Summary

There has been a groundswell movement in recent years toward performance-based management in public sector organizations. The federal government, as well as state, local, and foreign governments, have grappled with how best to improve service while keeping down costs. Congress, recognizing the need for better federal management and a greater emphasis on results, has put in place a statutory framework for achieving those ends. This framework includes the Chief Financial Officers Act; information technology reform legislation, in particular the Clinger-Cohen Act of 1996 and the Paperwork Reduction Act of 1995; and the Government Performance and Results Act (GPRA). This testimony provides an overview of this statutory framework and discusses how Congress can use it--particularly GPRA--to help identify and address key management challenges that are undermining the effectiveness of federal agencies. GAO highlights key implementation issues associated with linking the benefits of this statutory reform framework with the budget process. GAO also suggests how Congress can use this framework to strengthen its decisionmaking and oversight and ensure that the public gets the responsive government that is being demanded.

GAO noted that: (1) Congress has put in place a statutory framework with the essential ingredients needed to address long-standing weaknesses in federal management and to create a federal government that is more responsive and cost-effective; (2) the key now is for agencies to implement that framework and for the executive branch and Congress to use it to help make decisions and ensure accountability; (3) given the experiences of the foreign and state governments that have been seeking to instill a more results-oriented approach to management for some years now, the implementation of the Results Act, and of the other key parts of the framework, has not been, and will not be, quick or easy; (4) moreover, addressing some of the challenges that GAO has highlighted, such as addressing crosscutting program efforts and balancing competing priorities, will raise significant policy issues for Congress and the administration to consider, some of which will likely be very difficult to resolve; (5) the Results Act's success or failure should not be judged on whether contentious policy issues are fully resolved; and (6) judgment of the success or failure of the act should turn on the extent to which the information produced through the required goal-setting and performance measurement practices, once those practices are successfully implemented, helps inform policy decisions and improve government management and performance.