In summary, Mr. Chairman, because of the progress that agencies have made in developing their strategic plans over the last several months, these plans generally should provide a workable foundation for the agencies’ continuing efforts to move to a more performance-based form of management. Much of this progress appears to have been the result of the active participation of Members and congressional staff in consulting on those plans. While difficult implementation challenges remain, by taking advantage of the consultation process, Congress and the agencies established the basis for continued progress in implementing the Results Act and ensuring that efforts under the Act provide the information that agency and congressional decisionmakers need to improve the management of the federal government. The Results Act establishes an iterative process for performance-based management, with the foundation being the agency’s strategic plan. The next step—the annual performance plans—offer the opportunity for Congress and the agencies to continue to clarify goals and ensure that proper strategies are in place to achieve those goals. Agencies’ annual plans and the governmentwide performance plan prepared by the President can form the basis for agency and congressional decisionmaking about the best way to manage crosscutting program efforts. Finally, the annual plans, and later accountability reports, provide mechanisms for highlighting and addressing issues centering on the collection and analysis of program performance and cost information.
Why GAO Did This Study

GAO discussed (1) the strategic plans that agencies submitted to Congress and the Office of Management and Budget in September; and (2) how Congress and the agencies can build on those plans to more effectively implement the Government Performance and Results Act.

What GAO Found

GAO noted that: (1) because of the progress that agencies have made in developing their strategic plans over the last several months, these plans generally should provide a workable foundation for the agencies' continuing efforts to move to a more performance-based form of management; (2) much of this progress appears to have been the result of the active participation of members and congressional staff in consulting on those plans; (3) while difficult implementation challenges remain, by taking advantage of the consultation process, Congress and the agencies established the basis for continued progress in implementing the Results Act and ensuring that efforts under the act provide the information that agency and congressional decisionmakers need to improve the management of the federal government; (4) the Results Act establishes an iterative process for performance-based management, with the foundation being the agency's strategic plan; (5) the next step--annual performance plans--offers the opportunity for Congress and the agencies to continue to clarify goals and ensure that proper strategies are in place to achieve those goals; (6) agencies' annual plans and the governmentwide performance plan prepared by the President can form the basis for agency and congressional decisionmaking about the best way to manage crosscutting program efforts; and (7) the annual plans, and later accountability reports, provide mechanisms for highlighting and addressing issues centering on the collection and analysis of program performance and cost information.