2006 Oct. 13 / Administration of William J. Clinton, 1994

of the Federal Government to follow and is ment for an audited consolidated financial a victory for American taxpayers. report is a step in achieving this goal. To ad- William J. Clinton vance the process of accountability, I have requested that the Secretary of the Treasury, The White House, with the Director of the Office of Manage- October 13, 1994. ment and Budget (OMB), also produce an NOTE: H.R. 4217, approved October 13, was as- Annual Accountability Report to the Citizens signed Public Law No. 103–354. in 1995, as recommended by the Vice Presi- dent in the NPR report. The Accountability Report will be a straightforward description Statement on Signing the of the money spent and its effects on achiev- Government Management Reform ing results. Act of 1994 Measuring results is an important manage- October 13, 1994 ment goal of this Administration. The finan- cial statements promise to be an excellent Today I have signed into law S. 2170, the tool for providing agency performance and ‘‘Government Management Reform Act of financial data, so we can have a closer look 1994.’’ at results and whether Government indeed In September of last year, Vice President works better and costs less. Gore and his team at the National Perform- S. 2170 contains a number of other signifi- ance Review (NPR) stated this simple fact cant provisions. These include: the establish- in their report entitled, ‘‘From Red Tape to ment of pilot programs to create franchising Results’’: operations that will consolidate administra- ‘‘Management isn’t about guessing, it’s tive support services, improve competition, about knowing. Those in positions of re- sponsibility must have the information and cut costs; expansion of the use of elec- they need to make good decisions. Good tronic funds transfers for Federal payments; managers have the right information at and authority for the OMB Director to their fingertips. Poor managers don’t.’’ streamline management reporting to the By passing the Government Management Congress. Reform Act of 1994, which is largely based The Franchise Fund Pilot Program au- on ideas developed by the NPR, the Con- thorized by this Act will create internal mar- gress has helped ensure that the Federal kets through ‘‘franchising’’ common adminis- Government’s managers will have the finan- trative support services to many agencies so cial information and flexibility they need to the service providers may compete with one make sound policy decisions and manage re- another. Injecting competition and market sources. forces into the delivery of these services will The Act expands the coverage initially reduce duplication, lower overhead costs, mandated by the Chief Financial Officers Act and better serve the American people. so that 24 major Government departments Starting on January 1, 1995, S. 2170 pro- and agencies will now provide annual audited motes the use of direct deposit through elec- financial reports of all their activities, spend- tronic funds transfer for Federal wages, sala- ing, and revenues. Not later than 1998, the ries, and retirement payments. The costs of Federal Government will produce a consoli- disbursing money electronically are consider- dated financial statement covering virtually ably less than the costs of printing, mailing, all of the $1.5 trillion annual budget authority and processing paper checks. of the Government and the revenues it re- The Act also provides tools to the OMB ceives. Director to consolidate and streamline man- The NPR report also stated that ‘‘we be- agement reporting processes. In particular, lieve Americans deserve numbers they can the Director will have the flexibility to deter- trust’’ and recommended that the Federal mine the most meaningful timing and pres- Government provide an annual accountabil- entation of financial management reports ity report to our citizens. This Act’s require- from agencies to OMB and the Congress.

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By expanding the scope of the financial on a plane looking down at the lights below. statement requirements, the Act ensures the He said he thought the following: ‘‘There are American people will have financial informa- a lot of Americans who don’t live in cities tion they can trust. We will be better able and don’t make headlines. I was interested to show the taxpayers what they are getting in finding out about them.’’ Well, for most for their dollar. In short, this law means of my life I was one of them, and I’m proud greater accountability. I commend the Con- that Charles Kuralt found out so much about gress for passing the Government Manage- them. He taught us about the steadiness and ment Reform Act of 1994, and I am pleased the joys of daily life that are so often masked to sign this legislation into law. by the daily headlines. William J. Clinton Before I get into the body of my remarks today I’d like to give you an update on the The White House, situations in the Persian Gulf and Haiti. First, October 13, 1994. let me say how very proud I am of the men and women of our Armed Forces who are NOTE: S. 2170, approved October 13, was as- signed Public Law No. 103-356. serving in both areas. We’ve asked an awful lot of them, and they’re delivering with great skill and professionalism. They are the power Remarks to Broadcasters behind our diplomacy. Associations Last week, in the face of Iraq’s threatening October 13, 1994 troop movements on the Kuwaiti border, I ordered the deployment to the Gulf of an Thank you, Marcy. Good morning to you aircraft carrier battle group, cruise missile and to the hundreds of distinguished mem- ships, Marine and Army troops, and several bers of the broadcast journalism industry hundred attack aircraft. Our policy is clear: gathered there with you. I’m honored to help We will not allow Iraq to threaten its neigh- kick off the very first joint undertaking of bors or to intimidate the United Nations as the Radio-Television News Directors Asso- it ensures that Iraq never again possesses ciation and the National Association of weapons of mass destruction. Broadcasters Radio. I’m pleased to say that Iraq heard our mes- You know, I’ve talked a lot about building sage. Its forces have begun a broad retreat new partnerships all over America; I must from the border area. Only a few Republican say that after the last 20 months I never ex- Guard units remain in southern Iraq, and pected it would be the journalists who would they are withdrawing, too. But the with- be the first to take me seriously. But I’m glad drawal is not yet complete, and it’s too soon you’re leading the way. to say where all the troops are going. So we’re I’ve had the chance to review the ambi- watching the situation very, very carefully, tious agenda you’ve had for this week—dis- and we’ll continue to deploy our forces in cussing issues involving programming ethics, the Gulf until we’re satisfied that Iraqi troops technology, marketing—in one of the most no longer pose an immediate danger to Ku- dynamic industries on Earth. I applaud you wait. for accepting these challenges as well as for At the same time, Ambassador Albright the decades of leadership in your industry. has proposed a very strong resolution in the I know Reed Hunt, our Chairman of the United Nations to prevent Iraq from threat- FCC, will join many of you soon for an in- ening its southern neighbors now or in the depth discussion of these and other issues. future. We’re working closely at the Security I’m delighted that you’re honoring Charles Council to win broad international support Kuralt with the Paul White Award for life- for that resolution. time achievement. I’ve admired him for a Now let me add a few words about Haiti. long time. ‘‘On The Road’’ was a true cele- Our troops went there to keep a solemn com- bration of the unsung heroes and the endur- mitment by the United States and the inter- ing values of America. I’m told he got the national community to restore the nation’s idea for the show one night when he was democratically elected government and to

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