Summary

Pursuant to a congressional request, GAO reviewed performance approval data from the Department of Commerce and the National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA).

For Commerce, GAO categorized the data by agency, gender, race, and performance rating. GAO sampled records from each of the four Commerce performance appraisal information systems to verify data accuracy. GAO also analyzed an internal NASA report containing comprehensive performance appraisal data but did not verify the data. GAO noted that the data gathered was of limited value because it did not attempt to gather information on evaluation factors or to determine whether individual performance appraisals were justified.