OMB, CBO, GAO Policy Statements

[admin]

This thread will be dedicated to presenting and analyzing statements made by the White House Office of Managementand Budget(OMB). The authors will be former OMB officials. Click for
bio: http://www.thecre.com/fed_times_tozzi_art.html

[admin]

OMB Differs From Other Experts On the Impact Of Balloning Deficits

Now that the budget forecasts for the federal budget contain a highway of red ink,
experts differ on their significance.

“many economists argue that deficit-spending now should help stimulate the ailing economy, leading to far stronger growth in the year ahead and ultimately bringing down the unemployment rate, which is currently at a nine-year high of 6.4 percent”

“Ken Goldstein, an economist with the Conference Board, a business research group in New York, argues that today’s budget deficits “cut deeper” than they did 20 years ago because they come at a time of huge state and local budget deficits, leaving the overall government position with regard to the economy in worse shape.”

Others state:

“Obviously nobody at the American Enterprise Institute is advocating those kinds of massive tax increases or spending cuts. But Smetters and Gokhale argue that Congress does not appreciate the size of the fiscal problems because federal accounting essentially masks the true size of the growing imbalance. A paper published this week by the two economists contends that a more accurate accounting would show the federal imbalance growing by nearly $9.7 trillion between now and 2008 — more than five times the size of the projected budget deficits.
“We are talking about a huge, huge problem,” said Smetters.”

Read the article:
http://msnbc.com/news/940556.asp?0sl=-42

Click to What's New In Regulations

http://thecre.com/forums/forumdisplay.php?forumid=12

[admin]

The Cost of E-Government

Agencies must send their view on the second round of e-government projects to OMB by September, 8.

"The Office of Management and Budget will accept cross-agency e-government proposals for four lines of business: public-health monitoring, criminal investigation, human resources administration and financial management"

These are laudable goals but they will not necessarily result in cost savings because of the greater level of services which may be provided to the public.

Read article

http://gcn.com/vol1_no1/daily-updates/22748-1.html


Read article:

http://thecre.com/emerging/20030714_egov.htm

Click to What's New In Regulation

http://thecre.com/forums/forumdisplay.php?forumid=12

[admin]

OMB's presence at the national level is known directly because of its work on the budget, legislation and regulations. But OMB also has a direct impact on a number of programs at the local level.

For example, the name and size of the metropolitan area you live in is determined by OMB. The decision effects the amount of funds a specific area receives.


"The U.S. Office of Management and Budget (OMB), the agency that designates metropolitan areas, last month completed a wholesale revision that began in the late 1990s. It has adjusted the boundaries of dozens of metros, changed many of their names, and created two entirely new categories of "micropolitan" and "combined" statistical areas. "


Another example gets down to how much funds a prision will receive for a specific task because its reimbursement is determined by cost principles promulgated by OMB.


"I believe there is a lack of understanding of what is allowable and allocable under OMB A-87 under the bureau’s part,” he said."

OMB is a very critical institution which has been underfunded
for a number of years.

Read articles on the aforementioned examples:

http://birmingham.bizjournals.com/birmingham/stories/2003/07/14/story7.html

http://www.oaoa.com/news/nw072003a.htm

Click to What's New In Regulation

http://thecre.com/forums/forumdisplay.php?forumid=12

[admin]

Ralph Nader states that federal regulatory agencies were as bad, under the Clinton Administration, as they were under a number of Republican Administration’s in curbing the corporate abuse of power.

He states:

“"There are few major differences," says Nader, adding that federal "regulatory agencies under Clinton-Gore were as bad or worse" at curbing corporate power as their counterparts during the Reagan years, or the two Bush administrations.”

He goes on to give his view of former Governor Dean:

“Dean has got an excellent speech" but "not that exciting a record," says Nader. As a governor, Dean "could be called one of the originators of triangulation" - the Clintonian tactic of taking stands that place a politician conveniently apart from the struggle between right and left. "The minute you probe Dean with a question, he reverts to the real Dean."

President Nixon started the first government-wide review of regulations. See
http://www.thecre.com/fed_times_tozzi_art.html.

Members of the Nixon Administration will take particular note of the following comment:

“You know, you can tell how decayed our political system is in this country," Nader says. "Some of us look back to Richard Nixon with nostalgia."

Click to article:

http://www.denverpost.com/Stories/0,1413,36~28203~1522183,00.html


See New Feature: OMB Policy Statements
http://www.thecre.com/ombpapers/policy.html

[admin]

Now that the budget forecasts for the federal budget contain a highway of red ink, experts differ on their significance.

“…many economists argue that deficit-spending now should help stimulate the ailing economy, leading to far stronger growth in the year ahead and ultimately bringing down the unemployment rate, which is currently at a nine-year high of 6.4 percent…”

“Ken Goldstein, an economist with the Conference Board, a business research group in New York, argues that today’s budget deficits “cut deeper” than they did 20 years ago because they come at a time of huge state and local budget deficits, leaving the overall government position with regard to the economy in worse shape.”

Others state:

“Obviously nobody at the American Enterprise Institute is advocating those kinds of massive tax increases or spending cuts. But Smetters and Gokhale argue that Congress does not appreciate the size of the fiscal problems because federal accounting essentially masks the true size of the growing imbalance. A paper published this week by the two economists contends that a more accurate accounting would show the federal imbalance growing by nearly $9.7 trillion between now and 2008 — more than five times the size of the projected budget deficits.

We are talking about a huge, huge problem,” said Smetters.

Read the article:
http://msnbc.com/news/940556.asp?0sl=-42

See New Feature: OMB Policy Statements
http://www.thecre.com/ombpapers/policy.html

[admin]

OMB has the authority to designate, to define and to name standard statistical metropolitan areas. They do it based on expert advice from a number of agencies including the Bureau of the Census.

The two US Senators from Michigan have introduced legislation to block the OMB designation for western Michigan.

They state: "This action affects federal funding, marketing and tourism programs and the long-range planning efforts of local officials," Stabenow said.

“Opposition to the changes in the region is not unanimous,” U.S. Rep. Vernon Ehlers, R-Grand Rapids, said. “The changes are not necessarily bad for everyone.”

Regardless of the Senator’s laudable goals, intervention in this process through legislation could lay the groundwork for a number of other Senators’ future actions. More specifically, some federal programs may be placed on hold until the issue is resolved.
Click to article:
http://www.mlive.com/news/muchronicle/index.ssf?/xml/story.ssf/html_standard.xsl?/base/news-1/1058541339218810.xml

See New Feature: OMB Policy Statements
http://www.thecre.com/ombpapers/policy.html

[admin]

OMB, has part of its e-government program, has allocated funds to SBA to aid small businesses comply with federal regulations.

SBA states:

"With the new money, Van Wert said, SBA will focus on ways to ease the reporting burden on small businesses, possibly through a centralized repository of data stripped from online forms businesses submit. That way when a company went to submit new information, the new forms would already include previously provided material. Alternately, the businesses might maintain the information in some format and be able to autofill some elements of the online forms. "

Read article:

http://gcn.com/vol1_no1/daily-updates/22840-1.html



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07-23-2003 11:25 AM



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O

[admin]

OMB reviews all legislation before it is submitted to the President; Congress is working on legislation to overturn the recent FCC rule on cross-media ownership, which has been reported on extensively in this forum.

OMB states:

"The Administration believes that the new FCC media ownership rules more accurately reflect the changing media landscape and the current state of network station ownership, while still guarding against undue concentration in the marketplace," the Office of Management and Budget said in a statement.

"If this provision or a provision like it with respect to any one of the other FCC Rules is contained in the final legislation presented to the President, his Senior Advisors would recommend that he veto the bill," OMB said"

It was for this reason that we advocated using the Data Quality Act.

Read earlier articles:

http://thecre.com/forums/showthread.php?threadid=189

[admin]

OMB has been leading the charge to contract out more federal jobs to the private sector. However, this effort has become under considerable opposition by labor unions. OMB announced that although the program will continue, specific numeral goals for each agency will be eliminated.

Read article

http://gcn.com/vol1_no1/daily-updates/22890-1.html

[admin]

1700 Park Service Jobs Under Review For Contracting Out

The Park Service is examining the possibility of contracting out some 1700 positions. Not withstanding Congressional attempts to curtail the effort prior to even completing the study, the Director of the Park Service informed Congress that the program is going to continue.


"Bush administration officials defended a plan to study privatizing some 1,700 positions within the National Park Service at a Senate hearing Thursday, amid growing criticism of the initiative. Park Service Director Fran Mainella told the Senate National Parks Subcommittee that the plan has been widely misunderstood and that concern Park Service employees may have is the result of misinformation."

The review is being conducted pursuant to OMB Bulleting A-76.

Read article

http://ens-news.com/ens/jul2003/2003-07-25-11.asp

[admin]

No federal agency can ask any small business to fill out any forms without that federal agency first getting the forms approved by OMB. OMB received this authority under the Paperwork Reduction Act. However, at a Congressional hearing, representatives of small business were disappointed in OMB's performance.

"Small business groups and their allies in Congress are disappointed in the Office and Management and Budget's efforts to comply with a 2002 law designed to ease paperwork burdens on small businesses.

For example, the law directed federal agencies to delegate a single point of contact that small businesses could turn for help in complying with the regulations. OMB was in charge of implementing this list, but three cabinet agencies listed multiple contacts and several independent agencies failed to list anyone. "

The real solution is for Congress to increase the staff levels for OMB.

Read article

http://washington.bizjournals.com/extraedge/washingtonbureau/archive/2003/07/28/bureau2.html

[admin]

There are not very many agencies that can tell GAO that they are off base--but of course they are not OMB. GAO issued a report on agency compliance with the Privacy Act of 1974. GAO concluded:

"The report said OMB needs to provide additional guidance on how to secure electronic records, make compliance a higher priority in agencies and provide resources for training employees about privacy.

“OMB has not responded to long-standing agency requests or to our recommendations for improved guidance,” GAO said."

OMB responded to GAO by stating that not all roses are red:

"John Graham, OMB administrator for the Office of Information and Regulatory Affairs, and Mark Forman, OMB administrator for e-government and IT, in responding to the draft report, said GAO’s report has a “fundamental flaw” because it treats various provisions in the Privacy Act as equally important.

OMB also called GAO’s nine recommendations “vague and nebulous.”

Read article:

http://gcn.com/vol1_no1/daily-updates/22988-1.html

[admin]

Each July, OMB issues its midsession review estimates of the numbers presented in
the President's Budget. The numbers this year are receiving considerably more
scrutiny because of the record deficit level. One analyst concludes that the
Administration's own numbers suggest we will not grow ourselves out of the fiscal
red ink we are confronting.

"Contrary to what the administration is claiming, TO-9 shows conclusively that
adopting the Bush policies would greatly increase the deficit. Long after the
economy supposedly would have fully recovered, the deficit would remain."

Read article

http://www.govexec.com/dailyfed/0703/073003bb.htm

[admin]

Mark Forman the OMB official in charge of e-government is terminating his service with OMB. Forman was in charge of the e-government project which was a program established to increase the presence of the internet in the provision of goods and services by the Federal government.

"Forman has reached out to citizens as well, putting them in better touch with federal agencies through the 25 e-government initiatives under his office’s purview. The initiatives are an integral component of President Bush’s five-part management agenda. In May, Forman told OMB Deputy Director for Management Clay Johnson that he would like to see 80 percent of the initiatives up and running by July 1, 2004. "

Read Article

http://www.govexec.com/dailyfed/0803/080603a1.htm

[admin]

OMB's Smart Buy program, which is, in part, aimed at paying too much for proprietary software has been misunderstood. It was not aimed at placing an absolute moratorium on software purchases until the program was implemented.

"Agencies were especially concerned that the original letter was telling them not to buy any more software pending the establishment of governmentwide enterprise licenses. The new document says there is no ban on buying software."

Read article:

http://www.fcw.com/fcw/articles/2003/0804/web-buy-08-06-03.asp

[admin]

The fact that the projected budget deficit for Fiscal Year 2003 will be the largest is the nation's history was confirmed by CBO, the budget arm of the Congress. Hereford, the largest budget deficit was for fiscal year 1992 which amounted to a mere $290 billion.

OMB projects a deficit of $455 billion, the CBO a deficit of $401 billion.

"The Bush administration has blamed the government's fiscal deterioration on a combination of factors, including the sluggish economy and increased spending on defense and security costs. It also notes that, as a proportion of the overall economy, the 2003 deficit would be below the record 6 percent of gross domestic product seen in 1986.

Read article

http://reuters.com/financeNewsArticle.jhtml?type=economicNews&storyID=3248979

[admin]

OMB And The Arcane Review Of Authorization Bills

One of OMB's significant responsibilities is to advise the President of the budgetary impacts of authorization bills; bills passed by the Congress which authorize the expenditure of Federal funds.

In discharging this task, OMB uncovers many obscure provisions which are counter to the President's policy. Consider the pending bill to authorize expenses for the FAA dealing with ATC(air traffic controller)

"The White House’s Office of Management and Budget (OMB) said the Bush Administration “strongly opposes” provisions that would restrict the Transportation Department’s ability to manage the ATC system by prohibiting the conversion of government-provided ATC functions to the private sector. “Such restrictions are unnecessary and would hinder the ability of the FAA to manage the air traffic control system,” the OMB said. "

Read article

http://www.ainonline.com/issues/08_03/08_03_devilsp47.html

[admin]

OMB has been the lead in the e-government project--an innovative approach to placing modern IT technology into federal agencies. We are particularly interested in the e-rulemaking project which will make public the comments made in response to a notice in the Federal Register.

The project leader, and two portfolio managers have announced their departure. Portfolios are groups of projects such as government-to-business and government-to-government projects.

"Tony Frater, portfolio manager for government-to-government Quicksilver projects, has accepted an industry job, and Jonathan Womer, portfolio manager for government-to-citizen projects, will move to a post in OMB’s Office of Information and Regulatory Affairs."

These departures are in addition to the project leader, Mark Foreman. Josh Bolton, the new Director of OMB has a lot on his plate, but the long term consequences of not filling these key positions is significant.

Read article
http://www.washingtontechnology.com/news/1_1/daily_news/21407-1.html

[admin]

OMB and OSTP are in charge of implementing the federal research agenda across the government. To this end, the heads of these two agencies notified federal agencies to the research priorities for fiscal year 2005.

"The June 5 memorandum was issued by OSTP Director John Marburger and former OMB Director Mitch Daniels to heads of federal agencies, to provide guidance on R&D priorities for fiscal year 2005. Entitled "FY 2005 Interagency Research and Development Priorities," the memo lays out five areas of R&D that should "receive particular attention" in preparation of the FY 2005 budget request."

Read article
http://www.spaceref.com/news/viewsr.html?pid=10007

[admin]

The government must examine federal jobs and determine whether they can be performed more effectively by the private sector. The unions oppose this program and have attempted to stop it by court action.

The program continues. However, recent guidance issued by OMB suggested that once a position was placed on the list, it could not be removed.

"Under the Federal Activities Inventory Reform Act, federal officials must determine what jobs in their agencies can be done by commercial businesses, and thus potentially be opened to public/private competition. The original version of the Office of Management and Budget's Circular A-76 allowed challenges to the inclusion or omission of specific jobs on the list of activities eligible for competition, but some observers thought a revision published in May took away the right to challenge."

OMB has corrected this incorrect interpretation.

Read article

http://www.fcw.com/fcw/articles/2003/0811/web-omb-08-15-03.asp

[admin]

HUD has been given the authority to regulate the type of information that a lender must give a borrower at the time of settlement. This rule has been reviewed and revised a number of times. The revision of the rule has been a top priority of the Secretary of HUD and is being watched by real estate interests has it undergoes OMB review.

"The U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development's proposal to revamp the way home buyers purchase real estate settlement services ultimately could be decided by politics as much as policy. Brokers and lenders who have a stake in the outcome would do well to watch developments along both lines."

Read article

http://www.inman.com/inmannews.asp?ID=36751&CatType=R

[admin]

The press reports, and members of Congress confirm, that NASA is requesting that OMB approve a $20 billion five year program for shuttle development. The opening salvo is a pending request for a $l.6 billion increase for the next fiscal year. It appears that this budget request may in trouble. Not unexpected when the country is facing a record $450 billion deficit. We envision a lean budget for this program for the foreseeable future.

"An agency spokeswoman declined to comment on budget discussions involving NASA and the White House. A spokesman for the White House referred calls to the Office of Management and Budget, which did not immediately respond. It wasn't clear Friday if the White House decision to reject NASA's request represents a lack of confidence in NASA or was simply a result of the give-and-take of the budget process. OMB spokesman Trent Duffy declined comment, saying budget discussions between federal agencies and the White House are privileged."

Read article

http://www.floridatoday.com/columbi...tory2A9955A.htm

[admin]

Under OMB Circular A-76, certain jobs are designated as being capable of being performed by the private sector. Once a federal job is so designated, the federal agency must perform an analysis, including a bid from the private sector, to determine if it should be "contracted out". Reports are that OMB is loosening this requirement. People outside the beltway do not understand the problem.

"Those defending the status quo say that private sector employees can't do the job as well as federal employees. All they have to do to prove it is agree to competitive bids, then underbid the competition and perform. That's what happens in the real world, and it's what should be happening in the world of government as well."

Read article

http://www.vvdailypress.com/cgi-bin/newspro/viewnews.cgi?newsid1061731764,57528,

[admin]

OMB is the agency involved in the management of the Data Quality Act. OMB has now issued draft guidlines for public comments which delineates their plans.

Inside EPA, a leading publication on events occuring at EPA, has prepared an insightful artilce on how OMB intends to manage the Data Quality Act.

"The White House's Office of Management and Budget (OMB) is asserting a more active role in the government's review of public complaints regarding data used by regulators, by proposing that it be involved on a case-by-case basis with challenges that pose broad policy implications."

"The proposed OMB guidance, released jointly by the Aug. 29 with the White House's Office of Science and Technology Policy, would allow the administrator of OMB's Office of Information and Regulatory Affairs (OIRA) for the first time to request a scientific review for particular documents relevant to multiple agencies or that involve policy priorities for the administration.

The guidance would also require federal agencies to post public challenges to a federal agency's compliance with federal data quality laws on the Internet or forward a copy of the request to OIRA, and if requested, consult with OIRA regarding that request.

"Sources with the Center for Regulatory Effectiveness, an industry-funded regulatory watchdog group, are interpreting the draft guidance as requiring EPA science advisors for the first time to comply with federal data quality guidelines when they do reviews. OMB issued data-quality requirements last year in accordance with the Data Quality Act signed by President Clinton in 2000.

The Washington Post reports:

"The proposal requires agencies to systematically seek outside opinions when evaluating scientific findings or disagreements, a process called peer review. Although such independent appraisals are widely respected in science, critics said the process could quickly get murky when applied to such issues as global warming, pesticide use and ergonomic safety, in which the calculation of risks and benefits of regulations is complex, expensive and politically charged."


"But Jim Tozzi, a former OMB manager in the Nixon and Reagan administrations and now a member of the board of advisers of the Center for Regulatory Effectiveness, said the measure would improve the quality of the science used to justify regulations and would provide companies facing regulation a way to question incorrect data.

"What this document does is put additional teeth in what is meant by peer review," said Tozzi, whose group works closely with trade associations and private companies. He suggested that environmental regulations and dietary guidelines might be reevaluated under the new standard."

[admin]

OMB has been given overall responsibility for implementing the E-Gov Act. OMB states that it is now in a position to state that the act is making a real difference in how the government operates.

"This is the third budget cycle where IT investments must be presented in a thorough business case, Chenok noted, so OMB will be likely focusing agencies more on areas of improvement for ongoing systems or development efforts. "We don't necessarily need to get all of the same information year after year," he said.

Fiscal 2005 budget guidance also focused on better integrating the IT performance measures and metrics now being developed for all federal programs under the Program Assessment Rating Tool. The hope is that members of Congress will pay more attention to reform initiatives they had a hand in defining, Chenok said."

Read article

http://www.fcw.com/fcw/articles/2003/0825/web-egov-08-28-03.asp

[admin]

New OMB E-Gov Chief Karen Evans, a highly respected member of the Federal IT community has been named Administrator of OMB's Office of Electronic Govermement in OMB. She will assume the position recently vacated my Mark Forman. Ms. Hughes has served in a leadership position at the CIO Council.

He went on to say that having Evans in this position is "probably going to strengthen the role of the CIO." In the early years of the Forman tenure, there was a palpable level of tension between the federal CIO Council, on which Evans served as co-chair, and the Office of Management and Budget, Kane said.
In those days, "OMB was a bit of a bystander, while the CIO Council was setting the agenda," said Kane. "Forman, to his credit, was marching to the beat of the president's management agenda. But [Evans'] appointment can neutralize that tension" by bringing her fellow CIOs on board with the larger e-government agenda, he said."

The rapid appointment of a person of this caliber to this position demonstrates the commitment of the Administration to the e-government project.



Read article



http://www.computerworld.com/governmenttopics/government/itgovernment/story/0,10801,84577,00.html

[admin]

We are entering the Presidential election season and we are already in the judging the Administration's performance debate. The Administration will be judged from a number of directions. Fair enough, how can one argue against an informed electorate. Nonetheless, it is important to review such assessments from a position of "show me the facts".

Consider the assessment done around labor day regarding workplace safety. One observer noted:

"Nor did they discuss the administration's record on workplace safety overturning the long-sought ergonomics injury standard, halting action on 30 additional safety initiatives, and canceling federal safety and health grants. The nonpartisan OMB Watch concluded that the administration has "advanced very few significant health, safety and environmental protections . . . and is quietly scuttling work on a host of protective standards in the regulatory pipeline."

This Administration has taken every step to ensure that regulations are effective and at the same time not being onerous. We doubt this hardly could be characterized as "scuttling".

Read article

http://www.freep.com/voices/columnists/emil1_20030901.htm

[admin]

The Bush Administration has embarked on an ambitious program to improve the efficiency of the government. OMB has reviewed agency progress and has applauded their efforts.

"As the federal government enters the third year of work on e-government, competitive sourcing, budget and performance integration, human capital management and financial improvement, Johnson, the Office of Management and Budget’s deputy director for management, said agencies are setting the pace in meeting OMB’s requirements. "

Read article


http://gcn.com/vol1_no1/daily-updates/23417-1.html

[admin]

The Associated General Contractors request that OMB deny the FCC request for clearance, under the Paperwork Reduction Act, of its rule on unsolicited faxes.

They state:

"These regulations have the potential to undo well established business relationships," said Stephen E. Sandherr, AGC CEO. "The FCC has grossly underestimated the number of U.S. businesses and the amount of time and money that it would take to comply. In just a short amount of time, AGC has spent a minimum of 2,400 hours to obtain consent forms from our members, and we haven't even made a dent."

The FCC's new rules would require every business to obtain the prior, written, and signed consent of anyone, including any other business, to whom that business would like to send any fax that met the commission's broad definition of an "advertisement." The FCC modified the exemption for established business relationships meaning that a business may not send a fax that either solicits or makes an offer to do business to any other business, whatever their prior dealings, without first obtaining the recipient's written, signed permission."

Read article

http://releases.usnewswire.com/GetRelease.asp?id=101-09062003

[admin]

It is impossible to calculate the human cost of 9/11. However, what are the fiscal costs? Estimates differ but one thing that it is certain, one attack was extremely costly. in the billions of dollars.

A subsequent attack(s), even to a lesser degree will be costly. Should such an event(s) occur, the pocketbook of every American will suffer. At that time, their may be even more support for a direct counter attack against terrorism.

Read article

http://www.cnsnews.com/ViewNation.asp?Page=%5CNation%5Carchive%5C200309%5 CNAT20030909a.html

[admin]

Some Members of Congress with a large number of Federal employees in their districts are going to sponsor amendments to appropriation bills which would terminate the program to outsource federal jobs for which the private sector could handle less expensively. Not surprising, a number of federal employs oppose this amendment but can not do so in an open manner. The White House is considering a veto.

"Unless the House keeps out an amendment that critics say "would effectively shut down" the Bush administration initiative, the Office of Management and Budget will recommend that Bush vetoes the bill."
Read article

http://www.fcw.com/fcw/articles/2003/0908/web-omb-09-08-03.asp

[admin]

OMB has added four joint business cases to the e-government project. These cases are added on the basis of potential duplication among agencies.


"Earlier this summer, OMB analyzed six lines of business where they suspected system duplication among agencies. Officials decided on four areas—public health monitoring, criminal investigation, human resources administration and financial management—where agencies should submit joint business cases."

Read article

http://gcn.com/vol1_no1/daily-updates/23480-1.html

[admin]

OMB's program to compete select federal jobs with private sector employees is facing continued opposition--this time from the Congress. The more things change, the more they
remain the same.

"The latest setback came Tuesday night. House members, including 26 Republicans, passed an amendment to an appropriations bill that would block the Office of Management and Budget from using newly revised rules designed to speed up the job competitions government-wide. The language, which so far is not in the Senate's version of the bill, would force a return to an older, more cumbersome version of rules known as Circular A-76 -- a move opponents said could cripple Bush's policy.

"If this were to become law, the union agenda will have succeeded, which is to stop competition," said Stan Soloway, president of the Professional Services Council, a contractor group."

Read article

http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/articles/A57670-2003Sep10.html

[admin]

OMB is attempting to speed up the Senate confirmation process. One way to do so is to reduce the number individuals who are confirmed. To this end, OMB is suggesting that its CFO need not be confirmed.

"OMB officials have suggested that Senate approval of CFOs might not be essential, Springer explained. Eliminating this requirement would speed up the appointment process for the position. An exception would be made for departments in which the CFO also serves as an undersecretary or secretary, as is the case at the Defense Department, she noted. "

Read article

http://www.govexec.com/dailyfed/0903/091503a1.htm

[admin]

OMB has taken many steps to improve IT procurements by small business.

"Reports by Congress, OMB and the Small Business Administration generally acknowledge that this difficult environment for small business in federal procurement has two principal sources: continued emphasis on contract bundling by agency procurement officials; and the exclusion of certain federal agencies from fair and open competition requirements in order to achieve faster, cheaper or less transparent procurements.

For example, nearly a year ago OMB proposed nine steps to reduce contract bundling and open more procurement opportunities to small business. There is significant disagreement over whether the regulations would decrease or actually increase bundling. The proposal would, for example, provide a dollar threshold below which bundling would not require an agency to justify the bundle."

It is unlikely that OMB, nor the Congress, will decrease this downward trend because agencies budgets are too tight to utilize additional time to supervise an ever increasing number of contracts.


Read article

http://www.washingtontechnology.com/news/18_12/federal/21662-1.html

[admin]

With the departure of not less than three key individuals associated with the Presidents E-government project, questions are being raised as to whether the program is being crippled.


"This OMB has truly institutionalized the kind of initiatives that Forman and Lorentz and others" oversaw, he said, including business case analysis, establishing a blueprint for enterprise architecture and e-government plans. "They have institutionalized them to a point where all the career civil servant workers know exactly what has to be done."
DigitalNet's William McVay, a former deputy to Forman at OMB, said "brain-drain" concerns are unfair. He said that there are "no less than 100 people" working at OMB on e-government initiatives along with many more at the agency level. "So it certainly isn't something that one person or two people put in place or run," he said."


Read article

http://www.bizreport.com/article.php?art_id=4958

[admin]

With the departure of the Administrator of OFPP, concerns are being raised whether A-76 is jeopardy. A-76, the contracting out bulletin, is the target of Congressional actions to shelve it.

"It’s important that the administration replace Styles soon, said Olga Grkavac of the Information Technology Association of America.

“We don’t want to lose a forceful proponent who is opposing these restrictions,” said Grkavac, executive vice president of the Arlington, Va., trade group"

Read article

It’s important that the administration replace Styles soon, said Olga Grkavac of the Information Technology Association of America.

“We don’t want to lose a forceful proponent who is opposing these restrictions,” said Grkavac, executive vice president of the Arlington, Va., trade group

[admin]

As reported elsewhere on his website, we are of the opinion that e-government projects need not necessarily prove a reduction is cost. Our concerns were twofold, one, that e-government programs will often increase the level of service, and(2) force agencies into unusual arithmetic.

"Kay Coles James, the OPM director, told Rep. Adam Putnam (R-Fla.), chairman of the House Government Reform technology subcommittee, that the projects "would yield $2.7 billion in tax savings over the life of the initiatives."

When Putnam asked about the potential savings, James acknowledged that "some people don't think they pass the straight-face test," but predicted that most of the $2.7 billion would be achieved through the elimination of redundant systems scattered among federal agencies."

Read article

http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/articles/A55367-2003Sep23.html

[admin]

In an unusual statement, the head of GAO offered a "state-of-the-budget" message at the National Press Club. Although he has no statutory requirement to make such a statement, he issued, this year, a clear warning to the Congress and the Administration.

"In spite of all of the happy talk that has been used by elected officials over the past few years, Walker said the federal budget picture "is not good and [is] getting worse." He added that we should not be confused by all of the numbers being used because "they are all big, and they are all bad!"


In sharp contrast to the spin that many in Washington have been using, Walker insisted that "there is little question that deficits do matter, especially if they are large, structural and recurring in nature," which he said is the current situation. Nor did he distinguish between deficits caused by tax cuts and those caused by spending increases, as many have been asking us to do lately."

Read article

http://www.govexec.com/dailyfed/0903/092403bb.htm

[admin]

Each year OMB prepares a report on the benefits and costs of government regulations. A subset of the analysis is a comparison of the benefits and costs of environmental regulations. The most recent OMB report contains the following conclusions:

"The value of reductions in hospitalization and emergency room visits, premature deaths and lost workdays resulting from improved air quality were estimated between $120 billion and $193 billion from October 1992 to September 2002.

By comparison, industry, states and municipalities spent an estimated $23 billion to $26 billion to retrofit plants and facilities and make other changes to comply with new clean-air standards, which are designed to sharply reduce sulfur dioxide, fine particle emissions and other health-threatening pollutants."

Read article

http://www.bayarea.com/mld/cctimes/news/6874922.htm

[admin]

OMB has jurisdictional management of the Privacy Act; GAO reports on agency performance. There has been a long standing debate as to whether OMB is accordingly a sufficiently high priority to the Privacy Act. In its most recent report the GAO concluded:

"In the report, Privacy Act: OMB Leadership Needed to Improve Agency Compliance, the GAO writes that compliance with the federal Privacy Act of 1974 is generally high in many areas, but uneven across the federal government. “As a result of this uneven compliance, the government cannot adequately assure the public that all legislated individual privacy rights are being protected,” the GAO concludes."

Read article

http://www.heartland.org/Article.cfm?artId=12910

[admin]

OMB announced the Smart Buy Initiative:

"The Office of Management and Budget introduced SmartBuy in February in the fiscal 2004 budget request, and it named GSA as the federal executive agent this summer. SmartBuy’s purpose is to drive down the cost of enterprise licensing and improve the terms agencies receive from software vendors. OMB issued guidance to agencies in August asking them to freeze new or renewal software licenses unless approved by the SmartBuy team."

However, Members of Congress are concerned about progress to date.

"In view of interest expressed by industry and agencies, GSA officials had said they would finish a few agreements before Oct. 1, the beginning the new federal fiscal year. Putnam said he was concerned that agencies would be forced to renew licenses under more expensive terms."

Read article

http://www.washingtontechnology.com/news/1_1/daily_news/21805-1.html

[admin]

The Senate has not met its deadlines for acting on appropriation bills.

"The Senate approved a month-long continuing resolution Thursday by voice vote, clearing it for the president's signature after House passage, 407-8, earlier in the day."

With the cost of the Iraq war having both budget and political consequences, it is likely there will be one overall spending bill this year.

"When the Senate reconvenes Oct. 14 after a weeklong recess, remaining fiscal 2004 appropriations bills could be wrapped into a catch-all, omnibus measure, while leaders focus on enactment of the administration's request for an $87 billion Iraq supplemental spending bill."

Read article

http://www.govexec.com/dailyfed/0903/092603cdam1.htm

[admin]

The TVA has a staggering $26.5 billion debt. The government does not want to pick up the tab for another undisciplined program. Consequently, OMB has established a debt reduction program for the agency.

Last week, TVA, an independent federal agency, provided a tentative strategic plan that included debt reduction by as much as $5 billion over the next 10-12 years.

"There's certainly more of a target than we had before, so it is certainly a step in the right direction," said Marcus Peacock, OMB's associate director for natural resource programs.,"

Read article:

http://www.al.com/newsflash/regional/index.ssf?/newsflash/get_story.ssf?/cgi-free/getstory_ssf.cgi?j1013_BC_TN--TVADebt&&news&newsflash-al

[admin]

The E-Government Act contained a blueprint for updating goverment IT systems to make them in line with impoving the goods and services produced by the US government.

With E-government also comes the concern for providing privacy to the beneficiaries of such services. OMB has jut acted to address this important objective.

"The privacy objective of the E-Government Act complements the National Strategy to Secure Cyberspace,” Bolten said. “As the National Strategy indicates, cyberspace security programs that strengthen protections for privacy and other civil liberties, together with strong privacy policies and practices in the federal agencies, will ensure that information is handled in a manner that maximizes both privacy and security.”

"OMB said agencies must conduct the privacy analysis when developing or procuring IT systems that collect, maintain or disseminate information in an identifiable form from or about members of the public, or initiating a new electronic collection of information for 10 or more persons."

Read article

http://gcn.com/vol1_no1/daily-updates/23729-1.html

[admin]

USDA has submitted to OMB a proposed rule which would allow Canadian cattle to enter the US. Canadian cattle were banned from this country over concern for mad cow disease.

"The U.S. banned all Canadian beef and cattle in May when a case of bovine spongiform encephalopathy, or mad-cow disease, was discovered there. The USDA eased the ban on some boneless beef products on Aug. 8, but said it would not be able to do the same for live cattle until the department went through a full rule-making process.
The proposed rule, as written by the USDA, seeks to not only allow entry of Canadian live cattle under 30 months of age, but would also do away with the individual permits that Canadian exporters need for each shipment of boneless beef products.

One industry official suggested that the latest BSE discovery by Japan in a 23-month-old bull may affect deliberation over the USDA proposed rule because it assumes all cattle under 30 months of age cannot spread the disease."

Read article

http://www.hpj.com/testnewstable.cfm?type=story&sid=10025

[admin]

As part of its e-government program, OMB has initiated an e-grants program, In November all agencies will have to announce information on their grants in a common format.

"Starting Nov. 7, agencies will post all grant opportunity announcements on www.grants.gov, the Office of Management and Budget directed today."

Read article

http://gcn.com/vol1_no1/daily-updates/23793-1.html

[admin]

OMB is considering expanding reviews made on commercial software used for defense and intelligence agencies to other domestic agencies. The reviews would be conducted by the National Information Assurance Partnership.


"One thing they will consider is to what extent, if any, NIAP can address the continuing problem of security flaws in commercial software products,” Evans said. “This review will include lessons learned from the implementation of the Defense Department’s July 2002 policy requiring the acquisition of products reviewed under the NIAP evaluation process.”

Read article

http://gcn.com/vol1_no1/daily-updates/23891-1.html

[admin]

OMB has issued a report stating that the benefits of EPA's regulations exceed their costs by a factor of four or five. Some state that the OMB report finally gives recognition to the merits of a strong regulatory program at EPA.

Others state:

"The reason is that no one really believes the EPA's numbers. The OMB report simply tallies up agencies' estimates of their programs' costs and benefits. Despite Reilly's protests to the contrary, agencies have every incentive to understate costs and overstate benefits. The EPA in particular has mastered this art. Our research at George Mason University shows that the EPA's cost estimates for air-quality regulations are understated by a factor of more than three. "

Read article

http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/articles/A43911-2003Oct17.html

[admin]

The E-Authentication Program is central to establishing e-government programs. The e-authentication program consists of programs that ensure that a users personal and private information is safeguarded and that a user is authorized for access to certain information.

"The administration is scrapping plans for its online E-Authentication gateway, which had been touted as a cornerstone of e-government.

“E-Authentication is moving in a new technical direction that is not centered around the development of a gateway," said Karen Evans, the Office of Management and Budget’s administrator for e-government and IT. "

Read GAO report:


http://www.gao.gov/new.items/d03952.pdf

Read article


http://gcn.com/vol1_no1/daily-updates/23994-1.html

[admin]

Business Week reports that OMB's estimate of '04 budget deficit is not as great as originally projected.Such an overestimation is understandable because OMB could not be in a position of underestimating the cost of the IRAQ conflict.


" In the case of money that Uncle Sam took in, the figures for the year confirm that the erosion wasn’t the catastrophe that many had feared. Receipts fell almost 7 percent during the last fiscal year, with much of the decline due to the recent round of tax cuts, which had a sharp negative impact on the final quarter of the fiscal period."

Read article

http://www.msnbc.com/news/984175.asp?cp1=1#BODY

[CRE Analyst]

OMB plans to create a portal to allow certain governmental transactions to take place online. The OMB program, part of the “Integrated Acquisition Environment E-Government project,” is currently being tested by five agencies. OMB plans a full launch of the portal next July.

”“We have established two basic transactions with the system,” (OMB’s portal project director Janet) Allen said. “The first is the electronic transfer of the order and bill between the buyer and seller. The second is the disbursement of money from the agency buyer to the seller through the Treasury Department.””


To learn more click here: http://gcn.com/vol1_no1/daily-updates/24063-1.html

[CRE Analyst]

OMB is pressing the Senate to fund EEOC at the level previously approved by the Senate Appropriations Committee, instead of the level approved by the House in July. In a policy statement released this week, OMB said it "appreciates" the Senate committee’s previous support of the administration's $335 million budget request. In July, OMB worried that with the budget approved by the House, EEOC might "have to postpone key management reforms that will allow it to serve citizens more efficiently."

"The administration's $335 million budget request included roughly $5 million for agency reforms, including the establishment of a national center to handle inquiries about discrimination cases."


To learn more click here: http://www.govexec.com/dailyfed/1103/111203a1.htm

[admin]

Language contained in the Transportation/Treasury appropriations bill has resolved the long standing controversy over OMB's contracting out bulletin.

"Senate and House conference committee members last night passed the appropriations bill with language changing the revised Office of Management and Budget Circular A-76. The change is that in all public- and private-sector competitions for more than 10 positions, a private-sector offer would have to be 10 percent or $10 million less than the government’s offer to be considered. OMB had revised the circular to delete the cost differential for competitions of fewer than 65 positions."

Read article

http://gcn.com/vol1_no1/daily-updates/24178-1.html

[admin]

Financial pundits are ringing the bells signaling that an economic turnabout is underway. Of course many of these writers are associated with the now tainted mutual fund industry and one must consider the source. However, a number of others are also stating that the economy is in a turnaround situation. The question is: is it real, and for how long?

Those of us who are deficit hawks look to the federal surplus or deficit as key indicator of the future. Consider the following statements:

"It took Congress 101 years to spend its first $500 billion dollars. But it took just 10 years to spend the next $500 billion; and now just four years to spend the last $500 billion."

"Milton Friedman, the revered Nobel Prize-winning economist, declares this unbridled spending "is the single greatest deterrent to faster economic growth in the United States today."

Is the turnaround going to last past the next election?

Read article: http://www.cato.org/dailys/11-16-03.html

[CRE Analyst]

OMB intends to allow agencies to compare similar programs, and subsequently improve performance, by concentrating on identifying cross-government areas. This effort will take place as part of the Program Assessment Rating Tool (PART), a survey-based program performance tool.

“By finding cross-agency areas for assessment, agencies can look to successful programs for guidance and best practices, said Robert Shea, OMB's counsel to the deputy director for management. Assessment categories, such as asset management, will be based on administrative and congressional priorities. Officials will set up working groups in each of these discrete cross-cutting areas, he said.”

"Ideally, we focus resources on activities with the best results, but consolidation may not be the answer," Shea said, speaking at an enterprise architecture conference in Washington, D.C. "But the poor-performing programs can learn a lot from the high-performing programs."


To learn more go to: http://www.fcw.com/fcw/articles/2003/1117/web-part-11-19-03.asp

[CRE Analyst]

According to a new report issued by OMB, over 88,000 jobs at 35 government agencies could be performed by contractors. In accordance with the 1998 Federal Activities Inventory Reform (FAIR) Act, federal agencies must compile lists of jobs that are 'commercial' in nature. OMB recently released the first round of the 2003 inventory.

"The first round of 2003 inventories, announced in the Nov. 21 Federal Register, covered 173,500 positions at about 35 agencies, including the Interior, Housing and Urban Development and Transportation departments, and NASA.

Of the 173,500 jobs listed, 51 percent, or 88,000, were classified as commercial. Agencies designated the remaining 85,500 jobs as inherently governmental."

To learn more go to: http://www.govexec.com/dailyfed/1103/112503a1.htm

[CRE Analyst]

OMB hopes that government agencies not only satisfy the goals of the President’s Management Agenda (PMA) in 2004, but that they will see “breakthrough performance” in e-gov by the end of the year. National Science Foundation is the only major government agency to receive a “green” score (indicating that PMA goals are met) from OMB thus far, but several agencies – including the departments of Commerce and Education and the Environmental Protection Agency – have met at least 80 percent of the criteria specified by OMB. The goal for 2004, however, is that agencies surpass the PMA targets and have breakthrough years.

“Breakthrough performance means many things to many people,” [OMB’s associate administrator for e-government Tad] Anderson said last night during a panel discussion on the federal IT outlook for 2004 sponsored by Dutko Government Markets of Washington. “It could mean agencies are using their enterprise architecture as a tool for not just IT managers, but for all government mangers. It could be where IT investments are consolidated more broadly, across departments and managed as portfolio investments.”

To learn more go to: http://gcn.com/vol1_no1/daily-updates/24325-1.html

[CRE Analyst]

In December 2002, the E-Government Act of 2002 – a bill touted by many as a turning point for government operations - was signed into law. Now, one year later, observers are examining whether the act is fulfilling its objective to transition government agencies into the internet-era.

"The law touched on nearly every aspect of technology management. It defined measurements of e-government success and expectations for action. It solidified legislative concepts and activities, attaching funding and deadlines to actions and outlining priorities. It also required the development of some key e-government applications."

To learn more go here: http://www.fcw.com/fcw/articles/2003/1208/cov-egov-12-08-03.asp

[CRE Analyst]

A new report ordered by OMB – and released to the public by the House Government Reform subcommittee on technology, information policy, intergovernmental relations and the census – indicates the government’s efforts relating to computer security have a way to go. The same report of government agencies one year ago gave the federal government’s cybersecurity an "F"; this year’s grade is a "D".

"The OMB instructed the agencies to submit reports summarizing the results of IT security reviews of systems and programs; agency progress on correcting identified weaknesses; and the results of IG independent evaluations."

"The Federal Government should be the standard bearer when it comes to information security. Unfortunately, today's report card indicates anything but that..." said [Adam] Putnam (R-Fl)"


To learn more go to: http://dc.internet.com/news/article.php/3288101

[CRE Analyst]

After the federal government’s efforts on computer security received a “D” in a recent Congressional report card, top OMB officials and security experts said they were pleased to see at least some progress from the grade given the previous three years – an “F.” The report cards are released as part of a collaborative effort between OMB, Congress, and federal agencies to improve cybersecurity in the federal government.

Said Karen Evans, the Office of Management and Budget's administrator for e-government and information technology: "We would like to see higher grades, but it does show a momentum moving forward. It does show the [inspectors general] have recognition that the agencies that have put a lot of effort in are moving forward… Any movement forward is a good thing."


To learn more go here: http://www.fcw.com/fcw/articles/2003/1208/web-grades-12-12-03.asp

[CRE Analyst]

An OMB official reported this week that federal agencies are being asked to organize long-term plans for conducting public-private job competitions. The rules for these federal job competitions are laid out by OMB Circular A-76.

"Most of the 27 executive agencies are taking competitive sourcing seriously, [Office of Federal Procurement Policy official Mathew ] Blum said. "You can be assured we will be moving forward on this," he said.

OMB also will expand its reporting to the public about the competitions, including data such as the cost of conducting competitions and savings realized, Blum said. Blum spoke at a meeting of the Bethesda, Md., chapter of the Armed Forces Communications and Electronics Association."

[CRE Analyst]

A top OMB official said this week the president’s 2005 budget would contain the next wave of e-gov initiatives for the federal government. Many of the administration’s current e-gov projects – the 25 so-called 'Quicksilver initiatives' - are scheduled to be completed by next summer.

"OMB originally identified six areas for the next set of cross-agency [e-gov] projects. But based on an analysis by Touchstone Consulting Inc. of Washington, the agency decided the four areas that offer the best opportunities for cost savings and improved efficiency are: public-health monitoring, criminal investigation, human resources administration and financial management.

"The [25] e-government initiatives were the low-hanging fruit, and we are pretty much done with them," [OMB’s e-government and IT administrator Karen] Evans said. "The next set of projects will be harder, and if we overcome the barriers, we will see huge efficiencies gained for the government."


To learn more go to: http://www.wtonline.com/news/1_1/daily_news/22380-1.html

[CRE Analyst]

A new report from Partnership for Public Service – a nonprofit organization that analyzed the workplace environment in various agencies – judged OMB as one of the executive branch’s best places to work. The report gave OMB high praise for its teamwork and leadership, and also noted its ability to effectively match staff with jobs and mission.

“Dick Emery, OMB's assistant director for budget and the agency's senior career official, said the quality of OMB's leaders and the staff's strong sense of purpose "all weigh very strongly with the people who stay" for careers at OMB.

It helps to work in close proximity to the Oval Office. Laboring on behalf of the most powerful office in the world makes it much easier to justify long hours and the daily grind.

Emery thinks other factors are just as important, if not more so, however. Most employees, he said, know OMB Director Joshua B. Bolten on "a first-name basis, work closely on policy issues that they are interested in every day and virtually never have a dull day in the office."”


To learn more go to: http://www.washingtonpost.com/ac2/wp-dyn/A18082-2003Dec20?language=printer

[CRE Analyst]

OMB is set to review a rule change on the manner in which mortgage settlements take place after HUD sent OMB the proposed rule change this week. The new rule would mandate clearer disclosure of mortgage broker fees, require “good faith estimates” on settlement expenses to be more accurate, and allow lenders to package their loans with settlement services at a guaranteed price.

“President Bush says the changes in Real Estate Settlement Procedures Act regulations "will make it easier for buyers to shop around and to compare prices on closing costs to so they can get the best deal and the best service possible."”


To learn more go to: http://nashville.bizjournals.com/extraedge/washingtonbureau/archive/2003/12/29/bureau1.html

[CRE Analyst]

OMB officials announced recently the agency plans a major rewrite of Circular A-130. The new changes will address some of the mandates resulting from the E-Government Act of 2002.

“The last revision to A-130 came in 2000 to bring the regulation in line with the Clinger-Cohen Act of 1996, which set IT management policy and created the position of chief information officer for agencies. The upcoming changes will not take much time, but the review will have many opportunities for agencies and the public to comment, [OMB’s Kamela] White said...

The standardization of OMB guidance will address many issues, including timelines for agencies to submit e-government reports and privacy impact assessments, White said. OMB officials will issue their report to Congress on both on March 1, 2004.”

To learn more go to: http://www.fcw.com/fcw/articles/2003/1215/web-omb-12-17-03.asp

[CRE Analyst]

OMB has requested that agencies develop plans to allow contractors to bid on federal jobs from now through 2008. In recent years, most agencies have received “yellow,” or ‘average,’ ratings from OMB regarding their competitive sourcing – signaling room for improvement. OMB hopes the new round of plans will yield more "green" ratings.

“"OMB will assess a plan's effectiveness in a manner that accounts for the agency's unique mission and workforce needs as well as the agency's demonstrated ability to conduct reviews and competitions in a reasonable and responsible banner," [OMB Deputy Director for Management Clay] Johnson wrote.”

“In the "green" plans, OMB expects agencies to craft a schedule for competing jobs deemed suitable for competition, a subset of the roughly 850,000 positions that by law could be performed by contractors. In an October report, OMB found that 434,820 jobs are ripe for competition.”


To learn more go to: http://www.govexec.com/dailyfed/0104/010604p1.htm

[CRE Analyst]

OMB hopes to reduce redundant spending by asking agencies to submit lists of human resources and financial systems that are in the planning or acquisition stages. During the next year, OMB hopes to merge the two systems.

"OMB wants to redirect redundant spending to support development of government-wide standards and systems."

"These are some of the bigger issues beyond the [25] Quicksilver initiatives,” said Mark Forman, former OMB administrator for IT and e-government. "OMB is moving forward with the lines of business consolidation work."


To learn more go to:
http://gcn.com/vol1_no1/daily-updates/24619-1.html

[CRE Analyst]

In the first of their mandated quarterly reports released this week, OMB outlined the specific uses of the $18.65 billion appropriated for Iraq reconstruction. The report itemized funds to be spent on security, law enforcement, and infrastructure improvements. Approximately $12.86 billion will be spent in fiscal 2004, leaving $5.79 billion for fiscal 2005 obligations.

"The report cautioned that since the White House submitted its supplemental request, circumstances have changed--such as the procurement of $13 billion from foreign donors at the October donors' conference in Madrid, the November agreement between the Coalition Provisional Authority and the Iraqi Governing Council to accelerate the transition to Iraqi sovereignty, and the "revised emphasis on funding for security forces."

To learn more go to: http://www.govexec.com/dailyfed/0104/011204%20cdpm1.htm

[CRE Analyst]

OMB officials considered a proposal this week that would give the agency greater control over declarations of public health crises. The agency has tabled the measure for now.

"[Under the proposal] the White House would decide what and when the public would be told about outbreaks of contagions such as mad cow disease, an anthrax release by terrorists, a nuclear plant accident – or any other public health crisis.

Additionally ... OMB wants to manage scientific and technical evaluations, also known as peer reviews, of all major government rules, plans, proposed regulations and pronouncements."

To learn more go to: http://www.newsmax.com/archives/ic/2004/1/13/214837.shtml

[CRE Analyst]

OMB’s plan to require health and environmental regulations to rely more heavily on peer-reviewed scientific evidence is nearing the end of the comment period from federal agencies. And while the plan has received criticism from some quarters, OMB officials stress the peer-review process is critical to assuring the quality and accuracy of the science behind federal regulations.

“John Graham, OMB chief of regulatory affairs and a prime architect of the administration proposal, said: "Peer review in its many forms can be used to increase the technical quality and credibility of regulatory science . . . [and] protects science-based rulemakings from political criticism and litigation."


To learn more go to: http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/articles/A18006-2004Jan14.html

[CRE Analyst]

OMB officials are pressing federal agencies to use so-called 'share-in-savings' models for their e-government initiatives. The model involves a vendor paying for an agency's IT – and then the vendor shares in the savings generated from the technological advances.

"...For example, a contractor building a tax collection system would get a portion of the revenue it creates..."

"This model has a lot of potential to realize huge savings," Evans said at a seminar sponsored by the Council for Excellence in Government and the General Services Administration. "But it requires the government to open up its coat and show what is underneath."


To learn more go to: http://gcn.com/vol1_no1/daily-updates/24691-1.html

[CRE Analyst]

Just half of the IT systems in federal agencies will be accredited and found secure when OMB releases an annual report to Congress this summer. However, agency officials point out that significant progress is being made, as the number of secure IT systems has jumped from 30 percent last year. OMB will continue to press agencies to meet the stated goal of 80 percent accreditation.

"Kamela White, an OMB senior policy analyst, said the patterns and trends are going in the right direction from what she has seen so far from agency and inspectors general reports that make up the administration’s statement to the Hill."

"To assist agencies in meeting the mark, OMB is finalizing agency guidance on how to implement the Federal Information Security Management Act. White said the document should be out by mid-March."


To learn more go to: http://gcn.com/vol1_no1/daily-updates/24777-1.html

[CRE Analyst]

OMB is drafting new guildlines to give agencies the ability to measure the effectiveness of their enterprise architectures. The final guidelines are expected to be released for comment by mid-March.

“The guide will differ from GAO’s EA Framework, [OMB chief architect Bob Haycock] said. “GAO’s [guide] is more process based and looks at the structure of the agency,” Haycock said. “We want to look at the actual EA and focus on how it is used.”

“We’ve done a lot of work on the DRM to make sure it links with the other reference models and how to create data exchanges and integration processes,” he said. “We think we have an approach that will work.”

To learn more go to: http://gcn.com/vol1_no1/daily-updates/24781-1.html

[CRE Analyst]

New budget proposals from the administration reveal an increasing emphasis on security for IT systems. Money previously destined for development, modernization and enhancement within the 18 federal agencies will now go to cyber security first.

"Look at your IT portfolio. Look at your IT programs," said OMB Administrator for E-Government and IT Karen Evans. "How are you managing your department? What are your priorities? The priority of this administration is cyber security.... Don't lay money on top of what you already have. Secure what you have, and if you do it efficiently, you have money to spend in other areas."

For example, Treasury Department officials requested $594 million for IT development and modernization in fiscal 2005. However, they can't spend any of that money until their IT security meets federal standards."


To learn more go to: http://www.fcw.com/fcw/articles/2004/0202/web-ombsecurity-02-05-04.asp

[CRE Analyst]

OMB has set its sights on more effective communication with Congressional leaders regarding e-government issues. OMB officials believe Congress has been hesitant to authorize funding for the ‘E-Government Fund’ because the agency has not clearly conveyed the value of this and other E-Gov initiatives.

"We can do a better job in the coming months of communicating with Congress in terms of what our strategy is for e-government and what the Federal Enterprise Architecture is and its value," Anderson said during a keynote address at the E-Gov Web Enabled and Enterprise Architecture conference in Washington."

To learn more go to: http://gcn.com/vol1_no1/daily-updates/24852-1.html

[CRE Analyst]

After a two-year initiative to identify the effectiveness of more than 400 government programs, OMB this week identified 13 programs the agency believes should be cut. OMB officials maintain the programs, ranging from Department of Labor grants for migrant and seasonal farm workers to a literacy program at the Department of Education, are not efficient. The agency contends the $1 billion – the cost of the 13 programs combined - could be used more effectively.

"Government programs, however worthy their goals, should demonstrate they are actually effective at solving problems," according to Bush's 2005 budget. "... If we are not meeting our goals, then we should do something differently to address the shortfall."


To learn more go to: http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/articles/A30493-2004Feb10.html

[CRE Analyst]

A top OMB official, OMB Deputy Director for Management Clay Johnson, this week endorsed efforts by Congressional lawmakers to impose performance reviews on federal programs. They argue regular performance reviews of specific programs could make the programs more efficient and productive – and they could make for more informed budget decisions.

"One of the most visible factors affecting a program's performance is funding," Johnson testified before the subcommittee. "But I believe far too much attention is devoted to how much we are spending rather than how much we are getting for what we spend."


To learn more go to: http://www.govexec.com/dailyfed/0204/021104a1.htm

[CRE Analyst]

In a draft report this week, OMB said it will ask the public for suggestions about how the federal government should alter regulations relating to manufacturing. This is the second time OMB has gone to the public for suggestions; in 2002, 25 rules were changed as a result of 316 suggestions fielded from the public.

"OMB officials said they are emphasizing manufacturing because it is one of the sectors of the economy most affected by regulations."

"The U.S. manufacturing industry is hindered by regulations that often don't account for improvements in science and technology over the last 20 years," said John D. Graham, head of the Office of Information and Regulatory Affairs. "This review will help us identify and improve dated regulations so American manufacturing firms can create jobs and continue to play a vital role in our economy."


To learn more go to: http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/articles/A40810-2004Feb13.html

[CRE Analyst]

Privacy advocates this week pressed Congress to mandate that OMB have a 'privacy czar.' The new position – which likely would be unique to the agency - would oversee federal policies and agency collaboration to ensure that privacy protections are effectively implemented throughout the federal government.

"An office inside OMB can provide both institutional memory and sensitivity to combat the unfortunate tendency in government to surveil first and think later," said Sally Katzen, a law professor and former deputy director for management at OMB under the Clinton administration. "If someone had been appointed, the administration may not have appeared to be so tone deaf to some issues."

To learn more go to: http://www.fcw.com/fcw/articles/2004/0223/pol-priv-02-23-04.asp

[CRE Analyst]

OMB said this week that federal agencies must submit their annual competitive-sourcing reports by March 31. The reports – mandated by the fiscal 2004 Omnibus Appropriations Bill – will ensure OMB effectively moves towards it’s aim to have private-sector bidders compete for certain federal jobs.

"OMB will put all this information into a new competitive-sourcing database, which will provide more complete information to Congress, Johnson said."

"The database will be “a mechanism for agencies to leverage their collective knowledge and experiences using competitive sourcing as a management strategy to improve the efficiency and effectiveness of the government’s commercial operations,” Johnson said."

To learn more go to: http://gcn.com/vol1_no1/daily-updates/25091-1.html

[CRE Analyst]

GAO said this week the competitive-sourcing process has left significant room for improvement. GAO noted that 84 percent of all commercial positions are located in just seven departments.

“While recent OMB guidance has stressed that agencies should tailor their plans to meet mission needs, the emphasis in the guidance is still more process than results,” GAO said. “Agencies have focused on meeting targets to announce and complete competitions and have not assessed broader issues, such as weighing potential improvements against the costs and risks.”

The auditors recommended that OMB ensure greater consistency in classifying commercial positions, work with agencies to make strategic sourcing decisions and require them to develop results-oriented competition plans.”

To learn more go to: http://gcn.com/vol1_no1/daily-updates/25094-1.html

[CRE Analyst]

OMB officials have told federal agencies that in order to receive funding for IT upgrades, they must first demonstrate appropriate gains with respect to cyber-security. The move comes as the administration seeks to ensure that federal agencies handle privacy issues more effectively.

"In its annual Federal Government Information Security Management report to Congress, OMB says fewer than two-thirds of federal IT systems had been accredited by Dec. 31, falling far short of its goal of 80%. Still, that was an improvement over 2002, when only 47% were certified."


To learn more go to: http://www.informationweek.com/story/showArticle.jhtml?articleID=18201838

[CRE Analyst]

OMB expressed a desire this week to hold federal agencies accountable if they do not meet specified criteria related to performance measures, cyber-security, and other issues. The agency is determined to put more ‘bark in its bite.’

"This is something we need to do," [OMB deputy director for management Clay] Johnson said. "Agencies need to have a clear definition of where they want to be and when they should get there."

He added that he met last week with Karen Evans, OMB’s administrator for e-government and IT, to figure out how to increase agency accountability.

The main method by which OMB holds agencies’ feet to the fire is by controlling the release of project funding."


To learn more go to: http://gcn.com/vol1_no1/daily-updates/25156-1.html

[CRE Analyst]

In an effort to ‘lift the hood’ on federal agency spending so that agencies do not duplicate the efforts of others, OMB this month will debut a plan that will give agencies an easy look into programs and solutions at other agencies.

"For the first time, the Federal Enterprise Architecture Management System (FEAMS) will allow agencies to seek common solutions and areas of collaboration, rather than wait for OMB officials to point out the opportunities after budget plans are submitted."

"It's very cool that agencies can look in the eyes of OMB and compare to other agencies and maybe even take some information and do some what-ifs," said Scott Bernard, director of enterprise architecture at DigitalNet LLC. "It's like lifting the hood" of a car to see the engine."


To learn more go to: http://www.fcw.com/fcw/articles/2004/0308/mgt-omb-03-08-04.asp

[CRE Analyst]

In a Congressionally mandated report released this week, OMB said that while there is still room for improvement, federal agencies have made significant strides since the passage of the E-Government Act of 2002. Agencies are beginning to rethink how they conduct business, and OMB officials think it is only a matter of time before they will see tremendous progress.

"It's the first step of many," [OMB's administrator for e-government and information, Karen] Evans said. "It's learning to walk before you run. This clearly demonstrates they are moving in the right direction."

"In virtually every area, OMB and/or the agencies have made progress in pulling together committees, putting out guidance, furthering Web site work," Dan Chenok [former OMB branch chief for information policy and technology] said. "The act was fairly ambitious, and I think OMB has demonstrated in the report [that] they are well on their way to achieving the provisions of the act."


To learn more go to: http://www.fcw.com/fcw/articles/200...ov-03-15-04.asp

[CRE Analyst]

OMB and Congressional leaders this week assailed poor IT security in federal agencies and Congress. At a Congressional hearing on the issue, leaders warned that if not improved, the lax IT security could lead to serious consequences.

"The time for discussion and debate now yields to a more important requirement for action," Rep. Adam Putnam, R-Fla., said at a hearing Tuesday. "We know that various terrorist groups are very sophisticated and [are] becoming more so each day."

"In a report last year, the Office of Management and Budget said many agency officials do not understand their IT security responsibilities. Karen Evans, OMB's e-government administrator, said at the hearing Tuesday that agency chiefs are ultimately responsible for IT defenses but that "everyone has to play a part in the cybersecurity piece."

To learn more go to: http://www.govexec.com/dailyfed/0304/031704d1.htm

[CRE Analyst]

A top union official charged this week that OMB instructed agencies to underreport the costs involved with setting up the new competitive-sourcing initiative. OMB officials have disputed the claim, arguing agencies are following the “express language” set forth in the 2004 omnibus appropriations act.

“Agencies…will end up submitting "completely skewed" reports to lawmakers, [Colleen] Kelley [president of the National Treasury Employees Union] argued. For instance, OMB officials instructed agencies to omit "costs of in-house staff that may have spent time on the competition during regular working hours.”

“The White House is asking agencies to include in reports "actual, out-of-pocket" expenses "that would not be incurred but for the conduct of the competition," the OMB official said. Salaries of career employees with primary job responsibilities unrelated to competitive sourcing do not qualify as expenses "directly attributable" to the management initiative, the official noted.”

To learn more go to: http://www.govexec.com/dailyfed/0304/031104a1.htm

[CRE Analyst]

OMB is seeking to increase the awareness – and usage – of the e-government initiatives currently in place in many federal agencies. As one example of agency 'marketing,' IRS recently sent out 60 million postcards to people it thought might use its new 'Free File.' Now, OMB wants to expand this marketing for each of the various e-government initiatives.

“Merely building federal e-government initiatives is not enough to make citizens use them, and officials are trying to figure out what will, Clay Johnson, deputy director for management at OMB, said today at the FOSE conference in Washington, D.C."

"There will be a different marketing plan for each one of them," Johnson said.”


To learn more go to: http://www.fcw.com/fcw/articles/2004/0322/web-clay-03-24-04.asp

[admin]

The Clean Air Trust as designated GAO has villian of the month.

"The Clean Air Trust today named the U.S. General Accounting Office as its "clean air villain of the month" for March 2004. Often described in boilerplate fashion as a "congressional watchdog agency," GAO earned the "villain" award by appearing to front for trucking companies that are facing tougher clean-air standards in 2007."

We respect the right the Clean Air Trust to act in any manner it wishes, but, on what basis? Surely because a Federal agency differs with another is hardly a basis, in itself, to cast it in a negative light.

Read article

http://releases.usnewswire.com/GetRelease.asp?id=133-03252004

[admin]

CBO continues its analysis of Fannie and Freddie. In its recent study, which is criticized by Fannie, CBO concludes that the government "subsidies" to these corporations is on the rise.

'The implicit subsidy that mortgage lending giants Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac receive from their perceived ties to the federal government has nearly doubled -- to almost $20 billion -- since 2000, the head of the Congressional Budget Office said yesterday."

Read article

http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/articles/A6589-2004Mar18.html

[CRE Analyst]

At a Congressional hearing this week, GAO officials said the success of the federal government’s e-government initiatives has been mixed. Noting that 17 of the 91 e-government objectives have shown no progress, and another 38 have shown just partial progress, GAO urged OMB to focus on ‘achievable objectives.’

"Given that OMB's stated criteria in choosing these initiatives included their likelihood of deployment in 18 to 24 months, the substantial number of objectives that are still unmet or only partially met indicates that making progress on these initiatives is more challenging than OMB may have originally anticipated," said Linda Koontz, GAO's information management issues director.


To learn more go to: http://www.informationweek.com/story/showArticle.jhtml?articleID=18401717

[CRE Analyst]

OMB officials have told federal agencies that too many IT projects have failed to meet their goals – and that they will be held accountable if there is a continued lack of progress. OMB has identified 621 IT projects, totaling $22 million, that have been implemented inadequately.

OMB’s deputy director for managemen,t Clay Johnson, said this week: “We can get to where we want to be. It is just a question of making sure there is plenty of rigor and discipline to make sure agencies understand what their goals are.”

“We laid a wonderful foundation at the start of this administration by using everything available to get a handle on IT investments,” [OMB’s administrator for e-government and IT, Karen] Evans said. “We have to produce results and achieve outcomes.”

To learn more go to: http://gcn.com/23_6/news/25311-1.html

[CRE Analyst]

GAO officials told members of Congress this week that the federal government has not done enough to address the threat of cruise missiles and unarmed aerial vehicles (UAVs). GAO said that at least six “countries of concern” are developing cruise missiles – thought by many to be an ideal weapon to disperse biological or chemical weapons - that could be used on targets in the US.

“In its report, GAO warned that federal agencies are not conducting enough checks on U.S. exports of cruise missiles, UAVs, and related technologies to make sure that they are not falling into the wrong hands. Reviewing exports between fiscal years 1998 and 2002, GAO reported that the State Department followed up on only four of 786 licenses that it issued for cruise missile and UAV technologies and the Pentagon did not do a single check on more than 500 cruise missiles shipped to other states.”

To learn more go to: http://www.armscontrol.org/act/2004_04/GAO.asp

[CRE Analyst]

Through new efforts to market e-government initiatives, OMB and other agencies are out to change a pattern that has few people using the federal government’s online systems. In addition to having agencies better assess how much the public knows about the various e-government initiatives, the new plan consists of effectively identifying ‘targeting audiences’ -- and then reaching out to them.

“Several leaders of the e-government initiatives have been marketing their services, most notably those spearheading the Internal Revenue Service's Free File initiative, but more can and should be done, said Karen Evans, OMB's administrator for e-government and information technology.”

Said Bob Dix, staff director for the House Government Reform Committee's Technology, Information Policy, Intergovernmental Relations and the Census Subcommittee: “The first step is to let people know that these access points are even available.”


To learn more go to: http://www.fcw.com/fcw/articles/2004/0412/news-egov-04-12-04.asp

[CRE Analyst]

A CBO report released this week said that if stock options were counted as an expense, it would not hurt the US economy. This comes as some opponents of the proposed policy to have stock options count as a business expense have said that such a policy would have a ‘terrible impact’ on the economy.

"Recognizing the fair value of employee stock options is unlikely to have a significant effect on the economy," the CBO said.

To learn more go to: http://www.forbes.com/business/newswire/2004/04/02/rtr1322522.html

[CRE Analyst]

One of the federal government’s marquee e-government projects, Safecom, is not making adequate progress, GAO officials said this week. Hoping to improve the government’s ability to respond to acts of terrorism and other emergencies, the program is intended to increase communication among ‘first responders.’

“The GAO, the investigative arm of Congress, cites two main reasons for the project's limited progress: lack of consistent executive commitment and support and an inadequate level of interagency cooperation.”

"Until these shortcomings are addressed, the ability of Project Safecom to deliver on its promise of improved interoperability and better response to emergencies will remain in doubt," Linda Koontz, GAO's director of information management issues, wrote in the 27-page report."


To learn more go to: http://www.informationweek.com/story/showArticle.jhtml?articleID=18901906

[CRE Analyst]

OMB announced the public is spending less time on government paperwork – the majority of which is done filling out IRS forms. In fiscal 2003, the agency estimated the public spent 8.1 billion hours on government paperwork, a decrease of 1.5 percent from 2002. The improvement does not, however, meet government goals.

Said Patricia Dalton, director of strategic issues at the General Accounting Office: "At 8.1 billion burden hours, the governmentwide paperwork estimate is 3.5 billion burden hours higher than the act's target estimate at the end of Sept. 30, 2001."

"Agencies can reduce paperwork burdens by eliminating questions, or exempting certain groups of citizens from filling out the forms. The use of electronic filing also can speed up the process."


To learn more go to: http://www.govexec.com/dailyfed/0404/042104a1.htm

[CRE Analyst]

A new GAO report reveals the Justice Department has failed to collect roughly $25 billion in criminal payments – a number up sharply from the last audit in 2001. Currently, the federal government collects just four cents for every dollar it levies against criminals in fines and assessments of restitution.

Said Byron Dorgan (D-ND): “This is unbelievable,” he said. “Fines and orders to pay restitution are an important part of how we punish convicted criminals. When so little effort is made to collect that money, we allow convicted criminals to avoid punishment for their crimes, weaken our criminal justice system and ultimately deny justice to the victims of crimes.”


To learn more go to: http://msnbc.msn.com/id/4817782/

[CRE Analyst]

OMB officials have asked vendors to submit ideas for potential e-government initiatives. The agency held an “industry day” last week so that representatives from various industries could lay out plans to ‘transform’ e-government.

“Although the first phase of initiatives adhered to the status quo, focusing on consolidation and what he called point solutions, this phase of e-government is moving toward transformation, [Norm] Enger [e-government project director at the Office of Personnel Management] said.”

"We're looking for things that really are innovative and transformational that make a dramatic improvement in how we operate in these lines of business," he said.”


To learn more go to: http://www.fcw.com/fcw/articles/2004/0426/pol-omb-04-26-04.asp

[CRE Analyst]

CBO said last week that importing prescription drugs from Canada – where such drugs are significantly cheaper than in the US - would have little impact on domestic drug prices. The agency, which has made similar claims previously, refuted the position of some consumer advocates who say the practice would lead to significant savings for US consumers.

“…as the CBO pointed out, market factors and the potential for foreign governments to take action blocking exports to the United States would likely limit the actual number of prescriptions that could be redirected to the U.S. market.”

“In addition, the agency found that market intermediaries would likely eat up a good portion of the potential cost savings.”


To learn more go to: http://washingtontimes.com/upi-breaking/20040430-053310-4135r.htm

[admin]

The GAO has released a draft report criticizing the Energy Department on its progress of the Yucca Mountain Project's quality assurance program, which is designed to verify science and safety issues. Yucca Mountain Project engineers plan to install metal alloy casks containing spent fuel in a grid of mined tunnels 1,000 feet underground, 90 miles northwest of Las Vegas.

"In the report, auditors said the Energy Department is not ready to demonstrate to the Nuclear Regulatory Commission that its quality assurance program can "ensure the safe construction and long term operation of the repository."

“The report by the congressional watchdog agency said the problems could delay licensing for the repository, which the Energy Department wants to open in 2010.”

“Margaret Chu, chief of the Yucca Mountain Project and the Energy Department's Office of Civilian Radioactive Waste Management, cited "major deficiencies" in the draft report. Where GAO sees 'continuing problems,' we see a measurable record of progress to date and a commitment to continuing improvement in the future”.

For more information see: http://www.phillyburbs.com/pb-dyn/n...004-291708.html

[Poster]

The CBO is coming under fire from Democrats in the House and Senate for not releasing a required quarterly report on time of how $20 billion dollars allocated to the president was being spent. The belated report was delivered this week.

“But the administration's belated response could still have implications, as the appropriations season drags on. The aide said he expects the lack of information to "at least be discussed" as Congress writes the fiscal 2005 defense and homeland security funding bills.”

“A new report by the Congressional Budget Office makes it clear that tracking homeland security money is easier said than done. Funding for homeland security "is split among 200 different appropriation accounts in the federal budget and involves many different functional areas of the government," CBO said. "That accounting arrangement makes it difficult for budget analysts to distinguish and track homeland security spending."

For more information see: http://www.govexec.com/dailyfed/0504/050604njcom1.htm

[CRE Analyst]

Eager to influence upcoming budget preparations, OMB hopes to have its current e-government proposals off the ground soon.

"It's an extremely aggressive timeframe so it will sync up with the fiscal 2006 budget development," [Richard] Brozen said, speaking today at the Government Enterprise Architecture Conference in Arlington, Va."


To learn more go to: http://www.fcw.com/fcw/articles/200...ob-05-05-04.asp

[Poster]

The GAO says that the DOD has run into a “security clearance logjam” for contractor personnel. Contractors requested one-fifth of all security clearances in the fiscal 2003. This problem is in addition to the backlog of military personnel that was mentioned in February.

“DOD responded that it is considering several initiatives to reduce the backlog, including a phased re-investigation process and a single adjudicative facility for industry clearances.”

“Delays in renewing security clearances for industry personnel and others who are doing classified work can lead to a heightened risk of national security breaches,” the report said.

For more information see: http://gcn.com/vol1_no1/daily-updates/25850-1.html

[CRE Analyst]

CBO estimates that while the budget deficit in 2004 will be less than the $477 billion they predicted earlier this year, it will easily be the largest in history. The decrease in the forecast – roughly $35 billion – largely stems from increased revenues tied to the improving economy. Expenditures, criticized by many as excessive, remain at the levels expected by CBO earlier this year.

"Our fiscal prospects are, in my judgment, a significant obstacle to long-term stability because the budget deficit is not readily subject to correction by market forces that stabilize other imbalances," [Federal Reserve Chairman Alan] Greenspan said at a banking conference on Thursday.”


To learn more go to: http://www.reuters.com/financeNewsArticle.jhtml?type=bondsNews&storyID=5066975

[Poster]

The GAO has issued a report on the military mail delivery system in Iraq. The report states that there were problems with prompt and reliable mail delivery from early on.

“Although a test of transit time for mail delivery by military postal officials showed that so-called "data test letters" arrived in theater within the wartime standard of 11 to 14 days, service members said their personal mail actually took much longer to reach them.”

"Charles S. Abell, principal deputy undersecretary of defense for personnel and readiness, noted that the mail will be especially important as election time approaches, with thousands of service members expected to request and mail in absentee ballots."

For more information see: http://www.zwire.com/site/news.cfm?newsid=11632736&BRD=1659&PAG=461&dept_id=8103&rfi=6

[CRE Analyst]

Later this month, OMB will try to move the discussion surrounding competitive sourcing from a debate about anecdotes to one about data. Each federal agency has been collecting information about the competitive sourcing program, and OMB’s report will be the first to shed light on the efficiency and value of the controversial new initiative.

"There's a lot of misunderstanding on competitive sourcing," [Clay] Johnson [deputy director for management at the Office of Management and Budget] said. "There soon will be more facts on the table for us to have more meaningful conversations.”

“Chip Mather, senior vice president of Acquisition Solutions Inc., said gathering relevant data is the foundation of performance-based acquisitions and competitive sourcing, each of which aim to improve government performance.

"It's the whole premise of performance-based, having those measures and metrics to tell you how well you've done," Mather said.“


To learn more go to: http://www.fcw.com/fcw/articles/2004/0510/pol-bush-05-10-04.asp

[Poster]

OMB Watch, along with 30 other nonprofit groups, launched a new website called www.openthegovernment.org to raise awareness of rising government secrecy in local and federal government.

"This broad swath of secrecy is hiding information that the public could use to make us safer and ensure the government is doing all it can to fight terrorists," said Rick Blum, director of OMB Watch's government secrecy project. "The government too often uses the threat of terror to hide embarrassing information."

The Bush administration disagrees that the government’s secrecy is on the rise. "The fact is the government is as open as it has ever been," said Mark Corallo, director of public affairs at the Justice Department. The number of responses for documents filed under the Freedom of Information Act, for example, equals what the Clinton administration released, he said.”

For more information see: http://www.news-journalonline.com/NewsJournalOnline/News/Politics/Headlines/03LegislatureNPOL04051304.htm

[CRE Analyst]

After complaints from local-level first responders – and a national conference of mayors – that federal grants for anti-terrorism have been delayed in reaching their intended recipients, GAO said last week the delays are “natural.” A federal grant typically has trouble navigating the “pipeline” from the federal government through state-level government to local-level government, the agency said.

"…Local first responders may not have anticipated the natural delays that should have been expected in the complex process of distributing dramatically increased funding through multiple governmental levels while maintaining procedures to ensure proper standards of accountability at each level," GAO homeland security head William Jenkins said.

"There should have been an immediate process, a simple immediate process to get money out to where it was needed, and that was never developed," [Akron Mayor and incoming U.S. Conference of Mayors President Donald] Plusquellic said Friday in an interview.”


To leanr more go to: http://www.govexec.com/dailyfed/0504/051404gsn1.htm

[Poster]

At a Thursday hearing, House Republicans commented on the lost tax revenue upon allowing same sex marriages to become legal. This issue was brought up at a House Judiciary subcommittee meeting on a proposed constitutional amendment banning same sex marriages. CBO reports were used in determining how much the government would lose.

“The CBO predicted that providing health care and retirement benefits to the partners of current and former federal workers would cost an estimated $1.4 billion between 2004 and 2013.”

"You don't save money by denying people rights in America," said Rep. Barney Frank, D-Mass

For more information see: http://sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.c...MNGG76LKPK1.DTL

[CRE Analyst]

Even after an increased focus on the issue from the administration, a new OMB report says just one of 26 federal agencies has made any progress in their e-government efforts since last December. The agency’s ‘scorecard’ also notes two agencies, Housing and Urban Development and Veterans Affairs, actually digressed in their efforts to meet stated e-government goals.

OMB officials, however, remain confident.

“Because we are results oriented we have programs large and small with clear definitions of success, detailed action plans for getting there, and a clear understanding of who is being held accountable for the results,” said Clay Johnson, OMB’s deputy director for management. “We also have programs rated ‘results not demonstrated,’ which we are committed to making successful, because that is what results oriented organizations do.”


To learn ore go to: http://gcn.com/vol1_no1/daily-updates/25953-1.html

[Poster]

The GAO believes that the Bush administration has violated anti-propaganda law by releasing videos to news stations about Medicare prescription drug law. The GAO says that the videos were not clearly identified as coming from a government source, which violates the law that public funds cannot be used publicity or propaganda.

“CMS had argued that it properly identified the entire package as coming from the government.”

“GAO determined that part of the VNR materials did not make it clear the government was the source of the information, including "news stories" narrated by people acting as reporters who were actually hired by the government's subcontractor, and suggested scripts for TV anchors to use.”

For more information see: http://www.govexec.com/dailyfed/0504/052004cdam1.htm

[Poster]

CBO has announced that the proposed budget for fiscal 2004 will be $477 billion. The House has past the budget plan, however the bill has now stalled in the Senate.

“The White House left ongoing costs of military operations in the Middle East out of its budget outline, but last week the Bush administration formally requested $25 billion for fiscal 2005. That request is currently under debate in the House and Senate.”

“Republican lawmakers hope that by attaching the limit increase to the budget plan, they can avoid a debate over rising debt levels as the presidential election draws nearer.”

For more information see: http://cbs.marketwatch.com/news/story.asp?guid=%7B4006713E-D5C8-42A9-8521-E927DDF1FC4E%7D&siteid=google&dist=google

[Poster]

The GAO has issued a report stating that the FDA "has determined that antibiotic resistance in humans resulting from the use of antibiotics in animals is an unacceptable risk to the public health." The report argues that the overuse of antibiotics on poultry when they are not sick leads to a risk on human health.

The GAO recommends that FDA expedite its review of key antibiotics used in animal agriculture but also notes that FDA's process, and any subsequent proceedings, are time-consuming.


For more information see: http://releases.usnewswire.com/GetRelease.asp?id=159-05242004

[Poster]

The new report issued by OMB on competitive sourcing analyzes whether federal jobs could be outsourced to the private sector for less money. OMB found that by contracting out some jobs they could save $1.1 billion over 3-5 years; however the research and planning of this savings cost about $88 million in 2003.

“The report shows that work performed by 6,244 federal employees was turned over to the private sector. It does not say how many employees left the government payroll because of the job competitions.”

“OMB officials said few federal employees, if any, were forced out on the street; most of the employees were reassigned to another part of the government, took a cash buyout and voluntarily quit or went to work for the winning contractor.”

For more information see: http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/articles/A58804-2004May26.html

[Poster]

A report issued by the GAO this week states that almost 200 government agencies are using or planning to use data mining software to identify terrorists. 122 out of the199 programs, can access private documents such as student loan applications, bank account numbers and credit card information. This report raised some concerns with government watchdogs, who believe the government may be tramping on people's right to privacy.

"We need to find out right away whether these programs are indeed threatening or whether their use of information is benign," said Barry Steinhardt, director of the American Civil Liberties Union technology and liberty progra