In response to the request of several congressional committees and subcommittees, the General Accounting Office (GAO) identified federal programs that serve at-risk or delinquent youth and provided information on the fiscal year 1995 appropriations dedicated to youth. Program characteristics and target groups were noted as part of an overall evaluation of these programs. The federal government was found to have 131 programs, administered by 16 different departments and agencies, that were used to benefit at-risk or delinquent youth. For the programs for which data were available (109 programs or 83%), total estimated 1995 appropriations exceeded $4 billion. Many of the programs were authorized to provide funding for multiple services, ranging from counseling to job training assistance to research and evaluation. It was found that 23% of the programs funded 7 or more services. Many programs also had multiple target groups, with 33% targeting 3 or more groups. The group most commonly targeted was "all youth." The current system of programs creates the potential for overlap of services, since, in many cases, two or more programs can provide similar services to the same target group. The analysis raises questions about the overall efficiency of federal efforts to assist at-risk and delinquent youth. Appendixes define program services, list and describe the programs, and list GAO contacts. (Contains five figures and three tables.) (SLD)