This report from phase 1 of a two-phase study conducted during 1989-1991 reviews 85 programs in 12 federal agencies that authorize the expenditure of funds for adult education services. The impetus for this study was the requirement in Section 6214 of the Hawkins-Stafford Elementary and Secondary School Improvement Amendments of 1988. Data were obtained from existing information and interviews with program and contracts office personnel. Many federal programs authorizing multiple activities did not require that obligations or expenditures for adult education activities be reported separately. Most of the monies came from U.S. Department of Education programs funded under the Adult Education Act. The support for adult education was concentrated on the provision of direct educational services in basic skills/literacy. The 27-page study report is followed by detailed descriptions of the 85 federal programs. Each description includes the following: a categorization according to federal agency and office, Catalog of Federal Domestic Assistance number, a brief discussion of the program and its relation to adult literacy activities, program type (primary, secondary, indirect), documentation of program outcomes, eligible recipients, length of assistance, overall program budget obligation, adult education program component budget obligation, examples of funded projects, and program contact. Program descriptions are grouped in three sections alphabetically by federal agency. The three sections correspond to the program's classification as primary, secondary, or indirect. Appendixes include definitions, descriptions of federal programs, and tables illustrating programs by adult education funds obligated, type of interagency coordination requirement, funding mechanism, and data collection requirements. (YLB)