The report provides the following information pertaining to fiscal years 1997 through 1999: (1) the number of Federal government officials protected, who protected them, and how many security personnel protected them; (2) how much it cost to protect those officials; (3) the legal authorities under which agencies provided security protection; (4) circumstances under which officials were protected; (5) how agencies prepared threat assessments and the implications of standardizing and centralizing threat assessments; (6) the training protective personnel received and the implications of standardizing and centralizing security protection training; (7) the implications of centralizing protection services under one agency; and (8) the views of protected officials regarding the need for and adequacy of their protection. The report does not provide information by agency or identify specific protected officials. Notes, tables, appendixes