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U.S. Department of Agriculture |
Department of Health and Human Services |
Environmental Protection Agency |
Department of Commerce |
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U.S. Department of Agriculture |
Department of Health and Human Services |
Environmental Protection Agency |
Department of Commerce |
Action Required: Approval of a process to develop coordinated food safety budgets and a unified food safety initiative budget submission the strategic plan.
Current Interagency Budget Planning Process
In response to the May 1997 report to the President, the Department of Heath and Human Services (HHS) and the Department of Agriculture (USDA) have coordinated a multi-agency effort to present a unified budget for the President's Food Safety Initiative. The report recognizes that only through joint planning can Federal resources be maximized and the greatest improvements in food safety be achieved.
The involved agencies also worked collaboratively to present a unified food safety initiative budget to OMB and the Congress for 1998, 1999, and 2000. However, the process for coordination and joint planning has not been initiated until the completion of individual agency budget decision-making. The result is inclusion of food safety initiative budget requests in individual agency budget submissions to OMB and preparation of a unified budget submission "after the fact." In fact, this year's unified budget was submitted to OMB only a few days prior to OMB passback.
Preparation of a Coordinated Food Safety Budget Planning Process
The strategic plan will provide a solid basis for coordinated food safety budget planning and resource requests. The Council will also ensure that the agencies submit a unified food safety initiative budget that includes other food safety issues, as determined appropriate by the Council. In order for the coordinated budget planning process for food safety to be successful, these actions must be completed. First, the Council should develop guidance for food safety agencies to consider during the preparation of their individual agency budgets. In order for this guidance to be most useful, the guidance should be made available to the agencies by late February to coincide with the beginning of the budget planning process of the involved agencies (e.g., HHS process begins in March).
Second, agencies must collect the budget data necessary for coordinating food safety budgets from the earliest point in budget planning. Third, the Council must establish a process for agencies to submit relevant budget information to OMB.
Recommendation: Form a task force composed of representatives from the budget and program staffs of HHS, USDA, and EPA, in consultation with OMB, to work with the Council to develop a coordinated budget planning process for food safety activities similar to other cross-cutting issues. The agency representatives of this task force will also work throughout the budget planning process, beginning at the earliest point (i.e., HHS calendar) to assure coordination of activities and resource requests. The task force, in consultation with OMB, should conduct the following activities:
