GPRA Modernization Act of 2010

The GPRA Modernization Act of 2010 (Pub. L. 111-352) is essentially an amendment to the Government Performance and Results Act of 1993.  Its primary intent is to ensure better use of the GPRA-mandated plans and performance information in the ongoing management of federal agencies and programs.  Underlying its enactment was a concern both within Congress and at the Office of Management and Budget (OMB) that while agencies had been generating a lot of good planning documents and reporting results under GPRA, these same agencies made been making insufficient use of that information to actually manage their programs.

On August 17, 2011 the OMB Director and the Deputy Director for Management issued OMB Memorandum M-11-31, Delivering an Efficient, Effective, and Accountable Government.  The memorandum is the official OMB guidance to federal agencies on implementation of the GPRA Modernization Act of 2010.  These requirements include actions relating to the objectives of Federal performance management, the roles and responsibilities of performance leaders, setting agency priority goals, and providing annual reports on performance progress.

The OMB memorandum states that the objectives of Federal performance management are:

• Effective government that improves the outcomes that agencies are trying to achieve
• Efficient, productive government that continually pushes for lower-cost ways to achieve the results
• Open and transparent government that uses goals and measures to inform the public about what government is trying to accomplish and how well it is doing
• Fair, equitable, and honest government

The memorandum describes the primary responsibilities of the agency's core perforamnce management leadership as being to:

1. Set and communicate both near-term and long-term goals, distinguishing those that are Agency Priority Goals
2. Assure that timely, actionable performance information is available to decision-makers at all levels of the organization
3. Conduct frequent data-driven progress reviews that guide actions to improve outcomes and reduce costs, and that include key personnel from other program and agencies which contribute to the accomplishment of the goals

The OMB memordandum requires the agency's Chief Operating Officer (COO) and Performance Improvement Officer (PIO) to:

1. Ensure that the agency has clear and ambitious goals both to improve results and to reduce costs
2. Designate a goal leader responsible for each goal, including both mission-focused goals and savings and management goals
3. Conduct quarterly data-driven, progress reviews on priority and other goals
4. Implement actions to improve efficiency and results, and reduce waste
5. Ensure transparency of performance information to increase accountability and results, including to field operations and program delivery partners
6. Instill a performance and efficiency culture to inspire continual improvement, with a focus on motivating managers and employees at all levels of the organization to find ways to improve outcomes and reduce operating costs