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Government Accountability Office, Review of Comptroller General Position Structure and Compensation (posted 4/24/2009)
Government Accountability Office
The Comptroller General (CG) is the head of the Government Accountability Office (GAO), an independent legislative branch agency founded in 1921 to ensure the fiscal and managerial accountability of the federal government. The CG is responsible for GAO’s performance of a number of significant functions, including examining the use of federal funds; evaluating federal programs and activities; investigating allegations of illegal and improper actions in federal programs and activities; and providing information, analysis, and other assistance to help Congress perform its work. In addition, the CG is responsible for issuing legal decisions and opinions concerning the obligation and expenditure of appropriated funds, as well as adjudicating bid protests to resolve allegations that contracting agencies have violated federal procurement law.
A CG who completes the full 15-year term, or, in certain circumstances, serves 10 years, may receive an annuity for life equal to the pay the CG is receiving on completion of the term. These annuity provisions have been in place since 1953. In designing this unique annuity, Congress considered the character of the office, comparing the CG position to that of federal judges and viewing the regular civil service retirement benefits as inadequate for individuals serving as CG. Key considerations included the quasi-judicial nature of aspects of the CG’s position, the requirement to attract and retain well-qualified individuals to the position, and the need to protect the CG’s independence from political pressures of any kind.
The Joint Explanatory Statement accompanying the Omnibus Appropriations Act of 2009 includes a provision directing GAO to contract with the National Academy of Public Administration to conduct an independent review of the structure and compensation of the Comptroller General’s position to determine whether the existing lifetime salary annuity is necessary to preserve the Comptroller General’s independence. The review will include a comparison of the Comptroller General’s annuity to the retirement benefits of other federal positions of a similar character where attracting, retaining, and ensuring the independence of a highly qualified candidate are important concerns. In addition, comparisons will be sought with similar positions that may be identified in the public, private, and international sectors. A final report will be completed and provided to the Congress by July 31, 2009.
The Academy plans to appoint the following individuals to a Panel to oversee and direct the study. The public may comment by email on the composition of the Panel for a period of seven days after the posted date. Please send comments to Rick Cinquegrana at rcinq@napawash.org.
Edwin L. Harper, Chair*—Senior Vice President, Public Affairs/Government Relations, Assurant, Inc; Former Senior Vice President, Public Affairs and Government Relations, Fortis, Inc; Chief Operating Officer and Chief Financial Officer for Fortis subsidiaries; Vice Chairman, Commodore Applied Technologies; President and Chief Executive Officer, Association of American Railroads; Co-Chief Executive Officer, Executive Vice President, and Chief Financial Officer, Campbell Soup Company; Member, White House Domestic Council; Special Assistant to the President of the United States; Assistant to the President for Policy Development, The White House; Deputy Director, U.S. Office of Management and Budget.
Janice LaChance*—Chief Executive Officer, Special Libraries Association; Former Management Consultant, Analytica; Director, Deputy Director, Chief of Staff, Director of Communications and Policy, U.S. Office of Personnel Management; Director of Communications, Congressional and Political Affairs, American Federation of Government Employees, AFL-CIO; Communications Director, U.S. Representative Tom Daschle; Administrative Assistant, U.S. Representative Katie Hall; Staff Director and Counsel, Subcommittee on Antitrust and Restraint of Trade, House Committee on Small Business, U.S. House of Representatives; Legislative Assistant, U.S. Representative Jim Mattox.
Thomas F. Reilly*—Director and Professor, School of Social Work, San Diego State University; Former Vice President, Community Reinvestment and Social Responsibility, Harrah's Entertainment, Inc.; Adjunct Professor, Department of Public Administration, University of Nevada at Las Vegas; Former Vice Chancellor, University of Nevada Health Sciences Center; County Manager, Clark County (Las Vegas), Nevada; Associate Professor, University of Nevada, Las Vegas; Director, Administrative Services, Clark County, Nevada; Former positions with the State of Nevada: Deputy Administrator, Division of Child and Family Services; Chief of Social Services; Policy Analyst, Department of Human Resources.
Anthony A. Williams*—Chief Executive Officer, Public Properties Realty Investment Trust, Inc; Former positions with Government of the District of Columbia: Mayor; Chief Financial Officer; Chief Financial Officer, U.S. Department of Agriculture; Deputy State Comptroller, State of Connecticut; Executive Director, Community Development Agency, St. Louis, Missouri; Assistant Director, Boston Redevelopment Authority.
Henry Wray—Visiting Scholar, Mercatus Center, George Mason University; Senior Counsel, Subcommittee on Government Efficiency, Financial Management, and Intergovernmental Relations, Government Reform Committee, U.S. House of Representatives; Counsel, Governmental Affairs Committee, U.S. Senate; Staff Member, Budget and Government Reform Committees, U.S. House of Representatives; Governmental Affairs Committee, U.S. Senate; Former positions with the U.S. Government Accountability Office: Ethics Counselor; Senior Associate General Counsel, Office of the General Counsel; Director, Administration of Justice Issues, General Government Division (responsible for audits of the Justice and Treasury Departments and the Federal Judiciary); Deputy Attorney General, Department of Justice, Commonwealth of Pennsylvania.
* Academy Fellow
Meeting 1: Thursday, April 30, 2009, 9:00 am
Subsequent meetings to be determined.
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