The lack of commitment to the use of the Government
Performance and Results Act among leadership in agencies
and at the Office of Management and Budget could hinder
the development of results-oriented cultures in government,
the General Accounting Office has said.
It said the GPRA is responsible for significant progress in
linking resources and results, but much remains to be done
to incorporate performance information into decisions about
resources.
Federal managers continue to have difficulty setting
outcome-oriented goals, collecting useful data on results
and linking institutional, program, unit and individual
performance measurement and reward systems, said GAO, which
called on OMB to emphasize the government-wide performance
plan requirement of GPRA to address issues that cut across
agencies.
OMB responded to the report by saying the federal budget is
guidance enough, according to GAO. It went ahead and asked
Congress to consider amending the GPRA to require agencies
to update their strategic plans at least once every four
years, consult with Congress at least once every new term,
and consistently update plans. The full report is available
here: sparklist.com.
