, N.C.   POTUS   2/10/2005        0.00        0.00   22,588.27     22,588.27 
Portsmouth,                                                                         
N.H.            POTUS   2/16/2005   25,000.00   15,000.00   15,000.00     55,000.00 
Westfield,                                                                          
N.J.            POTUS    3/4/2005   65,000.00    5,000.00        0.00     70,000.00 
Notre Dame,                                                                         
Ind.            POTUS    3/4/2005        0.00   25,000.00   15,000.00     40,000.00 
Montgomery,                                                                         
Ala.            POTUS   3/10/2005   21,207.54   26,250.00   24,742.13     72,199.67 
Louisville,                                                                         
Ky.             POTUS   3/10/2005   22,500.00   18,750.00   18,750.00     60,000.00 
Memphis,                                                                            
Tenn.           POTUS   3/11/2005   22,500.00    2,991.32    3,250.00     28,741.32 
Shreveport,                                                                         
La.             POTUS   3/11/2005   22,500.00   33,750.00   33,750.00     90,000.00 
Pensacola,                                                                          
Fla.            POTUS   3/18/2005   17,500.00   20,000.00   17,500.00     55,000.00 
Orlando,                                                                            
Fla.a           POTUS   3/18/2005   17,300.69   14,829.16   17,300.69     49,430.54 
Tucson, Ariz.   POTUS   3/21/2005   14,161.93   14,161.93   14,161.93     42,485.79 
Denver, Colo.   POTUS   3/21/2005   20,851.85   20,755.75   20,851.84     62,459.44 
Bakersfield,                                                                        
Calif.           VP     3/21/2005        0.00        0.00   29,334.23     29,334.23 
Albuquerque,                                                                        
N.Mex.a         POTUS   3/22/2005   13,400.00   13,400.00   13,200.00     40,000.00 
Reno, Nev.       VP     3/22/2005        0.00        0.00   17,958.83     17,958.83 
Battle Creek,                                                                       
Mich.            VP     3/24/2005        0.00   23,809.61        0.00     23,809.61 
Pittsburgh,                                                                         
Pa.              VP     3/24/2005        0.00   27,817.27        0.00     27,817.27 
Cedar Rapids,                                                                       
Iowa            POTUS   3/30/2005   19,290.96   19,290.96   19,290.96     57,872.88 
Parkersburg,                                                                        
W.Va.a          POTUS    4/5/2005   13,500.00   13,000.00   13,500.00     40,000.00 
Kirtland,                                                                           
Ohio            POTUS   4/15/2005   10,632.00   11,813.50   10,632.00     33,077.50 
Pemberton,                                                                          
N.J.             VP     4/15/2005   28,116.67        0.00        0.00     28,116.67 
Columbia,                                                                           
S.C.            POTUS   4/18/2005      532.89      532.89      532.89      1,598.67 
Galveston,                                                                          
Tex.            POTUS   4/26/2005      844.50      844.50      844.50      2,533.50 
Falls Church,                                                                       
Va.             POTUS   4/29/2005   14,495.85   14,495.85   14,495.85     43,487.55 
Smyrna, Ga.      VP      5/2/2005   29,499.65        0.00        0.00     29,499.65 
Canton, Miss.   POTUS    5/3/2005   19,036.22   18,170.98   18,170.98     55,378.18 
Rochester,                                                                          
N.Y.            POTUS   5/24/2005    2,020.13    1,960.72    1,960.72      5,941.57 
Hopkinsville,                                                                       
Ky.             POTUS    6/2/2005   16,094.38   15,621.02   15,621.02     47,336.42 
Total                             $703,176.50 $440,688.07 $507,595.47 $1,651,460.04 

Sources: Executive Office of the President, Departments of the Treasury,
Labor, and Health and Human Services.

aFor each of these entries, there were two presidential events.

Enclosure V

Comments from the Social Security Administration

(190142)

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