31 U.S.C. § 1115: Federal Government and agency performance plans

establish Federal Government performance goals to define the level of performance to be achieved during the year in which the plan is submitted and the next fiscal year for each of the Federal Government priority goals required under section 1120(a) of this title ; identify the agencies, organizations, program activities, regulations, tax expenditures, policies, and other activities contributing to each Federal Government performance goal during the current fiscal year; not less than 1 shall be from the Executive Office of the President; and not less than 1 shall be from an agency identified as contributing to the Federal Government performance goal described in paragraph (2); overall progress toward each Federal Government performance goal; and the individual contribution of each agency, organization, program activity, regulation, tax expenditure, policy, and other activity identified under paragraph (2); establish clearly defined quarterly milestones; and identify major management challenges that are Governmentwide or crosscutting in nature and describe plans to address such challenges, including relevant performance goals, performance indicators, and milestones. establish performance goals to define the level of performance to be achieved during the year in which the plan is submitted and the next fiscal year; express such goals in an objective, quantifiable, and measurable form unless authorized to be in an alternative form under subsection (c); the general goals and objectives established in the agency’s strategic plan required by section 306(a)(2) of title 5 ; and any of the Federal Government performance goals established in the Federal Government performance plan required by subsection (a)(1); identify among the performance goals those which are designated as agency priority goals as required by section 1120(b) of this title , if applicable; the human capital, training, data and evidence, information technology, and skill sets required to meet the performance goals; the technology modernization investments, system upgrades, staff technology skills and expertise, stakeholder input and feedback, and other resources and strategies needed and required to meet the performance goals; clearly defined milestones; an identification of the organizations, program activities, regulations, policies, operational processes, and other activities that contribute to each performance goal, both within and external to the agency; a description of how the agency is working with other agencies and the organizations identified in subparagraph (D) to measure and achieve its performance goals as well as relevant Federal Government performance goals; and an identification of the agency officials responsible for the achievement of each performance goal, who shall be known as goal leaders; establish a balanced set of performance indicators to be used in measuring or assessing progress toward each performance goal, including, as appropriate, customer service, efficiency, output, and outcome indicators; provide a basis for comparing actual program results with the established performance goals; the means to be used to verify and validate measured values; the sources for the data; the level of accuracy required for the intended use of the data; any limitations to the data at the required level of accuracy; and how the agency will compensate for such limitations if needed to reach the required level of accuracy; planned actions to address such challenges; performance goals, performance indicators, and milestones to measure progress toward resolving such challenges; and the agency official responsible for resolving such challenges; and identify low-priority program activities based on an analysis of their contribution to the mission and goals of the agency and include an evidence-based justification for designating a program activity as low priority. a minimally effective program; and a successful program; or such alternative as authorized by the Director of the Office of Management and Budget, with sufficient precision and in such terms that would allow for an accurate, independent determination of whether the program activity’s performance meets the criteria of the description; or state why it is infeasible or impractical to express a performance goal in any form for the program activity. For the purpose of complying with this section, an agency may aggregate, disaggregate, or consolidate program activities, except that any aggregation or consolidation may not omit or minimize the significance of any program activity constituting a major function or operation for the agency. is specifically authorized under criteria established by an Executive order to be kept secret in the interest of national defense or foreign policy; and is properly classified pursuant to such Executive order. The functions and activities of this section shall be considered to be inherently governmental functions. The drafting of performance plans under this section shall be performed only by Federal employees. The Performance Improvement Officer of each agency (or the functional equivalent) shall collaborate with the Chief Human Capital Officer (or the functional equivalent), the Chief Information Officer (or the functional equivalent), the Chief Data Officer (or the functional equivalent), and the Chief Financial Officer (or the functional equivalent) of that agency to prepare that portion of the annual performance plan described under subsection (b)(5) for that agency. “agency” has the same meaning as such term is defined under section 306(f) of title 5 ; “crosscutting” means across organizational (such as agency) boundaries; “customer service measure” means an assessment of service delivery to a customer, client, citizen, or other recipient, which can include an assessment of quality, timeliness, and satisfaction among other factors; “efficiency measure” means a ratio of a program activity’s inputs (such as costs or hours worked by employees) to its outputs (amount of products or services delivered) or outcomes (the desired results of a program); “major management challenge” means programs or management functions, within or across agencies, that have greater vulnerability to waste, fraud, abuse, and mismanagement (such as issues identified by the Government Accountability Office as high risk or issues identified by an Inspector General) where a failure to perform well could seriously affect the ability of an agency or the Government to achieve its mission or goals; “milestone” means a scheduled event signifying the completion of a major deliverable or a set of related deliverables or a phase of work; “outcome measure” means an assessment of the results of a program activity compared to its intended purpose; “output measure” means the tabulation, calculation, or recording of activity or effort that can be expressed in a quantitative or qualitative manner; “performance goal” means a target level of performance expressed as a tangible, measurable objective, against which actual achievement can be compared, including a goal expressed as a quantitative standard, value, or rate; “performance indicator” means a particular value or characteristic used to measure output or outcome; “program activity” means a specific activity or project as listed in the program and financing schedules of the annual budget of the United States Government; and “program evaluation” means an assessment, through objective measurement and systematic analysis, of the manner and extent to which Federal programs achieve intended objectives. not incur expenses for the printing of strategic plans, performance plans, and performance reports for release external to the agency, except when providing such documents to the Congress; produce such plans and reports in searchable, machine-readable formats; and make such plans and reports available on a website described in section 1122 of title 31 , United States Code. Not later than June 1, 2012 , the Director of the Office of Management and Budget shall issue guidance to agencies to provide concise and timely performance information for publication on a website described in section 1122 of title 31 , United States Code, including, at a minimum, all requirements of sections 1115 and 1116 of title 31, United States Code, except for section 1115(e). For agencies required to develop agency priority goals under section 1120(b) of title 31 , United States Code, the performance information required under this section shall be merged with the existing information required under section 1122 of title 31 , United States Code. In developing guidance under this subsection, the Director of the Office of Management and Budget shall take into consideration the experiences of agencies in making consolidated performance planning and reporting information available on a website described in section 1122 of title 31 , United States Code.” The Director of the Office of Management and Budget shall coordinate with agencies to develop interim Federal Government priority goals and submit interim Federal Government performance plans consistent with the requirements of this Act [see Short Title of 2011 Amendment note set out under section 1101 of this title ] beginning with the submission of the fiscal year 2013 Budget of the United States Government. not later than February 6, 2012 , make adjustments to its strategic plan to make the plan consistent with the requirements of this Act; prepare and submit performance plans consistent with the requirements of this Act, including the identification of agency priority goals, beginning with the performance plan for fiscal year 2013; and make performance reporting updates consistent with the requirements of this Act beginning in fiscal year 2012. with the first full quarter beginning on or after the date of enactment of this Act [ Jan. 4, 2011 ] for agencies based on the agency priority goals contained in the Analytical Perspectives volume of the Fiscal Year 2011 Budget of the United States Government; and with the quarter ending June 30, 2012 for the interim Federal Government priority goals. The Director of the Office of Management and Budget shall prepare guidance for agencies in carrying out the interim planning and reporting activities required under subsection (a), in addition to other guidance as required for implementation of this Act.” Nothing in this Act [see Short Title of 2011 Amendment note set out under section 1101 of this title ] shall be construed as limiting the ability of Congress to establish, amend, suspend, or annul a goal of the Federal Government or an agency. an evaluation of the implementation of the interim planning and reporting activities conducted under section 14 of this Act [set out as a note above]; and any recommendations for improving implementation of this Act as determined appropriate. The Comptroller General shall evaluate the implementation of this Act subsequent to the interim planning and reporting activities evaluated in the report submitted to Congress under paragraph (1). The Comptroller General shall evaluate how implementation of this Act is affecting performance management at the agencies described in section 901(b) of title 31 , United States Code, including whether performance management is being used by those agencies to improve the efficiency and effectiveness of agency programs. an initial report on the evaluation under clause (i), not later than September 30, 2015 ; and a subsequent report on the evaluation under clause (i), not later than September 30, 2017 . The Comptroller General shall evaluate the implementation of the Federal Government priority goals, Federal Government performance plans and related reporting required by this Act. an initial report on the evaluation under clause (i), not later than September 30, 2015 ; and subsequent reports on the evaluation under clause (i), not later than September 30, 2017 and every 4 years thereafter. The Comptroller General shall include in the reports required by subparagraphs (B) and (C) any recommendations for improving implementation of this Act and for streamlining the planning and reporting requirements of the Government Performance and Results Act of 1993 [ Pub. L. 103–62 , Aug. 3, 1993 , 107 Stat. 285 ; see Short Title of 1993 Amendment note set out under section 1101 of this title ].”