GAO's High Risk List
Every two years, GAO provides Congress with an update on its High-Risk Program, which highlights major problems that are at high risk for waste, fraud, abuse mismanagement or in need of broad reform. There are 30 areas on GAO's High-Risk list. Pages in this section discuss each of these high-risk areas, including information from GAO's February 2011 high-risk update as well as the results of work completed since then. The 2011 high-risk update included one new issue area, Management of Federal Oil and Gas Resources. Two issues were removed from the list: 2010 Census and DOD’s Personnel Security Clearance Program.
- High-Risk Series: An Update
- GAO-11-278, February 2011
- Summary (HTML) Highlights Page (PDF) Full Report (PDF, 99 pages) Accessible Text
GAO's High Risk List
Strengthening the Foundation for Efficiency and Effectiveness Overview
- Management of Federal Oil and Gas Resources
- Modernizing the Outdated U.S. Financial Regulatory System
- Restructuring the U.S. Postal Service to Achieve Sustainable Financial Viability
- Funding the Nation's Surface Transportation System
- Strategic Human Capital Management
- Managing Federal Real Property
Transforming DOD Program Management Overview
- DOD Approach to Business Transformation
- Business Systems Modernization
- Support Infrastructure Management
- Financial Management
- Supply Chain Management
- Weapon Systems Acquisition
Ensuring Public Safety and Security Overview
- Implementing and Transforming the Department of Homeland Security
- Establishing Effective Mechanisms for Sharing Terrorism-Related Information to Protect the Homeland
- Protecting the Federal Government's Information Systems and the Nation's Cyber Critical Infrastructures
- Ensuring the Effective Protection of Technologies Critical to U.S. National Security Interests
- Revamping Federal Oversight of Food Safety
- Protecting Public Health through Enhanced Oversight of Medical Products
- Transforming EPA's Process for Assessing and Controlling Toxic Chemicals
Managing Federal Contracting More Effectively Overview
- DOD Contract Management
- DOE's Contract Management for the National Nuclear Security Administration and Office of Environmental Management
- NASA Acquisition Management
- Management of Interagency Contracting
