The Government Reform Committee has passed the Program
Assessment and Results Act — the PAR Act, HR-3826 — meant to
strengthen the Government Performance and Results Act and
requiring the Office of Management and Budget to work with
agencies to assess the performance of all federal programs
once every five years.
The bill helps set out how to codify program assessments in
accordance with the GPRA, an area in which the General
Accounting Office reported agencies consistently fare poorly.
Rep. Todd R. Platts, R-Pa., who introduced the measure, said,
“Unless we take an empirical, systematic look at programs,
the results they produce, and the way they are managed, we
will never know whether we are meeting goals or providing
services to the public in the most effective way possible.
Congress and the Executive Branch need to work together to
ensure that information gleaned from program reviews empowers
us to make timely, well-informed decisions.”
