Category Archives: Economic Development

Detecting Fraud in the Immigrant Investor Visa Program (podcast)

Foreign nationals who make substantial investments in projects that create or sustain U.S. jobs can get a conditional green card and a path to citizenship under the Immigrant Investor Program. Yet the program’s reliance on voluminous paper applications leaves it … Continue reading

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Helping Government Help Small Businesses

National Small Business Week recognizes the contributions of American small business owners and entrepreneurs. On the WatchBlog, it’s a time to look at the Small Business Administration—the federal agency that is charged with providing many small businesses with resources and … Continue reading

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Federal Grants and Other Assistance

Federal grants pay for all manner of things, including highways, health care, and education. Today’s WatchBlog follows the money trail of federal grants, discusses ways to improve grant management, and explores some ways the federal government can help states and … Continue reading

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Getting Closure on Our Recommendations

Last year, we blogged about why agencies implement GAO’s recommendations. Looking at our annual Performance and Accountability Report, you can see that we’ve averaged 1,800 recommendations a year with an average 80% implementation rate between fiscal years 2010-2015. This adds … Continue reading

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The Buy Indian Act: A Work in Progress

American Indians and Alaska Natives have a unique legal and political relationship with the federal government that gives the government responsibility for protecting and improving tribal interests. For Native American Heritage Month, we’re taking a look at one law meant … Continue reading

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Small Business Administration Management (podcast)

The Small Business Administration is a small agency with a big mission: help Americans start, build, and grow businesses. But for years, the SBA has struggled to manage its own operations. Listen to Bill Shear, a director in our Financial … Continue reading

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Manufacturing Success

What do textiles, food, and chemicals have in common? They are all produced by manufacturing—a critical component of the nation’s economy. So how does the nation ensure its manufacturers stay competitive? For Manufacturing Day, we highlight what we found when … Continue reading

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Environmental Challenges and Opportunities in the Arctic Get Federal Attention

A warming climate is changing the Arctic’s environment. The decline in summer sea ice, which reached its lowest point on record in 2012, has made some Arctic waters navigable for longer periods of time.

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