Memorandum OMB-96-22:
Implementation of the Government Performance
and Results Act of 1993
Contents
MEMORANDUM: OMB-96-22 Implementation of the Government Performance
and Results Act of 1993
I. SUMMER REVIEW OF STRATEGIC PLANS
II. PERFORMANCE ASPECTS OF FALL REVIEW
Questions and Answers Regarding SUMMER REVIEW AND PERFORMANCE
ASPECTS OF FALL REVIEW
Return to OMB Title page of guidance to agencies
MEMORANDUM: OMB-96-22 Implementation of the Government Performance and
Results Act of 1993
April 11, 1996
M-96-22
MEMORANDUM FOR THE HEADS OF EXECUTIVE DEPARTMENTS AND INDEPENDENT AGENCIES
FROM: Alice M. Rivlin /s/
SUBJECT: Implementation of the Government Performance and Results Act
of 1993
In September, 1997, the government-wide provisions of
the Government Performance and Results Act (GPRA) take
effect. As part of our ongoing effort to help departments
and agencies improve program management, resource
allocation, and accountability, several major initiatives
will be undertaken during this year. The over-arching
objective of these initiatives is to continue to integrate
GPRA requirements into existing program management and
budget processes. These initiatives were briefly sketched
in OMB Memorandum 95-19 (September 14, 1995), and are more
extensively described below, and in attachment 1.
Attachment 2 consists of questions which have been
raised regarding particular aspects of these initiatives and
the answers to those questions. We will share other
questions and answers about the reviews with you as they
emerge.
Summer Review
Budget uncertainties over these past months have made
for a long, difficult, and complicated budget season.
Recognizing this, we have adjusted the schedule for what
would otherwise be our OMB Spring Review so that it will now
occur in July. The Summer Review will be centered on the
key parts of the agency strategic plans, and how agencies
are progressing in developing these plans. This assessment
has several objectives:
(1) to assure that agencies are developing plans that
meet GPRA requirements, and are aligned with budgets,
streamlining plans, performance agreements, and other
related initiatives going on in the agencies;
(2) to use parts of the strategic plan to frame
discussions this Fall with the agencies on their proposed
annual performance goals; and
(3), to identify any steps that should be taken on a
multi-agency basis to coordinate and harmonize goals and
objectives for cross-agency programs and functions.
Agencies will be given feedback on these key parts of
the strategic plans following the review. The attachment
identifies the strategic planning information that agencies
should provide to OMB by June 7th to support the Summer
Review.
Performance Aspects for Fall Review
The second major initiative is intended to produce
consensus between OMB and the agencies on the performance
goals and indicators that agencies would include in their FY
1999 annual performance plans. This initiative will be
integrated with OMB's Fall Review of the agency FY 1998
budget requests. Agreement on goals and indicators will
help ensure that: (1) the performance plans contain useful
and relevant performance information; and (2), agencies can
better direct their measurement of current performance to
generate the baseline data from which future target levels
would be set. A more detailed overview of the Fall Review
of performance information and material to be provided by
the agencies is also set out in the attachment.
Related Efforts
In parallel with these initiatives, we will continue
our effort to consolidate and integrate various performance-
related plans and reports, linking these more closely with
the formulation and execution of the budget. We would
welcome any specific suggestions or ideas that you may have
on further steps that might be undertaken to assist your
implementation efforts.
For GPRA implementation, there will be no more critical
time than these next few months. Agencies should not
underestimate the scope of the tasks ahead, nor the time
that will be needed. While the Summer Review and the
performance aspects of Fall Review can help in your
implementation, they are not a substitute for the more
fundamental examination of how your programs are being
managed and what they are achieving, which should already be
underway.
Attachments
Attachment 1
I. SUMMER REVIEW OF STRATEGIC PLANS
A. Strategic Plans in General
GPRA requires agencies to submit strategic plans to OMB
and Congress by September 30, 1997. Part 2 to OMB Circular
No. A-11 (September 14, 1995) contains guidance to the
agencies on the preparation and submission of these plans.
B. Strategic Plan Material to be Provided OMB
Agencies should provide the following parts of their strategic
plan(s), even if some or all of the material is in
the draft or developmental stage:
* The comprehensive mission statement
* A description of the general goals and objectives
* A description of the relationship between the general goals and
objectives and the performance goals that will be proposed for
the annual performance plan.
The material provided should encompass all of the agency's
major functions and operations. Agencies should also describe
their plans for consultation with Congress and other interested groups.
For agencies that are proposing goals and objectives
for cross-cutting programs or functions, these goals and
objectives should be identified as well as a brief summary
of any on-going or past coordination or consultation with
other agencies that share a responsibility for or have a
role in the cross-cutting program or function.
Agencies with plans that are further developed or
nearly done, e.g., a plan that includes other GPRA-required
elements such as external factors, are encouraged to provide
a copy of the plan with all the completed parts.
C. Agencies Lacking Requested Material
Agencies which have yet to define, even in a
preliminary way, their mission statement or general goals
and objectives, should describe the status of their
strategic planning effort and the schedule for completing
their plan. Agencies with mission statements and goal
descriptions that currently cover only a part of their major
programs and functions should provide the date for
completing the statement and goals for the remaining
programs.
D. Problems or Issues
With the provided material, agencies may also describe
any significant problems or issues they have encountered in
the course of developing the plan.
E. Due Date for Material
The requested strategic plan information should be
provided to your OMB Resource Management Office (RMO) by COB
June 7, 1996.
F. Timing and Structure of Summer Review
The Summer Review will be conducted in July. The
review will focus on the adequacy, relevance, and
appropriateness of the mission statement and the general
goals and objectives, and consistency with the
specifications for these plan elements as set out in Part 2
of Circular No. A-11. Additionally, the general goals and
objectives will be reviewed for how well these will match
with prospective performance goals that would be proposed
for the annual performance plan.
In preparation for the Summer Review, OMB Resource
Management Offices will discuss with their agencies plan
content, and the schedule for plan completion and
submission. For cross-cutting programs and functions,
particularly where coordination issues may exist,
discussions may simultaneously involve several agencies.
Following the Summer Review, OMB RMOs will provide
feedback to agencies. Agencies may need to make changes to
the plan, particularly for the general goals and objectives.
These general goals and objectives serve as the foundation
for the proposed performance goals and indicators which will
be the focus of the Fall Review of performance information.
Where appropriate, an OMB-agency meeting may be convened at
the policy official level.
G. Further Information
Please contact your OMB Resource Management Office if
you have questions regarding the Summer Review.
II. PERFORMANCE ASPECTS OF FALL REVIEW
A. Performance Goals and Indicators in General
GPRA requires agencies to submit annual performance
plans to OMB starting with the annual plan for FY 1999. The
key feature of these plans are specific, measurable
performance goals and indicators for an agency's major
programs and activities. The first annual plan will be due
to OMB in September 1997, concurrent with transmittal of the
agency FY 1999 budget requests. OMB has not yet prepared
specific guidance to the agencies on the preparation and
submission of the FY 1999 plans.
B. Performance Goal Information to be Provided OMB
Agencies should provide descriptions of the performance
goals and indicators the agency proposes to include in its
performance plan for FY 1999. These descriptions should be
sufficiently specific to allow a determination to be made as
to their usefulness and value in measuring program
performance, how well they reflect the core purpose of the
program or activity, and how well they match with the
general goals and objectives in the strategic plan.
Specific performance values, e.g., quantified target
levels, for FY 1999 need not be provided as part of the
description. For example, a described goal would be "to
reduce the rate of loan defaults to x percentage of all
loans outstanding in FY 1999". The description need not
include a value for x. However, in some instances, the
performance goals may be actual milestone or schedule dates,
or have target levels already set. In these instances, the
specific value should be included.
Agencies should not provide an exhaustive list of every
possible goal and indicator. Rather, the descriptions, when
viewed collectively, should give a sense of the type and
scope of the goals and indicators that would be included in
the FY 1999 performance plan. Agencies are reminded that
GPRA allows performance plans to "aggregate, disaggregate,
or consolidate program activities", as long as major
functions or operations of the agency are not omitted or
minimized.
C. Performance Goal Information for FY 1998
Some of the proposed performance goals and indicators
are likely to be the same (or quite similar to) measures of
program performance that an agency is currently using.
Agencies should provide information on projected FY 1998
levels of performance for such measures as part of their
budget request for that fiscal year. In preparing and
presenting the FY 1998 budget, agencies should expect that
the amount and usefulness of performance information will be
significantly greater than in past years.
D..Due Date for Material
The descriptions of the proposed performance goals and
indicators for FY 1999 should be submitted to OMB with the
agency's budget request for FY 1998.
E. Timing and Structure for the Performance Aspects of
Fall Review
The Fall Review of the proposed performance goals and
indicators will be conducted as a part of the hearings and
discussions with the agency on its FY 1998 budget request.
These hearings and meetings generally occur between
September and November. By December, 1996, consensus should
be reached either on the performance goals to be included in
the FY 1999 plan, or on the schedule for further work to be
done to define these goals early in CY 1997.
The performance aspect of Fall Review will focus on the
adequacy and relevance of the proposed performance goals and
indicators. A major criterion will be whether the goals and
indicators capture the essence of what a program or activity
should be achieving, and how well these reflect the
performance expectations of those who receive, use, or
purchase the services or products offered. As the
performance goals should highlight those measures that
agency managers use to manage, the agency's ability to
provide timely and accurate performance data will also be
reviewed.
F. Further Information
Please contact your OMB Resource Management Office if
you have questions regarding the performance aspect of Fall
Review.
Attachment 2
Questions and Answers Regarding
SUMMER REVIEW AND PERFORMANCE ASPECTS OF FALL REVIEW
Q1. What are the resource assumptions that agencies should
use as the basis for their strategic plan?
A1. Strategic plans should provide an overall guide to the
formulation of future agency budget requests. These plans
are a tool for agencies in setting priorities and allocating
resources consistent with these priorities. Although a
strategic plan is not a budget request, the projected levels
of goal achievement should be commensurate with anticipated
resource levels.
Agencies should recognize that Federal budgetary
resources will undoubtedly be severely constrained in the
future. A plan that is based on speculative estimates of
funding and staff will likely contain distorted and
unachievable goals. Agencies are expected to use reasonable
projections of the funding and staff that will be available
over the time-period covered by the plan.
Q2.If an agency has proceeded to develop its performance
measures in advance of preparing its strategic plan, what
information should it submit to OMB for Summer Review?
A2.The agency should submit its mission statement, as
performance measures are not normally used to define an
agency's mission. If the general goals are still being
developed, the agency should provide information on the
performance measurement currently being done, and how and
when the agency will develop the general goals and
objectives in its strategic plan.
Q3.Does Summer Review and the Performance Aspects of Fall
Review cover all agencies?
A3.The reviews cover all agencies subject to GPRA (cabinet
departments, independent agencies, and government
corporations). (Several agencies are statutorily not
subject to GPRA; for example, the CIA, the Panama Canal
Commission, and the Postal Rate Commission.) The Postal
Service will not be covered by these reviews.
GPRA allows independent agencies with annual
spending of $20 million or less to request an exemption
from GPRA requirements. The planned time line for deciding
these requests is such that any exempted agency would be
excused from Summer and Fall Review. For agencies with
annual spending of $20 million or less, the Summer and Fall
Review periods allows OMB and these agencies to discuss how
GPRA requirements can be adapted to match their relative
capabilities and size. Guidance on small agency exemptions
will be issued shortly.
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