Results Act

In reviewing the Commodity Future Trading Commission's (CFTC) annual performance plan for fiscal year 2000, GAO found that CFTC has made a good-faith effort and commitment both to comply with the Results Act and to meet congressional expectations for information about the agency's performance goals, including how the agency will accomplish them and measure their results. However, CFTC could improve future performance plans in several areas to make the plans more useful to Congress and other decisionmakers. First, CFTC could improve its performance goals, measures, and targets to provide a clearer picture of its intended performance. Second, CFTC could better connect its mission, goals, and activities to show how it plans to chart annual progress toward its strategic goals. Third, CFTC could better address crosscutting efforts that involve other federal agencies to help maximize the overall effectiveness of government efforts. Fourth, CFTC could discuss in greater detail the strategies and resources used to achieve its performance goals to help decisionmakers assess their reasonableness. Fifth, CFTC should describe the specific means for verifying and validating the quality of performance information and ensuring the reliability of such information. Finally, CFTC could link past accomplishments to performance goals to enhance the plan's clarity.

GAO noted that: (1) CFTC actions show a good-faith effort and commitment both to comply with the Results Act and meet congressional expectations for information about the agency's performance goals, including how the agency will accomplish the goals and measure their results; (2) however, CFTC could improve future performance plans in several areas to make the plans more useful to congressional and other decisionmakers; (3) CFTC could improve its performance goals, measures, and targets to provide a clearer picture of its intended performance; (4) CFTC could better connect its mission, goals, and activities to demonstrate more fully how it plans to chart annual progress toward achieving its strategic goals; (5) CFTC could more fully address crosscutting efforts that involve other federal agencies to better ensure that the overall effectiveness of federal efforts is maximized; (6) CFTC could discuss in greater detail the strategies and resources used to achieve its performance goals to better enable decisionmakers to assess their reasonableness; (7) CFTC should describe the specific means for verifying and validating the quality of performance information and ensuring the reliability of such information; (8) CFTC could link past accomplishments to performance goals to enhance the plan's clarity; (9) although CFTC could improve its plan in these areas, GAO has found that other federal agencies, including federal financial regulators, could improve their plans in many of the same areas; and (10) moreover it is important to recognize that the Results Act anticipates that the process of developing an effective planning process and performance plan could take several planning cycles.