74 – 2 – SUPREME AUDIT INSTITUTIONS’ INPUT INTO POLICY FORMULATION
Box 2.6. The SAI of the United States – linking performance to decision-making in Congress and the Executive (continued) Outcomes Congressional briefing: Opportunities for Congress to Address Government Performance Issues (2011) In response to the request to support congressional use of performance information, the GAO developed, as a first step, a set of briefing materials to 1) describe provisions of GPRAMA that provide Congress with opportunities for involvement in agency performance planning; and 2) illustrate instances of Congress’s use of agency performance information in its decision making. This activity better informed Congress on the opportunities for it to provide input on the following: what results agencies should seek to achieve; how those results will be achieved, including how an agency's efforts are aligned and co-ordinated with other related efforts; how to measure progress given the complexity of federal programmes; and how to report on results. The briefing used three case studies from prior GAO work that could clarify the link between entities’ provision of performance information and Congress’ use of this information. The executive summary and report can be found here: www.gao.gov/products/GAO-12-215R.
Guide: Using the GPRAMA to help inform Congressional decision-making (2012) The GAO developed a guide to assist members of Congress and their staff in 1) ensuring the consultations required under GPRAMA are useful to Congress; and 2) using performance information produced by executive branch agencies carrying out various congressional decisionmaking responsibilities, such as: authorising programmes or provisions in the tax code, making appropriations, developing budgets, and providing oversight. The guide was requested by Congress, who recognised the value that GAO brings in transforming its cross-cutting perspective on similar issues across areas into a checklist for Congress. The guide targets executive agencies and encourages them to present their performance information in a way that is clearer and easier to interpret and use. The executive summary and guide can be found here: www.gao.gov/products/GAO-12-621SP.
Index: Use of performance information at the agency level (2007 and 2013) The GAO has consolidated an index to track the reported use of performance information within agencies. The index was created from a set of surveys in 2007 and 201, which reflects managers’ use of performance information in their decision-making and other managerial activities. The GAO found that between 2007 and 2013, two agencies achieved a statistically significant increase in the application of performance information, while four experienced a significant decline. The index dashboard, highlights and the full report are available here: www.gao.gov/products/GAO-14-747.
Further reading www.gao.gov/key_issues/managing_for_results_in_government/issue_summary#t=0. Sources: OECD Survey of Peer Supreme Audit Institutions; further reading link above.
SUPREME AUDIT INSTITUTIONS AND GOOD GOVERNANCE: OVERSIGHT, INSIGHT AND FORESIGHT © OECD 2016
