The House of Representatives approved June 16 a bill that would require agencies to produce quarterly assessments of progress toward high priority goals that involve multiple programs, even multiple agencies.

The "Government Efficiency, Effectiveness and Performance Improvement Act of 2010," sponsored by Rep. Henry Cuellar (D-Texas), passed the House under a suspension of the rules without objection.

Under the bill, the head of each agency, in consultation with the Office of Management and Budget and Congress, would identify high-priority near-term and long-term goals and then report back accomplishment metrics every three months.

"The Committee intends for agencies to select ambitious goals that push the agency to improve performance," states the report accompanying the bill, which was drafted by the House Oversight and Government Reform Committee. The bill would also require agencies to post the assessments online.

In assessing performance on goals that involve activities outside their agencies, heads of agencies would have to "coordinate with relevant personnel" in those other organizations.

The bill does not include a provision that would cut off or reduce funding for programs not performing well according to the quarterly reports.

The bill would also require agencies to appoint a performance officer and for the government to create a performance officers council.

In addition, the bill would change the time-frame for agency strategic planning from five years to four years and have the four year periods begin in the second year of a presidential term.

During House debate on the measure, Rep. Edolphus Towns (D-N.Y.), who is also chairman of the House Oversight and Government Reform Committee, said the bill would save the government money.

"This will allow agencies to identify waste and inefficiency and to change what isn't working. This is what successful corporations do regularly, and this is what the government should do as well," he said.

 For more:
- go to the THOMAS page on H.R. 2142, or click directly to the text
- read an excerpt of the House debate on the bill from the Congressional Record (.pdf)

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