GPRA Modernization Act of 2010

H. R. 2142

One Hundred Eleventh Congress
of the
United States of America
AT T H E S E C O N D S E S S I O N
Begun and held at the City of Washington on Tuesday,
the fifth day of January, two thousand and ten

An Act
To require quarterly performance assessments of Government programs for purposes
of assessing agency performance and improvement, and to establish agency performance improvement officers and the Performance Improvement Council.

Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of
the United States of America in Congress assembled,
SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE; TABLE OF CONTENTS.

(a) SHORT TITLE.—This Act may be cited as the ‘‘GPRA Modernization Act of 2010’’.
(b) TABLE OF CONTENTS.—The table of contents for this Act
is as follows:
Sec.
Sec.
Sec.
Sec.
Sec.
Sec.
Sec.
Sec.
Sec.
Sec.
Sec.
Sec.
Sec.
Sec.
Sec.

1.
2.
3.
4.
5.
6.
7.
8.
9.

Short title; table of contents.
Strategic planning amendments.
Performance planning amendments.
Performance reporting amendments.
Federal Government and agency priority goals.
Quarterly priority progress reviews and use of performance information.
Transparency of Federal Government programs, priority goals, and results.
Agency Chief Operating Officers.
Agency Performance Improvement Officers and the Performance Improvement Council.
10. Format of performance plans and reports.
11. Reducing duplicative and outdated agency reporting.
12. Performance management skills and competencies.
13. Technical and conforming amendments.
14. Implementation of this Act.
15. Congressional oversight and legislation.

SEC. 2. STRATEGIC PLANNING AMENDMENTS.

Chapter 3 of title 5, United States Code, is amended by striking
section 306 and inserting the following:
‘‘§ 306. Agency strategic plans
‘‘(a) Not later than the first Monday in February of any year
following the year in which the term of the President commences
under section 101 of title 3, the head of each agency shall make
available on the public website of the agency a strategic plan
and notify the President and Congress of its availability. Such
plan shall contain—
‘‘(1) a comprehensive mission statement covering the major
functions and operations of the agency;
‘‘(2) general goals and objectives, including outcome-oriented goals, for the major functions and operations of the
agency;
‘‘(3) a description of how any goals and objectives contribute
to the Federal Government priority goals required by section
1120(a) of title 31;

H. R. 2142—2
‘‘(4) a description of how the goals and objectives are to
be achieved, including—
‘‘(A) a description of the operational processes, skills
and technology, and the human, capital, information, and
other resources required to achieve those goals and objectives; and
‘‘(B) a description of how the agency is working with
other agencies to achieve its goals and objectives as well
as relevant Federal Government priority goals;
‘‘(5) a description of how the goals and objectives incorporate views and suggestions obtained through congressional
consultations required under subsection (d);
‘‘(6) a description of how the performance goals provided
in the plan required by section 1115(a) of title 31, including
the agency priority goals required by section 1120(b) of title
31, if applicable, contribute to the general goals and objectives
in the strategic plan;
‘‘(7) an identification of those key factors external to the
agency and beyond its control that could significantly affect
the achievement of the general goals and objectives; and
‘‘(8) a description of the program evaluations used in establishing or revising general goals and objectives, with a schedule
for future program evaluations to be conducted.
‘‘(b) The strategic plan shall cover a period of not less than
4 years following the fiscal year in which the plan is submitted.
As needed, the head of the agency may make adjustments to the
strategic plan to reflect significant changes in the environment
in which the agency is operating, with appropriate notification
of Congress.
‘‘(c) The performance plan required by section 1115(b) of title
31 shall be consistent with the agency’s strategic plan. A performance plan may not be submitted for a fiscal year not covered
by a current strategic plan under this section.
‘‘(d) When developing or making adjustments to a strategic
plan, the agency shall consult periodically with the Congress,
including majority and minority views from the appropriate authorizing, appropriations, and oversight committees, and shall solicit
and consider the views and suggestions of those entities potentially
affected by or interested in such a plan. The agency shall consult
with the appropriate committees of Congress at least once every
2 years.
‘‘(e) The functions and activities of this section shall be considered to be inherently governmental functions. The drafting of strategic plans under this section shall be performed only by Federal
employees.
‘‘(f) For purposes of this section the term ‘agency’ means an
Executive agency defined under section 105, but does not include
the Central Intelligence Agency, the Government Accountability
Office, the United States Postal Service, and the Postal Regulatory
Commission.’’.
SEC. 3. PERFORMANCE PLANNING AMENDMENTS.

Chapter 11 of title 31, United States Code, is amended by
striking section 1115 and inserting the following:

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‘‘§ 1115. Federal Government and agency performance plans
‘‘(a) FEDERAL GOVERNMENT PERFORMANCE PLANS.—In carrying
out the provisions of section 1105(a)(28), the Director of the Office
of Management and Budget shall coordinate with agencies to
develop the Federal Government performance plan. In addition
to the submission of such plan with each budget of the United
States Government, the Director of the Office of Management and
Budget shall ensure that all information required by this subsection
is concurrently made available on the website provided under section 1122 and updated periodically, but no less than annually.
The Federal Government performance plan shall—
‘‘(1) establish Federal Government performance goals to
define the level of performance to be achieved during the year
in which the plan is submitted and the next fiscal year for
each of the Federal Government priority goals required under
section 1120(a) of this title;
‘‘(2) identify the agencies, organizations, program activities,
regulations, tax expenditures, policies, and other activities
contributing to each Federal Government performance goal
during the current fiscal year;
‘‘(3) for each Federal Government performance goal, identify a lead Government official who shall be responsible for
coordinating the efforts to achieve the goal;
‘‘(4) establish common Federal Government performance
indicators with quarterly targets to be used in measuring or
assessing—
‘‘(A) overall progress toward each Federal Government
performance goal; and
‘‘(B) the individual contribution of each agency,
organization, program activity, regulation, tax expenditure,
policy, and other activity identified under paragraph (2);
‘‘(5) establish clearly defined quarterly milestones; and
‘‘(6) identify major management challenges that are
Governmentwide or crosscutting in nature and describe plans
to address such challenges, including relevant performance
goals, performance indicators, and milestones.
‘‘(b) AGENCY PERFORMANCE PLANS.—Not later than the first
Monday in February of each year, the head of each agency shall
make available on a public website of the agency, and notify the
President and the Congress of its availability, a performance plan
covering each program activity set forth in the budget of such
agency. Such plan shall—
‘‘(1) establish performance goals to define the level of
performance to be achieved during the year in which the plan
is submitted and the next fiscal year;
‘‘(2) express such goals in an objective, quantifiable, and
measurable form unless authorized to be in an alternative
form under subsection (c);
‘‘(3) describe how the performance goals contribute to—
‘‘(A) the general goals and objectives established in
the agency’s strategic plan required by section 306(a)(2)
of title 5; and
‘‘(B) any of the Federal Government performance goals
established in the Federal Government performance plan
required by subsection (a)(1);

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‘‘(4) identify among the performance goals those which
are designated as agency priority goals as required by section
1120(b) of this title, if applicable;
‘‘(5) provide a description of how the performance goals
are to be achieved, including—
‘‘(A) the operation processes, training, skills and technology, and the human, capital, information, and other
resources and strategies required to meet those performance goals;
‘‘(B) clearly defined milestones;
‘‘(C) an identification of the organizations, program
activities, regulations, policies, and other activities that
contribute to each performance goal, both within and
external to the agency;
‘‘(D) a description of how the agency is working with
other agencies to achieve its performance goals as well
as relevant Federal Government performance goals; and
‘‘(E) an identification of the agency officials responsible
for the achievement of each performance goal, who shall
be known as goal leaders;
‘‘(6) establish a balanced set of performance indicators to
be used in measuring or assessing progress toward each
performance goal, including, as appropriate, customer service,
efficiency, output, and outcome indicators;
‘‘(7) provide a basis for comparing actual program results
with the established performance goals;
‘‘(8) a description of how the agency will ensure the
accuracy and reliability of the data used to measure progress
towards its performance goals, including an identification of—
‘‘(A) the means to be used to verify and validate measured values;
‘‘(B) the sources for the data;
‘‘(C) the level of accuracy required for the intended
use of the data;
‘‘(D) any limitations to the data at the required level
of accuracy; and
‘‘(E) how the agency will compensate for such limitations if needed to reach the required level of accuracy;
‘‘(9) describe major management challenges the agency
faces and identify—
‘‘(A) planned actions to address such challenges;
‘‘(B) performance goals, performance indicators, and
milestones to measure progress toward resolving such challenges; and
‘‘(C) the agency official responsible for resolving such
challenges; and
‘‘(10) identify low-priority program activities based on an
analysis of their contribution to the mission and goals of the
agency and include an evidence-based justification for designating a program activity as low priority.
‘‘(c) ALTERNATIVE FORM.—If an agency, in consultation with
the Director of the Office of Management and Budget, determines
that it is not feasible to express the performance goals for a particular program activity in an objective, quantifiable, and measurable form, the Director of the Office of Management and Budget
may authorize an alternative form. Such alternative form shall—
‘‘(1) include separate descriptive statements of—

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‘‘(A)(i) a minimally effective program; and
‘‘(ii) a successful program; or
‘‘(B) such alternative as authorized by the Director
of the Office of Management and Budget, with sufficient
precision and in such terms that would allow for an
accurate, independent determination of whether the program activity’s performance meets the criteria of the
description; or
‘‘(2) state why it is infeasible or impractical to express
a performance goal in any form for the program activity.
‘‘(d) TREATMENT OF PROGRAM ACTIVITIES.—For the purpose of
complying with this section, an agency may aggregate, disaggregate,
or consolidate program activities, except that any aggregation or
consolidation may not omit or minimize the significance of any
program activity constituting a major function or operation for
the agency.
‘‘(e) APPENDIX.—An agency may submit with an annual
performance plan an appendix covering any portion of the plan
that—
‘‘(1) is specifically authorized under criteria established
by an Executive order to be kept secret in the interest of
national defense or foreign policy; and
‘‘(2) is properly classified pursuant to such Executive order.
‘‘(f) INHERENTLY GOVERNMENTAL FUNCTIONS.—The functions
and activities of this section shall be considered to be inherently
governmental functions. The drafting of performance plans under
this section shall be performed only by Federal employees.
‘‘(g) CHIEF HUMAN CAPITAL OFFICERS.—With respect to each
agency with a Chief Human Capital Officer, the Chief Human
Capital Officer shall prepare that portion of the annual performance
plan described under subsection (b)(5)(A).
‘‘(h) DEFINITIONS.—For purposes of this section and sections
1116 through 1125, and sections 9703 and 9704, the term—
‘‘(1) ‘agency’ has the same meaning as such term is defined
under section 306(f) of title 5;
‘‘(2) ‘crosscutting’ means across organizational (such as
agency) boundaries;
‘‘(3) ‘customer service measure’ means an assessment of
service delivery to a customer, client, citizen, or other recipient,
which can include an assessment of quality, timeliness, and
satisfaction among other factors;
‘‘(4) ‘efficiency measure’ means a ratio of a program
activity’s inputs (such as costs or hours worked by employees)
to its outputs (amount of products or services delivered) or
outcomes (the desired results of a program);
‘‘(5) ‘major management challenge’ means programs or
management functions, within or across agencies, that have
greater vulnerability to waste, fraud, abuse, and mismanagement (such as issues identified by the Government Accountability Office as high risk or issues identified by an Inspector
General) where a failure to perform well could seriously affect
the ability of an agency or the Government to achieve its
mission or goals;
‘‘(6) ‘milestone’ means a scheduled event signifying the
completion of a major deliverable or a set of related deliverables
or a phase of work;

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‘‘(7) ‘outcome measure’ means an assessment of the results
of a program activity compared to its intended purpose;
‘‘(8) ‘output measure’ means the tabulation, calculation,
or recording of activity or effort that can be expressed in a
quantitative or qualitative manner;
‘‘(9) ‘performance goal’ means a target level of performance
expressed as a tangible, measurable objective, against which
actual achievement can be compared, including a goal expressed
as a quantitative standard, value, or rate;
‘‘(10) ‘performance indicator’ means a particular value or
characteristic used to measure output or outcome;
‘‘(11) ‘program activity’ means a specific activity or project
as listed in the program and financing schedules of the annual
budget of the United States Government; and
‘‘(12) ‘program evaluation’ means an assessment, through
objective measurement and systematic analysis, of the manner
and extent to which Federal programs achieve intended objectives.’’.
SEC. 4. PERFORMANCE REPORTING AMENDMENTS.

Chapter 11 of title 31, United States Code, is amended by
striking section 1116 and inserting the following:
‘‘§ 1116. Agency performance reporting
‘‘(a) The head of each agency shall make available on a public
website of the agency and to the Office of Management and Budget
an update on agency performance.
‘‘(b)(1) Each update shall compare actual performance achieved
with the performance goals established in the agency performance
plan under section 1115(b) and shall occur no less than 150 days
after the end of each fiscal year, with more frequent updates of
actual performance on indicators that provide data of significant
value to the Government, Congress, or program partners at a
reasonable level of administrative burden.
‘‘(2) If performance goals are specified in an alternative form
under section 1115(c), the results shall be described in relation
to such specifications, including whether the performance failed
to meet the criteria of a minimally effective or successful program.
‘‘(c) Each update shall—
‘‘(1) review the success of achieving the performance goals
and include actual results for the 5 preceding fiscal years;
‘‘(2) evaluate the performance plan for the current fiscal
year relative to the performance achieved toward the performance goals during the period covered by the update;
‘‘(3) explain and describe where a performance goal has
not been met (including when a program activity’s performance
is determined not to have met the criteria of a successful
program activity under section 1115(c)(1)(A)(ii) or a corresponding level of achievement if another alternative form
is used)—
‘‘(A) why the goal was not met;
‘‘(B) those plans and schedules for achieving the established performance goal; and
‘‘(C) if the performance goal is impractical or infeasible,
why that is the case and what action is recommended;

H. R. 2142—7
‘‘(4) describe the use and assess the effectiveness in
achieving performance goals of any waiver under section 9703
of this title;
‘‘(5) include a review of the performance goals and evaluation of the performance plan relative to the agency’s strategic
human capital management;
‘‘(6) describe how the agency ensures the accuracy and
reliability of the data used to measure progress towards its
performance goals, including an identification of—
‘‘(A) the means used to verify and validate measured
values;
‘‘(B) the sources for the data;
‘‘(C) the level of accuracy required for the intended
use of the data;
‘‘(D) any limitations to the data at the required level
of accuracy; and
‘‘(E) how the agency has compensated for such limitations if needed to reach the required level of accuracy;
and
‘‘(7) include the summary findings of those program evaluations completed during the period covered by the update.
‘‘(d) If an agency performance update includes any program
activity or information that is specifically authorized under criteria
established by an Executive Order to be kept secret in the interest
of national defense or foreign policy and is properly classified pursuant to such Executive Order, the head of the agency shall make
such information available in the classified appendix provided under
section 1115(e).
‘‘(e) The functions and activities of this section shall be considered to be inherently governmental functions. The drafting of agency
performance updates under this section shall be performed only
by Federal employees.
‘‘(f) Each fiscal year, the Office of Management and Budget
shall determine whether the agency programs or activities meet
performance goals and objectives outlined in the agency performance plans and submit a report on unmet goals to—
‘‘(1) the head of the agency;
‘‘(2) the Committee on Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs of the Senate;
‘‘(3) the Committee on Oversight and Governmental Reform
of the House of Representatives; and
‘‘(4) the Government Accountability Office.
‘‘(g) If an agency’s programs or activities have not met performance goals as determined by the Office of Management and Budget
for 1 fiscal year, the head of the agency shall submit a performance
improvement plan to the Office of Management and Budget to
increase program effectiveness for each unmet goal with measurable
milestones. The agency shall designate a senior official who shall
oversee the performance improvement strategies for each unmet
goal.
‘‘(h)(1) If the Office of Management and Budget determines
that agency programs or activities have unmet performance goals
for 2 consecutive fiscal years, the head of the agency shall—
‘‘(A) submit to Congress a description of the actions the
Administration will take to improve performance, including
proposed statutory changes or planned executive actions; and

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‘‘(B) describe any additional funding the agency will obligate to achieve the goal, if such an action is determined appropriate in consultation with the Director of the Office of Management and Budget, for an amount determined appropriate by
the Director.
‘‘(2) In providing additional funding described under paragraph
(1)(B), the head of the agency shall use any reprogramming or
transfer authority available to the agency. If after exercising such
authority additional funding is necessary to achieve the level determined appropriate by the Director of the Office of Management
and Budget, the head of the agency shall submit a request to
Congress for additional reprogramming or transfer authority.
‘‘(i) If an agency’s programs or activities have not met performance goals as determined by the Office of Management and Budget
for 3 consecutive fiscal years, the Director of the Office of Management and Budget shall submit recommendations to Congress on
actions to improve performance not later than 60 days after that
determination, including—
‘‘(1) reauthorization proposals for each program or activity
that has not met performance goals;
‘‘(2) proposed statutory changes necessary for the program
activities to achieve the proposed level of performance on each
performance goal; and
‘‘(3) planned executive actions or identification of the program for termination or reduction in the President’s budget.’’.
SEC. 5. FEDERAL GOVERNMENT AND AGENCY PRIORITY GOALS.

Chapter 11 of title 31, United States Code, is amended by
adding after section 1119 the following:
‘‘§ 1120. Federal Government and agency priority goals
‘‘(a) FEDERAL GOVERNMENT PRIORITY GOALS.—
‘‘(1) The Director of the Office of Management and Budget
shall coordinate with agencies to develop priority goals to
improve the performance and management of the Federal
Government. Such Federal Government priority goals shall
include—
‘‘(A) outcome-oriented goals covering a limited number
of crosscutting policy areas; and
‘‘(B) goals for management improvements needed
across the Federal Government, including—
‘‘(i) financial management;
‘‘(ii) human capital management;
‘‘(iii) information technology management;
‘‘(iv) procurement and acquisition management;
and
‘‘(v) real property management;
‘‘(2) The Federal Government priority goals shall be longterm in nature. At a minimum, the Federal Government priority
goals shall be updated or revised every 4 years and made
publicly available concurrently with the submission of the
budget of the United States Government made in the first
full fiscal year following any year in which the term of the
President commences under section 101 of title 3. As needed,
the Director of the Office of Management and Budget may
make adjustments to the Federal Government priority goals
to reflect significant changes in the environment in which the

H. R. 2142—9
Federal Government is operating, with appropriate notification
of Congress.
‘‘(3) When developing or making adjustments to Federal
Government priority goals, the Director of the Office of Management and Budget shall consult periodically with the Congress,
including obtaining majority and minority views from—
‘‘(A) the Committees on Appropriations of the Senate
and the House of Representatives;
‘‘(B) the Committees on the Budget of the Senate and
the House of Representatives;
‘‘(C) the Committee on Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs of the Senate;
‘‘(D) the Committee on Oversight and Government
Reform of the House of Representatives;
‘‘(E) the Committee on Finance of the Senate;
‘‘(F) the Committee on Ways and Means of the House
of Representatives; and
‘‘(G) any other committees as determined appropriate;
‘‘(4) The Director of the Office of Management and Budget
shall consult with the appropriate committees of Congress at
least once every 2 years.
‘‘(5) The Director of the Office of Management and Budget
shall make information about the Federal Government priority
goals available on the website described under section 1122
of this title.
‘‘(6) The Federal Government performance plan required
under section 1115(a) of this title shall be consistent with
the Federal Government priority goals.
‘‘(b) AGENCY PRIORITY GOALS.—
‘‘(1) Every 2 years, the head of each agency listed in section
901(b) of this title, or as otherwise determined by the Director
of the Office of Management and Budget, shall identify agency
priority goals from among the performance goals of the agency.
The Director of the Office of Management and Budget shall
determine the total number of agency priority goals across
the Government, and the number to be developed by each
agency. The agency priority goals shall—
‘‘(A) reflect the highest priorities of the agency, as
determined by the head of the agency and informed by
the Federal Government priority goals provided under subsection (a) and the consultations with Congress and other
interested parties required by section 306(d) of title 5;
‘‘(B) have ambitious targets that can be achieved within
a 2-year period;
‘‘(C) have a clearly identified agency official, known
as a goal leader, who is responsible for the achievement
of each agency priority goal;
‘‘(D) have interim quarterly targets for performance
indicators if more frequent updates of actual performance
provides data of significant value to the Government, Congress, or program partners at a reasonable level of administrative burden; and
‘‘(E) have clearly defined quarterly milestones.
‘‘(2) If an agency priority goal includes any program activity
or information that is specifically authorized under criteria
established by an Executive order to be kept secret in the
interest of national defense or foreign policy and is properly

H. R. 2142—10
classified pursuant to such Executive order, the head of the
agency shall make such information available in the classified
appendix provided under section 1115(e).
‘‘(c) The functions and activities of this section shall be considered to be inherently governmental functions. The development
of Federal Government and agency priority goals shall be performed
only by Federal employees.’’.
SEC. 6. QUARTERLY PRIORITY PROGRESS REVIEWS AND USE OF
PERFORMANCE INFORMATION.

Chapter 11 of title 31, United States Code, is amended by
adding after section 1120 (as added by section 5 of this Act) the
following:
‘‘§ 1121. Quarterly priority progress reviews and use of
performance information
‘‘(a) USE OF PERFORMANCE INFORMATION TO ACHIEVE FEDERAL
GOVERNMENT PRIORITY GOALS.—Not less than quarterly, the
Director of the Office of Management and Budget, with the support
of the Performance Improvement Council, shall—
‘‘(1) for each Federal Government priority goal required
by section 1120(a) of this title, review with the appropriate
lead Government official the progress achieved during the most
recent quarter, overall trend data, and the likelihood of meeting
the planned level of performance;
‘‘(2) include in such reviews officials from the agencies,
organizations, and program activities that contribute to the
accomplishment of each Federal Government priority goal;
‘‘(3) assess whether agencies, organizations, program activities, regulations, tax expenditures, policies, and other activities
are contributing as planned to each Federal Government priority goal;
‘‘(4) categorize the Federal Government priority goals by
risk of not achieving the planned level of performance; and
‘‘(5) for the Federal Government priority goals at greatest
risk of not meeting the planned level of performance, identify
prospects and strategies for performance improvement,
including any needed changes to agencies, organizations, program activities, regulations, tax expenditures, policies or other
activities.
‘‘(b) AGENCY USE OF PERFORMANCE INFORMATION TO ACHIEVE
AGENCY PRIORITY GOALS.—Not less than quarterly, at each agency
required to develop agency priority goals required by section 1120(b)
of this title, the head of the agency and Chief Operating Officer,
with the support of the agency Performance Improvement Officer,
shall—
‘‘(1) for each agency priority goal, review with the appropriate goal leader the progress achieved during the most recent
quarter, overall trend data, and the likelihood of meeting the
planned level of performance;
‘‘(2) coordinate with relevant personnel within and outside
the agency who contribute to the accomplishment of each
agency priority goal;
‘‘(3) assess whether relevant organizations, program activities, regulations, policies, and other activities are contributing
as planned to the agency priority goals;

H. R. 2142—11
‘‘(4) categorize agency priority goals by risk of not achieving
the planned level of performance; and
‘‘(5) for agency priority goals at greatest risk of not meeting
the planned level of performance, identify prospects and strategies for performance improvement, including any needed
changes to agency program activities, regulations, policies, or
other activities.’’.
SEC. 7. TRANSPARENCY OF FEDERAL GOVERNMENT PROGRAMS, PRIORITY GOALS, AND RESULTS.

Chapter 11 of title 31, United States Code, is amended by
adding after section 1121 (as added by section 6 of this Act) the
following:
‘‘§ 1122. Transparency of programs, priority goals, and results
‘‘(a) TRANSPARENCY OF AGENCY PROGRAMS.—
‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—Not later than October 1, 2012, the
Office of Management and Budget shall—
‘‘(A) ensure the effective operation of a single website;
‘‘(B) at a minimum, update the website on a quarterly
basis; and
‘‘(C) include on the website information about each
program identified by the agencies.
‘‘(2) INFORMATION.—Information for each program described
under paragraph (1) shall include—
‘‘(A) an identification of how the agency defines the
term ‘program’, consistent with guidance provided by the
Director of the Office of Management and Budget, including
the program activities that are aggregated, disaggregated,
or consolidated to be considered a program by the agency;
‘‘(B) a description of the purposes of the program and
the contribution of the program to the mission and goals
of the agency; and
‘‘(C) an identification of funding for the current fiscal
year and previous 2 fiscal years.
‘‘(b) TRANSPARENCY OF AGENCY PRIORITY GOALS AND
RESULTS.—The head of each agency required to develop agency
priority goals shall make information about each agency priority
goal available to the Office of Management and Budget for publication on the website, with the exception of any information covered
by section 1120(b)(2) of this title. In addition to an identification
of each agency priority goal, the website shall also consolidate
information about each agency priority goal, including—
‘‘(1) a description of how the agency incorporated any views
and suggestions obtained through congressional consultations
about the agency priority goal;
‘‘(2) an identification of key factors external to the agency
and beyond its control that could significantly affect the
achievement of the agency priority goal;
‘‘(3) a description of how each agency priority goal will
be achieved, including—
‘‘(A) the strategies and resources required to meet the
priority goal;
‘‘(B) clearly defined milestones;
‘‘(C) the organizations, program activities, regulations,
policies, and other activities that contribute to each goal,
both within and external to the agency;

H. R. 2142—12
‘‘(D) how the agency is working with other agencies
to achieve the goal; and
‘‘(E) an identification of the agency official responsible
for achieving the priority goal;
‘‘(4) the performance indicators to be used in measuring
or assessing progress;
‘‘(5) a description of how the agency ensures the accuracy
and reliability of the data used to measure progress towards
the priority goal, including an identification of—
‘‘(A) the means used to verify and validate measured
values;
‘‘(B) the sources for the data;
‘‘(C) the level of accuracy required for the intended
use of the data;
‘‘(D) any limitations to the data at the required level
of accuracy; and
‘‘(E) how the agency has compensated for such limitations if needed to reach the required level of accuracy;
‘‘(6) the results achieved during the most recent quarter
and overall trend data compared to the planned level of
performance;
‘‘(7) an assessment of whether relevant organizations, program activities, regulations, policies, and other activities are
contributing as planned;
‘‘(8) an identification of the agency priority goals at risk
of not achieving the planned level of performance; and
‘‘(9) any prospects or strategies for performance improvement.
‘‘(c) TRANSPARENCY OF FEDERAL GOVERNMENT PRIORITY GOALS
AND RESULTS.—The Director of the Office of Management and
Budget shall also make available on the website—
‘‘(1) a brief description of each of the Federal Government
priority goals required by section 1120(a) of this title;
‘‘(2) a description of how the Federal Government priority
goals incorporate views and suggestions obtained through
congressional consultations;
‘‘(3) the Federal Government performance goals and
performance indicators associated with each Federal Government priority goal as required by section 1115(a) of this title;
‘‘(4) an identification of the lead Government official for
each Federal Government performance goal;
‘‘(5) the results achieved during the most recent quarter
and overall trend data compared to the planned level of
performance;
‘‘(6) an identification of the agencies, organizations, program activities, regulations, tax expenditures, policies, and
other activities that contribute to each Federal Government
priority goal;
‘‘(7) an assessment of whether relevant agencies, organizations, program activities, regulations, tax expenditures, policies,
and other activities are contributing as planned;
‘‘(8) an identification of the Federal Government priority
goals at risk of not achieving the planned level of performance;
and
‘‘(9) any prospects or strategies for performance improvement.

H. R. 2142—13
‘‘(d) INFORMATION ON WEBSITE.—The information made available on the website under this section shall be readily accessible
and easily found on the Internet by the public and members and
committees of Congress. Such information shall also be presented
in a searchable, machine-readable format. The Director of the Office
of Management and Budget shall issue guidance to ensure that
such information is provided in a way that presents a coherent
picture of all Federal programs, and the performance of the Federal
Government as well as individual agencies.’’.
SEC. 8. AGENCY CHIEF OPERATING OFFICERS.

Chapter 11 of title 31, United States Code, is amended by
adding after section 1122 (as added by section 7 of this Act) the
following:
‘‘§ 1123. Chief Operating Officers
‘‘(a) ESTABLISHMENT.—At each agency, the deputy head of
agency, or equivalent, shall be the Chief Operating Officer of the
agency.
‘‘(b) FUNCTION.—Each Chief Operating Officer shall be responsible for improving the management and performance of the agency,
and shall—
‘‘(1) provide overall organization management to improve
agency performance and achieve the mission and goals of the
agency through the use of strategic and performance planning,
measurement, analysis, regular assessment of progress, and
use of performance information to improve the results achieved;
‘‘(2) advise and assist the head of agency in carrying out
the requirements of sections 1115 through 1122 of this title
and section 306 of title 5;
‘‘(3) oversee agency-specific efforts to improve management
functions within the agency and across Government; and
‘‘(4) coordinate and collaborate with relevant personnel
within and external to the agency who have a significant role
in contributing to and achieving the mission and goals of the
agency, such as the Chief Financial Officer, Chief Human Capital Officer, Chief Acquisition Officer/Senior Procurement
Executive, Chief Information Officer, and other line of business
chiefs at the agency.’’.
SEC. 9. AGENCY PERFORMANCE IMPROVEMENT OFFICERS AND THE
PERFORMANCE IMPROVEMENT COUNCIL.

Chapter 11 of title 31, United States Code, is amended by
adding after section 1123 (as added by section 8 of this Act) the
following:
‘‘§ 1124. Performance Improvement Officers and the Performance Improvement Council
‘‘(a) PERFORMANCE IMPROVEMENT OFFICERS.—
‘‘(1) ESTABLISHMENT.—At each agency, the head of the
agency, in consultation with the agency Chief Operating Officer,
shall designate a senior executive of the agency as the agency
Performance Improvement Officer.
‘‘(2) FUNCTION.—Each Performance Improvement Officer
shall report directly to the Chief Operating Officer. Subject
to the direction of the Chief Operating Officer, each Performance Improvement Officer shall—

H. R. 2142—14
‘‘(A) advise and assist the head of the agency and
the Chief Operating Officer to ensure that the mission
and goals of the agency are achieved through strategic
and performance planning, measurement, analysis, regular
assessment of progress, and use of performance information
to improve the results achieved;
‘‘(B) advise the head of the agency and the Chief Operating Officer on the selection of agency goals, including
opportunities to collaborate with other agencies on common
goals;
‘‘(C) assist the head of the agency and the Chief Operating Officer in overseeing the implementation of the
agency strategic planning, performance planning, and
reporting requirements provided under sections 1115
through 1122 of this title and sections 306 of title 5,
including the contributions of the agency to the Federal
Government priority goals;
‘‘(D) support the head of agency and the Chief Operating Officer in the conduct of regular reviews of agency
performance, including at least quarterly reviews of
progress achieved toward agency priority goals, if
applicable;
‘‘(E) assist the head of the agency and the Chief Operating Officer in the development and use within the agency
of performance measures in personnel performance
appraisals, and, as appropriate, other agency personnel
and planning processes and assessments; and
‘‘(F) ensure that agency progress toward the achievement of all goals is communicated to leaders, managers,
and employees in the agency and Congress, and made
available on a public website of the agency.
‘‘(b) PERFORMANCE IMPROVEMENT COUNCIL.—
‘‘(1) ESTABLISHMENT.—There is established a Performance
Improvement Council, consisting of—
‘‘(A) the Deputy Director for Management of the Office
of Management and Budget, who shall act as chairperson
of the Council;
‘‘(B) the Performance Improvement Officer from each
agency defined in section 901(b) of this title;
‘‘(C) other Performance Improvement Officers as determined appropriate by the chairperson; and
‘‘(D) other individuals as determined appropriate by
the chairperson.
‘‘(2) FUNCTION.—The Performance Improvement Council
shall—
‘‘(A) be convened by the chairperson or the designee
of the chairperson, who shall preside at the meetings of
the Performance Improvement Council, determine its
agenda, direct its work, and establish and direct subgroups
of the Performance Improvement Council, as appropriate,
to deal with particular subject matters;
‘‘(B) assist the Director of the Office of Management
and Budget to improve the performance of the Federal
Government and achieve the Federal Government priority
goals;
‘‘(C) assist the Director of the Office of Management
and Budget in implementing the planning, reporting, and

H. R. 2142—15
use of performance information requirements related to
the Federal Government priority goals provided under sections 1115, 1120, 1121, and 1122 of this title;
‘‘(D) work to resolve specific Governmentwide or crosscutting performance issues, as necessary;
‘‘(E) facilitate the exchange among agencies of practices
that have led to performance improvements within specific
programs, agencies, or across agencies;
‘‘(F) coordinate with other interagency management
councils;
‘‘(G) seek advice and information as appropriate from
nonmember agencies, particularly smaller agencies;
‘‘(H) consider the performance improvement experiences of corporations, nonprofit organizations, foreign,
State, and local governments, Government employees,
public sector unions, and customers of Government services;
‘‘(I) receive such assistance, information and advice
from agencies as the Council may request, which agencies
shall provide to the extent permitted by law; and
‘‘(J) develop and submit to the Director of the Office
of Management and Budget, or when appropriate to the
President through the Director of the Office of Management
and Budget, at times and in such formats as the chairperson may specify, recommendations to streamline and
improve performance management policies and requirements.
‘‘(3) SUPPORT.—
‘‘(A) IN GENERAL.—The Administrator of General Services shall provide administrative and other support for
the Council to implement this section.
‘‘(B) PERSONNEL.—The heads of agencies with Performance Improvement Officers serving on the Council shall,
as appropriate and to the extent permitted by law, provide
at the request of the chairperson of the Performance
Improvement Council up to 2 personnel authorizations to
serve at the direction of the chairperson.’’.
SEC. 10. FORMAT OF PERFORMANCE PLANS AND REPORTS.

(a) SEARCHABLE, MACHINE-READABLE PLANS AND REPORTS.—
For fiscal year 2012 and each fiscal year thereafter, each agency
required to produce strategic plans, performance plans, and
performance updates in accordance with the amendments made
by this Act shall—
(1) not incur expenses for the printing of strategic plans,
performance plans, and performance reports for release external
to the agency, except when providing such documents to the
Congress;
(2) produce such plans and reports in searchable, machinereadable formats; and
(3) make such plans and reports available on the website
described under section 1122 of title 31, United States Code.
(b) WEB-BASED PERFORMANCE PLANNING AND REPORTING.—
(1) IN GENERAL.—Not later than June 1, 2012, the Director
of the Office of Management and Budget shall issue guidance
to agencies to provide concise and timely performance information for publication on the website described under section

H. R. 2142—16
1122 of title 31, United States Code, including, at a minimum,
all requirements of sections 1115 and 1116 of title 31, United
States Code, except for section 1115(e).
(2) HIGH-PRIORITY GOALS.—For agencies required to develop
agency priority goals under section 1120(b) of title 31, United
States Code, the performance information required under this
section shall be merged with the existing information required
under section 1122 of title 31, United States Code.
(3) CONSIDERATIONS.—In developing guidance under this
subsection, the Director of the Office of Management and
Budget shall take into consideration the experiences of agencies
in making consolidated performance planning and reporting
information available on the website as required under section
1122 of title 31, United States Code.
SEC.

11.

REDUCING
REPORTING.

DUPLICATIVE

AND

OUTDATED

AGENCY

(a) BUDGET CONTENTS.—Section 1105(a) of title 31, United
States Code, is amended—
(1) by redesignating second paragraph (33) as paragraph
(35); and
(2) by adding at the end the following:
‘‘(37) the list of plans and reports, as provided for under
section 1125, that agencies identified for elimination or consolidation because the plans and reports are determined outdated
or duplicative of other required plans and reports.’’.
(b) ELIMINATION OF UNNECESSARY AGENCY REPORTING.—
Chapter 11 of title 31, United States Code, is further amended
by adding after section 1124 (as added by section 9 of this Act)
the following:
‘‘§ 1125. Elimination of unnecessary agency reporting
‘‘(a) AGENCY IDENTIFICATION OF UNNECESSARY REPORTS.—
Annually, based on guidance provided by the Director of the Office
of Management and Budget, the Chief Operating Officer at each
agency shall—
‘‘(1) compile a list that identifies all plans and reports
the agency produces for Congress, in accordance with statutory
requirements or as directed in congressional reports;
‘‘(2) analyze the list compiled under paragraph (1), identify
which plans and reports are outdated or duplicative of other
required plans and reports, and refine the list to include only
the plans and reports identified to be outdated or duplicative;
‘‘(3) consult with the congressional committees that receive
the plans and reports identified under paragraph (2) to determine whether those plans and reports are no longer useful
to the committees and could be eliminated or consolidated
with other plans and reports; and
‘‘(4) provide a total count of plans and reports compiled
under paragraph (1) and the list of outdated and duplicative
reports identified under paragraph (2) to the Director of the
Office of Management and Budget.
‘‘(b) PLANS AND REPORTS.—
‘‘(1) FIRST YEAR.—During the first year of implementation
of this section, the list of plans and reports identified by each
agency as outdated or duplicative shall be not less than 10

H. R. 2142—17
percent of all plans and reports identified under subsection
(a)(1).
‘‘(2) SUBSEQUENT YEARS.—In each year following the first
year described under paragraph (1), the Director of the Office
of Management and Budget shall determine the minimum percent of plans and reports to be identified as outdated or duplicative on each list of plans and reports.
‘‘(c) REQUEST FOR ELIMINATION OF UNNECESSARY REPORTS.—
In addition to including the list of plans and reports determined
to be outdated or duplicative by each agency in the budget of
the United States Government, as provided by section 1105(a)(37),
the Director of the Office of Management and Budget may concurrently submit to Congress legislation to eliminate or consolidate
such plans and reports.’’.
SEC. 12. PERFORMANCE MANAGEMENT SKILLS AND COMPETENCIES.

(a) PERFORMANCE MANAGEMENT SKILLS AND COMPETENCIES.—
Not later than 1 year after the date of enactment of this Act,
the Director of the Office of Personnel Management, in consultation
with the Performance Improvement Council, shall identify the key
skills and competencies needed by Federal Government personnel
for developing goals, evaluating programs, and analyzing and using
performance information for the purpose of improving Government
efficiency and effectiveness.
(b) POSITION CLASSIFICATIONS.—Not later than 2 years after
the date of enactment of this Act, based on the identifications
under subsection (a), the Director of the Office of Personnel Management shall incorporate, as appropriate, such key skills and competencies into relevant position classifications.
(c) INCORPORATION INTO EXISTING AGENCY TRAINING.—Not later
than 2 years after the enactment of this Act, the Director of the
Office of Personnel Management shall work with each agency, as
defined under section 306(f) of title 5, United States Code, to
incorporate the key skills identified under subsection (a) into
training for relevant employees at each agency.
SEC. 13. TECHNICAL AND CONFORMING AMENDMENTS.

(a) The table of contents for chapter 3 of title 5, United States
Code, is amended by striking the item relating to section 306
and inserting the following:
‘‘306. Agency strategic plans.’’.

(b) The table of contents for chapter 11 of title 31, United
States Code, is amended by striking the items relating to section
1115 and 1116 and inserting the following:
‘‘1115. Federal Government and agency performance plans.
‘‘1116. Agency performance reporting.’’.

(c) The table of contents for chapter 11 of title 31, United
States Code, is amended by adding at the end the following:
‘‘1120.
‘‘1121.
‘‘1122.
‘‘1123.
‘‘1124.

Federal Government and agency priority goals.
Quarterly priority progress reviews and use of performance information.
Transparency of programs, priority goals, and results.
Chief Operating Officers.
Performance Improvement Officers and the Performance Improvement Council.
‘‘1125. Elimination of unnecessary agency reporting.’’.

H. R. 2142—18
SEC. 14. IMPLEMENTATION OF THIS ACT.

(a) INTERIM PLANNING AND REPORTING.—
(1) IN GENERAL.—The Director of the Office of Management
and Budget shall coordinate with agencies to develop interim
Federal Government priority goals and submit interim Federal
Government performance plans consistent with the requirements of this Act beginning with the submission of the fiscal
year 2013 Budget of the United States Government.
(2) REQUIREMENTS.—Each agency shall—
(A) not later than February 6, 2012, make adjustments
to its strategic plan to make the plan consistent with
the requirements of this Act;
(B) prepare and submit performance plans consistent
with the requirements of this Act, including the identification of agency priority goals, beginning with the performance plan for fiscal year 2013; and
(C) make performance reporting updates consistent
with the requirements of this Act beginning in fiscal year
2012.
(3) QUARTERLY REVIEWS.—The quarterly priority progress
reviews required under this Act shall begin—
(A) with the first full quarter beginning on or after
the date of enactment of this Act for agencies based on
the agency priority goals contained in the Analytical
Perspectives volume of the Fiscal Year 2011 Budget of
the United States Government; and
(B) with the quarter ending June 30, 2012 for the
interim Federal Government priority goals.
(b) GUIDANCE.—The Director of the Office of Management and
Budget shall prepare guidance for agencies in carrying out the
interim planning and reporting activities required under subsection
(a), in addition to other guidance as required for implementation
of this Act.
SEC. 15. CONGRESSIONAL OVERSIGHT AND LEGISLATION.

(a) IN GENERAL.—Nothing in this Act shall be construed as
limiting the ability of Congress to establish, amend, suspend, or
annul a goal of the Federal Government or an agency.
(b) GAO REVIEWS.—
(1) INTERIM PLANNING AND REPORTING EVALUATION.—Not
later than June 30, 2013, the Comptroller General shall submit
a report to Congress that includes—
(A) an evaluation of the implementation of the interim
planning and reporting activities conducted under section
14 of this Act; and
(B) any recommendations for improving implementation of this Act as determined appropriate.
(2) IMPLEMENTATION EVALUATIONS.—
(A) IN GENERAL.—The Comptroller General shall
evaluate the implementation of this Act subsequent to the
interim planning and reporting activities evaluated in the
report submitted to Congress under paragraph (1).
(B) AGENCY IMPLEMENTATION.—
(i) EVALUATIONS.—The Comptroller General shall
evaluate how implementation of this Act is affecting
performance management at the agencies described
in section 901(b) of title 31, United States Code,

H. R. 2142—19
including whether performance management is being
used by those agencies to improve the efficiency and
effectiveness of agency programs.
(ii) REPORTS.—The Comptroller General shall
submit to Congress—
(I) an initial report on the evaluation under
clause (i), not later than September 30, 2015; and
(II) a subsequent report on the evaluation
under clause (i), not later than September 30,
2017.
(C) FEDERAL GOVERNMENT PLANNING AND REPORTING
IMPLEMENTATION.—
(i) EVALUATIONS.—The Comptroller General shall
evaluate the implementation of the Federal Government priority goals, Federal Government performance
plans and related reporting required by this Act.
(ii) REPORTS.—The Comptroller General shall
submit to Congress—
(I) an initial report on the evaluation under
clause (i), not later than September 30, 2015; and
(II) subsequent reports on the evaluation
under clause (i), not later than September 30, 2017
and every 4 years thereafter.
(D) RECOMMENDATIONS.—The Comptroller General
shall include in the reports required by subparagraphs
(B) and (C) any recommendations for improving
implementation of this Act and for streamlining the planning and reporting requirements of the Government
Performance and Results Act of 1993.

Speaker of the House of Representatives.

Vice President of the United States and
President of the Senate.