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National Academy
of Public Administration's 2005 Annual Report to Congress
ACADEMY PROJECT SUMMARY
FOR FISCAL YEAR 2005
This document provides a summary of key Academy projects and activities that took place during Fiscal Year 2005, from October 1, 2004 to September 30, 2005.
CONGRESSIONALLY REQUESTED STUDIES
The Academy's congressional charter requires that, ".whenever called upon by Congress, or the federal government, (the Academy) will investigate, examine, experiment and report upon any subject of government." Congressional committees request many of the Academy's studies, which give Members, their staff and agency officials actionable recommendations focused on solving governance and administrative challenges. Among the studies initiated or completed in Fiscal Year 2005:
Completed Studies
National Aeronautics and Space Administration
The NASA Flexibility Act of 2004 included report language that directed the National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) to have the Academy study strategic human capital management issues related to the Act and the agency's strategic leadership program. In addition, the Senate Veterans Affairs, Housing and Urban Development and Independent Agencies Appropriations Subcommittee (now under the jurisdiction of the Senate Commerce, Justice, Science and Related Agencies Appropriations Subcommittee) and NASA asked the Academy to address organizational structure, management and performance issues in the context of strategic human capital management.
An Academy's February 2005 report, NASA: Human Capital Flexibilities for the 21st Century Workforce, examined various aspects of NASA's new flexibilities, including the business process used to implement them, the metrics established to evaluate their usefulness and the communication strategies used to inform employees and stakeholders about them. The Academy Panel, chaired by James Colvard, recommended ways to improve each area and proposed a series of actions to improve the strategic human capital management planning process. Specifically, the Panel recommended that NASA seek legislation to remove the 25 percent limit on the total amount of recruiting and retention bonuses that can be provided to supervisors and managers.
National Marine Fisheries Service
At the request of the House Commerce, Justice, State, Judiciary and Related Agencies Appropriation Subcommittee (currently the House Science, State, Commerce, Justice and Related Agencies Appropriations Subcommittee) the Academy reviewed actions taken by the National Marine Fisheries Service (NMFS) in response to a 2002 Academy report that recommended incremental improvements to the existing fisheries management system. A February 2005 staff report, Improving Fisheries Management: Actions Taken in Response to the Academy's 2002 Report, concluded that NMFS has taken considerable steps to develop and implement new approaches to improve fishery management decisions, priority-setting and resource allocation, and interactions with constituencies and partners. However, the agency's ability to implement all of its planned changes, especially given what agency officials see as limited resources, will depend on continued support from Congress and the Administration, key partners and constituencies and NMFS' own leadership. Academy staff provided testimony for the written record outlining the report before the House Resource Subcommittee on Fisheries and Oceans on April 14, 2005.
Federal Bureau of Investigation
An Academy Panel, chaired by former U.S. Attorney General Richard Thornburgh, continued its review of the Federal Bureau of Investigation's (FBI) transformation, including divisional reorganizations and major process, personnel and cultural changes. The Panel has conducted this work at the request of the House Science, State, Commerce, Justice and Related Agencies Appropriations Subcommittee for the past four years.
- The Panel's February 2005 report, Transforming the FBI: Progress and Challenges, reviewed the FBI's progress in strengthening its counterterrorism, intelligence and security programs. The Panel found significant progress, but that the lag in developing effective information technology capabilities is adversely affecting management functions and the pace of transformation. The Panel recommended that the FBI continue to be the key domestic intelligence agency responsible for terrorism, counterintelligence, cyber and transnational crimes and other top national security threats; that joint operations with federal, state and local authorities should expand beyond counterterrorism issues to other critical law enforcement activities; and that the Challenges, reviewed the FBI's progress in strengthening its counterterrorism, intelligence and security programs. The Panel found significant progress, but that the lag in developing effective information technology capabilities is adversely affecting management functions and the pace of transformation. The Panel recommended that the FBI continue to be the key domestic intelligence agency responsible for terrorism, counterintelligence, cyber and transnational crimes and other top national security threats; that joint operations with federal, state and local authorities should expand beyond counterterrorism issues to other critical law enforcement activities; and that the FBI place increased emphasis on a wide range of human resources needs.
- The Panel's September 2005 report, Transforming
the FBI: Roadmap to an Effective Human Capital Program,
examined the FBI's long-term resource planning and human
resource activities. Challenges in the system include the
lack of a focal point for human capital policies and programs;
no systematic process to plan for intermediate or long-term
workforce needs; an inadequate succession planning and leadership
development strategy that has resulted in excessive executive
turnover; a slow, cumbersome and costly hiring process;
slow progress in implementing new personnel authorities;
limited career paths for support personnel; the need for
upgrading and expansion of the FBI's Quantico Training Facility;
and a limited work-life program. Panel Chair Thornburgh
appeared before the House Science, State, Commerce, Justice
and Related Agencies Appropriation Subcommittee on September
14, 2005, and offered the Panel's 10-step roadmap to address
these critical challenges.
U.S. Patent and Trademark Office
The House Commerce, Justice, State, Judiciary and Related Agencies Appropriation Subcommittee (currently the House Science, State, Commerce, Justice and Related Agencies Appropriations Subcommittee) and U.S. Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO) asked the Academy to review USPTO's organizational structure and work processes. An Academy Panel, chaired by Thomas Stanton, issued an August 2005 report, U.S. Patent and Trademark Office: Transforming to Meet the Challenges of the 21st Century. The Panel reviewed the structure and processes to help ensure that USPTO is making progress in meeting its workload challenges, implementing its strategic plan and progressing on the path to transformation. It found that without the ability to adjust resources to workload, USPTO cannot efficiently respond to higher volumes of patent applications or new skill needs for staff. As a self-sustaining federal entity that performs a direct service for paying customers, USPTO must be able to function like a business and report to Congress. As a result, the Panel recommended that Congress create a U.S. Patent and Trademark Corporation as a wholly owned government entity under the policy direction of the Secretary of Commerce.
Ongoing Work
At the request of the Senate Veterans Affairs, Housing and Urban Development and Independent Agencies Appropriations Subcommittee (now under the jurisdiction of the Senate Labor, Health and Human Services, Education and Related Agencies Appropriation Subcommittee), the Academy undertook a year-long review of the Corporation for National and Community Service. William Hamm chaired the Panel overseeing the study, which has four components: leadership and management; organization and program structure; human resources management; and state and local stakeholder interaction. This study followed up on Academy Panel recommendations made in a 1997 report.
The Academy is pleased to continue its work with the FBI at the request of the House Science, State, Commerce, Justice and Related Agencies Appropriations Subcommittee. The Academy Panel will continue to review the FBI's management structure, including the new Office of Intelligence; long-term resource planning and budgeting; bureau-wide human resources management; and options for enhancing the FBI's field structure in light of changing mission priorities.
At the request of the Senate Veterans Affairs, Housing and Urban Development and Independent Agencies Appropriations Subcommittee (now under the jurisdiction of the Senate Commerce, Justice, Science and Related Agencies Appropriations Subcommittee), the Academy will provide research and analytical support, expert advice, and recommendations to NASA's transformation. An Academy Panel, chaired by Sallyanne Harper, will assist NASA in the development of workforce strategies for civil servants and contractors to transition from the Space Shuttle program to the Vision for Space Exploration; complete its review of the agency's methodology for determining the appropriate mix of civil servants and contractors; and review organizational, programmatic and personnel structures established to implement the Vision for Space Exploration.
Off-shoring
At the request of the House Science, State, Commerce, Justice and Related Agencies Appropriations Subcommittee, the Academy is reviewing data on off-shoring jobs to other countries to assess its adequacy for judging the extent and impact of off-shoring, as well as identify data gaps and possible strategies for filling these gaps. An Academy Panel, chaired by Janet Norwood, has been examining the following questions:
- How should "job off-shoring" be defined?
- What do currently
available data indicate about the extent of U.S. job off-shoring?
- What additional data are needed to provide a more complete
assessment of U.S. job off-shoring?
- What factors account
for current U.S. job off-shoring?
- What are the major impacts
of job off-shoring on U.S. workers, the workplace and the
educational system?
OTHER ACADEMY STUDIES AND ACTIVITIES
An Academy Panel, chaired by Thomas Stanton, released an October 2004 report, Grid West: An Assessment of the Proposed Governance Structure, which concluded a study of the Bonneville Power Administration's proposed governance structure for Grid West. The Panel assessed the proposed structure, which is designed to improve reliability and efficiency of transmission operations. The Panel found divergent views among regional stakeholders about the best approach the increased public concern about the reliability, security, and effectiveness of the nation's electric power system and recommended that any structure must be accountable, workable and cost effective.
An Academy Panel, chaired by Costis Toregas, released Technology Transfer: Bringing Innovation to NASA and the Nation in November 2004. The report concluded a study of NASA's technology transfer programs. The Panel found that NASA's technology transfer network is not as successful as it could be in obtaining technology to meet mission requirements and identifying commercial opportunities for NASA-generated innovations. It also found that organizational changes, budget difficulties, lack of program focus and a significant increase in privately-funded research and development require the agency to rethink how it organizes and administers the function. The Panel recommended that technology transfer be a core element of NASA's mission, and proposed a package of improvements--including leadership commitment, a reformulated network and performance standards--to provide benefits to NASA and the nation.
At the request of the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development's (HUD) office of Community Planning and Development, an Academy Panel reviewed and developed performance measures for the Community Development Block Grant Program (CDBG).
- An Academy Panel, chaired by Nicolas Retsinas, released
a February 2005 report, Developing Performance Measures
for the Community Development Block Grant Program, which
provides a step-by-step review of CDBG performance measurement
and issues surrounding the development of performance indicators
acceptable to stakeholders and useful to citizens as they
assess how effectively their tax dollars are spent.
Panel member Thomas Downs appeared before the House Government Reform Subcommittee on Federalism and the Census on May 24, 2005 and testified that the Panel recommended various performance indicators to satisfy both the Office of Management and Budget's Program Assessment Review Tool and requirements under the Government Performance Results Act. The Panel believed that these indicators were useful to entitlement communities and states in tracking performance and managing programs at the local level and could serve as a model for other federal block grant programs.
- A February 2005 Academy staff report, Integrating CDBG Performance Measures into IDIS, recommended ways to improve HUD's Integrated Disbursement and Information System (IDIS). The staff found that HUD's electronic management information systems and databases have created frustration among stakeholders with respect to performance. It recommended reengineering IDIS to correct system shortcomings, begin to process data that yield more complete and accurate results and include performance measurement.
At the request of the Environmental Protection Agency's (EPA) Office of Environmental Information, the Academy facilitated the Environmental Information Consortium, which consisted of a broad-based coalition of businesses, environmental activists, states and information technology experts. In June 2005, the Consortium released An Integrated Facility Identification System: Key to Effective Management of Environmental Information at the Environmental Protection Agency, which reviewed the ways environmental data are reported, collected, recorded, stored, managed and shared. The Consortium recommended that EPA increase the accuracy and usefulness of its data on regulated facilities, and urged the agency to establish a single master file system for data identifying federally regulated facilities.
An Academy Panel, chaired by Ralph Bledsoe, released Effective Administrative Restructuring: Lessons from the NIH Experience in September 2005. The report concluded a study of the National Institute of Health's (NIH) administrative reforms. The Academy Panel stressed the importance of integrating the many change efforts to support the agency mission and identified six broad lessons critical to implementing any significant administrative reform.
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