Summary: Pursuant to a legislative requirement, GAO reviewed whether the net excise tax revenue distributed to the Airport and Airway Trust Fund (AATF) for the fiscal year (FY) ended September 30, 1998, is supported by the underlying records.
GAO noted that: (1) this engagement to apply agreed-upon procedures was performed in accordance with standards established by the American Institute of Certified Public Accountants (AICPA); (2) the procedures GAO agreed to perform included: (a) detailed tests of transactions that represent the underlying basis of amounts distributed to AATF; (b) review of Internal Revenue Service's (IRS) quarterly AATF certifications; (c) review of the Department of the Treasury Financial Management Service adjustments to AATF for FY 1998; (d) review of the Office of the Tax Analysis process for estimating amounts to be distributed to AATF for the fourth quarter of FY 1998; (e) comparison of net excise tax distributions to AATF during FY 1998 and amounts reported in the financial statements prepared by the Bureau of Public Debt for AATF and the Federal Aviation Administration's consolidated financial statements; and (f) review of key reconciliations of IRS records to Treasury records; (3) GAO was not engaged to, and did not, perform an audit, the objective of which would be the to, and did not, perform an audit, the objective of which would be the expression of an opinion on the net taxes distributed to AATF; (4) accordingly, GAO does not express such an opinion; (5) GAO completed the agreed-upon procedures on February 12, 1999; (6) in performing the agreed-upon procedures, GAO conducted its work in accordance with generally accepted government auditing standards, which incorporate financial audit and attestation standards established by AICPA; and (7) these standards also provide guidance when performing and reporting the results of agreed-upon procedures.
