“The President Needs Help:  Proposed Office of Federal Management” by Ronald C. Moe

Download Report

Executive Summary

When the new President takes office in January 2009, he will be made aware, at some level, of the three decade debate over whether or not the Office of Management and Budget (OMB) is doing an effective job of managing the executive branch in the President’s interests.

In recent decades OMB has gradually abdicated a number of its management responsibilities.  This process has been partly the result of change in the agency’s management philosophy and partly a response to decreasing resources and, according to some observers, greater politicization over the years. Whatever the underlying cause, the consequences are increasingly evident.

The presidency as an institution fully retains its capacity to protect its interests on political matters.  This is not the case, however, with respect to matters of executive management.  The contemporary presidency has been steadily losing its capacity to lead the executive branch on a day-to-day basis, in large measure because of the absence of an institutional presence to project and protect the President’s interests in government operations.  It is not enough to rely on the budget process or on the Government Performance and Results Act as a surrogate for hands-on management judgment.  Nor can ad-hoc groups within the Executive Office (e.g., President’s Management Council) or interagency committees substitute for permanent and predictable management leadership, properly defined and understood.  The challenge is how to equip the President with institutional support to meet his managerial responsibilities in the 21st century.

The proposal to establish a separate Office of Federal Management (OFM) has a long history.  The first time it was proposed and discussed was in a National Academy of Public Administration (NAPA) report in 1983, to be followed by other reports and scholarly writings.  Several bills to this effect have been introduced in recent Congresses and were the subject of hearings.

This issue paper includes two appendices.  The first is a legislative proposal for the Office in the form of a bill followed by the second, which is a description of functions that would be included in the congressional committee report accompanying the legislation.  The proposal is, of course, a draft to initiate a detailed discussion of the subject.  The political process will work its will and the final product may prove quite different.  This is, however, an appropriate starting point.

Related Resources

EOM Panel Minutes:
Topic presented at EOM Panel on November 15, 2006 and at the EOM Panel on February 16, 2007

Associated Presentation Materials:
Office of Federal Management: Functions and Authorities by Ronald C. Moe

Other Related NAPA Materials:
Cheney Memo: Proposed Office of Federal Management by William Clinger

Hearing on an Office of Management, presented by Dwight Ink before the Subcommittee on Government Management, Information and Technology, February, 1999. Testimony on Institutionalizing the Office of Management Function of the OMB, presented by G. Edward Deseve before the House Subcommittee on Government Management, Information, and Technology, February 4, 1999

Testimony on Institutionalizing the Office of Management Function of the OMB, presented by Ronald C. Moe before the House Subcommittee on Government Management, Information, and Technology, February 4, 1999.

Testimony on Institutionalizing the Office of Management Function of the OMB, presented by Herbert N. Jasper before the House Subcommittee on Government Management, Information, and Technology, February 4, 1999.