Dear Mr. Dodaro: On March 27, 2012, we requested the Government Accountability Office examine the U.S. Department of Education’s oversight into the Direct Loan rehabilitation process for defaulted borrowers. Since that time, we have received numerous troubling complaints from borrowers whose financial information and payments were lost by the department, who were put into forbearance without bein... Read more »
Dear Mr. Dodaro: In December 2010, the Healthy, Hunger-Free Kids Act was signed into law, enacting the most comprehensive changes to the National School Lunch Program (NSLP) in more than 15 years. Among the most significant change was a requirement that the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) update nutrition standards for school meal programs. These new requirements, which recently went into e... Read more »
Dear Secretary Sebelius: As you are aware, under current law the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) is required to issue an annual "Indicators of Welfare Dependence" report. Past issues of this report have provided Congress ant the public valuable information about Americans' dependence on various public benefit programs, including the Temporary Assistance for Needy Families (TANF... Read more »
Dear Acting Administrator Bershteyn: Thank you for taking the time to discuss the status of the Spring 2012 Unified Agenda ("Spring Agenda") on October 12, 2012. It became clear during our conversation that rather than publishing the Spring Agenda, the Office of Information and Regulatory Affairs (OIRA) is working to publish the Fall 2012 Unified Agenda ("Fall Agenda"). OIRA's handling of the Spr... Read more »
Dear Secretary Sebelius: Head Start is one of the federal government’s largest initiatives to improve the lives of the estimated 900,000 children it serves, who are among the most at-risk in our society. Since taxpayers spend more than $14,000 for each child who is enrolled in the program for a full two years, totaling almost $8 billion in FY 2012, it is absolutely critical to ensure this investm... Read more »
Dear Secretary Vilsack: Over the last month, state and local food service personnel, teachers, parents, and students have expressed concern about the recent meal pattern and nutrition requirements for the National School Lunch and School Breakfast programs proposed by the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA). According to recent reports, high school students, especially athletes, are going hungr... Read more »
Dear Acting Director Zients: We are greatly concerned about the Office of Management and Budget’s (OMB) September 28, 2012 guidance regarding “Allowable Contracting Costs Associated with the Worker Adjustment and Retraining Notification (WARN) Act.”Specifically, we are concerned by OMB’s reliance on the Department of Labor’s (DOL) July 30, 2012 misleading and incomplete guidance relating to the a... Read more »
Dear Secretary Solis: On August 2, 2012, we contacted you to share our concern regarding misleading and incomplete guidance from the Employment and Training Administration relating to the applicability of the Worker Adjustment and Retraining Notification Act (WARN Act) to potential sequestration-caused layoffs. The letter also requested related information, documents, and communications no later ... Read more »
Dear Attorney General Holder: The attached National Relations Board (NLRB) Inspector General’s (IG) report makes serious allegations that Acting General Lafe Solomon engaged in ethical and criminal misconduct while serving on the NLRB. I respectfully request you investigate these charges fully. Under 18 USC 208, with some exceptions, “whoever, being an officer or employee…of any independent agenc... Read more »
Dear Acting Director Zients: Regulatory uncertainty plays a significant role in perpetuating a persistently weak economy and labor market. It undermines the ability of employers and entrepreneurs to hire new workers, plan for the future, and invest in growing their businesses. To help get the economy back on track and support job growth, the American people and their elected representatives must ... Read more »
