Selected Credit Programs Established Goals, Measures, and Targets to Monitor Their Progress

In their efforts to implement the Results Act, the five credit programs established goals and performance measures that appeared to be generally related to the programs’ intended purposes. Thus, if the selected programs collect accurate corresponding data on their actual performance, they should be able to monitor their progress in achieving desired results on those measures and have fiscal year 1998 baseline data to use in setting future targets for those measures. USDA reported in its fiscal year 1998 budget presentation that it was working to develop the data for its SFH direct and guaranteed loan programs’ measure on the “cost of housing a family per recipient household.”

	Progress in Developing Common Performance Measures Has Been Limited

According to OMB and the Working Group, comparing results using common measures across credit programs allows program managers and other decisionmakers to identify best practices among those programs that have the potential for improving other credit programs’ performance. However, two general problems have limited the Working Group’s progress in developing common performance measures for credit programs. The Working Group has focused on developing common financial and programmatic performance measures for credit programs and anticipated that agencies that administer credit programs could include such measures in their annual performance plans and reports under the Results Act. OMB does not intend to require credit agencies to adopt common performance measures when consensus about the appropriateness of such measures has not been achieved. We agree that OMB should not force the use of common measures when concerns about their appropriateness exist. However, at the time of our review, the Working Group had not resolved those concerns and had yet to decide how and when those concerns would be addressed; thus, it is unclear whether OMB and the credit agencies will maintain their current level of attention to developing common measures. Also unclear is the extent to which agencies that administer credit programs will include common measures for those programs in their annual performance plans that could provide useful information to decisionmakers interested in making performance and cost comparisons. However, we believe the potential benefits that could be realized from developing common performance measures, where appropriate, underscore the importance of OMB and the credit agencies continuing their efforts to develop and reach consensus on such measures. In doing so, we recommend that beginning with those agencies’ fiscal year 2000 annual performance plans, the Director of OMB require each agency that administers credit programs to identify in their plans (1) performance measures the agency is using for its credit program(s) that are the same as those used by other credit programs and the strengths and limitations of using those measures to make performance and cost comparisons among those programs; and (2) what actions, if any, are being taken or could be taken to refine the agency’s performance measurement efforts to address the identified limitations to using existing measures to make performance and cost comparisons across credit programs. Objectives, Scope, and Methodology

Our first objective was to identify goals and measures established by the selected credit programs that related to the programs’ intended purposes and determine whether the programs had set target levels of performance for assessing their progress in achieving their desired results. Our second objective was to identify the challenges agency officials cited in developing performance information, including goals and measures, for the selected programs and any approaches those programs were taking to address those challenges.
Why GAO Did This Study

GAO reviewed major credit agencies' efforts to implement the Government Performance and Results Act of 1993 (GPRA), focusing on: (1) goals and measures established by the selected credit programs that related to the programs' intended purposes; (2) whether the programs had set target levels of performance for assessing their progress in achieving their desired results; (3) the challenges agency officials cited in developing performance information, including goals and measures, for the selected programs and any approaches those programs were taking to address those challenges; and (4) the status of the Federal Credit Policy Working Group's effort to develop common performance measures for federal credit programs.

What GAO Found

GAO noted that: (1) in their efforts to implement GPRA, the five credit programs established goals and performance measures that appeared to be generally related to the programs' intended purposes; (2) if the selected programs collect accurate corresponding data on their actual performance, they should be able to monitor their progress in achieving desired results on those measures and have fiscal year (FY) 1998 baseline data to use in setting future targets for those measures; (3) although the selected programs have established goals, measures, and targets in their efforts to implement GPRA, GAO identified three general challenges the programs have been facing in developing performance information; (4) according to the Office of Management and Budget (OMB) and the Working Group, comparing results using common measures across credit programs allows program managers and other decisionmakers to identify best practices among those programs that have the potential for improving other credit programs' performance; (5) two general problems have limited the Working Group's progress in developing common performance measures for credit programs; (6) the Working Group anticipated that agencies that administer credit programs could include common financial and programmatic measures in their annual performance plans and reports under the Results Act; (7) however, OMB does not intend to require credit agencies to adopt common performance measures when consensus about the appropriateness of such measures has not been achieved; (8) GAO agreed that OMB should not force the use of common measures when concerns about their appropriateness exist, but the Working Group had not resolved those concerns and had not decided how and when those concerns would be addressed; (9) thus, it is unclear whether OMB and the credit agencies will maintain their current level of attention to developing common measures; (10) also unclear is the extent to which agencies that administer credit programs will include common measures for those programs in their annual performance plans that could provide useful information to decisionmakers interested in making performance and cost comparisons; and (11) GAO believes the potential benefits that could be realized from developing common performance measures, where appropriate, underscore the importance of OMB and the credit agencies continuing their efforts to develop and reach consensus on such measures.