NIHs Buildings and Facilities (B&F) Program was evaluated in FY07 by the Office of Management and Budget (OMB) using its Program Assessment Rating Tool (PART). The analysis resulted in a cumulative score of 96/100, earning the program an Effective rating; the highest possible. According to OMB criteria, programs rated “Effective” set ambitious goals, achieve results, are well-managed, and improve efficiency.
Broken down into its four evaluation areas, the Buildings and Facilities Program scores ranged from 88 to 100. The ORF program scored 88 and 89 in Program Management and Strategic Planning, respectively; it got perfect 100 scores in Program Purpose and Design and in Program Results/Accountability.
PART is a tool used by OMB to evaluate and improve government programs. The OMB website states that “The PART was developed to assess and improve program performance so that the Federal government can achieve better results. A PART review helps identify a program’s strengths and weaknesses to inform funding and management decisions aimed at making the program more effective.” To achieve this goal, OMB uses PART to look at all factors affecting and reflecting program performance, gathering information through a series of questions whose consistency allows for comparisons between similar programs.
More information about the PART is available on the OMB website at http://www.whitehouse.gov/omb/part/index.html.
