OMB's High Risk Program: Benefits Found but Greater Oversight Needed
AFMD-92-63
Published: Aug 06, 1992. Publicly Released: Sep 21, 1992.
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Highlights
Pursuant to a congressional request, GAO reviewed the Office of Management and Budget's (OMB) high-risk program, focusing on: (1) the involvement of high-level government officials in the program; (2) the accuracy of program progress and status information presented in the President's fiscal year 1993 budget; and (3) OMB general management, organization, staffing, and recordkeeping practices for the program.
Recommendations
Recommendations for Executive Action
| Agency Affected | Recommendation | Status |
|---|---|---|
| Office of Management and Budget | To strengthen OMB management of and reporting on program progress, the Director, OMB, should require agencies to supply documentation supporting their reported progress and reemphasize to OMB staff responsible for individual high-risk areas the need to independently confirm agency-reported progress, such as by referring to recent work by the inspectors general and GAO. |
Closed – Implemented
OMB's verification process has been expanded to include contacting GAO issue area directors. OMB's 1992 FMFIA guidance requires agencies to provide information on corrective actions taken and agency validation processes and results indicators if the item is corrected. New OMB procedures issued in June 1992 also emphasize GAO's recommendation.
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| Office of Management and Budget | To strengthen OMB management of and reporting on program progress, the Director, OMB, should differentiate in the budget, possibly through the use of additional status codes, between those areas deleted with no material weaknesses remaining and those areas deleted that continue to have material weaknesses and that OMB has directed to the agency to report under the Federal Managers' Financial Integrity Act of 1982. |
Closed – Implemented
The President's budget (January 1993 version) indicates on page 195 that OMB plans to do this. However, at the time the budget was prepared, there were no high-risk areas in this category.
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| Office of Management and Budget | To strengthen OMB management of and reporting on program progress, the Director, OMB, should designate a core staff of several individuals with full-time responsibilities for overseeing OMB staff and agency efforts on the high-risk program. |
Closed – Implemented
OMB does not agree with the core staff concept. However, it did assign an additional FTE to the unit that manages the high-risk program. Furthermore, OMB requested additional staff for the management area but the FTE were not authorized. GAO believes that increased OMB commitment under the current staffing freeze is sufficient action to close this recommendation.
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Budget controllabilityCivil auditsFinancial managementInteragency relationsPresidential budgetsProgram managementPublic officialsRecordsReporting requirementsRisk management