Maritime Administration: Efforts To Improve Data on the Federal Ship Financing Program: RCED-87-58

In response to a congressional request, GAO examined the Maritime Administration's (MARAD) Federal Ship Financing Program and its estimated $5-billion portfolio of loan guarantees.
GAO found that: (1) MARAD considered 20 percent of the program loans to be at risk of default; (2) in 1986, default payments exceeded $1.2 billion; and (3) since the fund was not self-supporting, it needed approximately $1.4 billion in supplemental appropriations to repay outstanding loans. GAO also found that: (1) MARAD borrowed from the Treasury to cover the bulk of its 1987 program expenses; (2) improper and inadequate cost accounting procedures and underestimation of 1986 default payments caused the program's financial problems; and (3) MARAD plans to take corrective action to minimize its data problem.