At the hearing, the Government Accountability Office—a major player in the personnel reform debate–presented testimony supporting pay reform in concept, although saying that such systems that already exist remain “very much a work in progress.” Federal unions, as they have in the past, said that pay for performance systems haven’t worked well in the demonstration projects and that the lessons learned from those often highly specialized settings don’t necessarily apply across government. Unions said that if such systems are to succeed, they must be properly funded and allow for a significant role for unions—two issues where they said the demonstration projects often have been lacking. Several committee members also expressed reluctance to expand the concepts government-wide. The House Government Reform Committee is holding hearings on the administration’s proposal this week, as well, although Capitol Hill officials say there’s little likelihood of the administration’s plan moving in the legislative process this year.