When a community loses its Head Start provider, the Office of Head Start (OHS) deploys its interim manager to temporarily operate this federally funded early childhood education program. Since 2000, OHS has placed more than 200 programs under interim management. As of September 2024, 18 of 1,600 Head Start programs nationwide were under interim…

The Public Service Loan Forgiveness (PSLF) program was established in 2007 and forgives borrowers' remaining federal student loan balances after they have made at least 10 years of qualifying loan payments while working in public service. Starting in September 2017, the first borrowers potentially became eligible for the PSLF program and began…

Starting in September 2017, the first borrowers became eligible and began applying to have their loans forgiven through the Public Service Loan Forgiveness (PSLF) program. The US Government Accountability Office (GAO) was asked to review the PSLF program. This report examines the (1) number of borrowers pursuing PSLF and the extent to which the…

The Bureau of Prisons (BOP) is responsible for managing the care and custody of approximately 175,000 federal inmates--an estimated 20 percent of whom have been diagnosed with a substance use disorder. The Government Accountability Office (GAO) was asked to review BOP's efforts to provide drug treatment to federal inmates. This report (1)…

American Indian and Alaska Native students enrolled in public schools have performed consistently below other students on national assessments from 2005-2019. The Johnson-O'Malley (JOM) program provides academic and cultural supports, through contracts, to meet the specialized and unique educational needs of American Indian and Alaska Native…

As of September 2013 about $94 billion--over 11 percent of federal student loan volume in repayment--was in default. Loan rehabilitation allows borrowers who make nine on-time monthly payments within 10 months to have the default removed from their credit reports. Department of Education (Education) contracts with collection agencies to assist…

To help prevent the substitution of federal funds for state, local, or private funds, the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009 (Recovery Act) contains maintenance of effort and similar provisions requiring that recipients maintain certain levels of spending for selected programs. This report provides information on selected programs in…

Congress created the State Children's Health Insurance Program (SCHIP) to reduce the number of uninsured children in low-income families that do not qualify for Medicaid. States have flexibility in structuring their SCHIP programs, and their income eligibility limits vary. Concerns have been raised that individuals might substitute SCHIP for…