United States Government Publishing Office publisher pbl distributor dst United States Government Accountability Office National Security and International Affairs Division author aut Government Organization text government publication eng GAOREPORTS Legislative Agency Publications gao legislative 2010-08-12 U.S. Government Printing Office 2000-09-29 monographic deposited born digital 59 p. GA 1.13:NSIAD-00-229 https://www.govinfo.gov/app/details/GAOREPORTS-NSIAD-00-229 P0b002ee180399d5c f:ns00229 DGPO 2010-08-12 2011-03-24 GAOREPORTS-NSIAD-00-229 machine generated eng fdlp REPORT GAOREPORTS-NSIAD-00-229 NSIAD-00-229 Eligibility determinations Labor surplus areas Community development Foreign trade agreements Economic development Intergovernmental fiscal relations Unemployment rates Economically depressed areas North American Free Trade Agreement NAFTA Mexico Canada DOL NAFTA Transitional Adjustment Assistance Program SBA 7(a) General Business Loan Guarantee Program USDA Business and Industry Loan Program Treasury Community Adjustment and Investment Program Letter Report NSIAD Pursuant to a congressional request, GAO provided information on the Community Adjustment and Investment Program (CAIP), focusing on: (1) how the program has been structured; (2) how program eligibility criteria and outreach efforts have been implemented; and (3) what the results of efforts to provide assistance to eligible counties were.<p/>GAO noted that: (1) the Community Adjustment and Investment Program's management structure hinders efficient program management; (2) the program is managed in Washington, D.C., by a high-level interagency group chaired by the Department of the Treasury, called the Finance Committee; (3) Committee membership includes the Departments of Agriculture, Commerce, Housing and Urban Development, and Labor, and the Small Business Administration; (4) it took the Finance Committee over 3 years to set up program guidelines and to start disbursing program financing to distressed counties; (5) the Finance Committee's retention of certain day-to-day managerial functions is inefficient and has added more time to the decision-making process, particularly for direct loans and grants; (6) Treasury officials recognize that some delays have resulted from the program's centralized management structure and told GAO that they plan to hire additional full-time staff to expedite future decision-making; (7) however, it is not clear that new staff will improve program management unless the Finance Committee is prepared to delegate decision-making authority; (8) program eligibility procedures are complex and rely on a database that is not designed to be used as a measure of the impact of the North American Free Trade Agreement on communities; (9) GAO found that Treasury's current procedures result in the underestimation of dislocated workers, including approximately 3,700 secondary workers in firms that are suppliers to or assemblers for manufacturing firms adversely impacted by trade with Mexico and Canada; (10) although this undercounting has not had an impact on counties from qualifying for the program; (11) for the 228 counties in 30 states and Puerto Rico designated eligible for the program, notification and outreach have been limited, as Treasury does not directly notify eligible counties about the program, according to program officials; and (12) since 1997, about $257 million in loan guarantees, loans, and grants have been provided to 83 eligible counties. https://www.govinfo.gov/content/pkg/GAOREPORTS-NSIAD-00-229/html/GAOREPORTS-NSIAD-00-229.htm https://www.govinfo.gov/content/pkg/GAOREPORTS-NSIAD-00-229/pdf/GAOREPORTS-NSIAD-00-229.pdf GAO/NSIAD-00-229 https://www.govinfo.gov/app/details/GAOREPORTS-NSIAD-00-229 Letter Report GAO/NSIAD-00-229; Trade Adjustment Assistance: Opportunities to Improve the; Eligibility determinations Labor surplus areas Community development Foreign trade agreements Economic development Intergovernmental fiscal relations Unemployment rates Economically depressed areas North American Free Trade Agreement NAFTA Mexico Canada DOL NAFTA Transitional Adjustment Assistance Program SBA 7(a) General Business Loan Guarantee Program USDA Business and Industry Loan Program Treasury Community Adjustment and Investment Program Public Law 103-182