US Senators Want Federal Programs Published on Central Website

A group of United States Senators are calling on the White House Office of Management and Budget (OMB) to make a list of all federal programs publicly available on a central government-wide website in order to identify and eliminate program waste and duplication.

Providing a comprehensive list of these federal programs “is critical to helping Congress make informed budgetary decisions and ensuring that we are able to identify – and take appropriate steps to eliminate – duplication, fragmentation, and overlap in federal programs,” the senators wrote in a letter published last week.  This list “is a key component of ongoing efforts to improve the federal budgeting process, including by better incorporating performance metrics into budget decision-making.”

Georgia’s junior U.S. Senator, David Perdue, joined the bipartisan initiative.

According to a press release from Perdue’s office:

The Government Performance and Results Modernization Act of 2010 requires OMB to issue guidance to agencies for implementing the inventory requirement and identifying information about each program for publication. An initial program inventory published by OMB in May 2013 had 1,524 programs, but in October 2014, the Government Accountability Office (GAO) found that the 2013 effort had fallen short. GAO made a number of recommendations to OMB to update relevant guidance, develop a more coherent picture of all federal programs, and better ensure information is useful for decision-makers. These recommendations remain open.

The senators are specifically seeking a timeline and strategy update from OMB with regard to program inventory. They also are requesting information about the process OMB is using in its approach to developing a federal program inventory.

The bipartisan group, led by Senate Budget Committee Chairman Mike Enzi (R-WY) and Senator James Lankford (R-OK), also includes:

• Senators John Kennedy (R-LA)
• Mike Braun (R-IN)
• Mike Crapo (R-ID)
• Mitt Romney (R-UT)
• Kevin Cramer (R-ND)
• Kyrsten Sinema (D-AZ)
• Ron Johnson (R-WI)
• Pat Toomey (R-PA)
• Rick Scott (R-FL)
• Maggie Hassan (D-NH)
• Mark Warner (D-VA)
• Gary Peters (D-MI)
• Lindsey Graham (R-SC)
• Chuck Grassley (R-IA).

The letter is below.