United States General Accounting Office
GAO
Report to the Chairmen, Committee on
Appropriations and Committee on
Governmental Affairs, U.S. Senate
June 1997
INTERNET AND
ELECTRONIC DIAL-UP
BULLETIN BOARDS
Information Reported by
Federal Organizations
GAO/GGD-97-86
GAO
United States
General Accounting Office
Washington, D.C. 20548
General Government Division
B-272843
June 16, 1997
The Honorable Ted Stevens, Chairman
Committee on Appropriations
United States Senate
The Honorable Fred Thompson, Chairman
Committee on Governmental Affairs
United States Senate
This report responds to your request for information on Internet and
electronic dial-up bulletin board system (
BBS) activities in the executive
branch of the federal government.
The Internet is a global information system comprising a world-wide
network of networks. Users are able to access and transmit data across
this global network in many different ways, including using electronic mail
(e-mail) and the World-Wide Web (
WWW). E-mail allows users to easily
send primarily text-based messages between computers. The
WWW
employs a “point and click” technology, which allows users to easily
access information on other computers as well as establish
WWW sites that
incorporate graphics and other multimedia features. Electronic dial-up
BBSs, on the other hand, do not require use of the Internet. A BBS typically
consists of a personal computer, modem(s), and
BBS communications
software that allows users to send and receive messages and files and is
based on direct dial-up computer-to-computer connections.
Specifically, for executive branch agencies, you requested information on
(1) fiscal year 1994 through 1996 expenditures for Internet and
BBS
activities, (2) the number of WWW sites and electronic dial-up BBSs, and
(3) the number of employees with government-provided Internet e-mail
and
WWW access. In addition, this report provides information on benefits
agencies associate with these activities and on guidance for Internet
activities; and it discusses the issue of employee misuse of
government-provided Internet resources at a few agencies.
To respond to your request, we sent a data collection form to 43 federal
organizations—14 Cabinet-level departments and 29 independent agencies.
Appendix II lists the 43 federal organizations. As agreed, because of the
broad scope and relatively short time frame for completing this request,
we did not independently verify the accuracy of the information provided.
We did, however, perform additional work at three judgmentally selected
agencies to gain a better understanding of federal Internet and
BBS
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activities. These three agencies included the National Oceanic and
Atmospheric Administration (
NOAA), within the Department of Commerce;
the Fish and Wildlife Service (
FWS), within the Department of the Interior;
and the Social Security Administration (
SSA). It should be noted that on
occasion, concerns over privacy and security issues relating to federal
WWW sites have been raised in the media and elsewhere. Assessment of
these issues was beyond the scope of this review.
We conducted our work from May 1996 through May 1997 in accordance
with generally accepted government auditing standards. See appendix I for
a more detailed discussion of our scope and methodology. We requested
comments on a draft of this report from the Director of the Office of
Management and Budget (
OMB) and on excerpts of this report from the
heads of the three agencies at which we performed additional work. The
agencies’ comments are addressed at the end of this letter.
Results in Brief
Although the federal organizations provided us with expenditure data for
their Internet and
BBS activities, it should be emphasized that these data
are based largely on estimates. Some reporting officials told us that they
relied on estimates because they do not typically account for Internet and
BBS expenditures separately from other information technology
expenditures.
Of the 43 federal organizations to which we sent data collection forms, 42
responded
1
and estimated spending a total of about $349 million on
Internet and
BBS activities in fiscal years 1994 through 1996. In all, they
estimated spending about $59 million in fiscal year 1994, about
$100 million in fiscal year 1995, and about $190 million in fiscal year 1996.
The bulk of these estimated expenditures—about $325 million—were for
Internet activities to provide employees access to the Internet and to
establish and maintain
WWW sites. The remainder of the estimated
expenditures—about $23 million for the 3-year period—were for
establishing and maintaining electronic dial-up
BBSs.
The 42 federal organizations reported having a total of about 4,300
WWW
sites and about 215 electronic dial-up BBSs. Because of your interest in
identifying the number of distinct
WWW sites and to encourage consistent
reporting, we provided the federal organizations with a definition of a
WWW
site. All 42 organizations reported having at least one WWW site, but some
reported that they did not use our definition or did not list all sites
1
As of May 30, 1997, the Department of State had not responded to our data collection form.
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generally because they do not track this information, and it was not readily
available.
The 42 federal organizations estimated that they provided Internet e-mail
access to about 1.7 million, or about 50 percent, of their civilian and
military employees and
WWW access to about 1 million, or about
31 percent, of their employees.
The Internet has become a valuable and widely used means of
communicating and sharing information. Federal organizations associated
numerous benefits with their Internet and
BBS activities, including
communicating more effectively with colleagues and with the public;
easily accessing professional, scientific, or technical information;
disseminating information quicker and more cost effectively; and reducing
paperwork by conducting the work of the organization electronically.
While there is no governmentwide policy or regulations that specifically
govern employee use of the Internet, most federal organizations that had
guidance for their employees’ use of the Internet prohibit any use of
government-provided Internet resources for nonofficial uses. A few
organizations allow limited personal use. Although
OMB is working on
governmentwide guidance on establishing and maintaining
WWW sites, half
the federal organizations reported having developed their own guidance
for employees to use to establish and maintain
WWW sites.
The potential for misuse of government-provided Internet resources
exists—as it does for other types of government-provided resources, such
as telephones and copying machines. Although we did not assess the
appropriateness of employee use of government-provided resources
during this review, some of the federal organizations reported instances of
what they considered to be employee misuse to us. These included
accessing what the agencies considered to be inappropriate material on
the Internet and establishing
WWW sites without approval.
Background
The Internet’s origins can be traced to communications technology
research sponsored by the federal government as early as the 1960s. Since
then, collaboration between government, educational, and commercial
interests has led to the present day Internet infrastructure.
Users access the Internet infrastructure in a variety of ways. E-mail, one of
the earliest ways to access the Internet, allows people to easily send and
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receive text messages between computers. Another more recent way for
users to access the Internet is through use of the
WWW, which is credited
with the explosion of Internet usage in recent years because of its “user
friendly” aspect. Using software, referred to as server software, the
WWW
allows users to organize computer files into WWW sites consisting of “web
pages.” Using other software, referred to as web browser software, users
can view web pages displaying text and graphics and other multimedia
elements such as sound and video. A defining feature of the
WWW is its use
of hyper text transfer protocol (http), which allows text or images to be
defined as pointers or “links.” Within
WWW pages, a user can select “links”
that quickly and easily take the user to other pages within that site or to
other sites located on computers throughout the world. Each page of a
WWW site may also be accessed by its unique Internet address.
In setting up a
WWW site, an organization can employ an Internet service
provider for space on a computer and for the connections, which can be
used to host the
WWW site. Or, an organization can set up its own WWW site
using its own hardware and software. In general, costs involved for setting
up a site could include connections, hardware, software, personnel,
training, and contractor support.
Electronic dial-up
BBSs use communications software that typically allows
users to send and receive text-based messages and data or program files.
BBS technology was originally developed on the basis of a direct dial-up
computer-to-computer connection, which does not require use of the
Internet. Currently, however, many computers running
BBS
software—while still accessible through dial-up (non-Internet)
means—can also be linked to the Internet providing an additional means
of access.
OMB has responsibility for oversight of executive branch information
collection and dissemination as well as information technology, which
would generally include Internet-related activities. A number of laws and
guidance, such as the Paperwork Reduction Act of 1995,
2
the Electronic
Freedom of Information Act Amendments of 1996,
3
and OMB Circular
A-130,
4
require agency information to be made available to the public
electronically. In addition, the National Performance Review (
NPR) sets a
2
Public Law 104-13, 109 Stat. 163 (1995).
3
Public Law 104-231, 110 Stat. 3048 (1996).
4
OMB Circular A-130, Management of Federal Information Resources, 61 FR 6428 (Feb. 20, 1996).
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clear expectation that government should take advantage of information
technology to quickly deliver services to the public.
5
Estimated
Expenditures for
Internet Increased
Significantly While
BBS Expenditures
Remained Relatively
Constant
Federal organizations responding to our data collection efforts estimated
spending about $349 million during fiscal years 1994 through 1996 for
Internet and
BBS activities. Of this amount an estimated $325 million was
for Internet activities, and an estimated $23 million was for
BBS activities.
As shown in table 1, expenditures for Internet activities increased
significantly over this period, while
BBS expenditures remained relatively
constant. Appendixes III and IV provide estimated Internet and
BBS
expenditures for each of the 42 federal organizations.
Table 1: Total Estimated Expenditures
for Internet and BBS Activities for 42
Federal Organizations, Fiscal Years
1994-1996
Estimated expenditures
a
Dollars in millions
Activity FY 1994 FY 1995 FY 1996 Total
Internet
b
$50.9 $92.2 $182.3 $325.4
Electronic dial-up BBS 7.8 8.0 7.3 23.1
Total $58.7 $100.2 $189.6 $348.5
a
Estimated expenditures include both capital and operating expenditures. Capital expenditures
are for items that are generally depreciated or amortized over more than one accounting period.
We did not ask organizations to depreciate or amortize the capital expenditures, but to report the
expenditure in the year it was made. Operating expenditures are expensed in the year in which
they were made.
b
Includes expenditures for providing Internet access to employees and for establishing and
maintaining WWW sites.
Source: GAO analysis of data provided by 42 federal organizations.
All 42 federal organizations reported increases in Internet expenditures
from fiscal year 1994 to fiscal year 1996. Within federal organizations,
Internet expenditures of some major components increased while those of
others decreased.
BBS expenditures, however, showed more variations. Of the 29 federal
organizations that reported
BBS expenditures, 15 estimated spending less
5
The NPR, under the direction of the Vice President, was a major management reform initiative by the
administration and was intended to identify ways to make the government work better and cost less.
The NPR’s report, From Red Tape to Results: Creating a Government That Works Better and Costs
Less, was issued in September 1993.
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in fiscal year 1996 than in fiscal year 1994, and 14 estimated spending
more. For example,
SSA reported that BBS expenditures increased primarily
as a result of system improvements to its Online Wage Reporting
BBS. In
contrast, the Environmental Protection Agency reported that
BBS
expenditures were decreasing because of increased use of the WWW as a
means of disseminating information.
The expenditure data provided by federal organizations were largely based
on estimates. Some reporting officials told us that they do not typically
account for Internet and
BBS expenditures separately from other
information technology expenditures, and they had difficulty making
reasonable estimates. For example, expenditures for the portion of
personnel time and for connections associated with the Internet were
difficult to estimate.
Furthermore, some federal organizations told us that they did not report
all expenditures. For example, the information reported by the Executive
Office of the President did not include personnel expenditures for White
House and
OMB Internet activities. The organization reported that
personnel expenditures for Internet activities were not tracked, and there
was no reasonable basis upon which to make an estimate. Furthermore,
the Department of Health and Human Services (
HHS) did not provide
information for three of its components—the Administration for Children
and Families, the Agency for Health Care Policy and Research, and the
Health Research and Services Administration.
Federal Organizations
Maintain Many WWW
Sites and Fewer BBSs
All 42 federal organizations reported having established a WWW presence
on the Internet, with the number of
WWW sites totaling about 4,300 at the
time of our review. Not all components within a federal organization had
their own
WWW sites. Twenty-nine federal organizations reported having
215 electronic dial-up
BBSs.
The definition of a
WWW site can vary. Because of your interest in
identifying the number of distinct
WWW sites and to encourage consistent
reporting, we defined a
WWW site as a file or group of files organized under
a homepage, that is accessible on the Internet with web browser software.
A
WWW site’s homepage is typically the index, welcome, or menu page for a
distinct
WWW activity or service. As expected, federal organizations
reported a large number of
WWW sites that reflect the large number of
activities within the federal government.
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A WWW site can also be broadly defined as the entire WWW presence for an
organization. Under this definition, for example,
NOAA would have one WWW
site at Internet address “http://www.noaa.gov.” Furthermore, a WWW site can
be defined as the distinct computer that hosts the
WWW pages. Using this
definition,
NOAA would have 85 WWW sites because 85 different computers
actually host its
WWW presence. Using our definition, NOAA reported having
383
WWW sites, that is, 383 distinct activities or services on the WWW being
maintained within
NOAA.
Although we contacted federal organizations where we had questions
concerning whether they understood our definition of a
WWW site, due to
the large number of reported
WWW sites, we could not verify that all federal
organizations used our definition. Furthermore, some federal
organizations reported that the list they provided of their
WWW sites was
not in accordance with our definition or was not complete. Some reported
that they do not centrally track this type of information and to obtain these
data would have involved a major data collection effort.
A supplement to this report entitled World Wide Web Sites Reported by
Federal Organizations (GAO/GGD-97-86S, June 1997), which is available
electronically on the Internet at
“
http://www.gao.gov/cgi/bin/getrpt?GGD-97-86s”, presents the
approximately 4,300
WWW sites federal organizations reported to us. It
should be noted that
WWW sites change rapidly. Organizations can easily
create or eliminate
WWW sites. As a result, the approximately 4,300 WWW
sites are current only as of the date that the federal organizations provided
us with the information.
Of the 42 federal organizations, 29 reported having a total of 215 electronic
dial-up
BBSs. The remaining 13 federal organizations reported having no
BBSs at the time of our review. Appendix V presents the electronic dial-up
BBSs reported to us.
Employee Internet
Access Varied
Significantly Among
Federal Organizations
The 42 federal organizations reported having about 3.4 million civilian and
military employees, to which they provided e-mail access to about
1.7 million employees, or about 50 percent. Furthermore, they provided
about 1 million employees, or about 31 percent, with
WWW access. It should
be noted that more employees may have access to the
WWW through their
organization’s library or common workstations, but we sought information
only on those having access at their workstations.
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When viewed organization by organization, the extent that federal
organizations provided e-mail access to their employees varied widely. For
example, the Department of Justice reported providing about 8 percent of
its approximately 102,000 employees with e-mail access, while the
Departments of Education and Housing and Urban Development (
HUD)
reported providing e-mail access to 100 percent of their approximately
5,000 and 11,000 employees, respectively. All 42 federal organizations
reported providing at least a portion of their employees with Internet
e-mail access.
Similarly,
WWW access varied significantly. The Departments of Justice and
the Treasury reported providing about 8 percent of their approximately
102,000 and 144,000 employees with
WWW access, while HUD reported
providing 100 percent of its 11,000 employees with
WWW access. All but one
federal organization reported providing at least a portion of their
employees with
WWW access at their workstations.
6
Appendix VI provides
the information reported to us on the number of employees having
Internet e-mail and
WWW access in each federal organization.
Federal Organizations
Reported Benefits of
Internet and BBSs
Based on its rapidly growing usage throughout the world, it is evident that
the Internet has provided many benefits to individuals and organizations.
Benefits of electronic dial-up
BBSs, while much less publicized, are also
generally accepted, particularly by those who do not have Internet access.
Federal organizations also associated numerous benefits with their
Internet and
BBS activities.
Although we have previously reported on the technological challenges of
the “information superhighway,” we also recognize its potential.
7
Our
literature search indicated that the
WWW is accelerating international
cultural interaction. But perhaps more importantly, the
WWW is changing
the way private and public organizations do business. The Internet
provides employees with tools they can use to increase their performance
levels, to interact, and to gather knowledge. Organizations believe that the
Internet offers the ability to continuously update and disseminate
information. Corporations are increasingly using the Internet for such
things as web-based conferencing and on-demand training for employees.
6
The Corporation for National Service reported providing WWW access to its employees only through
common workstations, not at individual employees’ desktop workstations.
7
See Information Superhighway: An Overview of Technology Challenges, (GAO/AIMD-95-23, Jan. 23,
1995) and Managing Technology: Best Practices Can Improve Performance and Produce Results
(GAO/T-AIMD-97-38, Jan. 31, 1997).
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The benefits that federal organizations associated with their Internet and
BBS activities included being able to communicate better within their
organizations and with the public, disseminate information about their
organization and mission to a larger audience than ever before, and
conduct their business quickly and efficiently. A few specific examples of
reported benefits include
• The Nuclear Regulatory Commission reported that the agency’s use of the
WWW and BBSs has facilitated the rulemaking process by providing the
public with electronic access to the text of proposed rules and a means by
which the public may comment.
• The National Institutes of Health within HHS reported that the Internet has
allowed it to share a wealth of medical information with the public. For
example, it’s
WWW site includes the Combined Health Information
Database, which contains over 70,000 medical references, allowing users
to identify medical publications, books, and pamphlets on a variety of
topics and indicating where a user may obtain the item.
• The Federal Communications Commission reported that it has
implemented electronic filing on a limited basis, which gives businesses
the opportunity to file required forms.
• The Executive Office of the President reported that the White House WWW
site provides the public interactive access to commonly requested federal
services, press releases, speeches, and public documents. Users may also
provide feedback to the President and Vice President through e-mail.
• The National Science Foundation reported benefits associated with one of
its grants projects. It said, internally, the use of the
WWW has reduced the
number of status inquiry phone calls, reduced staff time in performing data
entry, and has allowed for timely and accurate transfer of data. It said,
externally, benefits have included more timely notification of National
Science Foundation funding decisions and real-time acknowledgement of
valid proposal, review, and report submissions.
• The Commodity Futures Trading Commission reported that the Internet
allows staff to monitor the activities related to commodity trading, which
has resulted in action against individuals who were illegally soliciting
customers over the Internet.
Benefits reported to us by
NOAA, FWS, and SSA, the three agencies at which
we performed additional work, are included in appendix VII.
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Federal Organizations
Reported Developing
Guidance for Their
Internet Activities
Many federal organizations reported having developed guidance related to
their Internet activities. Of the 42 federal organizations responding, 28
reported having organizationwide guidance for their employees’ use of
Internet resources, covering activities such as sending and receiving e-mail
and accessing or “surfing”
WWW sites on the Internet. Twenty-one federal
organizations also reported having developed guidance on establishing
and maintaining
WWW sites.
Most Internal Guidance
States That
Government-Provided
Internet Resources Are for
Official Purposes Only
There is no governmentwide policy or regulations that specifically govern
employee use of the Internet. While most federal organizations that have
guidelines prohibit any use of government-provided Internet resources for
nonofficial purposes, a few organizations allow limited personal use. It
was beyond the scope of our review to assess the appropriateness of these
guidelines.
Twenty-eight federal organizations reported having organizationwide
guidance for their employees’ use of government-provided Internet
resources, and five additional federal organizations reported that they
were drafting guidance. Our review of this guidance showed that it varied
greatly. Some organizations had a notice displayed on their employees’
computer screens reminding employees that the Internet resources were
for official use only. Other federal organizations had issued several pages
of guidance detailing appropriate use, inappropriate use, and penalties for
inappropriate use. Although we summarized only the organizationwide
guidance of the federal organizations, we noted that major components of
those organizations frequently had also developed guidance specifically
addressing employees’ use of government-provided Internet resources.
Our review showed that for 25, or 89 percent, of the 28 federal
organizations having guidance, the guidance specifically stated that the
government-provided Internet resources were for official use only and/or
prohibited specific activities. Some of the agencies’ guidance referred to
5 C.F.R. 2635.704,
8
which states that employees shall protect and conserve
federal property and shall not use it for other than authorized activities, as
the basis for their guidelines. Examples of nonofficial or prohibited
activities stated in the guidance of the various federal organizations
included playing computer games; gambling; using abusive language in
either public or private messages; displaying and printing material or
images that are sexually explicit, discriminatory, or intended for
8
This provision is included within the standards of ethical conduct for employees of the executive
branch issued by the Office of Government Ethics. See 5 C.F.R. Part 2635.
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harassment purposes; pursuing personal interests, such as hobbies,
avocations, or alternative lifestyles; and pursuing private commercial
activities, among other actions.
In contrast, the guidance of three federal organizations permitted
employees to use their government-provided Internet resources for
incidental personal use. While these organizations allow personal use, the
guidance still identified certain activities that are prohibited.
While it was beyond the scope of our review to contrast federal practices
with the private sector, we noted a recent study conducted by the Bureau
of National Affairs, Inc., which concluded that formal, written Internet
policies were rare among U.S. employers it surveyed.
9
It reported that just
10 percent of the companies surveyed that used the Internet had
developed written policies that govern employees’ Internet activities. The
study noted, however, that many respondents reported plans to develop
formal policies in the near future.
Half of Federal
Organizations Have
Guidance for Establishing
and Maintaining WWW
Sites
Twenty-one, or 50 percent, of the 42 federal organizations reported having
developed organizationwide guidance for establishing and maintaining
WWW sites, and three additional federal organizations reported that they
were drafting guidance. Again, this guidance varied widely among the
federal organizations. In some cases, the guidance was a “how to” manual
on the design of pages for a
WWW site. In other cases, the guidance was an
expression of basic policy covering issues such as security, which sites are
inappropriate for the organization to “link to,” and who within the
organization can establish or approve establishing
WWW sites.
We limited our review of this guidance to determining whether the
guidance stated who within a federal organization could approve content
being placed on the
WWW. Our review showed that the guidance of 18
federal organizations stated who within an organization could approve
WWW page content.
In July 1996,
OMB informally circulated preliminary draft guidance to a
limited number of agencies on many of the issues surrounding the use of
the
WWW. OMB officials told us that the agencies raised a number of issues
and concerns about the draft guidance, and it had not yet been issued as of
May 20, 1997. Among the issues raised by
OMB in its draft guidance was
how federal organizations’
WWW sites complied with provisions of the
9
Special Survey Report: Employers on the Internet, Bureau of National Affairs, Inc., Jan. 2, 1997.
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Privacy Act, Paperwork Reduction Act, Federal Records Act, and Freedom
of Information Act. It was beyond the scope of our review to evaluate the
guidance of federal organizations with regard to these issues.
Potential for
Employee Misuse of
Internet Resources
Exists
The potential for misuse of government-provided Internet access
exists—just as it does for other types of government-provided resources.
During our work, we became aware of reported instances of employee
misuse of government-provided resources. However, our review was not
intended to specifically identify or define employee misuse of Internet
resources.
• Department of Energy (DOE) guidance on appropriate use stated that
nearly 100 employees of a national laboratory were disciplined for
inappropriately using computers to access adult-oriented Internet sites.
The guidance also stated that in another instance, nearly 30 percent of the
activity on one particular Internet site included personal listings from
DOE
employees dealing with subjects such as scuba diving and boat racing. As
a result of this use,
DOE issued a memorandum to all DOE employees and
contractors, which stated that use of government equipment and official
duty time for nonwork-related activities is a violation of law and the
standards of conduct. The
DOE memo stated that several employees had
been counseled, officially reprimanded, or had their employment
terminated and that in one instance
DOE had filed criminal charges against
an employee.
• The Air Force Audit Agency recently reported WWW site and BBS control
problems. Specific problems included site operating procedures and
approvals, making available inappropriate or unapproved information, and
inadequate user access controls. As a result, the Air Force released
additional guidance on establishing
WWW sites and BBSs and set standards
for the information that is made available through them.
• An investigation by the Department of the Interior’s Office of Inspector
General (
OIG) revealed that a Department employee provided private
citizens with free access to Internet services through Department-operated
networks. A personnel action was initiated against the employee that
resulted in a letter of counseling. After the investigation, the
OIG issued a
memorandum to the heads of all components in the Department, which
discussed the potential for abuse of Internet resources and cited the
employee’s use as an example. The
OIG stated that abuse problems could
be addressed by establishing and disseminating departmentwide policies.
A Department official told us that a policy on the use of Internet resources
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by employees has been drafted and was undergoing management review
and clearance.
• NOAA reported that two employees were given 14-day suspensions for
downloading sexually explicit material, and dismissal proceedings were
initiated against one employee for sending threatening e-mail.
Officials at the three federal organizations at which we performed
additional work told us that the detection of misuse of Internet access is
primarily a supervisory responsibility. They told us that other than
supervisory monitoring, they do not routinely or systematically monitor
employee use of the Internet. Our review of the 28 federal organizations
having guidance showed that at least 16 stated that employees’ use of
government-provided Internet resources may be monitored.
Agency Comments
On April 18, 1997, we requested comments on a draft of this report from
the Director of
OMB. We also requested comments on excerpts of this
report from the Secretary, Department of Commerce; the Secretary,
Department of the Interior; and the Acting Commissioner,
SSA, where we
performed additional work.
The Branch Chief of
OMB’s Office of Information Policy and Technology
provided oral comments, which consisted of technical corrections that we
incorporated into the report where appropriate. He also stated that the
report provides a valuable benchmark on the executive branch’s Internet
and dial-up
BBS activities. The Secretary of Commerce provided written
comments that said the excerpts of the draft report conformed to input
provided by
NOAA representatives during our review and that the
Department found the excerpts to be very helpful and informative. The
Department of the Interior’s Acting Director, Office of Information
Resources Management provided technical comments, which we
incorporated into the report where appropriate. An official from
SSA’s
Audit Liaison office said the agency had no comments.
We are sending copies of this report to the Director of OMB, the Secretaries
of each executive department, the head of each independent agency, the
Ranking Minority Members of your Committees, and the Chairmen and
Ranking Minority Members of other interested congressional committees.
We will make copies available to others upon request.
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Please contact me at (202) 512-4232 or James H. Burow, Assistant
Director, on (202) 512-3941 if you or your staff have any questions. Major
contributors to this report are listed in appendix VIII.
Bernard L. Ungar
Associate Director, Federal Management
and Workforce Issues
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Contents
Letter
1
Appendix I
Scope and
Methodology
18
Appendix II
Federal Organizations
Surveyed by GAO
21
Appendix III
Federal Internet
Expenditures
23
Appendix IV
Federal Electronic
Dial-Up BBS
Expenditures
25
Appendix V
Electronic Dial-Up
Bulletin Board
Systems Reported by
Federal Organizations
27
Appendix VI
Number of Federal
Employees With
Internet Access
35
GAO/GGD-97-86 Internet and Dial-Up Bulletin BoardsPage 16
Contents
Appendix VII
Internet and BBS
Activities at Three
Selected Agencies
37
Appendix VIII
Major Contributors to
This Report
44
Tables
Table 1: Total Estimated Expenditures for Internet and BBS
Activities for 42 Federal Organizations, Fiscal Years 1994-1996
5
Table III.1: Estimated Expenditures to Provide Internet Access to
Employees and to Establish and Maintain WWW Sites, by Federal
Organization, Fiscal Years 1994-1996
23
Table IV.1: Estimated Expenditures to Establish and Maintain
Electronic Dial-up BBSs, by Federal Organization, Fiscal Years
1994-1996
25
Table V.1: Electronic Dial-Up Bulletin Board Systems Reported
by Federal Organizations
27
Table VI.1: Number of Federal Civilian and Military Employees
With Government-Provided E-Mail and WWW Access, by Federal
Organization
35
Abbreviations
BBS Bulletin Board System
DOE Department of Energy
FWS Fish and Wildlife Service
HHS Health and Human Services
HUD Housing and Urban Development
http hyper text transfer protocol
NOAA National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration
NPR National Performance Review
OIG Office of Inspector General
OMB Office of Management and Budget
PEBES Personal Earnings and Benefit Estimate Statement
SSA Social Security Administration
WWW World-Wide Web
GAO/GGD-97-86 Internet and Dial-Up Bulletin BoardsPage 17
Appendix I
Scope and Methodology
We developed a data collection form to accomplish the objectives of
providing information for executive branch agencies on (1) fiscal year
1994 through 1996 expenditures for Internet and
BBS activities, (2) the
number of
WWW sites and electronic dial-up BBSs, and (3) the number of
employees with government-provided Internet e-mail and
WWW access. The
data collection form also requested information on benefits that federal
organizations associate with Internet and
BBS activities and guidance that
federal organizations had developed on Internet activities.
To ensure that our data collection form was as comprehensive and
complete as possible, we researched Internet materials and discussed the
types of Internet and
BBS related expenditures with knowledgeable
persons both inside and outside the federal government. We pretested the
data collection form with seven major components within three federal
organizations. Comments obtained during the pretests were used to
further refine the form’s content and format to help ensure its
effectiveness as a tool for identifying Internet and
BBS information.
We asked federal organizations to report fiscal year 1994 through 1996
expenditures for providing employees with Internet access and
establishing and maintaining
WWW sites and electronic dial-up BBSs.
Because, during our pretest, federal organizations told us that they were
not generally required to budget separately for the Internet and
BBS
activities, we indicated in our final data collection form that estimates
were acceptable. To guide federal organizations on the types of
expenditures that were to be included for these activities, we requested
that respondents report both capital and operating expenditures for
connection, hardware, software, personnel, training, and other
expenditures for each of the three years. We did not ask the organizations
to depreciate or amortize capital expenditures but to report the
expenditures in the year they were made. We asked federal organizations
to exclude expenditures for
WWW sites accessible only internally
(commonly referred to as InTRAnets).
To determine the number of
WWW sites and BBSs, we asked the federal
organizations to report the names and Internet addresses of their
WWW
sites and the names and telephone numbers of their electronic dial-up
BBSs. Because of your interest in identifying the number of distinct WWW
sites and to encourage consistent reporting, we provided the federal
organizations with a definition of a
WWW site. We defined a WWW site as a
file or group of files organized under a homepage, accessible on the
GAO/GGD-97-86 Internet and Dial-Up Bulletin BoardsPage 18
Appendix I
Scope and Methodology
Internet with web browser software. A WWW site’s homepage is typically
the index, welcome, or menu page for a distinct
WWW activity or service.
To determine the number of federal employees with government-provided
Internet access, we asked each federal organization to report the total
number of employees in its organization and the numbers of employees
with government-provided Internet e-mail and
WWW access. For WWW
access, we sought information only for employees having access at their
workstations rather than those who have access through their
organization’s library or common workstations.
To address benefits that federal organizations associate with Internet and
BBS activities, we requested they describe, and quantify if possible, any
benefits related to these activities.
To obtain information on guidance that federal organizations had
developed for their Internet activities, we asked federal organizations to
provide us with copies of guidance. We reviewed the guidance to enable us
to summarize the contents, but we did not determine the appropriateness
of the guidance. We also discussed the status of draft governmentwide
guidance on establishing and maintaining
WWW sites with OMB officials.
To better understand federal Internet and
BBS activities, we judgmentally
selected three federal organizations—the National Oceanic and
Atmospheric Administration (
NOAA), within the Department of Commerce;
the Fish and Wildlife Service (
FWS), within the Department of the Interior;
and the Social Security Administration (
SSA) at which we performed
additional work. We selected these three federal organizations on the basis
of the wide diversity of their activities and missions.
To address the issue of misuse of government-provided Internet resources
by employees, we discussed this issue with officials from the three
judgmentally selected organizations and reviewed any information
regarding this subject, which some federal organizations provided during
the course of our data collection effort.
As agreed with the requestors, we sent the data collection form to 43
federal organizations—all 14 departments and 29 independent agencies,
asking each department to also provide information for major component
organizations. As agreed, we included only independent agencies with 500
or more employees. We received responses from 13 departments, which
included responses for their major components and from 29 independent
GAO/GGD-97-86 Internet and Dial-Up Bulletin BoardsPage 19
Appendix I
Scope and Methodology
agencies. As of May 30, 1997, the Department of State did not provide a
response to our request for information. The Department of Health and
Human Services did not provide information for three of its
components—(1) the Administration for Children and Families, (2) the
Agency for Health Care Policy and Research, and (3) the Health Research
and Services Administration. We asked the Executive Office of the
President only to provide information for
OMB and the White House.
We did not independently verify the accuracy of the information provided
by the federal organizations, as agreed with our requestors. As previously
discussed, much of the expenditure information is based on estimates, and
the basis for federal organizations’ estimates could vary significantly. We
did, however, discuss responses with officials at each organization to
confirm that our report presented the information accurately.
Our work was done by staff in our headquarters office in Washington, D.C.
and our Dallas, Texas, field office, from May 1996 through May 1997 in
accordance with generally accepted government auditing standards. We
requested comments on a draft of this report from the Director of the
Office of Management and Budget (
OMB) and on excerpts of the report
from the Secretary, Department of Commerce; the Secretary, Department
of the Interior; and the Acting Commissioner, Social Security
Administration, where we performed more detailed work.
Appendix II includes a list of the federal organizations to which we sent
our data collection form. Appendixes III through VI present the
information reported to us by the federal organizations in response to our
data collection form. Appendix VII contains a description of the Internet
and
BBS activities at the three federal organizations at which we performed
additional work.
GAO/GGD-97-86 Internet and Dial-Up Bulletin BoardsPage 20
Appendix II
Federal Organizations Surveyed by GAO
The following is a list of the 43 federal organizations to which we sent our
data collection form.
Agency for International Development
Armed Forces Retirement Home Board
Commodity Futures Trading Commission
Corporation for National Service
Department of Agriculture
Department of Commerce
Department of Defense
Department of Education
Department of Energy
Department of Health and Human Services
a
Department of Housing and Urban Development
Department of the Interior
Department of Justice
Department of Labor
Department of State
b
Department of Transportation
Department of the Treasury
Department of Veterans Affairs
Environmental Protection Agency
Equal Employment Opportunity Commission
Executive Office of the President
c
Federal Communications Commission
Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation
Federal Emergency Management Agency
Federal Reserve System Board of Governors
Federal Trade Commission
General Services Administration
National Aeronautics and Space Administration
National Archives and Records Administration
National Credit Union Administration
National Labor Relations Board
National Science Foundation
Nuclear Regulatory Commission
Office of Personnel Management
Peace Corps
Pension Benefit Guaranty Corporation
Railroad Retirement Board
Securities and Exchange Commission
Small Business Administration
GAO/GGD-97-86 Internet and Dial-Up Bulletin BoardsPage 21
Appendix II
Federal Organizations Surveyed by GAO
Smithsonian Institution
Social Security Administration
Tennessee Valley Authority
U.S. Information Agency
a
The Department of Health and Human Services did not provide information for three of its
components—(1) the Administration for Children and Families, (2) the Agency for Health Care
Policy and Research, and (3) the Health Research and Services Administration.
b
As of May 30, 1997, the Department of State did not provide us with the information we
requested.
c
We asked the Executive Office of the President to provide information only for the Office of
Management and Budget and the White House.
GAO/GGD-97-86 Internet and Dial-Up Bulletin BoardsPage 22
Appendix III
Federal Internet Expenditures
Table III.1: Estimated Expenditures to Provide Internet Access to Employees and to Establish and Maintain WWW Sites, by
Federal Organization, Fiscal Years 1994-1996
Expenditures
a
Dollars in thousands
Federal organization FY 1994 FY 1995 FY 1996 Total
b
Agency for International Development $298 $313 $432 $1,043
Armed Forces Retirement Home Board 0 0 3 3
Commodity Futures Trading Commission 10 26 124 160
Corporation for National Service 0 0 103 103
Department of Agriculture 1,849 4,963 7,812 14,623
Department of Commerce 4,196 6,883 14,079 25,158
Department of Defense 23,061 36,366 86,178 145,604
Department of Education 553 1,798 1,759 4,110
Department of Energy 2,051 4,443 5,138 11,632
Department of Health and Human Services
c
1,326 2,032 3,895 7,253
Department of Housing and Urban Development 82 1,191 3,621 4,894
Department of the Interior 1,259 4,800 6,423 12,482
Department of Justice 0 834 1,488 2,322
Department of Labor 695 2,136 2,650 5,481
Department of State
d d d d
Department of Transportation 662 1,106 3,939 5,707
Department of the Treasury 386 823 4,053 5,262
Department of Veterans Affairs 213 511 815 1,538
Environmental Protection Agency 3,436 5,174 9,622 18,232
Equal Employment Opportunity Commission 14 32 54 100
Executive Office of the President
e
38 238 443 718
Federal Communications Commission 0 390 642 1,032
Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation 437 503 616 1,557
Federal Emergency Management Agency 370 1,088 1,027 2,486
Federal Reserve System Board of Governors 219 597 951 1,767
Federal Trade Commission 36 120 215 371
General Services Administration 94 918 3,810 4,822
National Aeronautics and Space Administration 7,382 9,139 13,532 30,053
National Archives and Records Administration 51 519 403 973
National Credit Union Administration 0 37 227 264
National Labor Relations Board 0 17 28 44
National Science Foundation 255 1,317 1,776 3,348
Nuclear Regulatory Commission 827 965 1,315 3,107
Office of Personnel Management 14 54 418 486
(continued)
GAO/GGD-97-86 Internet and Dial-Up Bulletin BoardsPage 23
Appendix III
Federal Internet Expenditures
Expenditures
a
Dollars in thousands
Federal organization FY 1994 FY 1995 FY 1996 Total
b
Peace Corps 0 194 169 363
Pension Benefit Guaranty Corporation 10 10 252 272
Railroad Retirement Board 2 34 66 102
Securities and Exchange Commission 4 475 687 1,165
Small Business Administration 403 468 459 1,330
Smithsonian Institution 325 657 614 1,596
Social Security Administration 86 576 910 1,572
Tennessee Valley Authority 137 122 824 1,084
U.S. Information Agency 164 295 686 1,145
Total $50,944 $92,162 $182,259 $325,364
a
Expenditures include both capital and operating expenditures. Capital expenditures are for items
that are generally depreciated or amortized over more than one accounting period. We did not
ask organizations to depreciate or amortize the capital expenditures but merely to report the
expenditure in the year it was made.
b
Numbers may not add to totals due to rounding.
c
The Department of Health and Human Services did not provide information for three of its
components—(1) the Administration for Children and Families, (2) the Agency for Health Care
Policy and Research, and (3) the Health Research and Services Administration.
d
The Department of State did not provide information.
e
We asked the Executive Office of the President only to provide information for OMB and the
White House.
Source: GAO analysis of data provided by federal organizations.
GAO/GGD-97-86 Internet and Dial-Up Bulletin BoardsPage 24
Appendix IV
Federal Electronic Dial-Up BBS
Expenditures
Table IV.1: Estimated Expenditures to Establish and Maintain Electronic Dial-Up BBSs, by Federal Organization, Fiscal
Years 1994-1996
Expenditures
a
Dollars in thousands
Federal organization FY 1994 FY 1995 FY 1996 Total
b
Agency for International Development $0 $0 $0 $0
Armed Forces Retirement Home Board 0 0 0 0
Commodity Futures Trading Commission 0 0 0 0
Corporation for National Service 0 0 0 0
Department of Agriculture 146 396 322 864
Department of Commerce 929 589 485 2,002
Department of Defense 666 748 792 2,206
Department of Education 365 950 661 1,976
Department of Energy 311 82 61 454
Department of Health and Human Services
c
712 549 287 1,548
Department of Housing and Urban Development 575 270 195 1,040
Department of the Interior 3 2 2 7
Department of Justice 25 46 17 87
Department of Labor 90 72 53 216
Department of State
d d d d
Department of Transportation 305 325 180 810
Department of the Treasury 178 285 375 837
Department of Veterans Affairs 4 189 151 343
Environmental Protection Agency 1,912 1,865 1,759 5,537
Equal Employment Opportunity Commission 0 0 0 0
Executive Office of the President
e
0 0 0 0
Federal Communications Commission 0 55 66 121
Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation 30 33 31 94
Federal Emergency Management Agency 102 103 103 308
Federal Reserve System Board of Governors 0 0 0 0
Federal Trade Commission 0 0 0 0
General Services Administration 300 20 25 345
National Aeronautics and Space Administration 245 237 233 715
National Archives and Records Administration 10 4 4 18
National Credit Union Administration 10 2 2 14
National Labor Relations Board 0 0 0 0
National Science Foundation 0 0 0 0
Nuclear Regulatory Commission 261 601 506 1,367
Office of Personnel Management 305 308 333 946
(continued)
GAO/GGD-97-86 Internet and Dial-Up Bulletin BoardsPage 25
Appendix IV
Federal Electronic Dial-Up BBS
Expenditures
Expenditures
a
Dollars in thousands
Federal organization FY 1994 FY 1995 FY 1996 Total
b
Peace Corps 0 0 0 0
Pension Benefit Guaranty Corporation 0 0 0 0
Railroad Retirement Board 4 3 2 8
Securities and Exchange Commission 5 25 28 58
Small Business Administration 148 37 42 228
Smithsonian Institution 0 0 0 0
Social Security Administration 72 130 455 657
Tennessee Valley Authority 68 70 72 211
U.S. Information Agency 14 15 15 44
Total $7,795 $8,009 $7,256 $23,060
a
Expenditures include both capital and operating expenditures. Capital expenditures are for items
that are generally depreciated or amortized over more than one accounting period. We did not
ask organizations to depreciate or amortize the capital expenditures but merely to report the
expenditure in the year it was made.
b
Numbers may not add to totals due to rounding.
c
The Department of Health and Human Services did not provide information for three of its
components—(1) the Administration for Children and Families, (2) the Agency for Health Care
Policy and Research, and (3) the Health Research and Services Administration.
d
The Department of State did not provide information.
e
We asked the Executive Office of the President only to provide information for OMB and the
White House.
Source: GAO analysis of data provided by federal organizations.
GAO/GGD-97-86 Internet and Dial-Up Bulletin BoardsPage 26
Appendix V
Electronic Dial-Up Bulletin Board Systems
Reported by Federal Organizations
Table V.1: Electronic Dial-Up Bulletin Board Systems Reported by Federal Organizations
Federal organization/
Major component Name of BBS BBS telephone number
Department of Agriculture:
Agricultural Marketing Service AMS Market News (202) 690-4126
Greeley CO Livestock & Grain (970) 353-8642
Madison, WI Livestock, Grain & Dairy (608) 224-5090
Agricultural Research Service Hank Davis (970) 220-5512
GRIN (301) 504-6227
Economic Research Service Call ERS/NASS (202) 219-0377
Farm Service Agency FSA-BBS (816) 823-1521
CORP-BBS (800) 246-3877
Food Safety Inspection Service Export Library (202) 501-7608
Forest Service FS-RO2F06a
a
FS-R03F05a
a
FS-R04F03a
a
FS-R04F07a
a
FS-R04F12a
a
FS-R05K
a
FS-R05F10
a
FS-R05F13a
a
FS-R05F0?a
a
FS-R06C
a
FS-R06F21a
a
FS/BLM
a
FS-R08F06A
a
FS-R09F19A
a
Department of Commerce:
Bureau of the Census Census/BEA Electronic Forum (301) 457-2310
Economic Development Administration Office of Economic Conversion Information (800) 352-2949
Economics and Statistics Administration Economic Bulletin Board (202) 482-2167
National Oceanographic and Atmospheric
Administration
NMNS Federal Register BBS (301) 713-4200
NMFS Alaska Region BBS (907) 586-7259
National Ocean Service BBS (301) 713-4181
(301) 713-4182
Boise BBS
a
National Climatic Data Center BBS (704)271-4286
NMFS NW Region BBS (206)526-6405
Marine Data Computer BBS (301)713-4573
(continued)
GAO/GGD-97-86 Internet and Dial-Up Bulletin BoardsPage 27
Appendix V
Electronic Dial-Up Bulletin Board Systems
Reported by Federal Organizations
Federal organization/
Major component Name of BBS BBS telephone number
Space Environment Laboratory BBS (301)497-7788
National Technical Information Service Fedworld BBS (703) 321-3539
Office of the Secretary Office of Computer Services (703) 487-4166
Patent and Trademark Office Patent and Trademark Office BBS (703) 305-8950
Department of Defense:
Ballistic Missile Defense Organization BMDO Acquisition Reporting Bulletin Board (703) 769-8394
Small Business Innovative Research/DOD
Small Business Technology Transfer
Program
(800) 946-2636
Defense Contract Audit Agency DCAA Information Server (901) 452-2093
Defense Finance and Accounting Service DFAS Enterprise BBS (800) 290-8674
HRD BBS (317) 542-6384
Defense Investigative Service DISLINK (800) 572-9055
Defense Logistics Agency DISC EBB (215) 697-0717
DSCR-EBB (804) 279-1301
DNABBS (800) 305-8203
(616) 961-5193
Item Name (800) 841-4431
DSCC-EBB (614) 692-1394
(614) 692-6841
DoD-Demil/TSC BBS (703) 767-1541
Medical BBS (800) 360-6945
DLABBS (http://131.78.201.501) (800) 458-7904
Defense Security Assistance Agency EDA Bulletin Board (703) 604-6470
(703) 604-6471
Defense Technology Security
Administration
ELISA (703) 602-4740
Department of the Air Force AFOSC Bulletin Board (703) 693-1045
DSN 223-1045
AFMEA Bulletin Board DSN 487-5823
Department of the Navy SPAWAR BBS (703) 602-9494
BUPERS Access (800) 346-3217
Pers-84 BBS (703) 695-3398
Nav Mil Pers BBS (757) 464-7792
SDS User Assistance BBS (757) 523-8207
EPMAC BBS (504) 678-3090
NEOCS/NOCCS BBS (901) 874-7111
Public Works Remote BBS (800) 228-6375
Micro-EAR (805) 982-5300
Judge Advocate General’s Info Net (703) 325-0748
(continued)
GAO/GGD-97-86 Internet and Dial-Up Bulletin BoardsPage 28
Appendix V
Electronic Dial-Up Bulletin Board Systems
Reported by Federal Organizations
Federal organization/
Major component Name of BBS BBS telephone number
Naval Justice School BBS (501) 841-3990
(501) 841-4134
On-Site Inspection Agency DTIRP (703) 810-4741
Department of Education:
Office of Chief Financial Officer ED Board BBS (202) 260-9950
Office of Educational Research and
Improvement
OERI Toll-Free BBS (800) 222-4922
Office of Postsecondary Education SFA - BBS (800) 429-9933
Office of Special Education Research RSA BBS (202) 205-5574
Department of Energy:
Energy Efficiency and Renewable Energy Energy Efficiency and Renewable Energy
Clearinghouse
(800) 273-2955
Energy Information Administration EPUB (202) 586-2557
Pittsburgh Energy Technology Center PETC Internal BBS
a
Department of Health and Human
Services :
Centers for Disease Control and
Prevention
CDC Wonder (800) 232-4636
Food and Drug Administration FDA BBS (800) 222-0185
LOS-DO Broker Information System (310) 831-5825
NY Import BBS (718) 965-5096
(718) 965-5097
Buffalo Import BBS (716) 551-3815
FDA CDRH ED BBS (800) 252-1366
Health Care Financing Administration HCFA BBS (410) 786-2202
Indian Health Service HIS Mailman System (505) 248-8311
National Institutes of Health ENTER BBS
b
AIG (NIH Apoptosis Interest Group) (301) 402-2221
ANIMAL (guides, publications, legislation) (301) 402-2221
CERTAN (reprocurement) (301) 402-2221
DCGINFO (Office of Contracts
Management Info)
(301) 402-2221
DRGLINE (Grant Line for PHS Program
Information)
(301) 402-2221
EEO-OFFR (EEO) (301) 402-2221
INTERFAC (Index & article summaries) (301) 402-2221
MANUALS (manual chapter information) (301) 402-2221
MOD-TIPS (Information for BBS moderators) (301) 402-2221
NIDA (National Institute on Drug Abuse) (301) 402-2221
NIHEDNET (NIH Office of Education) (301) 402-2221
(continued)
GAO/GGD-97-86 Internet and Dial-Up Bulletin BoardsPage 29
Appendix V
Electronic Dial-Up Bulletin Board Systems
Reported by Federal Organizations
Federal organization/
Major component Name of BBS BBS telephone number
NIHLIBR (Library tutorials & classes) (301) 402-2221
NUPUD (Users of public use data) (301) 402-2221
OPHTHNET (National Eye Institute/AFIP
Ocular Registry)
(301) 402-2221
PEF (Pediatric Exercise Forum) (301) 402-2221
PHSOTTO (Technology transfer
opportunities)
(301) 402-2221
PLASMIDS (DNA sequences of available
plasmids)
(301) 402-2221
RADSAFE (Radiation Safety Branch
Information)
a
SAFETY37 (Safety & security issues in NIH
Bldg 37)
(301) 402-2221
SANCTION (ORI Sanctioned Individuals) (301) 402-2221
SAS (Statistical Applications System News) (301) 402-2221
STUDPROG (NINDS Minority and Student
Programs)
(301) 402-2221
TRY-IT (Try out “ENTER BBS” just for fun) (301) 402-2221
Substance Abuse and Mental Health
Services Administration
SAMHSA BBS (800) 424-2294
PREVLine (800) 773-8546
KEN (800) 790-2647
Department of Housing and Urban
Development
HUD Online (800) 546-2500
Public Affairs (202) 708-3563
Department of the Interior:
Office of the Secretary Office of Environmental Policy &
Compliance BBS
(202) 208-7119
(202) 501-6946
U.S. Geological Survey Minerals Information BBS (703) 648-7799
Department of Justice:
Executive Office for U.S. Attorneys EOUSA News BBS
a
EOUSA BBS
a
Federal Bureau of Prisons BOP.BBS (202) 307-6203
Department of Labor:
Employment and Training Administration Foreign Labor Certification Disclosure BBS (202) 219-3375
Office of the Solicitor SOL BBS (202) 219-9374
(202) 219-8918
(202) 219-9256
(202) 219-9257
(202) 219-9258
(202) 219-9363
Department of Transportation:
(continued)
GAO/GGD-97-86 Internet and Dial-Up Bulletin BoardsPage 30
Appendix V
Electronic Dial-Up Bulletin Board Systems
Reported by Federal Organizations
Federal organization/
Major component Name of BBS BBS telephone number
Bureau of Transportation Statistics BTS BBS (800) 493-4287
Federal Aviation Administration Master Minimum Equipment List (202) 267-5231
Aviation Rule Making Advisory Committee (202) 267-9548
(800) 322-2722
AEE BBS (202) 267-9647
Airports BBS (202) 267-5205
FAA Corp. BBS (800) 224-6287
FAA New England (207) 780-3297
FAA Pilot Examiner Section BBS (405) 954-4530
(800) 858-2107
Pilot Examiner BBS (888) 750-8324
Federal Highway Administration FHWA Electronic Bulletin Board System
(FEBBS)
(800) 337-3492
(202) 366-3764
(202) 366-3175
Federal Railroad Administration RISPC (888) 372-7477
Federal Transit Administration FTA Safety Bulletin Board (800) 231-2061
Maritime Administration Marlinspike (202) 366-8505
Office of the Secretary and the
Administrative Support Center
TABBy BBS (202) 493-2359
DOT HRM BBS (405) 954-3660
Research and Special Programs HMIX/Hazardous Materials Information
Exchange
(630) 252-3275
U.S. Coast Guard NIS Bulletin Board (703) 313-5910
Department of the Treasury:
Financial Management Service FMS Inside Line (202) 874-6817
FMS Fax on Call (202) 874-8616
FMS Voice Info System (202) 874-6995
Internal Revenue Service IRIS (703) 321-8020
AFS (301) 492-5400
Electronic Filing (606) 292-4137
Procurement (202) 799-0943
Information Returns Program (304) 264-7070
IRS Statistics of Income Bulletin Board (202) 874-9574
Little Rock PAO Practitioner (501) 324-7118
U.S. Customs Service Customs Electronic Bulletin Board (703) 440-6155
Department of Veterans Affairs:
Office of Management VA Vendor Bulletin Board System
(VAGBBS)
(800) 735-5282
Veterans Health Administration VA Online (800) 871-8387
VA World (304) 264-4993
(continued)
GAO/GGD-97-86 Internet and Dial-Up Bulletin BoardsPage 31
Appendix V
Electronic Dial-Up Bulletin Board Systems
Reported by Federal Organizations
Federal organization/
Major component Name of BBS BBS telephone number
SLC BBS
a
Environmental Protection Agency ATTIC (513) 569-7272
(513) 569-7610
CEAM (706) 355-8328
TTN (919) 541-5742
Cleanup Information (301) 589-8366
REGION10 (800) 781-2241
Region5 Wtr
a
NPS (301) 589-0205
EFIN (919) 549-0720
(800) 291-0349
NSFC (800) 624-8301
ORD BBS/CERI (513) 569-7610
Pesticide Information Network (703) 305-7499
PIPES (703) 749-9216
Wastewater Treatment Information
Exchange
(800) 544-1936
REIS (R7) (703) 551-7715
PSR&RIS (703) 308-7224
CSO (800) 700-7837
(703) 790-0825
AMRB (919) 541-1325
DWIE (800) 932-7459
(304) 293-7108
Equal Employment Opportunity
Commission
EEOC Bulletin Board System
a
Federal Communications Commission FCC State Link (CCB) (202) 418-0241
Public Access Link (OET) (301) 725-1072
Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation FDIC Fax/Bulletin Board System (804) 642-0003
Federal Emergency Management Agency Emergency Management Institute (301) 447-1259
Hazardous Materials Information Exchange (800) 874-2884
State and Local Emergency Management
Data Users Group
(800) 538-4408
(630) 739-1312
General Services Administration Multi-Use File for Interagency News
(MUFFIN)
(202) 205-3890
GSBCA BBS (202) 501-1981
(202) 501-2982
(202) 501-2308
Federal Real Estate Bulletin Board (800) 776-7872
(202) 501-6510
Great Lakes FEB BBS (312) 353-3798
(continued)
GAO/GGD-97-86 Internet and Dial-Up Bulletin BoardsPage 32
Appendix V
Electronic Dial-Up Bulletin Board Systems
Reported by Federal Organizations
Federal organization/
Major component Name of BBS BBS telephone number
Consumer Information Center BBS (202) 208-7679
TeleConX BBS (202) 501-7741
National Aeronautics and Space
Administration
NASA Spacelink (205) 895-0028
Network News (202) 358-4488
E-Mail (800) 380-0674
SBIR/STTR (301) 918-8177
Earth Science Branch Photo Data Base (713) 483-2500
JPL Info (818) 354-1333
NODIS (301) 286-4000
Planetary Data System (818-306-6914)
National Archives and Records
Administration
FRIEND (Federal Register Electronic News
Delivery)
(202) 275-0860
(202) 275-0898
(202) 275-1538
(202) 275-0920
Atlanta FRC (404) 763-7474
National Credit Union Administration NCUA BBS (703) 518-6480
Nuclear Regulatory Commission NRC Online (FedWorld) (800) 303-7672
(703) 321-3580
Tech Spec Plus (800) 679-5784
Public Meeting Notice System (800) 952-9676
Decommissioning Rule (800) 880-6096
Bibliographic Retrieval (800) 270-2787
Office of Personnel Management OPM Mainstreet (202) 606-4800
PayPerNet (202) 606-2675
Federal Job Opportunities Board (912) 757-3100
Railroad Retirement Board Field BBS (312) 751-4722
Quality Reporting Service Center BBS (312) 751-7122
Small Business Administration SBA Online (800) 697-4636
SBA Software Clearinghouse (202) 205-6269
Social Security Administration Chicago Region
a
KaCee (Kansas City)
a
Online Wage Reporting (410) 966-8450
DCO Village
a
Region 1 BBS
a
San Francisco BBS
a
Employer Information (410) 965-1133
Information Center BBS
a
Tennessee Valley Authority Lake Information Line (800) 238-2264
(continued)
GAO/GGD-97-86 Internet and Dial-Up Bulletin BoardsPage 33
Appendix V
Electronic Dial-Up Bulletin Board Systems
Reported by Federal Organizations
Federal organization/
Major component Name of BBS BBS telephone number
Lake Information Bulletin Board (423) 632-4721
United States Information Agency USIABBS (202) 619-4710
(202) 619-4711
(202) 619-4712
(202) 619-4713
(202) 619-4714
I BUREAU BBS (202) 554-6320
(202) 554-6321
(202) 619-5952
Note: Of the 42 federal organizations, 29 reported having a total of 215 electronic dial-up BBSs.
a
The federal organization reported that the BBS is either for internal use only, restricted, or not
available for the general public.
b
The National Institutes of Health reported 23 BBSs within “Enter BBS.”
Source: Information provided by federal organizations responding to GAO survey data collection
form.
GAO/GGD-97-86 Internet and Dial-Up Bulletin BoardsPage 34
Appendix VI
Number of Federal Employees With Internet
Access
Table VI.1: Number of Federal Civilian and Military Employees With Government-Provided E-Mail and WWW Access, by
Federal Organization
Employees with E-mail addresses Employees with WWW access
Federal organization Number
Percentage of
total employees
a
Number
Percentage of
total employees
a
Total number
of employees
Agency for International Development 2,000 66.7 1,500 50.0 3,000
Armed Forces Retirement Home
Board
23 2.6 23 2.6 896
Commodity Futures Trading
Commission
600 100.0 200 33.3 600
Corporation for National Service 518 100.0 0
b
0.0 518
Department of Agriculture 55,882 50.8 26,066 23.7 110,115
Department of Commerce 27,635 75.9 16,086 44.2 36,418
Department of Defense 1,113,485 49.5 771,593 34.3 2,250,192
Department of Education 4,694 100.0 3,348 71.3 4,694
Department of Energy 15,500 87.3 13,389 75.4 17,763
Department of Health and Human
Services
c
42,061 80.6 35,207 67.5 52,161
Department of Housing and Urban
Development
11,000 100.0 11,000 100.0 11,000
Department of the Interior 59,340 83.4 25,830 36.3 71,158
Department of Justice 8,039 7.9 8,126 8.0 101,977
Department of Labor 13,127 80.2 7,813 47.7 16,372
Department of State
d d d d d
Department of Transportation 61,989 62.6 16,299 16.5 99,054
Department of the Treasury 78,605 54.6 11,090 7.7 144,053
Department of Veterans Affairs 65,000 26.0 10,000 4.0 250,000
Environmental Protection Agency 17,177 100.0 7,000 40.8 17,177
Equal Employment Opportunity
Commission
18 0.7 24 0.9 2,676
Executive Office of the President
e
922 100.0 922 100.0 922
Federal Communications
Commission
2,100 100.0 2,100 100.0 2,100
Federal Deposit Insurance
Corporation
9,800 100.0 9,800 100.0 9,800
Federal Emergency Management
Agency
2,400 100.0 2,400 100.0 2,400
Federal Reserve System Board of
Governors
1,200 69.3 1,000 57.7 1,732
Federal Trade Commission 1,000 100.0 1,000 100.0 1,000
General Services Administration 12,500 80.7 11,000 71.0 15,500
(continued)
GAO/GGD-97-86 Internet and Dial-Up Bulletin BoardsPage 35
Appendix VI
Number of Federal Employees With Internet
Access
Employees with E-mail addresses Employees with WWW access
Federal organization Number
Percentage of
total employees
a
Number
Percentage of
total employees
a
Total number
of employees
National Aeronautics and Space
Administration
25,489 99.3 25,539 99.5 25,680
National Archives and Records
Administration
2,500 83.3 2,500 83.3 3,000
National Credit Union Administration 950 100.0 200 21.1 950
National Labor Relations Board 1,900 95.0 750 37.5 2,000
National Science Foundation 1,200 100.0 1,200 100.0 1,200
Nuclear Regulatory Commission 3,200 100.0 1,700 53.1 3,200
Office of Personnel Management 2,600 66.7 250 6.4 3,900
Peace Corps 714 79.3 714 79.3 901
Pension Benefit Guaranty Corporation 764 100.0 100 13.1 764
Railroad Retirement Board 19 1.4 21 1.5 1,412
Securities and Exchange
Commission
2,503 89.8 180 6.5 2,788
Small Business Administration 3,500 100.0 3,250 92.9 3,500
Smithsonian Institution 4,200 64.7 4,200 64.7 6,496
Social Security Administration 26,000 40.0 5,000 7.7 65,000
Tennessee Valley Authority 8,131 51.9 7,000 44.7 15,659
U.S. Information Agency 5,405 78.9 2,900 42.3 6,850
Total 1,695,690 50.4 1,048,320 31.1 3,366,578
Note: We asked federal organizations to report the number of employees with WWW access at
their desktop workstations.
a
Percentages calculated by GAO based on data provided by organizations.
b
The Corporation for National Service provides WWW access to its employees through four
common workstations, not to employees’ individual desktop workstations.
c
The Department of Health and Human Services did not provide information for three of its
components—(1) the Administration for Children and Families, (2) the Agency for Health Care
Policy and Research, and (3) the Health Research and Services Administration.
d
The Department of State did not provide information.
e
We asked the Executive Office of the President only to provide information for OMB and the
White House.
Source: GAO analysis of data provided by federal organizations.
GAO/GGD-97-86 Internet and Dial-Up Bulletin BoardsPage 36
Appendix VII
Internet and BBS Activities at Three
Selected Agencies
We performed work at three judgmentally selected agencies to gain a
better understanding of federal Internet and
BBS activities. These agencies
were (1) National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (
NOAA), within
the Department of Commerce; (2) Fish and Wildlife Service (
FWS), within
the Department of the Interior; and (3) Social Security Administration
(
SSA). The following summaries provide a more in-depth look at Internet
and
BBS activities at these agencies than can be obtained from presentation
of only the expenditure and other information provided earlier in this
report. We did not verify the accuracy of the information contained in
these summaries. We did, however, provide the agencies with a draft of
the summaries to ensure that we had accurately represented the
information they reported to us.
National Oceanic and
Atmospheric
Administration
NOAA has approximately 13,500 employees nationwide. The principal
mission of
NOAA is to describe and predict changes in the earth’s
environment and conserve and manage coastal and marine resources to
ensure sustainable economic opportunity.
NOAA is responsible for
providing a variety of environmental data and information services, such
as meteorological, oceanographic, geodetic, and seismological data.
Agencies within
NOAA include (1) National Environmental Satellite, Data
and Information Service; (2) National Marine Fisheries Service;
(3) National Ocean Service; the (4) Office of Oceanic and Atmospheric
Research; and (5) National Weather Service.
Agency Internet Policy
NOAA has a written telecommunications policy covering areas such as
planning, management, security, and employee use of Internet resources.
The policy’s stated purpose is to facilitate use of Internet products and
services in management and decisionmaking processes, ensure
compliance with federal laws and regulations, reinforce security
safeguards, and increase user confidence in
NOAA’s Internet products.
Benefits
NOAA policy states that use of the Internet greatly facilitates user access to
NOAA data and information services and, thus, furthers NOAA’s mission of
disseminating its data and information to the public, scientific community,
and other government agencies. For example, electronic data transfer
reduces
NOAA employee paperwork as well as time spent on data entry.
Further, the public benefits by being able to access
NOAA information in a
timely manner.
GAO/GGD-97-86 Internet and Dial-Up Bulletin BoardsPage 37
Appendix VII
Internet and BBS Activities at Three
Selected Agencies
Oversight
While NOAA has issued guidance on the use of the Internet, this guidance
does not specifically address whether employees are authorized to use
Internet resources for other than official government business.
NOAA
oversight of employee Internet activities is primarily the responsibility of
supervisors within
NOAA program and staff offices. NOAA has taken
disciplinary actions against three employees for improper use of their
Internet access.
Internet and BBS Activity
NOAA reported maintaining about 383 distinct WWW sites on about 85
computers, providing access to about 95 databases of various
NOAA Earth
system information, all linked through the
NOAA homepage
(
http://www.noaa.gov). The NOAA WWW presence includes meteorological
data and satellite images of the earth’s geography and weather. In a recent
report to the Congress,
NOAA described the information it provides through
the Internet.
10
For example, in 1995 NOAA provided information, such as
National Weather Service surface and upper air observation data from its
system of satellites, aircraft, and buoys, to about 15,000 users per month.
Internet users are able to search for, view, and obtain satellite data and
images. Other examples of
NOAA WWW data include (1) changes in land
cover for the Chesapeake Bay region, (2) historical daily maximum and
minimum temperature and precipitation data and climatological
summaries for 2,200 locations worldwide, and (3) sea-level data for
selected areas of the Pacific, Atlantic, and Indian Oceans.
NOAA estimates that user demand for its data will approach a half million
inquiries each month by the beginning of the 21st century.
NOAA reported
that, from 1991 to 1995, requests for digital data increased a hundredfold
and online inquiries grew to over 200,000 per month.
According to
NOAA, about 95 percent of its employees have Internet e-mail
access, and about 44 percent have access to the
WWW at their workstations.
As an example,
NOAA said its employees use their WWW access to connect
with 13 separate
NOAA offices through the Campus Connectivity
Demonstration project. This Internet project allows employees to freely
share databases and information of differing formats, procedures, and
protocols over a common information infrastructure.
NOAA reported maintaining nine electronic dial-up BBSs during fiscal years
1994 through 1996, one of which was discontinued at the end of fiscal year
1996.
BBSs do not play a significant role in NOAA’s information
10
Progress and Challenges: A Report to Congress on NOAA Data Management, August 1996.
GAO/GGD-97-86 Internet and Dial-Up Bulletin BoardsPage 38
Appendix VII
Internet and BBS Activities at Three
Selected Agencies
dissemination strategy and are maintained to provide a low-end access
method. These
BBSs provide information such as geodetic and global
positioning data, local forecasts and warnings, and climate data for
building and road designs.
Internet and BBS
Expenditures
NOAA estimated Internet expenditures of about $6.5 million for fiscal years
1994 through 1996—$1.3 million for 1994, $2.0 million for 1995, and
$3.2 million for 1996—for providing Internet access to employees and
establishing and maintaining
WWW sites. NOAA estimated BBS expenditures
of approximately $29,000 for the 3-year period.
Fish and Wildlife
Service
The mission of the FWS is to conserve, protect, and enhance fish and
wildlife and their habitats for the continuing benefit of the American
people.
FWS activities include biological monitoring, pollution surveillance,
fish and wildlife population studies, and environmental impact
assessment, among others. The Service is responsible for leadership in
identifying, protecting, and restoring endangered species of fish, wildlife,
and plants.
FWS has approximately 7,000 employees in over 400 different
locations nationwide.
Agency Internet Policy
FWS Internet guidance covers a variety of information management issues,
including issues such as copyright protections,
WWW publishing,
appropriate use, and security. Regarding employees’ use of the Internet,
the guidance describes it as another tool available for employees to do
their jobs and encourages employees to use the Internet to do
work-related tasks more effectively.
Benefits
FWS cited a number of examples to illustrate the range of benefits to the
agency that the Internet provides. For example, distribution of
FWS
National Wetlands Inventory maps tripled at a time when its support staff
was being reduced. Also, it said posting new publications on the
WWW and
implementing an automated e-mail service has been very beneficial. E-mail
service provides news releases, bulletins, and other information to about
1,800 subscribers. The service reported that it has increased public access
to new publications, saved on printing costs, and reached a variety of
interest groups without increasing the public affairs staff or manually
maintaining large mailing lists.
GAO/GGD-97-86 Internet and Dial-Up Bulletin BoardsPage 39
Appendix VII
Internet and BBS Activities at Three
Selected Agencies
Oversight
On April 5, 1996, FWS issued a memorandum on use of the Internet to all its
employees. The
FWS memorandum, issued in response to a Department of
the Interior Inspector General’s review, reminded managers that they have
considerable latitude in deciding how the Internet should be used; but it
also emphasized that
FWS computers, networks, e-mail services, and
telephone facilities are for government business and are not for personal
use. The memorandum also provided several examples of prohibited
activities. According to
FWS, it has taken no disciplinary actions against FWS
employees for inappropriate use of Internet access.
Internet and BBS Activity
FWS said it maintained 52 Internet WWW sites at the time of our review. FWS
reported eight computers nationwide, which host the WWW sites. Each of
the
WWW sites is linked to the main FWS homepage (http://www.fws.gov).
According to
FWS each of its seven regions also has WWW sites, each with
numerous links to other
FWS sites as well as news and information about
the wildlife refuges, hunting and fishing permits, and other programs
managed by the region. Examples of other
FWS sites include the
Endangered Species Program
WWW site and the National Wetlands
Inventory office, which has three sites—its homepage, the Wetland Values
Database, and the Maps Database. The Endangered Species site provides
information such as lists of endangered species, the full text of the
Endangered Species Act, regional news, maps, photographs, and
regulatory information for private landowners.
FWS estimated that approximately 5,000 employees, or 71 percent, have
Internet e-mail access and that about 2,500 employees, or 36 percent, have
access to the
WWW from their desktop workstations.
Internet and BBS
Expenditures
For fiscal years 1994 through 1996, FWS estimated spending $929,000 for
providing Internet access to employees and for establishing and
maintaining
WWW sites. FWS estimated that its expenditures for each of the
fiscal years were $252,000 for 1994, $329,000 for 1995, and $348,000 for
1996.
FWS did not maintain any dial-up BBSs.
Social Security
Administration
SSA, an independent agency, administers various federal programs for
retirees, the disabled, and their survivors.
SSA also assigns social security
numbers to citizens and maintains records of reported earnings for
individuals assigned a social security number.
SSA currently pays benefits
to over 48 million people, annually processes 235 million earnings reports
GAO/GGD-97-86 Internet and Dial-Up Bulletin BoardsPage 40
Appendix VII
Internet and BBS Activities at Three
Selected Agencies
from 6.5 million employers, and issues 17 million Social Security cards.
Headquartered in Baltimore, Maryland,
SSA operates 10 regional offices, 6
program service centers, 1,300 field offices, and 140 hearings offices, with
a total workforce of about 65,000 employees.
Agency Internet Policy
The Administration has issued guidance that addresses management of
and employees’ use of
SSA’s Internet services. The policy states that SSA
will “promote Internet access for SSA employees who have a
business-related need as determined by their respective components.” The
policy also addresses
WWW and Internet matters such as appropriate WWW
site content and maintenance and Internet security. The policy addresses
compliance with federal laws such as the Privacy Act and Computer Fraud
and Abuse Act as well as
OMB guidance. The policy clearly states that
Internet access is only for official
SSA business and that employee usage
“may be monitored for traffic, statistical and security purposes.”
Benefits
SSA’s Internet policy states that the WWW and related Internet technologies
hold great potential for providing information to the public more quickly,
extensively, and efficiently than ever before. The recent growth of the
WWW
and its use by the public, the policy states, make it an increasingly
attractive and effective dissemination channel for
SSA. SSA reported a
variety of Internet benefits to both
SSA employees and the general public.
These benefits included being able to (1) quickly access technical tools
and resources, including software, that are essential to employees’ jobs
and
SSA’s mission; (2) search vendor resources and make online purchases
for supplies at the lowest possible cost; (3) provide increased public
access to over 300
SSA information publications in English and Spanish;
and (4) provide information on assistance available from local
SSA offices.
SSA also reported similar benefits from its BBSs. Through regional BBSs,
managers have access to historical agency reports without having to call
the regional office or maintaining cabinets full of paper reports. It said the
Online Wage Reporting
BBS, currently in the pilot testing stage, enables it
to process wage reports electronically, and
SSA believes that when fully
implemented, the
BBS could provide savings as companies file forms online
rather than by paper or on disk.
Oversight
Other than supervisory monitoring, SSA system managers currently do not
monitor employee Internet use.
SSA does maintain documentation of the
GAO/GGD-97-86 Internet and Dial-Up Bulletin BoardsPage 41
Appendix VII
Internet and BBS Activities at Three
Selected Agencies
resources accessed through the Internet, however, and is examining
software that could be used to limit access to appropriate Internet sites.
Officials from
SSA’s personnel and OIG offices told us that they were not
aware of any disciplinary actions for employees’ improper use of Internet
resources.
Internet and BBS Activity
SSA has been a participant on the Internet since 1989, providing statistical
data to educational facilities and other researchers. In May 1994,
SSA began
providing public access to “Social Security Online”—
SSA’s main Internet
WWW site (http://www.ssa.gov). At the time of our review, SSA reported
having a total of 22 Internet
WWW sites. These sites included those for
regional and program offices as well as specific
SSA programs, such as SSA’s
Quick Reference Guide for Employers
, benefit information publications,
and Social Security welfare reform information sites. In accordance with
SSA policy, all sites are to be maintained on one central computer and
linked to Social Security Online.
SSA also said it recently began experimenting with online personal earnings
statements and benefits applications. In April 1996,
SSA introduced a
service to allow the public to make an online request for a Personal
Earnings and Benefit Estimate Statement (
PEBES). Through the WWW, a
person was able to complete the form, send it to
SSA via the Internet, and
receive a
PEBES statement in the mail within about 2 weeks. In March 1997,
SSA began providing the PEBES results online, but suspended the service in
April 1997 in response to public concerns raised about the authentication
elements used and the potential for fraud. To address these concerns,
SSA
said it is seeking expert and public input through a series of national
forums.
SSA’s goal remains to provide the PEBES results online in a
real-time, secure, interactive environment, provided the full range of
privacy and disclosure issues have been addressed.
SSA reported that more
than 1.2 million people have accessed Social Security Online, 102,372 in
the month of March 1997 alone. More than 100,000 people have requested
their
PEBES by mail since the program began. During the 1-month period
that the
PEBES results were available online, more than 71,000 people
requested and received their
PEBES results instantly.
SSA reported that about 26,000 employees, or 40 percent, have access to
Internet e-mail and approximately 5,000 employees, or 8 percent, have
access to the
WWW at their desktop workstations.
GAO/GGD-97-86 Internet and Dial-Up Bulletin BoardsPage 42
Appendix VII
Internet and BBS Activities at Three
Selected Agencies
SSA also said it provides public and employee access to its information
using eight
BBSs. SSA is currently pilot testing its Online Wage Reporting
BBS. Other BBSs provide employers with information such as changes in
Social Security reporting procedures and forms, or they provide
SSA
employees access to SSA policies and reports.
Internet and BBS
Expenditures
SSA reported significant increases in expenditures for providing Internet
access to employees and for establishing and maintaining a
WWW presence.
During fiscal years 1994 through 1996,
SSA estimated spending about
$86,000, $576,000 and $910,000, respectively.
SSA also reported significant increases in estimated expenditures for its
BBSs over the last 3 fiscal years—$72,000 in 1994, $130,000 in 1995, and
$455,000 in 1996.
SSA reported that the increase in BBS expenditures was
due to costs associated with its Online Wage Reporting
BBS for system
improvements such as increasing the number of telephone lines, modems,
computers, and printers, and to provide additional training to
BBS
personnel.
GAO/GGD-97-86 Internet and Dial-Up Bulletin BoardsPage 43
Appendix VIII
Major Contributors to This Report
General Government
Division
James H. Burow, Assistant Director
Michael W. Jarvis, Senior Evaluator
Don D. Allison, Senior Evaluator
Michael A. Tovares, Evaluator
Thomas M. Beall, Social Science Analyst
Stuart M. Kaufman, Social Science Analyst
Vasiliki Theodoropoulos, Senior Evaluator/Communications Analyst
Accounting and
Information
Management Division
Larry J. Modlin, Assistant Director
Mirko J. Dolak, Technical Assistant Director
Office of Information
Management and
Communication
Stephen F. Palincsar, Webmaster
Jane K. Ervin, Publications Graphic Specialist
Joseph Carmel, Computer Specialist
Kenneth L. Cooper, Electronic Publications Specialist
Office of General
Counsel
Susan Michal-Smith, Senior Attorney
Dallas Field Office
Linda J. Libician, Evaluator-in-Charge
Marcia B. McWreath, Evaluator
Christina M. Nicoloff, Evaluator
James L. Rose, Evaluator
Enemencio S. Sanchez, Evaluator
James W. Turkett, Evaluator
(410045) GAO/GGD-97-86 Internet and Dial-Up Bulletin BoardsPage 44
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