2.8. The SAI of South Africa – budget and strategic plan review

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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.

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Key Function 2: Budgetary planning

Box 2.7. The SAIs of Canada, Korea and the Netherlands – using foresight to assess workforce sustainability and population ageing

In 2012, the Netherlands Court of Audit undertook a review of Human Resource Management that focused on the strategy and planning for central government personnel. The audit analysed the preparedness of central government for increases in retirement and turnover in personnel predicted between 2012 and 2022. The Court of Audit concluded that the lack of a strategic personnel plan significantly undermined its ability to anticipate and oversee the consequences of personnel changes. Planned spending cuts to the civil service between 2012 and 2014 compounded the need for strategic planning to ensure that jobs necessary in the future were not cut. Lack of planning prevented central government from steering the development of staff and responding to evolving needs.

In 2012, the Korean Board of Audit and Inspection conducted an audit on the management practices of the Government Employee Pension Service (GEPS) and Teacher’s Pension (TP), with the goal of determining the stability of the systems and restoring public trust. As a result it found the deficiencies in asset management and operations of the GEPS and TP, including inaccurate measuring of the value of assets, overpayment for management services compared to other pension systems and overstated revenues. The audit also found that ineligible recipients indeed received pension and severance payments. BAI provided recommendations for the GEPS and TP to better manage its assets, and notified the relevant ministries of ineligible recipients of pension payments so they could begin actions to recollect the money.

It found issues with the status of the assets managed by these systems, including inaccurate measuring of the value of assets held, overpayment for management services compared to other pension systems, and overstated revenues. The audit also found that some persons who were not eligible for the pension were allowed to receive pension and severance payments. The Board of Audit and Inspection provided recommendations for the GEPS and TP systems to better manage its assets, and notified the relevant ministries of ineligible recipients of pension payments so that they could begin to recollect the improper disbursements.

The Auditor General of Canada delivered its Fall Report in 2012, which included a chapter on the long-term fiscal sustainability of Canada. It looked particularly at the growing proportion of elderly Canadians and the resulting pressure on the health care and pension systems. The Auditor General focused on whether Finance Canada had analysed and publicised these longterm sustainability issues, as well as made decision makers aware of their findings. The Auditor General concluded that Finance Canada had made long-term sustainability analyses where appropriate, but made recommendations regarding the analysis of future proposed budgets to help decision makers better understand the long-term implications of budget decisions before the budget is finalised.

Further reading

www.courtofaudit.nl/english/Publications/Audits/Introductions/2012/05/Central_government _personnel_strategy_and_planning. www.oag-bvg.gc.ca/internet/English/parl_oag_201210_07_e_37351.html. Sources: OECD Survey of Peer Supreme Audit Institutions; further reading links above.

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