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The GAO Review (ISSN 0016-3414) is published quarterly by the U.S. General Accounting Office, Washington, DC 20548. Second Y _ . Contents

From Our Briefcase Gramm-Rudman-Hollings Fiscal Year 1987 U.S. Budget Documents

Doing More With Less, Creatively Review of Pollution Issues Microcomputer Quality Assurance Bibliography Quantity vs. Quality in Auditing More Productive Desk Work

On Location Martin Luther King III Speaks at Black History Month 6 Program JFMIP Holds 15th Annual Conference GAO’s School Partnership Program Celebrates First Anniversary Latin America, Other Offices To Close A Day at the Supreme Court: Observing the Gramm-Rudman Hearings

Manager’s Corner Managing Information Technology

Topics in Evaluation Reasoning From Evidence to Conctusions Carl E. Wisler

An Album of GAO William C. Oelkers 18 Buildings

The Career Plateau: Ellen K. Harvey and John R. Schultz 24 What Is It and What Can We Do About It?

Page i The GAO Review/Summer 1986 Contents

Executive Summaries: Nancy A. Patterson and Loretta K. Welch 27 Implementing a New Concept in GAO

An Improved Alan D. Ash 31 Performance Reporting System at the Local Level

When U.S. Citizens Die Dermis R. Devine 34 Abroad: GAO’s Role

A Week’s Worth Wyley P. Neal 36

Bookmark Reviewed by Daniel J. Semick 38 Giants in Management

Legislative Judith G. Hatter Developments

Senior GAO Staff 42 Changes

Other GAO Staff Additional Staff Changes Changes New Staff Members Attritions Retirements

Professional Activities

Page ii The GAO Review/Summer 1986 From Our Briefcase

Gramm-Rudman-Hollings Comptroller General may be removed tiveness, and economy GAO makes as an only by congressional joint resolution for independent legislative branch agency. The Supreme Court ended its 198.58fi ses- cause or by impeachment. The Court sion by issuing a decision striking down added that the Congress itself, in drafting Fiscal Year 1987 U.S. Budget the Comptroller General’s role under the the legislation, had anticipated this prob- Documents Balanced Budget and Emergency Deficit lem and had included a fallback provision Control Act of 1985. In its July 7 ruling, Anyone interested in federal financial and that eliminated GAO’s role. The Court administrative management will find a thr Court said t.hat the Comptroller Gen- recommended that the Congress use this rral was a legislative branch officer and, complete source of background data in the process to enact the $11.7 billion reduc- annual budget documents issued by the Of- as such, could not carry out executive tion in fiscal year 19% expenditures functions assigned to him under this law. fice of Management and Budget. For exam- already made on the basis of the Camp- ple, annual deficits that spurred the The Act, popularly known as Gramm- troller General’s January 21 report to the Gramm-Rudman-Hollings legislation can be Rudman-Hollings, set up a series of President. Both houses ol’ t.he Congress traced En Historical Tables, Budget of the targets under an automatic process for passed the required joint resolution United States Governmat, 1987, and cur- eliminating the federal deficit by 1991. within days ol’the (:ourt’s decision. rent management initiatives intended to The law called for the Office of Manage- It took them longer, however! to decide improve federal efficiency can be reviewed mc*nt and Budget (OMH) and the Con how to reduce the federal deficit in in Management of the United States Gov- grchssional Rudget Office (C’f%O) suhmit to future years. In the Senate, there were enzment, 1987. Descriptions of the docu- a,joint report to t.he Comptroller General several proposals for recasting the auto ments introductory pages follow. t>ac4h year tbstimating the amount by matic trigger to provide a constitutional which federal expenditures exceed the Budget of the United States Government, role for GAO; however, House leaders pre- legislative ceiling and t.he prrrentagt 1987, contains the President’s budget mes- ferred to rely on the law’s fallback prov- reduction for each budget account to sage and presents an overview of the Pres- sion. At the last minute, to pass essential achieve the desired level of spending. ident’s budget proposals. The document in- legislation raising the public debt ceiling, GAO’s rol+the central issue in the legal cludes explanations of spending programs the Senate acceded to t,he Housr~. challenge to the Act--was to reach a in terms of national needs, agency mis- Although GAO will not play a role in judgment on the estimates provided and sions, and basic programs; an analysis of determining the extent of fiscal year 1987 ((I issue a report to the President specify- receipts, including a discussion of the budget sequesters, if any, it will still issue ing required actions to reduce the deficit. President’s tax program; and a description a report assessing the joint OMH/CBO of the budget system and various summary l’hil major legal challenge to the const,itu- estimates, as requested by Representative tables on the budget as a whole. tionality of the Gramm-Rudman-Hollings Jack Brooks, Chairman of the House process was filed by Representative (:ommittee on Government Operations. United States Budget in BrieJ 1987, is de- ;Mic.hael Synar on behalf of himself and I1 signed for use by the general public. It pro- The Court’s Gramm-Rudman decision other members of the Congrcass. A special vides a more concise, less technical may have far-reaching impliratirrns for three-judge district court panel ruled on overview of the 1987 budget than the pre- GAO because it carries out many so- February 7 that the Gramm~RutEman vious volume and includes summary and railed executive functions. Both t,he prl~cess violated the constitutional historical tables and graphic displays on Senate Committee on Governmental separation-of-powers doctrine by con- the federal budget and debt. furring upon the Comptroller General Affairs and the House Committee on PxtBcutive functions that may not consti- Government Operations held hearings in Bwfget of the United States Government, tutlonally be given to an officer remova- late July to consider this issucx. In his tps- 1987-Appendti contains more detailed ble only by the Congress. The Supreme timony, Comptroller Gentxral Bowsher information on the various appropriations Court, in its T-2 ruling, concurred. warned legislators not. to act precipitL and funds that compose the budget. The ously, citing the myriad implications in document presents for each agency the IIow should the constitutional flaw in the modifying the carefully crafted position proposed appropriations language, budget law be corrected? The Court did not of GAO in the federal government. Lead- schedules for each account, new legislative endorse the idea of changing the removal ers of both Committees appeared LO proposals, explanations of the work to be provision in the Budget and Accounting agree, citing the valuable contributions to performed and the funds needed, and pro- Act of 1921, which provides that t.he improlring government efficiency. effect-

Page 1 posed general provisions applicable to the Doing More With Less, thing falls into place and the flashing light appropriations for the entire agency or Creatively comes on. Precisely because the bulb group of agencies. The document also in- lights only after an intense period of con- cludes information on certain activities A quote from Theodore Roosevelt may be centration and frustration, its impact is whose outlays are not part of the budget relevant in these times of budget deficits enormous. After days, months, even years totals. Supplement& and rescission pro- and cuts and of doing more with less: “Do of tension over a problem, suddenly the posals for the currcmt year are presented what you can, with what you have, where answer shines like a beacon. separately. you are.” A large dose of creativity is 5. V~f~cationl~duction-Confronting needed to put these words into action. Special Analyses, Budget of the United and solving the practical problems. Other Dr. David CampbrlI’s book, Take the Road people are persuaded and enlisted. The States Govenlmt?nt, 3987, contains analy- to Creativity and Get Off Your Dead End ses designed to highlight specified program AHA! stage, satisfying as it may be, is only (available in the GAO Library or from the end of the beginning. There is hard areas or present other, significant federal Argus Communications, Allen, Texas, budget data. This document includes alter- work yet to be done, and “hard work” is 1977), discusses enhancing creativity, par- precisely the name for it. This final phase native views of the budget, i.e., current ticularly as it relates to t.he workplace. Ex- services and national income accounts; of the process requires persistence, and cerpts from two chapters of the book fol- many otherwise creative people flounder economic and financial analyses of the low. budget covering government fmances and at this point; they don’t have the persua- operations as a whole; and government- Phases of Creativity: Creative people fre- sive and organizational abilities necessary wide program and fiiancial information for quently report that in coming up with a to organize others into action. federal civil rights and research and devel- new idea or product, they went through Characteristics of Creative Managers: opment programs. several phases, usually in the following For organizations to he creative, the peo- order: Histon~cai Tables, Budget of the United ple who run them have to vaiue innovation 1. Preparation-Laying the groundwork. State Government, 1987, provides data on and have to know how to deal with inno- Learning the background of a situation. budget receipts, outlays, surpluses or vations when they come along. Following While not all experts are creative, most deficits, and the federal debt for longer are the characteristics of managers who creators are experts. You are not likely to time periods than those covered by tables seem hest ahle to do this. invent a new artificial heart valve until you in similar budget documents, in many have spent many years studying the me- 1. Willing to Absorb Risks Taken by Sub- cases from 1940 to 1991. The data have chanics of valves, the details of fluid flow, ordinates-Managers who encourage cre- been restructured to be consistent with the and the anatomy of the heart. Brilliant ativity allow their people unusual freedom, concepts and presentation used in the 1987 breakthroughs are almost always achieved expect that some errors will be made, and budget, so these data series are compara- by people who have spent several years are able to absorb the inevitable failures. ble over time. preparing themselves. In contrast, managers who are afraid of Management of the United States Govern- mistakes will not defend failures to higher 2. Concentrc-Ltion-Being totally absorbed ment, 1987, describes efforts to improve management. Instead, they restrict the in the specific problem. Creative people the management of federal agencies. The freedom of their subordinates to experi- are usually intense about what they are document reports on the President’s Coun- ment. doing. Scientists, architects, artists, adver- cil on Integrity and Efficiency, describes tising people, writers. researchers, photog- 2. Comfortable With H&f-Developed Reform ‘# initiatives undertaken by the raphers, and innovative business people Za!eas--Managers of productive research President’s Council on Management Im- provement, and outlines the administra- frequently report long periods of concen- laboratories can live with half-developed tion’s management proposals. Management tration on the problems they are trying to ideas. They are willing to listen to, and improvement themes addressed in the re- solve. The concentration stage continues support, “half-baked” proposals and en- port include productivity improvement, re- the learning of the preparation stage, but courage subordinates to press on. They turn of responsibilities to state and local more intensely. It is a focusing time, a time must have the ability to pick out those in- governments, administrative streamlining, of specific trial and error, of drawing to- complete ideas that are worth pursuing. gether relevant materials, of false starts program delivery improvements, cost re- 3. Willing to Stretch Company Poliq- and failure. ductions, cash and credit management, There are times in every organization payment integrity efforts, upgraded infor- 3. Zncwbatiolz-Taking time out, a rest pe- when the company rulebook needs to be mation technology systems, and increased riod. Seeking distractions. People can ignored. Creative managers have a feel for use of user fees and contracting out. Spe- maintain a white-hot level of concentration these times. They don’t normally disregard cial sections describe current procurement only so long. Eventually they must escape rules and policies, hut they do know when reforms; the status of Grace Commission from the problem through friends, the out- the rules need to he stretched for the recommendations; and implementation of doors, sleep, food and drink-sometimes greater good. the Debt Collection Act of 1982, the excessively. These escapes are reported in Prompt Payment Act of 1982, and the Fi- 4. Able to Make Quick Decisions--When a the autobiographies of great creators. But nancial Integrity Act of 1982. new idea is presented to productive mar- even escape or retreat is occasionally pro- agers, they have the ability and willingness These documents may be purchased at any ductive when an answer, apparently un- to make a decision on the spot. They have sought, pops into view. (;PO bookstore in major U.S. cities or by good track records in recognizing which writing to the Superintendent of Docu- 4. Illumination (AHA!)-Getting the an- half-developed idea is worth betting on, ments, U.S. Government Printing Office, swer, the idea! The light bulb goes on. The and they are courageous enough to imme- Washington, D.C. 20492. delicious part of creating is when every- diately commit resources to carrying it out.

Page 2 The GAO Eeview/Sanuner 1986 5. Good List-s-Productive managers GW on Pollution proposed “Community Right-to-Know” listen to their personnel and build on their amendments offer some hope for improved GW asks whether air, water, and earth enforcement. These amendments would re suggestions. In particular, they seem to make up our “disposable future.” When have the ability to draw out the best in quire industries to (1) give citizens infor- pollution meant smog and litter, GW as- their subordinates and then add to it. mation about acutely dangerous chemicals serts, the cleanup problems were less com- stored, used, or transported in their com- 6. Don’t DweU on Mistakes -Productive plex. Now the greatest threat to our health munities and (2) suggest appropriate re- managers are more future-oriented than comes from pollution we cannot see. past-oriented. They do not wail over past sponses in case of exposure. mistakes-their own or others. They learn The pollution crisis has made some unfor- GW conveys a balanced view of the posi- from experience, but they do not wallow tunate additions to citizens’ vocabularies, tions of various interest groups and cites m it. including chemical compounds of poly- statistics from the Office of Technology chlorinated biphenyls (PCBs) and dioxin. 7. Enjoy !I%& Jvb -Productive managers Assessment and GAO on the breadth of Decades of manufacturing and using chem- like what they are doing They do not feel the toxic waste enforcement problem. For icals have left a legacy of waste sites and trapped in an administrative role. Rather, the general reader, GW treats current prob- contaminated streams and soil that they enjoy the resources and power at lems comprehensively and understandably; threaten the humans and wildlife who rely their fingertips to push projects forward. for the evaluator, GW provides a succinct on them. And the effects of acid ram, overview of issues and suggests sources to 8. 7%~ Work Setting Best .for You-If you which reach far beyond the area where it research. In addition, “Topics in Evalua- are a truly creative person and are looking falls, add to the destruction. tion,” pp. 15 of this Review, uses an exam- for a setting that will encourage you, or if Laws Set Standards ple based on dioxin to discuss reasoning you are in charge of creative people trying from evidence to conclusions. to increase their creativity, you may simply GW noted that numerous attempts have Other topics covered by this issue were need an environment tolerant of diverse been made through legislation and regula- the status of equal rights legislation and behavior. tion to resolve the problem. The Environ- mental Protection Agency (EPA) was orga- special funding for scholarly research. Further, you may find new stimulation sim- nized in 1970, decades after studies began For copies of GW, write to the Publica- ply by changing environments: If you .are to show how chemicals adversely affected tions Officer, AAUW Communications De- working in the city, spend more time in the environment. The Safe Drinking Water partment, 2401 Virginia Avenue, N.W., the country; if you live in the country, Act set sandards for safe water, and the Washington, DC. 20037. spend more time in the heart of a large Clean Air Act set standards to be followed city. If you are working or studying in a by industries discharging polhitants into Microcomputer Quality small organization, find some way to wan the air. Other laws allow EPA to monitor Assurance Bibliography der around in a giant corporation. If you production, use, and disposal of toxic are familiar with huge companies, get ac- Given the popdarity of microcomputers, chemicals. Today, about 66,000 of these quainted with a small operation, such as a GAO and the business community have be- chemicals have been classified as haz- come increasingly aware that using micro- one-person business of a traveling ardous or potentially hazardous to human entrepreneur. computers effectively requires special care. health. Until recently, relatively few articles had Diverse Experience Is Useful The fact that environmental problems re- been published on the subject of micro- With a little thought and effort anyone main in spite of the apparently comprehen- computer quality assurance. Within the last should be able to find some new environ- sive laws can be explained, in large part, year, however, several financial disasters ments to experiment with. GAO, for exam- by four factors, GW says. First, EPA is and near-disasters have resulted from inad- ple, has many work sites and a huge vari- chronically understaffed and lacks the re- equate precautions in using microcomput- ety of challenging line and staff roles. sources to enforce the legislation. Second, ers as decision-making tools, thereby Diverse experience will be useful to you until 1980, a major source of contamina- bringing attention to this area. Understand- when you settle in one place, either as a tion, abandoned toxic waste, was not cov- ably, tnost of the problems centered on worker or a manager. Creativity, with its ered under the laws. Third, the funding for electronic spreadsheets, the most popular varied phases, characteristics, and strate- certain major environmental laws has ex- microcomputer software. gies, will then serve you as you seek to do pired. Finally, technical and administrative The following annotated bibliography cov- more with less. difficulties have plagued EPA. GW gives ers articles about various aspects of micro- details of how local communities have Review of Pollution Issues computer quality assurance. This list was been affected by our inability to control developed by Stu Seman of the Chicago A bimonthly subscription journal of the environmental pollution. American Association of University Regional Office to assist efforts to ensnre Women, Graduate Woman (GW) , is an un- Hope for Improved Enforcement the quality of microcomputer-generated products. Mr. Seman plans to discuss the expected source of inform&ion for audi- GW also summarizes 1980 “Superfund” leg- topic further in the fall issue of the tors. GW reports on current policy islation (the Comprehensive Emergency RfYViE?W. issues-from federal activities through in- Response, Compensation, and Liability ternational, educational, and FmanciaI Act), which authorized the Congress to Fawcette, James. “Using Spreadsheets To news-and offers career development spend money for the emergency cleanup of Model Your Business.” Personal Comput- ideas. The November/December 1985 issue high-health-risk sites and authorized EPA ing, 8, No. 12 (Dec. 1984) pp. 70-82. synthesized topics in environmental pollu- to seek out parties responsible for tion and focused on solutions, particularly pollution legislation and sue them. So far, Fawcette tells how spreadsheets have in the water cleanup area. the results have been mixed. However, changed the way personal computer users

Page 3 Briefcase are doing business. Examples of financial Howitt explains how errors can creep into Sotomayor, Manuel. “Blueprint Your Data modeling, the most popular computer use, electronic worksheets and describes the Base.” PC World, 2, No. 7 (July 1984), problems inherent in t,hrir use. The title pp. 56-60. are discussed along with some of the staff Y arrangements involved. The construction lists a series of steps aimed at improving Sotomayor presents a systematic approach $ of a simple mortgage spreadsheet is used spreadsheet design, explains some of the to designing microcomputer data bases. to illustrate how a spreadsheet is devel- actions accounting frms are taking to im- 1 The article is intended for the frst-time . oped. Finally, the article cautions users prove spreadsheet quality, and describes purchaser of data base management soft- 1 about problems associated with spread- an alternative-financial modeling pro- ware, However, the data base design meth- I sheet use and gives IO tips for generating grams-that overcomes some of the prob- ods it describes-task/subtk outlines, j better spreadsheets. lems associated with spreadsheets. flow diagrams, and relational tables-are Fersko-Weiss, Henry. “Avoiding Spread- McDougal, David B. III. “Poking Holes in useful to any user of a data base manage- shecht Disaster.” Personal Cornput@, 9, Spreadsheets.” American Way (Feb. 19, ment system. No. 3 (Mar. 1986), pp. 112-117. 1985), pp. 76-79. Ed. note: The following item describes an 1 Many spreadsheet errors can be avoided if Greater credence usually is given to elec- audit job in which microcomputers were Y users follow basic control procedures and tronically produced information. The au- used creatively to accomplish a quality job. 1 thoroughly document their work. This arti- thor, who argues that this credence is cle describes how some users approach often uqjustified, gives examples of the Quantity vs. Quality in these problems and identifies several problems that unwarranted reliance can Auditing specific errors that cnurt disaster. produce. McDougal offers two solutions: Ed. note: If we asked evaluators, “How using quality software and exercising more Firmin, Robert. “Spreadsheet LJse: High many evaluators are needed to do a given skepticism about microbased spreadsheet job?” they might reply that they could use t Anxiety?” Computeru~orld, XIX, No. 23 Y numbers. twice the staff. On the other hand, if we (.Junc 10, 1985), pp. 76, 92. Y McKibbin, Wendy Lea. “Conventional Wis- asked the same question of the people Firmin describes the perils of using Y dom.” PG World, 3, No. 7 (Aug. 1985), whose programs get audited-defense con- spreadsheets and suggests that the appro- pp. 265272. tractors, agency staff, or grantees-they priate solution has not yet been developed. might reply, “Fewer than are assigned to Y The article offers several ideas designed to McKibbin introduces the reader to the po- the job; there’s already too much duplica- ’ help users cope with the situation in the tential errors that can be produced by in- tion.” Victor Eli, assistant regional manager meantime. experienced microcomputer spreadsheet for operations at the Los Angeles Regional 1 Grupe, Fritz. “Tips for Better Worksheet users and data base managers. The article Office, thinks the answer lies somewhere Documentation.” Lotus, 1, No. 4 (Aug. describes and illustrates the mainframe between these two positions. At a January ’ 1985), pp. 88-70. computer techniques that can be used to 1986 meeting of three California chapters prevent errors. These techniques include of the Association of Government Accoun- J k Two types of documentation, external and careful planning, thorough documentation, tants, Mr. El1 explored the quantity issue 5 internal, should be developed for all work- Y error trapping, and frequent backups. as well as the more basic question: “How b sheets. External documentation should de- can auditors do quality work?” His adapted scribe the worksheet in enough detail for Miller, Steven. “The Anatomy of a Spread- remarks folIow. users to grasp its scope and ground rules. sheet.” Lotus, 1, No. 3 (July 1985), pp. 55 The author provides 11 tips to simplify this 57. St&f Statistics 1 task. Internal documentation ensures that Let’s examine some numbers before ad- people other than the worksheet’s devel- Miller briefly outlines the essentials of dressing the elments of quality work. The ’ oper can maintain or modify the work- spreadsheet construction and provides a statistics on U.S. budget outlays, numbers ’ sheet. The author offers 10 tips designed handy reference for spreadsheet users. A of federal auditors, and dollars spent on 3 to facilitate this task. two-page illustration, divided into four top- ics (numeric formats, labels, formulas, and audit salaries support the need for expan- . Grushcow, Jack. “Avoid These Common relative and absolute cell references), sion of the auditing work force. In 1973, Spreadsheet Errors.” Lotus, 1, No. 3 (July neatly summarizes the rules and consider- the federal budget was $245 billion, and 19X5), pp. 59-62. ations that govern each of these spread- about 20,000 auditors were on the payroll, sheet elements. according to the Office of Personnel Man- A spreadsheet that looks perfect can still agement. In 1983, the federal budget was conlain errors. Such errors occur most fre- Rubin, Charles. “Failsafing Your Spread- $852 billion, and 22,000 federal auditors Y 1 quently in formulas. This article lists some sheets.” Personal Computing, 9, No, 10 were on the payroll. s of the most common causes of incorrect (Oct. 1985), pp. 83-91. formulas, identifies ways to prevent for- An obvious interpretation of these statis- mula errors, and describes techniques for The more you know about how a spread- tics is that we are auditing more than isolating errors that have occurred. It also sheet works, the better your chances of three times the dollars with essentially the describes how the corrected spreadsheet avoiding the errors that can plague even same work force. Expressed in another can be protected to prevent subsequent the most seasoned spreadsheet user. The way, audit costs (based on the average formula errors. article explains why certain aspects of a salary paid to federal auditors) have spreadsheet can get a user in trouble. It shrunk from $1.80 per $1,000 in 1973 to How&t, Doran. “Avoiding Bottom-Line Disk describes how to handle these problems $.85 per $1,000 in 1983. Clearly, the level of aster.” InfoWorld, 7, No. fi (Feb. 11, 1985), and provides some general techniques that audit effort has not kept pace with budget pp. 26-29. can help reduce spreadsheet error. outlays.

Page 4 The GAO Review/Summer 1986 Y As a return on our investment, federal au- hospitals, provides an excellent example of More Productive Desk Work the utility of micrcomputer technology in diting pays ,off handsomely. For example, Do you feel tense and tired while sitting at GAO reported $11 billion in fmancial ac- the auditing field. your desk? Exercise can ease physical and complishments and other benefits related mental stress and help you to continue to Quality Tools to its work in 1985, which is more than work productively. PEP: The Productivity $2 million per member of GAO’s profes- To determine whether closing military hos- Effectiveness Proymm (by Robert L. sional staff of about 5,000. Similar statis- pitals and treating military patients in Gedaliah, New York: Holt, Rinehart and tics exist for other federal agency audit private-sector hospitals would save the De- Winston, 1984) describes several simple departments. partment of Defense money, we developed exercises you can do at your desk to gen- Staff Outlook an analytical mode1 that allowed the com- erate energy by increasing circulation, puter to compare costs of specific medical pumping fresh oxygen into your body, it-n The future for the accounting and auditing treatments in the private sector with costs proving your posture, and relieving muscle profession, in general, looks bright. Ac- of the same treatments in a small military strain. Three quick and simple exercises cording t.o the Bureau of Labor Statistics, hospital. The analysis involved many fac- follow: accounting and auditing are among the tors, including a comparison of intemation- fastest growing professions. By 1995, the For stiff neck and shoulders and ally recognized medical diagnoses with the headaches: “Rolling Shoulders.” profession will occupy about 1.2 million costs for thousands of treatments. workers, or 35 percent more than today. l Relax your shoulders and let your arms dangle at your sides. This increase demonstrates consumer de- Our staff in Los Angeles used microcom- l Take a deep breath as you lift your mand for audit services and the inherent puters to tap into an extensive military shoulders toward your ears. Raise them as benefits of the work. data base in Washington, DC., and deter- high as you can and hold them there for a mined conclusively the cost effectiveness count of five. Exhale and drop your shoul- hother trend is the increasing number of of closing certain small military hospitals, women in the profession. During the last ders while you imagine heavy weights IO years, the percentage of women in ac- With traditional auditing techniques, we falling from your hands. c.ounting and auditing has grown from 38 could not have accomplished this work. l Slowly roll your shoulders in a circular to 49 percent. For example, a university using computers, auditors can work motion: live rolls forward, then five back- professor in California told me recently smarter and more efficiently, thus dwat- ward. Maintain steady breathing through- that, of 64 accounting students ln his ing the quality of their work. out and keep your shoulders relaxed. classes this term, all but 8 are women. For lower back tension: “Picking Quality Work Coconuts.” While the future of the profession in gen- In addition to GAO, staffs of the agencies’ l Lift your chin, and gaze at the ceiling as eral looks good, I am less optimistic about Inspectors General, the Defense Contract you raise both arms over your head. Keep its growth in the federal sector. The Bal- Audit Agency, and many other audit your shoulders relaxed and your elbows anced Budget and Emergency Deficit Con- groups get good results with micros. The slightly bent. Take a deep breath, and trol Act of 1985 (P.L. N-177), also known Office of the Air Force Auditor General reach as high as you can with your left as the Grrunm-RudmanHollings legislation, had the computer analyze hundreds of hand. With your left arm fully extended, requires the President to reduce the fed- transactions in which used equipment was open your lingers as if you were about to eral deficit by $11 billion for the remainder being sold (termed “disposal actions”). pick a coconut. Exhale slowly as you close of fiscal year 1986. While most analysts They compared the fair market value with your hand in a fist and relax your arm. agree that this reduction will not signif- the disposal price. They found that color l Alternate arms for a total of 10 cantly affect operations this year, shortfalls televisions with a market value of $400 stretches. in 1987 agency budgets are expected to were being disposed of for $25 each. They For arm and shoulder strain: “The Archer.” reach the $50-billion range. In response, also noted that they were sold the day be- l Raise your arms in front of you to shoul- GAO and other agencies have instituted a fore the advertised disposal sale date, and der height with palms facing each other. hiring freeze, and auditors will likely be they were purchased by the same individ- Keeping your shoulders relaxed and el- forced to do more with less to meet the ual-namely, the disposal manager. That bows sIightly bent, gently clench your fists. challenge of managing ever-diminishing was fraud, and the micro was the key to l Take a deep breath, bend your right rtbsources. finding it. Technology helped the auditors arm, and slowly bring it back as far as you Quality Staff do effective, high quality work. comfortably can, keeping your elbow close What, then, can we, as a profession, do to to your body and your shoulder relaxed. enhance our effectiveness? Most impor- The Initial Question Reanswered (Imagine yourself pulling a bow.) Hold this tantly, we must retain the very best staff. The management challenge facing the fed- position while slowly counting to three. We must also continue to stress educa- eral audit community is real. We see the l Slowly exhale as you return your right tional and professional development, need for more auditors, but it is clear that arm to starting position and relax it. Re- which means spending money on confer- we wil1 have fewer resources, at least for peat the movement with your left arm. Al- ences and training, even during fiscally dif the immediate future. If we can continue ternate the movement with each arm 10 licult periods. Further, because computers to attract and retain high quality profes- times. enable federal auditors to do more with sionals in the current climate, we will con- GAO’s Health Advocacy Program and local less and add to the overall quality of our tinue to develop high quality products that stress workshops and exercise classes also work, we must keep pace with microcom- contribute to more effective government. offer suggestions for improving your health puter technology. A recent GAO assign- How many auditors are enough‘? I would on the job. Contact the Counseling and Ca- ment, during which our Los Angeles Re- say we never have enough, but we still can reer Development Center at (202) 2758992 gional Office staff studied small military be tough! for more information. n

Page 5 Briefcase On Location

Martin Luther King III Speaks at Black History Month Program Ed. note: This item was adapted from February issues of the GAO Inanagemmt News and the Blacks in Government Newsletter The Review thanks authors Laura Kopelson (Office of Public Informa- tion) and Tony *Jasper (Office of Publishing and Communications) for the information.

Nineteen-eighty-six marked the inaugural observance of the holiday commemorating the birthday of Dr. Martin Luther King, .Jr., the slain civil rights leader and Nobel Peace Prize winner. The January 21 hoh- day serves as an appropriate prelude to GAO’s annual Black History Month actiti- ties, arranged to coincide with the nation- ally recognized Black History Month in February. The highlight of this year’s GAO actlvltles was the February 12 keynote speech by Dr. King’s son, Martin Luther King III. Mr. King is a member of the board of directors of the Martin Luther King, .Jr., Center for Nonviolent Social Change and Linking hands and singirq We Sk.!4 Overccrme” are (L-R) Ryan Yuilk (CROj; Martin Luther heads the youth program of the Center. King III, keynote speaker at GAO’s Black History Month progmm; ConzptmUer General Bowsher; The theme of this year’s assembly pro- Toni Jenkins (OLSj; and Rodney Moore, u junior high school student-orator. The song is closely gram, “Living the Dream,” was the same idmtified with the 1960’s cioil rights movement and the work of Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. one adopted for Dr. King’s holiday. noted that Dr. King was always consistent drought-induced famine. Today’s youth Mr. King used the occasion to speak about in his quest to right society’s wrongs and must be mobilized to attack these prob- his father’s life and work. This feature re- rid the world of poverty, racism, and vio- lems, Mr. King said. counts some of the highlights from that lence in all forms. speech and one delivered by Comptroller Mr. King maintained that education is the General Bowsher and recaJJs some of the Although Dr. King’s efforts in the 1950’s key to advancement, telling his GAO audi- other Black History Month activities that and 1960’s paved the way for landmark ence, “The mightiest nation is the one with took place at GAO. legislation granting equal rights to all the most superior minds.” The nation’s ed- Americans many problems remain. In the ucational system must provide today’s “Living the Dream” JJnited States, unemployment plagues youth with the insights needed for inspira- Living the dream of Martin Luther King, Jr., black youth more than any other group, tion, he said. Young people need a sense of means mobilizing leadership to cope with while homelessness and hunger afflict history to help them appreciate that the today’s problems-in the United States many people of all races. Around the rights and privileges they enjoy today are and throughout the world-in the same world, minorities are oppressed in South the results of a long and hard-fought strug- way that leaders were mobilized in the Africa, Central and South America, and gle, said Mr. King, who noted that “Those 1969’s to fight for civil rights and equal Asia. And, in many areas of Africa, thou- who have succeeded must accept the re- treatment for blacks, Mr. King said. He sands of people are threatened by a sponsibility to help others less fortunate.”

Page 6 The GAO Review/Summer 1986 Bowsher Discusses tenant (j. g.) Porter Halyhurton of David- agers to work cooperatively toward achiev- New EEO Approach son, North Carolina. Their theory was that ing the President’s goals for improving ii- exposure to a white man from the Deep nancial management systems. Mr. Baker In his remarks, Comptroller General South would remind Cherry of the in gave several examples showing how coop- Bowsher said, “For me, living the dream equities in the United States of the mid- erative efforts resulted in the successful means molding our organization-our 1960’s and enlist his cooperation in their Implementation of international economic GAO-into one where the principles of propaganda campaign. policies. He discussed the management ap- fairness are evident in everything we do. It proach to difficult issues involving trade Colonel Cherry credits his survival to the means creating a work environment and debt of less developed countries and wherein people are judged-to use care he received from Halyburton during suggested that the same philosphy could King’s famous words-by the content the months when his injuries were so Dr. be applied domestically to improve fiian severe that he could neither feed nor care of their character, not by the color of their cial management. Mr. Baker challenged fi- skin.” Mr. Bowsher also discussed GAO’s for himself. Having been permitted only a brief hospital stay for major surgery, nancial managers to strive for excellence new approach to achieving equal employ- and seek to attain these goals, rather than Cherry was in a full cast and would have ment opportunity objectives, which empha- looking back at past achievements. sizes individual unit goals rather than an died without Halyburton’s ministrations. agency-wide objective. A new Office of Af The two men and their families remain fast OMB Director James Miller discussed the fin-native Action Plans, directed by Lowell friends to this day. importance of management in the govern- ment. He emphasized that the creation of a Dodge, will work closely with GAO man- Since his release from the prison camp in budget is part of the management process agers to establish these goals and monitor 1973, Cherry has worked at the Pentagon and that the budget process should force progress toward attaining them. and the Defense Intelligence Agency. He the right questions to be asked and ar- retired on August 31, 1981. Eighteen Others Participate swered for agency programs. Mr. Miller months ago, he married Merceda Chandler, GAO’s Black History Month program gen- stated that his job, following the Presi- and he currently works as a consultant for erated a standing-room-only crowd in the dent’s lead for management reform, is to E.H. White & Company. auditorium. Several rooms where the pro- put the “M” firmly into OMB. He outlined gram was shown on television monitors The impact of Colonel Cherry’s speech on the major steps OMB took to develop the also were filled to capacity. Ryan Yuille, his audience is perhaps best demonstrated details of the fiscal year 1987 budget. He deputy director of GAO’s Civil Rights Of- by the fact that most of the lunchtime concluded by asking financial managers iice, served as program moderator. Grady group stayed to quietly shake his hand and for their support in ensuring that ineffi- Poulard, also on that staff, spoke on the say how moved they were by his talk. A cient and ineffective processes, systems, lessons he learned while working with less well-known leader than Dr. Martin decisions, and rules be changed to improve Dr. King on voter registration drives in the Luther King, Cherry is equally courageous. .government. South. Toni Jenkins, from the Office of Li- In one of the workshops, “The Future of Concluding the month’s activities was the brary Services, led the audience in a re- Financial Management Under Gramm- annual awards dinner of the GAO Chapter sponsive reading in memory of Dr. King. Rudmart,” panel moderator David Dukes of Blacks in Government (BIG), during Participants from outside GAO included provided an overview and a brief history which many staff were recognized for their soloists W. Patrick Blackwell and Detra of the Gramm-Rudman-Hollings Act. David contributions to BIG, locally and region- Battle and junior high school orator Rod- Mathiasen, deputy assistant director for ally, and to GAO. Toni Jenkins received ney Moore, who spoke about the impor- budget analysis, OMB, indicated that the the Otha Miller award for support to the tance that a quality education holds for process for across-the-board budget cuts chapter and contributions to promotion of black youth. (sequestering) of fiscal year 1986 funds black interests at GAO. Other Black History Month had worked rather smoothly. Mr. Mathi- Activities JFMIP Holds 15th Annual asen believed that neither across-the-board cuts nor arbitrary cuts in overhead activi The Black History Month observances Conference ties were adequate substitutes for a more were varied and included a lunchtime sem- Over 750 people from the Financial com- rational resource-allocation process. inar on “The Relevance of a Positive Self- munity attended the 15th annual .JoInt Fi- Image for a High Quality Life,” led by nancial Management Improvement Pro- Judith Tardy, assistant secretary for admin- Mr. Poulard, and a speech by Colonel Fred gram (JFMIP) conference on March 18, istration, Department of Housing and (:herry, the first-and for a long time the 1986, at the J.W. Marriott HoteI in Wash- Urban Development, spoke positively only-black U.S. prisoner of war held by ington, D.C. Keynote speakers included about Gramm-Rudman-Hollings’ impact on t.he North Vietnamese. Secretary of the Treasury James Baker and the federal Financial management commu- Office of Management and Budget (OMB) nity. She contended that the act would (:herry was injured when his plane was Director James Miller. Comptroller General force managers to estabIish priorities shot down over North Vietnam. The North Bowsher presented the Donald L. Scantle- within limited resources and to accomplish Vietnamese, eager to stage a propaganda bury MemoriaI Awards for distinguished objectives by using less expensive ap- coup by “quoting” a black airman who leadership in financial management to proaches, such as off-the-shelf software would speak against his “racist” govern- C. Morgan Kinghorn, Comptroller, Environ- and microcomputers. She urged Financial ment, held Cherry in a prison camp. Un- mental Protection Agency, and Edward managers to play an important role in prepared for then-Major Cherry’s stamina J. Mazur, Comptroller, Commonwealth of translating the cuts into meaningful alter- and loyalty to his country, they tried soli- Virginia. natives for management. mry confinement, withholding medical treatment, and torture. Finally, the North In the morning session, Secretary Baker Harry Havens, Assistant Comptroller Gen- Vietnamese gave him a cell-mate, Lieu- emphasized the need for financial man- eral, discussed GAO’s role in reviewing the

Page 7 Location Attending the JFMIP confmce were (L-R) Assistant Compt?-oUer General HanrJ Havens; James Thomas, Depa.rtment of Education; David Dukes, JFMIP; John Lordan, Office of Management and Budget; Gerald Mqnhy, Department of the Treasury; ComptroUer GeneraI Charles Bowsher; Carol Mazur, Commonwealth of Virginia; Edward Mazur, Commonwealth of Virginia; T7wma.s Simon, Office qf Personnel Management; James Miller, National Association of Budget Officers; and Fred crick Wolf, GAO joint OMBKongressional Budget Office re- are carried out in accordance with GAO l Thomas Hayes, Auditor General for the port on the fiscal year 1986 sequestrations standards. GAO, which has started to per- State of California, said that the trend in under the Gramm-Rudman-Hollings Act. He form peer reviews of IGs’ activities in this auditing is to increase the number of per- indicated that GAO had generally agreed area, completed one at the Department of formance audits, since they are the most with the overall estimates but had differed Commerce in 1983 and is conducting simi- popular with the legislature and the gen- as to the legal interpretation applied to the lar peer reviews at the Department of Agri- eral public. He said that investigative act by the administration in exempting cer- culture and the Environmental Protection audits-which are more costly to per- tain defense program areas. Based upon Agency. At the request of the Congress, form-will increase. He predicted in- congressional requests, GAO would per- GAO is performing more quality reviews of creased reliance on audit data to help in form selected audits of agency programs CPA audits, particularly in audit work re- decisionmaking and major changes in re- where the cuts were made. Mr. Havens lated to the savings and loan industry and porting standards to make audit reports also discussed the recent federal appeals grants made to state and local govem- easier to understand. court decision on the constitutionality of ments. the Comptroller General’s role under For copies of the proceedings, contact Gramm-Rudman-Hollings. l James Richards, Inspector General at JFMIP at 666 11th Street, N.W., suite 705, the Interior Department, cited some of the Washington, DC. 20001, (202) 376-5415. Other speakers included President’s Council on Integrity and Effi- The Reuiew thanks JFMIP Assistant Exec- l Brian Usilaner, associate director of ciency’s (PCIE’s) major accomplishments utive Director Doris Chew for this infotia- GAO’s General Government Division, pro- and projects during the past 4 years. tion. vided a central agency’s perspective on PCIE’s efforts have resulted in improve- productivity and emphasized the impor- ments worth billions of dollars, $500 mil- GAO’s School Partnership tance of changing the management and be- lion in recoveries from investigations, and Program Celebrates First havior process to institute a good produc- 14,300 successful criminal prosecutions. Anniversary tivity program. Mr. Richards believed that, due to continu- The 1986 spring season marked the fist ing tight budgets and shrinking resources, l Fred Wolf, director of GAO’s Accounting anniversary of a GAO outreach program in the government will depend more upon the and Financial Management Division, dis- volving the WalkerJones Elementasy private sector for audit services and less cussed quality reviews of CPAs. The In- School, located near GAO headquarters in upon the government’s internal resources spectors General (IGs) are to ensure that Washington, D.C. The arrangement, called in the future. audits performed by nonfederal auditors the School Partnership Program, offers a

Page 8 The GAO Review/Summer 1986 variety of programs and services designed student wrote that he “will be 11 years old. manently assigned staff in Panama City, to enrich the school’s curriculum, broaden I am a very good math student. . 1 also where the Office is located. After dis- the horizons of its 600 students, and pro- enjoy computers.” cussing the issue with congressional repre- vide guidance to its 40 faculty and staff The Program’s goals are aimed at con- sentatives and affected GAO staff, GAO members. In 1985, nearly 85 students be- carefully reviewed the alternatives and de- tributing to the students’ success and self- cided that. it could ful.bIl its mission re- gan corresponding with an equal number esteem as well as establishing an active quirements more economically in Central of GAO staff members who had volur- partnership between the Walker-Jones staff and South America by using staff un teered to serve as pen pals under the Pro- and GAO. The Program, including the gram. In 1986, about 60 students and GAO tours, seeks to raise student and faculty temporary-duty assignments staff were matched as pen pals, and the awareness of GAO’s role and mission in The Latin America Office (see the spring program was extended to include pen pals the government process and provide mean- 1983 GAO Review) was created 8 years from the second grade. The program has ingful learning experiences for students by involved GAO’s sponsorship of building ago after many years of important, ongoing increasing their awareness of computer audit work in the region. Although its ini- tours, microcomputer demonstrations, and technology. The staff seminars present workshops on alcohol and drug abuse for tial audit work specifically related to the strategies that teachers can use to cope Panama Canal, GAO began to perform students and on stress management for the with stress and combat alcohol and drug school skiff. “country-wide reviews” and “country cogni- abuse in the school. zance” reviews in Latin America during the In the Program, pen pals fusl. exchange For more information on the School Part 1960’s and 1970’s. The Office’s other audit get-acquainted letters. GAO staff intr.,duce nership Program, call (202) 272-3475. work included reviews of foreign assis- themselves and describe their jobs in a tance through the Interamerican Founda- two-page letter “printed in their best pen Latin America, Other Offkes tion; trade, energy, and fmance in the re- manship.” Topics of weekly letters include To Close gion; national security issues; and the personal hobbies, family profiles, favorite management of foreign affairs. places to visit, interesting anecdotes, or GAO will close its Latin America Office on personal goals. Pen pals meet each other September 30, 1986, and transfer the Of- The Anchorage, Alaska, and Cocoa Beach, at a social event held at the end of each fice’s staff and mission responsibilities to Florida, sublocations also will close ln Sep- school year. other agency organizations. ComptroIler tember. Changing priorities, decreasing General Bowsher, announcing the decision work load, and opportunities for The Program’s 1986 coordinators, Rusty in a February memorandum to heads of di- economies in operations were the primary Glazer and Theresa Buffalow of the Office visions and offices, emphasized the need reasons for the Comptroller General’s deci- of Organization and Human Development to constantly seek ways to improve the ef- sion. The Anchorage staff will be trans- (OOHI)), shared some excerpts from stu flciency.and timeliness of GAO’s work. Re- ferred to the Seattle Regional Office, and dents’ letters. One youngster noted that he cent changes ln the work load of the Latin the Cocoa Reach staff will be transferred was “excited about having a pen pal. America Office-most notably the signifi- to the Atlanta Regional Office. Do you know that I took a picture for citi- cant efficiency gains made in conducting zenship (class), and I did a perfect Dr. the Panama Canal Commission audit- Martin Luther King, Jr., speech?” Another prompted GAO to review the need for per-

Page 9 Location A Day at the Supreme Court: +***t wearing a sandwich board joins the grow- Observing the Gramm- ing crowd and paces the esplanade, exer- Rudman Hearings The 99th Congress passed the Balanced cising his first amendment right of individ- Budget and Emergency Deficit Control Act, ual protest. The message appears to be an Ed. note: This day in the history of GAO popularly known as Gramm-Rudman- expos.6 of the judicial system’s ties with in- was experienced by Cindi Marszalek and Hollings, in an attempt to control the terplanetary invaders bent on conquering Brad Richards, whose account takes you growing federal deficits. The legislation re- earth: quite an odd backdrop for the con- “on location.” Ms. Marszalek is an evalua- quires the Comptroller General to produce troversy that marks the day. tor with the National Security and Interna- a report to the President certifying the After 2 l/2 hours in the cold, a Supreme tional Affairs Division. She was a member need for budget cuts and directs the Presi- Court policeman allows us to visit the of the January 1986 GAO Gramm-Rudman- dent to issue a sequestration order to re- Supreme Court cafeteria. It is quite fortu- Hollings team that assessed defense pro- scind funds across the federal budget for itous that we are allowed in at that mo- grams and provided material for the the next fiscal year. Because of its un- ment; Justice Harry Blackmun and his at- Comptroller General’s sequestration order precedented approach to budget control (a tending clerks sit down to breakfast at the to the President. She received a master’s statutory economic formula to produce table adjacent to ours. Outside, the scene degree in public administration from across-the-board budget reductions and the has changed drastically. The public admis George Washington University and a B.S. unique role of the Comptroller General), sion line has grown-it extends down the in human development from the University the Act contained expedited procedures esplanade, past the stairs, and is beginning of Connecticut. Mr. Richards is an evalua- for judicial review. Upon passage, Public to stretch toward the Library of Congress. tor with the Washington Regional Office. Law 99-177 was immediately challenged in Entering the courtroom at 950, we spot He is assigned to the Gramm-Rudman- the US. District Court by 12 members of Senators Phil Gramm and Warren Rudman; Hollings team responsible for preparing the House of Representatives and the Na- other members of the Congress who are the 1987 report and evaluating the bud- tional Treasury Employees Union (NTEU). members of the Supreme Court Bar; getary and financial reporting systems of the Department of Defense. Mr. Richards Comph-oller General Charles A. Bowsher and Mr. Elmer B. Staats, former Comp- received a master’s degree in political sci- Two legal doctrines of constitutional law ence from the University of Kentucky and served as the basis for the challenges: troller General; Mr. James Miller of the Of- fice of Management and Budget; and the master’s degrees in public administration (1) separation of powers and (2) delega- and journalism from the University of tion of authority. On February 6, 1986, a attorneys of record at the tables before the Rhode Island. three-judge panel of the U.S. District Court bench. As the hour of decision nears, we for the District of Columbia unanimously sit and patiently await the entrance of the Time: 10 a.m., April 23, 1986 ruled that the provision of the law under Justices. Place: The Supreme Court of the which the Comptroller General ordered the 1O:Ol a.m.: lb&r. Lloyd Cutler United States President to issue a sequestration order “Oyez! Oyez! Oyez!” intones the Clerk of was unconstitutional on the ground that it Mr. Lloyd Cutler, representing the Comp- the Supreme Court, “All those having busi- vested executive power in the Comptroller troller General, argues that the Comp- ness before this Supreme Court bring forth General, an officer removable solely by the troller General is an officer of the United your claims. God save the United States. Congress. The Comptroller General, the States. The Justices begin what will end as God save this Supreme Court,” The sign*- Senate, and the House of Representatives an intense 2-hour inquiry. First, the Chief came of the moment cannot be described; filed appeals with the Supreme Court of Justice, followed by Justices White, Sandra civics class text-books cannot capture the the United States. The Supreme Court Day O’Connor, and Rehnquist. Is the re- dignity or the sense of history that the scheduled an unprecedented 2-hour argu- moval of the Comptroller General subject courtroom imparts as the Justices file in ment period for April 23, 1986. Each side to judicial review? Are the legal citations and seat themselves on the bench. Chief of the appeal was granted 1 hour for Cutler’s sole authority for his argument? Justice Warren E. Burger sits at the center, argument. What would happen if the Court declared flanked by Justices William J. Brennan, Jr., the removal provision of the 1921 Budget ***** and Byron R. White, senior members of the and Accounting Act null? The questions Court. The Justices posture themselves for continue. .Justices White, Rehnquist, the Z-hour hearing that will soon begin: We make plans to arrive at the Supreme again White, Brennan, Stevens. Mr. Cutler Justice Brennan, face in hand, pensive; Jus- Court after meeting at Bob’s Famous Ice Aelds each question and proceeds with his tice White, the athlete, sturdy and perfectly Cream on Massachusetts Avenue in Wash- argument. The Justices are listening and straight backed; Justice William Rehnquist, ington, D.C., at 5:30 a.m. We are the fourth probing Mr. Cutler’s presentation to under- the constitutional scholar, casually sits in a and fifth in line, joined by a Texas state of- stand its every nuance. He asks the Court large chair; and to Chief Justice Burger’s fice staffer, a law student, and an em- to consider a point: If the Comptroller far rightJustice John Paul Stevens, who ployee of a legal association. The sun has General is an independent officer of the angles his body across the bench toward not yet risen, and the 36.degree tempera- United States and the removal clause of the attorney’s table in the center of the ture is challenged by winds that make it the 1921 Act interferes with this role, then room. Mr. Lloyd Cutler (attorney of record feel unmercifully close to 10 degrees. the Court should strike the 1921 Act down for the Comptroller General) stands and Spring is on annual leave, and in a very and not the Gramm-Rudman-Hohings Act. after being recognized by the Chief Justice, short time, we are wondering whether Bringing this part of the presentation to a begins his oral argument concerning the Marburg v, Madison (1803), which estab- close, Chief Justice Burger asks Mr. Cutler duties delegated to the Comptroller Gen- lished judicial review, had waiting lines. As whether he thinks the 1985 law is “sUghtly eral under Gramn--RudmanHolhngs (PL. the morning wears on, the sun rises; the or partially unconstitutional.” The court 99-177). temperature does not. A disheveled man room echoes with laughter, but Mr. Cutler

Page 10 The GAO Review/Summer 1986 saves the moment by answering that there Congress, subject to removal solely by the 11:40 a.m.: Ms. Lois G. Williams are several ways to respond to that ques Congress, and (2) the powers delegated to Ms. Lois Williams represents the National tion and that the argument put forth by the the Comptroller General are executive Treasury Employees Union before the Solicitor General is an extreme one. functions affecting the whole of the gov- Court and argues that the delegation of ernment and should be held only by an ex- lo:21 a.m.: Mr. Steven Ross powers to the Comptroller General unfairly ecutive that serves at the pleasure of the deprived the NTEU members of their cost- Mr. Ross, representing the House of Repre- President. Mr. Fried suggests that other in- of-living increase in January 1986. Ms. sentatives, argues that the Comptroller dependent administrative agencies will be Williams states that the role of the Comp- General was picked as the arbiter in the unaffected if the Court strikes down troller General is central to the case under Gramm-Rudmar-Holdings legislation be- Gramm-Rudmar-Hollings. Arguments to consideration. Justice Burger asks the first cause of his impartiality, a role consistent the contrary, he adds, are merely a scare question of the final presenter. Did Ms. with the duties of an administrative officer offered by the appellants in the case. Jus- Williams bring her argument to the Court of the United States. Justice O’Connor tice O’Connor responds by confessing that questioning the delegation of powers under leads this barrage of legal inquiry. Is the Fried “had surely scared me with wielding Gramm-Rudman-Hollings? Ms. Williams Comptroller General an employee of the that power.” All but the *Justices react with states that her argument concerns the legislative branch? What has he done and laughter. Justice O’Connor notes that separation-of-powers doctrine. The dia- what does he do for the administration? Fried’s argument is novel; the Federal Re- logue between the two is sharp, penetrat- Are any of the functions assigned to the serve establishes policies that affect the fi- ing; Justice White fires question after ques- Comptroller General executive in nature? nancial structure of every institution of tion at Ms. Williams. Chief Justice Burger Justices Stevens and Rehnquist and Chief this country. Fried responds that while and Justice Marshall both comment that Justice Burger pursue follow-up questions. agencies like the Federal Reserve make the Comptroller General is an agent of the The courtroom heats up as does the ex- policy with implications for other agencies, Congress, Justice Burger stating that the change between the bench and the attor- the Comptroller General, under this Act, role is that of an arm or an agent and Jus- ney, Mr. Ross. Twenty minutes pass, and takes an unprecedented action in present- tice Marshall making a subtler reference with clockwork precision, Mr. Ross defers ing an order to the President. Finally, F’ried concerning to whom the Comptroller Gen- to the Senate Counsel, Mr. Michael David- argues that if the Court nullifies the re- eral is accountable. Ms. Williams fields the son. moval clause of the 1921 Act, it would questions and responds to each Justice’s make the Comptroller General irremov- 10~41 a.m.: Mr. Michael Davidson query. We believe that the Justices are able. using Ms. Williams’ argument to sharpen Mr. Michael Davidson represents the Sen- their understanding of the nuances of the ate and argues that the duties delegated to 11:ZO a.m.: Mr. Alan Morrison arguments presented before them this the Comptroller General under the Gramm- Mr. Alan Morrison represents the 12 mem- morning. After a final question from Jus- Rudman-Hollings Act are not unconstitu- bers of the House of Representatives who tice Stevens, Ms. Williams returns to her t.ional. HI! also responds to an earlier ques- filed suit challenging the constitutionality seat at the stroke of noon. tion posed by Justice O’Connor regarding of the law. Mr. Morrison argues that the the work GAO does for the administration. delegation of duties under Gramm- ***** Mr. Davidson responds that the Comp- Rudman-Hollings is unconstitutional be- troller General renders opinions on execu- cause it represents an “excessive delega- Mr. Cutler is allowed time to rebut the ar- tive branch disbursements and expendi- tion” of authority to an officer of the guments made by the opponents of the tures. Mr. Davidson’s argument captures United States. He states that the duties del- law. Chief Justice Burger accepts the case the attention of the Court; his detailed pre- egated to the Comptroller General more for decision at 12:lO p.m. The Justices exit sentation draws smiles from the Justices properly belong to the elected representa- quickly. As the courtroom empties, the pre- as he weaves the history trf the delegation- tives uf the government, who would bear viously quiet and observant crowd turns to of-authority doctrine from its origins in the accountability for the decisions made. The vociferous speculation. We make our way E’ederdist Papers. In closing, Mr. Davidson Congress, he suggests, is attempting to de- out of the courtroom, grateful for the op- states that the delegation of authority is fine an elaborate mechanism to reduce the portunity to stand and stretch after 2 the essence of the legislative function, budget without raising taxes or cutting hours on those hard-backed chairs. Out- found in the first article of the Constitu- spending programs. Chief

Page 11 Location Manager’s Corner

Managing Information To address these obstacles to increased he required to handle conflicting organiza- Technology ADP use, management in all three offices tional pressures, and users will face signif- endorsed a strategy for raising staff aware- cant changes in how they do their work. Changes in the way GAO uses computer ness of the new technology Management The long- and short-term effects on job technology have raised many questions in two of the offices encouraged the emer- roles and responsibilities at all levels about the appropriate application of hard- gence of “key users” from the audit ranks should be carefully considered. (For dc- wart’ and software to professional and sup- to serve as role models for the rest of the tails on ADP use at GAO, see the summer port staff functions. In this issue’s staff. Typically, these individuals were ex- &t!ieu:, 1984, article by Fred Gallegos “Manager’s Corner,” .Joseph Quasney, asso- perienced and well-respected evaluators. entitled “Integration of New Technology ciate director, Information Management By giving these key users access to train- Into Regional Office Operations.“) and Technology Division (IMTEC), and ing and equipment and providing time to Elizabeth Powell, IMTEC Informanon Cen- experiment with the new technology, man- The Knowledge Executive: ter. critique a book that argues for a gener- agement was able to positively influence Leadership in an alist approach to the management of infor- staff and dem~ltrp exrellent ADP resource lrlformation Society mation and information technology. Next, people. By Harlan Cleveland James T. Campbell, special assistant to dim E. P. Dutton, New York: 1985 rrc*tor, operations, Office of Information All three offices incrrased awareness by Hrsour~s Management, reviews a book publicizing innovative ADP uses. These ap- Reviewed by Joe Quasney and Elizabeth that addresses computer technology ques- proaches were supplemented by the high- Powell tions from a generic. yet moderaWly con- quality, job-specifir training and technical Ed. note: The opinions expressed in this troversial, perspective. Mr. Campbell’s re- support provided by technical assistance review represent the authors’ impressions view focuses on the merits of the book groups (special advisory staff with ADP of this topic area. The ideas and opinions and discusses some of the important man skills). In addition, the leadership in all do not necessarily reflect the opinions of agcment considerations and challenges as- three offices recognized that the work- other GAO personnel or organization sociated with using computer technology place culture (values, attitudes, norms, and policy. as an organizational resource. The review- procedures) needed t.o change to take ad- ers also provide timely commentaries on vantage of new ADP resources. The overall Harlan Cleveland’s book, The Knowledge the status of computer tr~chnology at GAO. effect of these approaches was to acceler- Exert ive, examines a key dynamic of our ate the use of ADP. Once given a chance, time: the information explosion resulting Regional Offices’ Study the technology sold itself, and users be- from the development and subsequent ft- In a similar vein, we present the findings came leaders for innovation. sion of computer and communication tech- of an Gfficc of Organization and Human nologies. Cleveland focuses on the organi- Development (OOHD) project team that Important Tasks zational and social implications of the studied the introduction and dissemination The movement toward using and assimilat- information revolution; in particular, he ad- of computer technology in three GA<) re- ing sophisticated ADP resources into dresses the requirements for leadership in gional offices. Hefort, 1980, each of the re- GAO’s procedures is just beginning. a complex, information-rich environment. gional offices studied demonstrated a great OOHD’s study suggests that obstacles can Need for a New Kind of deal of ambivalence about the use of com- be overcome by effective leadership and Leader puters and word processors. Automatic resource management. One important task data processing (ADI’) was seen as a spc- for leadership is to identify routine appli- Cleveland believes that a critical need cialist fuuction, and word processing (typ- cations and find the best software to sup- exists for a type of leader-a “knowledge ing) was viirwed as a secretarial task. In port these typical applications. Another executive”-who is comfortable with com- addition, negative managc~mcnt and staff critical task is to continue to redesign plexity and able to harness technology to attitudes toward ADI’, lack of comput.er work and organizational processes to take achieve human purposes. The knowledge technology experience, and a general fear advantage of the powerful new tools that executive must be a generalist but, ideally, of computers combined to hinder t,hr a~ we possess. The dynamics at this stage of one who has ‘graduated from being an ex- similation of ADP in each officr. innovation are challenging: Managers will pert” This executive needs to be broad in

Page 12 The GAO Review/Summer 1986 perspective, skeptical of inherent assump- Technology Assessment and the Congres- The addition to GAO of staff with substan- tions, curious about science-based tech- sional Research Service, as prime exam- tial expertise in the computer and telecom- noIogies, eager to pull people and ideas to- ples of organizat,ions involved in the type munications fields will benefit GAO di- gether, interested in fairness, and of technology assessment that he believes rect,ly in a technical sense and increase the self-confident enough to act decisively. is essential to harness technology to hu- areas of expertise from which future gen- man purposes. Almost all GAO staff, he eralist leaders can be selected. From Industry to Informa- points out, can bc classified as knowledge tion GAO has long emphasized the importance workers performing work directly related of the generalist throughout the organiza- During the past decade, the rapid advances to or supportive of GAO’s primary mission. tion. If there is one area in which addi- in information technology and the resulting It is ironic that knowledge-intensive gov- tional breadth would be particularly useful information explosion have affected the ernment organizations hav? been so slow to the leadership of the agency, it is the way all of us live, work, and play. It is now to appreciate the full potential of automa- area of information technology. Our gener- widely understood that we are moving tion and to use it to improve their work. alist executive needs greater understanding from an industrial society that relied pri- While GAO has used computerized systems of information technology management marily on physical resources to a society for several years, particularly in the admin- and how it differs from the management of that values information as the most impor- istrative area, we have only recently begun other resources. If, through strategic plan tant resource. However, it is less widely to automate significant portions of our ning, an effective information technology understood that information resources and mission work. Recent advances in informa- were created, greater opportunities would technolog cannot he effectively managed tion technology, however, particularly the exist for those generalists who understand by relying on concepts that have been fusion of computing and communications, the new information technologies, can use used for centuries to manage physical rc- are especially promising. Specifically, them effectively on the job, and can inter- sources. Cleveland devotes most of this providing automated tools such as micro- act easily with computer experts. book trr a discussion of the implications of computers to our staff will increase pro- Opportunities managing information resources as op- ductivity in the audit process, However, posed b physical resources. dramatic improvements will depend on our In an informationrich world, GAO has sig- successfully linking the different auto- nificant competition from other informa- Traditionally, social and organizational tion organizations for the attention of dcci- power structures have been built by limit- mated systems and tools supporting the flow of information from initial data col- sionmakers. The news media, lobbying ing access to and controlling use of scarce groups, executive branch agencies, and our physical resources, Cleveland asserts. Be- lcction and analysis to final report produc- tion and distribution. sister congressional agencies all seek to cause the characteristics of information re- provide information and analysis that will Sources are different frtJII1 those of physii GAO is making significant improvements influence decisionmakers and shape public (-aI resources, the shift to information as a in this area. The recent formation of the policy and opinion. Many of our competi- key ha- undcrmincd the traditional hier- Office of Information Kesourccs Manage- tors have already recognized the need to archy and bases of power. Hence, individu- ment and the USC of strategic planning in make optimal use of new information tech- als who are able to understand complexity, this organization afford us an opportunity nologies, and members of the Congress are to capitalize on information tc~~hnology in ;malyze alternatives, mobilize available increasingly knowledgeable about the use technoloa, and create a consensus for ac- support of GAO’s mission. We can all sup- of information technology. For GAO to tion-generalist knowledge exrcutivcs- port and participate in the process by maintain a strong and effective voice, it XP destined to become the new Ieaders. which a strategic plan is formulated and must move as rapidly as possible toward Ihawing extensively on his personal lead- shaped. Cleveland’s book addresses this greater automation of its internal opera- crship cxperirnces in government and process in an interesting way that may tions and its audit and reporting processes academia, Cleveland ha. written a highly help us understand how mchnology is al- while remaining attentive to the possibih- readablt, assessment of the continuing irn- tering the way GA( ) and other organiza- ties offered by future developments in this l)act of the information revolution on SO- tions do business. rapidly changing field. riaI organization. He writes convincingly Generalist/Specialist cm the merits of the knowlege executive, The Silicon Idol: The Micro and the reader can easily join him in (Yeveland emphasizes the need for general- Revolution and Its Social “celebration of the get-it-together” profes- ist leaders, rather than specialists, within Implications sion. organizations. He clearly stat.es the neces- By Michael Shallis sity, however, for hoth kinds of people to Schocken Books, New York: 1984 Implications for GAO work together with mutual respect and de- Reviewed by James T. Campbell prndt>nce. Although 77u~Kmwledge i?xecutive does Practically everyone exposed to microcorn- not. address several key issues related to Until recently, GAO has engaged in little puters seems to readily accept that their information technolo~ management strategic thinking on how information effects are friendly or, at least, neutral within organizations, the hook certainly technology can hest he used to improve Shallis questions the neutrality of the corn- does have implications for GAO in several the way we do our work. One reason for puter; in fact, he argues that it is more foe areas. tiA0 is in the information business: this is that GAO has not. traditionally main- than friend. His concern and underlying The basic mission of the agency is to col- tained its own staff of computer and com- premise in The Silicr)n Idol is that tech- hbct and analyze information and provide munication experts charged with staying nocrats and the government are introduc- assessments and recommendations based up-to-date on information technology and ing computer technology into the fabric of on this information to our clients, chiefly recommending how technological ad- our society before most people are prc- the Congress. Cleveland singles out GAO, vances might be used to improve our over- pared to understand what this technoloa along with its sister agencies, ttic Clffce of all optrations. is all about.

Page 13 Manager’s Machines or People? l As money is transformed into bits of in- because people tend to subordinate them- formation that are passed around electron- selves to all-powerful machines. Believing Shallls describes the anthropomorphic ically, we may eventually become a paper- in this “power effect,” he says, reduces our qualities people ascribe to computers, less, cashless society. control over technological development. claiming that people become seduced by Shallis’ concern is that we will allow the technique into an illusory world: Mystified l TV terminals may eventually serve as in “progress” of technology to continue until by the speed, power, and versatility of the put and output devices, so that viewers it is too late to do anything about it, and machine itself, they lose track of its real can comment on and criticize programs we will then be forced to find ways to purpose as a tool or a means to an end. they are watching. Polls could then be adapt ourselves to it. They put information and instructions into taken on issues, and democracy could be the machines and receive information extended instantly to political decision- Arguments Are Compelling back, a process that simulates communica- making. Though Overstated tion between people. By substituting the The Human Impact Although I find Shallis’ arguments com- fantasy world of the terminal and televi- pelling, I think he overstates his case, sion screen for the real world, people be- Shallis contends that employment and the which detracts from his otherwise credible come isolated from direct experience. This nature of work will be affected most arguments about the ill effects of comput- kind of communication, he contends, is not acutely by the information explosion. One ers on individuals and society in general. wholesome, for it involves only limited obvious and immediate impact could be a Shallis’ basic argument is that we must ex- parts of human consciousness. reduction in the labor force. ercise common sense in using computer Word processing and electronic filing have technology and not allow it to determine Technology as a Tool increased secretarial productivity by be- our ends. But he presents no convincing Shallis also argues that technique should tween 100 and 150 percent. As we have al- evidence to suggest that we should aban- be a means of achieving a goal and that ready begun to experience in GAO, many don the technology altogether, so his technique as an end in itself is no end at organizations are finding that they can dis- boastful claim that he has “never owned a all. He contends that technology for its pense with large typing pools by giving ad- computer and with the exception of once own sake is not progressive if it causes un- ditional computing power to typists. Be- owning a digital watch for 2 years, never employment or strips people of their skills, cause most secretarial work is performed will” is meaningless. pride, and traditions. In particular, he be- by women, they are the first to suffer the Similarly, his final chapter’s advice on how lieves that miniaturizing computer hard- effects of converting the office to the new to handle the intrusion of computer tech- ware is profoundly affecting our lives by technology. nology-or, in his words, “alien intelh- allowing the technology to infiltrate our When the word processor becomes part of gences” and “little green men”-into our entire society: The invasion of the chip has a network that includes electronic storage society is, again, exaggerated. “‘A sane re- created a transforming power all around and information dissemination, the system sponse to the technology,” he writes, “must us, and remaining immune to the changes becomes even more powerful. Because ex- surely begin with a recognition that the brought about by the new technology is ecutives and managers are attracted to new technology is harmful, is irrelevant, impossible. gaining direct access to information with- comes from the desire to control and dom- Technological Advances out the aid of file clerks or secretaries, the inate, and is best left alone, not compro- implications for an information-intensive mised with.” Such statements do little to Shallis predicts that technological changes organization such as GAO are obvious and advance his basic premise that we should will become even more pervasive in the fu- significant. be free to accept or reject the technology, turc. The development of “artificial intelli- depending on whether or how it provides a gence” or “expert systems” that mimic hu- Isolation and Stress means to an end we select. man intelligence illustrates his point. Once With the increase in office automation, machines can be programmed to “learn,” people relate more to their keyboards and Relevance to GAO they can then be “taught” to become monitors than to other people, and the Certainly, the implications of information “experts” and can excel at “teaching” feeling of being cut off is heightened. The technology as detailed in l%e Silicon Idol others. The technology will, he asserts, sameness and blandness of computer ter- are relevant in many ways to GAO. We profoundly affect other areas, such as the minals reduce the sharpness of human fac- may not have thought enough within GAO following: ulties, producing a dependency on, even an about what ends we seek to achieve with addiction to, the technology. This isolation the technology. Perhaps we need to define l Voice recognition programs may eventu- from human contact, Shallis argues, can more clearly the future state we desire and ally enable us to embed a chip in a plastic lead to poor mental health and increased to specify how we will use the technology card to prevent fraud and misuse in vali- stress, not only at work but at home. to achieve that state. We must neither al- dating credit and electronically transferring Shallis says that work becomes not the low computers to dictate our ends nor funds. fruit of a person’s labor but the “output of blindly accept that more technology is al- the machine, the means and the end.” Au- ways good. Our strategy for achieving the l Increased use of robots is inevitable. tomation takes away our ability to work in desired future state must consider all the Japan already has an automated robot fac- cooperation with others and all that is issues related to the effects on our people tory that works day and night. The human gratifying about the cooperative enterprise. of the massive infusion of the technology work force checks the robots’ work during The Computer as Silicon Idol into practically all aspects of our work the day, and, after the people have all gone lives. In particular, we must ask: home, the robots continue the factory Shallis considers the computer a false god, work. a silicon idol that is inherently antihuman See Manager’s, p.40

Page 14 The GAO Review/Summer 1986 Topics in Evaluation

Carl E. Wisler

In previous articles, we have discussed Mr. Wisher is an associate director in GAO’s Reasoning About the Effects F’ryram Evaluation and Methdolog~ Divi- various designs, measurement methods, of Agent Orange SZOR. sampling strategies, and analysis methods that we can use to acquire and analyze the Did TCDD cause health problems for Viet- This issue’s topic is wawningfmm evidace to evidence upon which we base conclusions. nam veterans? Three kinds of evidence are con&usions. In this article, we examine the structure of important in trying to reach a conclusion the reasoning process for answering ques- on this question: the extent of exposure of tions and look at how the various method- individuals to TCDD, the health effects ologies fit into that process. In the process, caused by exposure to TCDD, and possible we will show how answers to empirical health problems that were not caused by questions are derived from accumulated TCDD. If a claim is to be made that TCDD evidence. Before discussing a general caused health problems for Vietnam veter- framework for reasoning from evidence to ans, then an argument must be presented conclusions, however, we will look at a that proceeds from the evidence to the particular example. conclusion. One possible line of argument is depicted in Figure 1. For example, if the TCDD and the Vietnam evidence is strong that a group of service- Veterans men were exposed to TCDD (El), that TCDD causes cloracne (E2), and that the Dioxin is the name for a family of chemi- observed cases of cloracne among the for- cal compounds of which one member- mer servicemen cannot be well accounted 2,3,7,8-tetrachlorodibenzo-p-dioxin, or for by other causes (E3), then a relatively TCDD-has been shown to be extremely strong argument can be made for the con- toxic for certain animal species. Since evi- clusion (C) that TCDD caused the cloracne dence suggests that TCDD is widely dis- observed in Vietnam veterans. Different ev- tributed in the environment, it is important idence might lead to a contrary conclusion, to know how harmful TCDD is. Probably and weaknesses in the evidence would the best-known instance of possible harm lead to a correspondingly weak conclusion. from TCDD is the case of military person- nel in Vietnam who were exposed to Agent The real world is very complicated. For ex- Orange contaminated with TCDD. The her- ample, we do not know exactly who was bicide Agent Orange was used extensively exposed to TCDD. Some service records in Vietnam, and it contained some amount evidently were lost during the evacuation of TCDD as a contaminant from the pro- of Vietnam, and other records were later duction process. Many veterans believe destroyed in a fire in St. Louis. Further- that health problems, such as cancer, more, while animal tests show that TCDD nerve disorders, and cloracne (a skin is very toxic, especially for certain species, rash), as well as birth defects in their chil- epidemiological studies about some TCDD dren, are a result of exposure to Agent Or- effects on humans give ambivalent results. ange. The case of Agent Orange illustrates What is more, the observed health prob- some points about evidence. (See “Vietnam lems of Vietnam veterans could have had a Veteran vs. Agent Orange: The War That variety of causes. As a consequence of Still Lingers,” by ,John Hansen, spring Re- these and other considerations, the reason- vim, 1981.) ing becomes more complex and the con-

Page 15 lems were probably not caused by expo- Figure 1 A Hypothetical Argument sure to TCDD. In dissecting the reasoning process, a use- ful feature of the Toulmin framework is that the factual evidence tends to be sepa- rated from the warrant. This distinction C: TCDD caused cloracne in Viet- El : Servicemen were exposed to helps to clarify disagreements about the TCDD. nam veterans. reasoning process; it may be especially im- E2: TCDD causes cloracne. portant in those relatively common cases in ordinary discourse where the warrant may not be explicitly stated as part of the reasoning process. In the Agent Orange it lush-ation, it helps to realize that in the reasoning presented, only epidemiological elusion less certain. It helps to have a sys- The evidence (E) is the informational or evidence is considered acceptable in draw- tematic way to structure the reasoning factual part of the framework. The conclu- ing a conclusion. A critic might argue that process. sion (C) is the claim we are making as a the warrant should be different; that ani- consequence of the reasoning process. The mal test data should be taken into account. A General Framework for warrant (W) is the principle or license that Reasoning From Evidence to authorizes us to draw the conclusion from Support for a Conclusion Conclusions the evidence. The warrant says that C fol- Because warrants are so important to the A general framework has been developed lows from E because a certain principle reasoning process, they bear a closer look. that can be used in reasoning from eti- applies to using the evidence in an argu- In the evaluation or audit adaptation of the dence to conclusions regardless of the sub- ment. The use of the term, “warrant” thus Toulmin model, the support or warrant for ject at issue. When apphed to evaluations corresponds to its everyday usage as in a conclusion rests largely on four consider- and audits (and somr other forms of em- “your conclusions are unwarranted.” ations: (1) the designs used to produce the pirical inquiry), the framework is repre- To illustrate the framework using the evidence, (2) the measurement methods, sented by Figure 2. The schematic is based Agent Orange example, suppose that one (3) the sampling strategies, and (4) the upon a more elaborate treatment set forth part of the evidence, based upon epidemio- analysis methods. Evidence will support a by Toulmin (1958) and further explicated logical studies, is that TCDD probably does conclusion only through these four factors by Toulmin, Rieke, and Janik (1979). Al- not cause cancer in humans. The warrant because they account for how the eti- though the full framework has six ele- might be that epidemiological evidence is dence came into being. We will consider ments (evidence, warrant, conclusion, necessary to establish TCDD’s effects on how these four factors affect the reasoning backing, qualifier, and rebuttal), we treat humans. Then, E and W lead to the conclu- process in the following paragraphs. only the first three here. sion that Vietnam veterans’ health prob- Four Design Strategies In an earlier article (“Topics in Evalua- Figure 2 A Framework for Reasoning tion,” summer Review, 1983), we outlined four basic design strategies: a sample sur- vey, a case study, a field experiment (or Warrants comparative design), and the use of avail- able data. Within these four broad cate- D: Design strategies gories, many design variations are possible. M: Measurement methods The support for a conclusion is largely de- S: Sampling strategies termined by the appropriateness of the de- A: Analysis methods sign and how well the design was exe- cuted. In the caSe of trying to draw conclusions about the effects of TCDD on Vietnam vet- erans, at least two design variations have been used. Evidence I Conclusion One kind, true experiments with animals, produces evidence from which strong con- El clusions can be made about the effects of E2 TCDD on the animals tested. However, that evidence is also relatively weak with respect to permitting generalization from EN CN I animals, such as guinea pigs and monkeys, to humans. Other designs, such as epidemi- ological studies of humans, produce eti- dence that is relatively weak as a basis for

Page 16 The GAO Review/Summer 1986 causal inference. However, such evidence ences from the facts. For example, in some rebuttals-features that add further clarity does not require an argument to show that of the epidemiological studies of Agent Or- and precision to an argument. conclusions about lower animals also ap- ange effects, comparisons were made be- ply to humans. This ancillary argument, tween the health problems of persons re- Where to Look for More that human reactions resemble those of portedly exposed to Agent Orange and Information lower animals, should itself be supported persons not exposed. The groups used in Dunn, W.N. Public Policy Analysis. Engle- by empirical evidence. such studies can never be quite equivalent wood Cliffs, N.J.: Prentice-Hall, 1981. Ap- in terms of factors such as genetic compo- plies the Toulmin framework for reasoning Measurement Methods sition, nutritional habits, and occupational to public policy issues. The support for a conclusion also depends history, which might be causally related to upon the measurement methods used. Di- health problems. The support for conclu- DUM, W.N. “Reforms as Arguments.” rect observation of conditions and events; sions based upon epidemiological studies KnowLeo!ge: Creation, DQj‘ksion, Utiliza- interviews, either in person or by phone; will therefore depend partly upon the anal- tion, 3, No. 3 (1982), pp. 293-296. Incorpo- and questionnaires are the more common ysis methods used to adjust for group dif- rates some evaluation concepts, such as measurement approaches. All three ap- ferences. threats to validity, into the Toulmin frame- pioaches were used in accumulating evi- work. dence in the Agent Orange case. In short, support for a conclusion from an evaluation or an audit typically has four Mason, R.O., and 1.1.Mitroff. “Policy Analy- Many things can go wrong in the measure- parts: the design, the measurement meth- sis as Argument.” Policy Studies Journal, ment process. In the Agent Orange case, ods, the sampling strategy, and the analysis 9, No. 4, Special #2 (1980-&l), pp. 579-585. for example, some of the information methods. A weakness in any part can un- Concisely explains the Toulmin structure about exposure to TCDD was acquired dermine the conclusion. for reasoning, paying special attention to from veterans years after exposure would the plausibility of an argument. have taken place. Uncertain knowledge As described previously, the Toulmin Toulmin, S. The Uses of Argument. Cam- about events during the Vietnam war and framework leads to a skeletal outline of an bridge, England: Cambridge University faulty memories may lead to considerable argument, a synopsis of the reasoning from Press, 1958. Sets forth the foundations for measurement error. Some veterans may evidence to a conclusion. An Agent Orange practical forms of reasoning. have heen exposed to TCDD hut failed to argument is depicted in Figure 3. report it, while others may have mistak- Real arguments may be much more com- Toulmin, S., R. Rieke, and A. Janik. An In- enly reported exposure. The amount and plicated than those we have discussed. troduction ta Reasoning. New York, N.Y.: type of exposure, which may be important Frequently, the conclusion from one argu- Macmillan, 1979. Is a text-book style intro- considerations, are almost certainly subject ment is used as evidence in another argu- duction to the Toulmin framework for rea- to even greater error. To the extent that ment. The reasoning process may thus pro- soning. Includes many examples from dif- we have measurement error, our conclu- duce a chain or web of arguments. Also, ferent disciplines. n sions wiil be weakened. the framework usually involves three addi- Sampling Strategies tiunal elements-backing, qualifiers, and Because it is seldom possible to acquire in- formation about every relevant condition and event, samphng strategies frequently Figure 3 An Argument in the Toulmin Framework have an important bearing upon the sup- port for a conclusion. A criticism of one of the Agent Orange studies was that it dealt Warrant only with Air Force personnel and did not include Army forces. This complaint illus- Epidemiological evidence is neces- trates a key point about sampling strate- sary to establish TCDD’s effects on gies: We may have evidence about one set humans. of entities, but we may want to draw con- clusions about a larger population of enti- ties. Our ability to reason this way, to gen- eralize to the population, depends upon the nature of the entities and the phe- nomenon in question and on how we draw the sample. In the Agent Orange case, it Evidence Conclusion might he hard to draw strong conclusions ahout TCDD effects on Army personnel be- Epidemiological studies do not Vietnam veterans’ cases of cancer cause Air Force servicemen, the ones we demonstrate that TCDD causes were probably not caused by have evidence on, might have been subject cancer in humans. TCDD. 10 a diiferent type of TCDD exposure. Analysis Methods The fourth ma,ior consideration in drawing c.onclusions from empirical evidence is the analysis method used in drawing infer-

Page 17 An Album of GAO Buildings

WiimC. Oelkers

WiUiam Qelkers, assistant to the director, Of- Ed. note: This year marks the 35th an- ber 11, 1951, the GAO Building was for- fice of Policy, joined GAO in 196’1. He earned niversary of the GAO Building. When GAO mally dedicated and the cornerstone laid a B.S. degree in business administration with was established in 1921, efforts were be- by President Harry S. Truman at an im- an emphasis on accounting and economics firm Pennsylvania State University and com- gun to find a building to house all its em- pressive cermony witnessed by a crowd pleted tti Dartmouth Institute’s executive pru- ployees and records, efforts that culmi- that filled G Street between the old GAO gram in 1975. Mr. OeUcers has served in the nated in the present GAO Building, which Building and the new one. But more on former civil Division and the Manpoww and was dedicated in September 1951. This ar- that later. Welfilp Division. In 1974 he became GAO’s ticle traces the history of GAO’s search for first issue-area coordinator for energy in Ihe a permanent home. The feeling of accomplishment on that m-ml?/ created OflZce uf Enm.qy and Special September day is somewhat ironic. The Projects. He has worked in staffpositions and as a group director in the fwm.er Enqy and The author would like to acknowledge the GAO Building had been constructed to Minerals Division (EMDj and in the Re- assistance of the following people in consolidate all of GAO under one roof: sources, Community, and Economic Develop- preparing this article: Elizabeth Poe1 and GAO leaders and staff had sought for 30 ment Division (RCED). He oLso served as a Vicki Miller, Office of Policy; Bill Touey, years to centralize operations and provide member of the first post-assignment quality re view system (PAQRS) team. Mr. OeUxrs re- Philadelphia Regional Office; Earl Harris, safe storage for tons of government fiscal ceived the EMD Direct&s Award in 1977 and Office of Facilities and Property Manage- records that GAO held for auditing. But, 1978 and a Comptroti G eneral’s Outstanding ment; Joel Dwyer, General Services and during those 30 years, the mission of the Achievement Award for his PAQRS work in Controller; Margaret Taylor, Office of the Office had changed. GAO was no longer an 1985. He iq a member of Alpha Kappa Psi, a General Counsel; William Sherman, Na- institution dedicated to centralized audit prqfessiond businessfraternity, and is active in local civic, church, and school activities. tional Archives and Records Administra- and document control where greeneye- tion; Isabel Lowry, National Building Mu- shaded accountants pored over reams of seum; Andrea Mones-O’Hara, General paper. Beginning in the late 1940’s GAO Services Administration; the staff of the had established offices at the federal agen- Washingtoniana Division, Martin Luther cies where the records were located (audit King, Jr., Library, Washington; and GAO sites) rather than moving all the records to alumni Jo Clark, Margaret Macfarlane, and a central 1ocation.t Consequently, GAO’s Bob Ford. employees began to be physically scattered at audit sites in all the major federal enti- GAO Gets a Permanent Home ties, regional offices, and suboffices around the country and overseas locations. The year was 1951: Senator Estes Kefauver Of the 5,100 employees working for GAO was investigating organized crime; General on December 31, 1985, only about 2,500 Douglas MacArthur had been recalled from worked in the GAO Building. And so, by command in Korea; Congresswoman Helen the tie this huge building with extensive, Gahagan Douglas was completing her final windowless space to store records was term in the House of Representatives; J.D. dedicated, the building’s use of space was Salinger pubiished Catcher in the Rye; already outdated. Willie Mays of the New York Giants was on his way to winning baseball’s Rookie- Early History of-the-Year award; and the new General Accounting Office Building in Washington, GAO’s original ancestral home was New DC., was opening for business. York City! That may come as a shock to some, but it was in New York in Septem- In .January 1951, the first employees began moving into the unfinished building, using ‘This action was reaffirmed by the Accounting the entrance on 4th Street. By August, the and Auditing Act of 1950, which directed agen- cafeteria had opened. Then, on Septem- cies to retalr records for site audits by GAO.

Page 18 The GAO Review/Summer 1986 ber 1789 that the frost Congress passed the departmental responsibilities,4 and a and outside the immediate influence of the act establishing the Treasury Department Comptroller of the Treasury position. This administrative departments of the Govem- and creating the positions of Comptroller organizational arrangement remained in ef- ment.“7 and Auditor, We precursors of today’s fect until GAO was established in 1921: Comptroller General. The Treasury Depart- By 1914, some temporary consolidation ment was located in what is now Manhat- As the number of Comptrollers and Audi- had occurred. Four Auditors (Treasury, In- tan’s financial district, not far from the tors grew, space in the Treasury Building terior, Navy, and State/other) and their current site of GAO’s New York Regional became limited, and the Auditors and their staffs were assigned to the Auditors’ Build- Office. staffs took up their duties at various other ing at 14th and C Streets SW. Built in 1880 locations. The Comptroller and his immedi- as part of the Bureau of Engraving and In 1790, the capital was moved to Philadel- ate staff, however, remained in the Trea- Printing, this red brick building stil stands. phia. The Treasury Department, headed by sury Building. But its use as a permanent office was its fmt Secretary, Alexander Hamilton, threatened by a 1917 Senate committee was housed in the Pemberton Mansion at In 1854, the Auditor for the Post Office De- proposal to tear down the Auditors’ Build- the southwest comer of Chestnut and partment was housed in the General Post ing as part of a plan to “improve” the mall Third Streets. The office of Comptroller Office Building and the city post office area. A separate building was to be built Nicholas Everleigh was also in that build- building, which was located near 7th and for all the Auditors (except the War Audi- ing, while Auditor Oliver Wolcott, Jr.,* and E Streets N.W. Even then, more space was tor) at 12th and C Streets N.W., immedi- his staff of 16 occupied a house nearby on needed. The Auditor for the Post Office ately behind the Post Office Building South Third Street. During the 10 years called attention to “. .the pressing want of where the Internal Revenue Service Build- that Philadelphia was the capital, Treasury sufficient room for the suitable accommo- ing currently stands. But that plan was not headquarters and the Comptroller’s office dation of the clerks of this office. . .The carried out. remained in the same location, but the rooms assigned to this office. .are wholly Auditor’s office moved several times be- insufficient, and many of the clerks are The passage of the Budget and Accounting cause of space shortages, These early of- now working at great Inconvenience and Act in June 1921 set in motion the transi- fices were only a few blocks from the cur- disadvantage in the small and incommodi- tion of the government’s auditing function rent location of GAO’s Philadelphia ous rooms of the old and combustible from the Department of the Treasury to Regional Office. building provided for the city post office.“” GAO. The act abolished the Comptroller of the Treasury position and the Auditors for On May 15, 1800, President Adams directed When the Post Office Building on Pennsyl- the various departments and established his Cabinet to arrange their affairs “that vania Avenue opened in 1899, the Auditor the Comptroller General and Assistant the public offices may be opened in the for the Post Office Department and his Comptroller General positions. city of Washington. . .by the 15th of June.” staff moved in. Arriving in Washington, Secretary of the During the 1$60’s, the Second Auditor for Treasury Wolcott was not impressed. The Treasury Building: the Wax Department moved to the Winder “There are few houses in any one place, GAO’s First Home Building at 17th and F Streets N.W. This and most of them small, miserable huts, building, built during 1847 and 1848 and Few records are readily available to docu- which present an awl%1 contrast to the still standing today, was one of the frst ment in detail where GAO staff were work- public buildings. . .You may look in al- buildings in Washington with central heat- ing on July 1, 1921, when the Office was most any direction, over an extent of ing and steel beams. But the Winder Build- established. But that day’s press reports in- ground nearly as Iarge as the city of New ing is distinguished less by its architecture dicate that the transition went smoothly, York, without seeing a fence or any object than by the fact that it was the frst in a except brick-kilns and temporary huts for long line of privately owned office build- laborers.“‘l Little detailed information is 201tver Wolcott, Jr , son of a signer of the ings leased to the government. Declaration of independence and a native of available on where in Washington the of- Connecticut, was appornted Auditor of the fices of the Comptrollers, Auditors, and The early 1900’s brought even more decen- Treasury Department in September 1789. He their staffs were situated during the 1800’s. then served as Comptroller of the Treasury from tralization. The Auditors for Interior and Most likely, the offices were initially June 17, 1791, to February 2, 1795, when he Navy moved from the Treasury Building to was named to succeed Alexander Hamilton as located in the first Treasury Building, the Union Building, on G Street between Secretary of the Treasury He served as Secre- which was built on the southern portion of 6th and 7th Streets N.W., a few blocks tary until November 1800. the current site, completed in 1800, and de- 3Washington, City and Capita/. Amencan Guide from the current GAO Building. The Audi- stroyed by the British during the War of Series, Federal Writer’s Project (WashIngton, tor for the State Department was located 1812. The east wing of the current building D.C.. Government Prtnting Office, 19371, p, 47 in the Small Building at the corner of 14th 4The six auditors were responsible for the fol- was completed in 1842 and is the oldest of and G Streets N.W. lowrng departments: Treasury, War, Interior, the government’s departmental structures. Navy, State and other, and Post Office In December 1911 the Comptroller of the SFor additional rnformation on these early years, Throughout the 1800’s, a series of legista- Treasury complained that the widely scat- see Eric A. Green, “GAO Before GAO,” The GAO Review (fall 1984), p. 19 tive actions created additional Comptroller tered offices required a much larger mes- %?eport of the Secretary of the Treasury on the and Auditor positions, such as First senger force than would be needed if the State of the Finance for the Year Ending June Comptroller, Second Comptroller, First Au- offices of the Auditors were closer to each 30, 1854, 33rd Cong , 2nd sess., S. Exec. dltor, and Second Auditor. Later, the Dock- other and to the Treasury Building, where DOG. 2, p. 97. cry Act of 1894 reorganized the govern- he was located. He recommended provid- 7Annual Report of the Comptroller of the Trea- sury for the Fiscal Year Ending June 30, 1911 ment’s accounting system and established ing “for space for the accounting offices in (Washington, D.C.. Government Printing Offrce, six Auditor positions, each with specific such a way as to put them near together 1911), p. 10.

Page 19 Album Most of Washington had assumed that Square was known for 25 years (1926 to Walter W. Warwick, who had been serving 1951) as the GAO Building. In late June as C~omptroller of the Treasury since Sep- 1926, GAO staff began moving. The move tember 1915, would be named the first was part of a massive shift characterized Comptroller General and could simply by one press report as “the largest transfer change the title outside his door in the of Government offlees since the war.“13 Treasury Building. Rut, in late June 1921, The Bureau of Mines moved from the Inte- just, a few days before GAO came into be- rior Building to the Winder Building, the ing, President Harding named J. Raymond Bureau of Pensions moved to the Interior McCarl, a Republican Party official from Building, and GAO staff (beginning with Nebraska, as Comptroller General and those working in the Walker Johnson Early I So& viea of Penr~~~launia Avenue Building) moved to the Pension Building. Lurtin R. Ginn of Indiana, a career em- from thesteps of thk i?m.wq Lkpartment, ployee of the Department of the Treasury, GAO’s first home, Looking toward the Capitol. The remaining GAO staff moved to the as Assistant Comptroller General. Pension Building throughout the summer. The Comptroller General raised the issue Early in September, the Comptroller Gen- GAO’s fist home became a suite of offices of proper housing for GAO again in his eral’s office moved, and the transition was on the second floor of the Treasury Build- 1923 annual report: “So long as the audit- complete. (Mr. McCarl’s vacated office, by ing overlooking 15th Street N.W. These ing functions are required to be performed that time on the first floor of the Treasury were the same offices that had been occu- Building, was soon occupied by General pied by the Comptroller of the Treasury Lincoln C. Andrews, Chief of Treasury’s for several years. The Division of Law prohibition activities!14) (predecessor of the Office of the General Counsel) was also located in the Treasury The Pension Building, which cost just Building, The offices of the Comptroller under $900,000, was built in 1883 as a General, the Assistant Comptroller Gen- memorial to the veterans of the Civil eral, and the Division of Law comprised War.‘” The Bureau of Pensions, the buiid- about 90 employees. The remaining GAO ing’s original occupant, administered the staff (some 1,400 regular employees and pensions of war veterans and their 12,0(K) temporary employees, mostly in the widows. mm 19.21 until 1926, GAO heudquarters UXIS War Department Division8) remained at located on the 15th Street side of ti Tw~~w the various locations around the city Building. where the former Auditor’s offices had at the seat of government, after most of been. the expenditures have been made, the *Just over a year after setting up business work can not be done effectively and effi- in the Treasury Building, GAO occupied ciently until provision is made for a central 32 rooms there. Treasury’s Chief Clerk and office having its facilities conveniently lo- Superintendent was given the job of find- cated .” ing more space in the building for the also Late in 1925, the Public Building Commis- newly established Bureau of the Budget sion began to consider a proposal to con- and for an expanding Treasw Depart- The first “GAO Building” wus the Ptmsi~n solidate GAO’s operations in the Pension ment. The offices occupied by GAO would Building. It serued as home fur 25 gears until Building. Secretary of the Treasury Mellon, the pwxxt building was built. seem to have been a primary target, but upon learning of this proposal, urged the Treasury could not find other suitable One of the most attractive features of the Commission to approve it, because moving space for GAO.g building, designed by Army General the offices of the Comptroller General and Montgomery C. Meigs, is a 3-foot-tall terra- By 1923, GAO occupied 20 buildings, 7 pri- the other GAO staff out of the Treasury cotta frieze extending completely around marily for staff and another 13 for storage Building would create more space for of a growing inventory of government fis- Treasury operations.” cal records. Among these buildings were aEach of the former Auditor’s offlces had been The Commission did finally approve GAO’S the Walker Johnson Building at 1734 New designated a GAO division move 5 years after it began operating out York Avenue N.W., the Auditors’ Building, 9Memorandum from Chief Clerk, Treasury De- of the Treasury Building and numerous partment, to Under Secretary Gilbert. July 20, and the Winder Building. rented buildings. An important consider- 1922. loLetter from Comptroller General John R. Mc- ation in making that decision was that, in To remedy GAO’s extreme decentraltia- Carl to Chairman Reed Smoot, Public Building tion, Comptroller General McCarl offered addition to centralizing GAO’s operations, CornmIssion, Jan. 10, 1923. to “vacat.e at the earliest possible moment” the move would save $100,000 in annual 11 Letter from Secretary of the Treasury A W all space that GAO occupied in the Trea- rent for the private buildings that GAO Mellon to Chairman Reed Smoot, Public Build- occupied.‘” Ing Commisslon. Dec. 30, 1925. sury Building, the Winder Building, the old 12Washmgton Evening Star, Dec. 29, 1925. General Land Office Building, and the Mer- i3Washmgtoon Evening Star, June 28, 1926. chants Transfer and Storage Company (on The Pension Building: i4Washmgton Evening Star, Sept. 9, 1926 E Street between 9th and 10th Streets) if The First “GAO Building” 15During this period, several memorial buildings the Public Building Commission would Today we know the Pension Building as were built in Washington, lncludlnq the Luther Place Memorral Church at ThomasCircle N.W., agree to move GAO into the Treasury the National Building Museum, but the built in 1870 in thanksaivlna for Ihe end of the - Y Anntbx.l” Mr. McCarl’s offer was rejected. massive red brick structure at Judiciary CIVII War

Page 20 The GAO Review/Summer 1986 the building. The frieze vividly depicts the mate floor area of over 100 by 300 feet in Other Noteworthy GAO lJnion Army’s cavalry, infantry, and a~ extent, it is necessary to peer down from Homes t,illery as well as the naval, medical, and above upon the pigmy clerks below, stow- Some of the buildings we’ve mentioned in quartermaster’s forces. ing away endless Government documents, like Lilliputians in a Brobdingnagian hall. passing that served as temporary homes The building’s great central hall contains Having abandoned all sense of scale, the for GAO deserve special attention here. eight mammoth Corinthian columns, each architect felt free to achieve size; and made of 70,000 bricks painted to look like nothing short of an inaugural ball or a sienna marble. The central hall was the thunderstorm could possibly fill the im- scene of the inaugural balls of Presidents mense void.“‘” Cleveland, Harrison, McKinley, Theodore Roosevelt, Taft, and, most recently, Carter While the move to the Pension Build@ and Reagan. Woodrow Wilson did not want achieved some centralization and SePa- an inaugural ball, and the custom died out rated physically GAO from the executive for several administrations. In 1932, some bran&, the growth of the Office during the thought kas given to using the hall for years after the Depression caused renewed President Franklin Roosevelt’s frst inau- crowding, and much of the staff began m gural, but the idea was discouraged be- move to other locations. In 1935, the Con- cause of the disruption to GAO employees gress authorized funds to remodel the Pen- The Auditors’ Building at 14th and Independ- who would have had to be put on leave for sion Building and add wings to its east and enm Avenue S. W., originalLy part of the Bureau several days so that workers could prepare west ends. However, plans for the project of Engraving and Printing, was used by stag the space.l” were abandoned before they were com- of the ComptroUm of the Trea.suq and later by GAO. pleted because GAO had grown so much GAO ofticials were quartered in the offices that this remedy would have been ineffec- The Old Post Office around the sides of the great hall. The tive. Comptroller GeneraI and Assistant Comp- The Old Post Office-the massive Maine troller General occupied the suite of of- Space-seeking efforts continued, however, granite structure with the imposing clock fices formerly occupied by the Commis- and In 1941 the site for the present GAO tower at 12th Street and Pennsylvania Av- Building, across G Street from the Pension enue N.W.-is currently best known as a Building, was acquired and the existing place to go to lunch, shop, or celebrate buildings torn down. The project was sus- New Year’s Eve. But for more than 75 pended, however, because of World War II. years after its opening in 1899, the Old Post Office was home to many GAO em- By 1943, GAO occupied 18 buildings in ad- ployees and their predecessors in the dition to the Pension Building, including Treasury Department. the Old Post Office, the Patent Office, Temporary Building T-8 at Friendship (a location in the upper northwest quadrant of the city), and numerous rented build- ings, The Audit Division, originally located in the Pension Building, was located from 1935 to 1948 in the Moses Building at 11th The great Ml of the Pen&cm Building used for i?~~tdgunL haUs and for GAO offiices and and F Streets N.W., across from Woodward reco& storage. & Lothrop’s main department store. sioner of Pensions on the second floor in One of the most emotional events of the southwest corner of the building. The GAO’s tenure in the Pension Building came suite contains a number of offices, one on the eve of Memorial Day, 1948, when with a fireplace and another with an the GAO Employees’ Association and GAO arched hand-painted ceiling, which are CUT- Post No. 48 of the American Legion dedi- rently being restored by the National cated a bronze plaque honoring the 29 Building Museum. GAO employees who had lost their lives in World War II. The dedication, held after The great hall was fiiled with GAO audi- working hours in the great hall, was at- tors and clerks working their way through tended by over 200 employees and next-of- an ever-increasing inventory of records. kin. The Old Post 0ffice Building, a promi?ront Even the fountain in the center of the hall local landmark at 12th and Pennsylvania Av- was filled with papers.17 This scene enue N. W., WCSoccupied by GAO and its prude prompted one Washington guidebook to And SO it happened that a plaque in mem- cessors j&r more than 7.5 years. note: “The feeble facade of the old Pension ory of fallen GAO colleagues was exhibited Office Building, derived in some mysteri- in a buildmg built as a memorial to an ear- ous manner from the Farnese Palace in lier war and from which pensions for vet- 16H~story of the Pens/on Buildtng, WashIngton, D.C., p. 2. Rome, hides an amazing interior. To appre- erans had been dispensed. The plaque is ““1940 Picture Story of GAO,” The GAO Re- ciate the immensity of its great hall, rising now located in the G Street lobby of the vrew, summer 1971, pp 83-87. 120 feet in height and covering an approxi- GAO Building. 1BWashington, City and Capital, p 128

Page 21 Album his wife, Eva&n Wa.lshTl young McLean The Old Post Office Building was built to and two restored, 19th century cast-iron held lavish parties at the estate during the house the headquarters offices of the Post fountains. This building, too, once housed GAO staff. “roaring” twenties. Among the guests were Office l)epartment and the Washington, many notable socialites and, often, the D.C., city post office. The new building got The site of the Old Patent Office Building President and Mrs. Harding. McLean be- off to an unfortunate start when, shortly was originally designated as the location came involved in the Teapot Dome Scam after it was completed, Washington, DC., for a national interdenominational church, da1 in 1923; his reputation was damaged, Postmaster James P. Willett fell down an but the church was never built. In 1840, and he subsequently sold the then- elevator shaft in the building and WZAS the Greek Revival-style south wing was bankrupt Washington Post. He died in killed. In 1914, the city post office relo- completed to house the Patent Office. The 1941. cated to its current site on North Capitol north wing was completed in 1867. During Street, and, in the mid-1930’s, the Post Of- the Civil War, the building served as a hos- Because of the need for housing for fed- fice Department headquarters moved pital, morgue, and barracks. After the Bat- eral workers during World War II, the gov- across 12th Street to its &new” building, tles of Antietam, Second Bull Run, and ernment purchased the estate from leaving the Old Post Office to a string of Fredericksburg, the wounded were Laid out McLean’s widow, and the house and other other federal tenants. on the marble floors between glass cases buildings were torn down to build a com- full of patent models. plex of apartments and offices known as Audits of postal accounts had begun in McLean Gardens. Friendship’s final chapter 1826 and were firmly established when the In 1932, the Patent Office moved out, and was written when the massive cast-iron so-called “Sixth Auditor” position was cre- the Civil Service Commission was housed and wrought-iron gates, so heavy that they ated in 1836 for that purpose. Later, the there from 1932 to 1963. GAO ReconciIia- swung on iron wheels, were removed to Dockery Act of 1894 provided for an Audi- tion and Clearance Division staff were lo- support a scrap metal drive in 1942.” tor for the Post Office Department who re- cated in the “Civil Service Commission ported to the Comptroller of the Treasury. Building” from 1943 to about 1949. In April 1943, GAO’s Claims Division That auditing staff worked in the Old Post moved to Temporary Building T-8, one of Office Building starting in 1899 and, after the buildings erected at the Friendship site GAO was created in 1921, remained there and a much-sought-after work site for as the Postal Accounts Division of GAOlg those employees who lived in the newly until January 1942, when the unit moved to constructed apartments. When these of- Asheville, North Carolina. The move was fices were finally moved downtown to the part of an effort to provide more space in GAO Building, staff were forced to drive or Washington for war activities.‘” take public transit.

The Old Post Office was also home to the The “New” GAO Building Corporation Audits Division from 1945 to When completed in 1951, the GAO Building 1951 and to the Division of Audits, whose was the largest downtown office building staff moved to the GAO Building when it The Patent Q‘j%q wow the Smithsonian’s Na- in Washington, covering most of a city opened in 1951. The last GAO occupants of tirmal Portrait GaL!ew and the National MU- block. lt was also the first federal office the Post Office Building were members of scorn of American AA, bused GAO staff in the 1940’s when the buQding wus occupied by thx? bu&iing without wings or internal courts.” the former Energy and Minerals Division’s Civil Service Commission. A 1946 architectural drawing for the build- Federal Energy Administration audit site, ing did have wings running between G and who were located on the second floor Temporary Building T-8 H Streets, but that plan was changed to from .June 1976 to July 1978. These hardy One of the most unique locations GAO has provide maximum usable floor space and souls (the author among them) endured occupied was the so-called Temporary the last gasp of the Old Post Office, which Building T-8 located on the Friendship lqFor a brief period followlng GAO’s establish- had been allowed to deteriorate for many tract at Wisconsin Avenue and Newark ment (July 1, 1921, through April 16, 1922), years and had been scheduled for demoli- Street N.W. Friendship was the tumof-the- postal audit responsiblllty reverted to the Post Office Department. tion. Along with years of dust, peeling century country estate of Mr. and 20The Postal Accounts Divlslon remalned In paint, and leaking pipes and ceilings, one Mrs. John R. McLean. It contained a ram- Asheville until 1950. when its duties and func- Monday morning in January the staff were bling, Georgian-style mansion on 60 acres, lions were transferred by legislation from GAO almost frozen out of work. A fierce winter along with formal gardens and a golf to the Post Office Department. 21Evalyn Walsh McLean, the daughter of Sena- storm had blown open a window over the course. In the late 1800’s, John R. McLean tor and Mrs. Thomas F Walsh of Colorado, weekend and, arriving for work, the staff was a prominent, Washington businessman owners of the Camp Bird Sliver Mine, wrote an found frozen typewriters, dead plants, and and a major stockholder in the American autobiography entltled “Father Struck It Rich ” several inches of snow on the floor! Soon Security and Trust Company and Riggs Na- She later owned the famous Hope Diamond the renovation began. tional Bank. In 1905, he purchased The and established at the Friendship estate a Ilfe- style similar to those of Palm Beach and New- Washington Post. McLean, Virginia, now port The Old Patent Office an exclusive suburb, was named for him in ‘*James M Goode, Capita/ Losses. A Cultural Today, the National Portrait Gallery, once 1906. History of Washington’s Destroyed Burldrngs the Old Patent Office, offers employees in (Washington, D.C.. SmithsonIan Institution At his death in 1916, the McLeans’ only Press, 1981), pp. 129-133, 459-460. GAO’s headquarters building a pleasant z3James M. Goode, The Outdoor Sculpture of lunch spot. bcated at 7th and G Streets son, Edward, inherited his parents’ in-town Washington, D C A Comprehenswe Historical N.W., the National Portsait Gallery boasti residence at 15th and I Streets N.W. and Guide (Washington, D C : SmIthsonian Institu- an inner courtyard with huge, old trees the Friendship “country house.” Along with tion Pess, 1974), p 232

Page 22 The GAO Review/Summer 1986 large open areas for files and “large scale move even prompted a poem--‘Toast to Chaplain gave the invocation, and the business machine operations.“24 the New GAO Building”-which began House Chaplain provided the benediction. with the words: When President Harry Truman signed the Looking Ahead bill authorizing the construction of the “Now here’s a toast to the new Gee Ay Oh. On September II, 1986, the GAO Building GAO Building in May 1948, the long effort So new and so bright from top down to officially celebrates its 35th year, not a to bring together all of GAO under one toe. May it serve us well as our new office very long life compared with buildings in roof came TV an end. That effort had been home. One we’ll remember, wherever we this historic city. What does the future led, in large part, by Assistant Comptroller roam.” General Frank Yates, who had been in- hold? Perhaps a few years from now this Perhaps the most graphic comments came part of town will begin to bloom with new volved for more than 18 years. Mr. Yates from the Office of Investigations?6 “NOW had first sought a new building in 1930; in buildings, restaurants, and hotels as the about this new building we’ve moved K Street area did some years ago. Those response, the Congress had suggested the into-we don’t wish to appear ungrateful remodeling plan for the Pension Building who are working in the building in 2001 or unappreciative of all the money and ef- when it turns 50 may want to remember, discussed previously. fort expended to give us a splendid mod- as we do this year, these words spoken by The plans for the new GAO Building called ern mausoleum, but our heart remains in Assistant Comptroller General Yates at the for a ‘i~story, air-conditioned budding; a the old [Pension] building across the building’s dedication: “It is a building of Z-level parking garage for 850 cars; a l,OOO- street. We miss the archways and bal- service for an Office of service-service as conies, the reflecting pool which appeared seat cafeteria; escalators from the first to an agency of the Congress of the United the fifth floors; and “express elevator ser- in the hall outside our door after a heavy States but service for the entire Govern- vice” to all floors. Those plans, especially rain, the pigeons which used to blunder ment and hence service for the citizens of the one concerning escalators, were well through the skylight and cruise about the Nation.” l received by the staff on the upper floors of above the captive audience, the lonely gar- goyle above the elevator on the third floor, the Old Post Office Building, who were 24”lnlroduc!ng the New GAO!” The Watchdog, awaiting transfer to the new building. and the dry dusty fountain on the main Aug. 1948, pp. 1, 4. floor over which the roof should have zsAt the time of the move, the PensIon Building Construction began in the spring of 1949, leaked but didn’t. Yes, we even miss the housed the offices of the Comptroller General, the contract having been won by John fluttery Zazu Pittsz7 quality of the eleva- Chief Clerk, General Counsel, Investigations, M&ha& Inc., of Philadelphia, who bid tors. Now we have air-conditioning, fluo- Accounting and Bookkeeping, Accounting Sys- tems, and-Personnel. $21,635,500. The contractor’s first task was rescent lights, and floors which don’t creak to prepare the site, which had been exca- 2%e Watchdoo. Feb. 1951. artlcle bv Suzanne but we have lost our quaintness and our M Ptenllce. Secretary to the Chief. Office of In- vated but then left as a mud hole for the charm And we have a sneaking suspicion vesUgations, who had been working on the years since the buildings were torn down that no inaugural ball will ever be held in third floor of the Pension Building in the early 1940’s. this building.” 27Zazu Pltts was an actress known for her flut- tery mannerisms In January 1950, the construction under- Those investigators were right. No inau- went a high-level review: President gural balls have ever been held in the GAO Truman, taking one of his famous and fre- Building, but the basement garages have quent early-morning walks around the city, been used by the inaugural committees to was observed as he stopped opposite the provide parking for attendees at several re- G Street entrance to the Pension Building cent balls held in the Pension Building. to look over the progress of construction. The moves continued for most of 1951, co- Throughout most of early 1950, some 750 inciding with the completion of various workers took part in the construction ef- parts of the building. In *July, stseetcar plat- fort. Heavy rains in May slowed progress, forms were completed in front of the but, by June, the building was one-third G Street entrance. In October, the health complete. unit opened on the first floor, and the much-touted escalators started working Toward the end of 1950, plans were an- (only on the H Street side, however). Peo- nounced to begin moving GAO staff on a ple working on these first through fifth staggered basis from the Pension Build- floors were urged to use the escalators ing2j and 119 D Street N.E. (the Reconcilia- and allow those on the sixth and seventh tion and Clearance Division) to the second floors to use the elevators! and third floors of the not-yet-completed building. These moves began in January The formal dedication of the $25 million 1951 and, soon after, the Audit Division building took place on September 11, 1951, moved from the Old Post Office Building, attended by an audience of 10,000, includ- and the Claims and Transportation Diti- ing members of the Cabinet, Supreme sion moved from Friendship and 1331 U Court, and Congress. GAO staff served as Street N.W. ushers. Assistant Comptroller General Yates presided over the cermony, and As might be expected, people had mixed Comptroller General Warren and President emotions about moving. Some staff pre- ferred the Old Post Office for its “good Truman gave speeches. The lJ.S. Air Force fresh air” and convenient location. The Band provided the music. The Senate

Page 23 Album The Career Plateau: What Is It and What Can We Do About It?

John IL Schultz Ellen K. Harvey

John was angry and puzzled. In the midst tributes of individuals who are able to ne- Mr. Schultz is a deputy associate director in th& of a successful career, he had grown ac- gotiate the career plateau successfully, financial institutions and markets group of GAO’s General Government Division. Afterjoin- customed to regular advances up the orga- continue to grow, and find personal satis- ing GAO in 1923, Mr. Schultz worked 6 years in nization ladder. This year, John had been fat tion. the Kansas City Regional Office before transft?- eagerly anticipating his next promotion, to rZng In Washington, D. c. He sprued in ihe former GS-14. The competition had been heavy, What is Career Plateauing Financial and General Management Studies Di- vision, then joined GAO’s task force on federal but he felt optimistic. After all, his ratings and Why Does It Occur? supervision oj banks. After comp?eCirLg a had been as high as ever. Career plateauing can occur at either an l-year detail to thx House Government Opera- organizational level or a personal level. At tions Committee, he joined thefinancial institu- John did not get the promotion. For the tions and markets group in 1978. Mr. Schultz first time in his career, he had failed to ad- the organizational level, career plateauing received his B.S. degree in business administm- vance. When he met with his supervisor may occur when an employee who has the tion,from the Unkersity of Kanscu and attended for post-selection counseling, the session ability to perform well in a higher-level job graduate school at George Washington Unive-r- is mired in a work environment where the sit.y. was difficult for both of them. scarcity of job openings makes promotion “It’s not fair,” John told the supervisor. “I unlikely. At the personal level, the em- don’t think anyone here works any harder ployee can suffer self-induced career than I do, do they? plateauing brought about by either the lack of technical, managerial, or career skills or “No, John, you do very good work,” the su- by the absence of the desire to obtain a pervisor replied. “The problem is that higher-level position. In effect, the em- others are doing a good job, too, and the ployee stops his or her own advancement. competition is tough for the openings we have. The organization is just not growing Although career plateauing is commonly the way it used to.” viewed as a sudden, unexpected develop ment, such as a missed promotion, it actu Career Plateauing: ally results from a combination of organi- A Growing Problem zational, demographic, and psychological Increasingly, federal managers and coun- processes. Understanding these processes selors are encountering people in career- is the first step in dealing with career related situations, such as John’s, that dis plateauing. play aspects of a multidimensional problem called “career plateauing.” The ca- As Dr. Judith Bardwick notes, the pyrami- dal structure of organizations makes ca- Ms. lfa?vey is a counseling psychologist in. reer plateau is that point in an employee’s GAO’s Office of Organization and Human Devel- career beyond which further promotion is reer plateauing inevitable. Since the opmer~t. During her 3 Il.2 years at GAO, she kas unlikely, at least within the same organiza- highest executive level consists of less co?Lnseled “nployees on numerous matters, in- tion. Career plateauing not only frustrates than 1 percent of an organization’s em- cluding problems associated with career-plateau- ployees, nearly all executive, technical, and ing. She teaches courses in career planning, com- individuals, it also hurts the organizations professional people “plateau” before they m~nications ski.U, and stress management and in which these individuals work. By under- consults regularly with mana.qers and supen!i- standing how and why this phenomenon reach retirement age.’ Dr. Bardwick says son on various employee problems. Ms. Hanrey occurs and controlling the situations that that career plateauing will become an in- holds a Ph.D. degree in rounsnling,from Catholic creasingly difficult problem as the baby- Uni~vtwsity in Washington, D.C. create it, managers can deal more effec- tively with career plateauing. boom generation matures. The WuU Street Jouncal pointed out that, from 1980 to The article explores the causes and effects of career plateauing and examines ways to ‘Judith M. Bardwick, “SMR Forum: Plateauing avoid its unnecessary or premature occur- and Productivity,” Sloan Management Review rence. The article also discusses the at- [spring 1983), pp 67-73

Page 24 The GAO Review/Summer 1986 1990, the number of persons aged 35 to 44 others make a conscious effort to decrease of their activites.” The growing number of in the United States-the prime middle work involvement in favor of other dual-career couples has also eased some of manager group-will increase 42 percent. interests. the financial burden on families and made Meanwhile, the number of available middle the need for continued advancement less A final contributing factor to the career management jobs during the same period crucial for some employees than it has plateau is that millions of people, regard- will increase only 21 percent.” Career been in the past. less of their ages, may begin to think that plateauing will be especially prominent in they are in the wrong career. They may those organizations that are no longer ex- Continued Growth: The Key suffer stress, dissatisfaction, or burnout panding. In the federal government, for ex- To Leaving a Plateau from the pressures they have endured. Or, ample, the special analysis to the fiscal Organizational plateauing may be the real- as Berkeley Rice points out, they may sim- year 1986 budget reported that total execu- ity of the 1980’s and 1990’s, but personal ply want a new challenge? Sluch a realiza- tive branch nondefense civilian employ- plateauing does not have to be a problem. tion may be prompted by a life transition ment declined by over 90,000 from January We can still grow personally and profes- phase, an unsatisfactory performance rat- 1981 to September 1984. sionally even if we are stymied in our cur- ing, or a job an individual has held for sev- rent positions. Many baby boomers are entering stages in eral years. their lives in which they may begin to One roadblock to continued growth is the question many things about themselves Effects of the Career Plateau natural tendency to limit ourselves. John and their career aspirations. This question- No matter what the causes, career plateau- W. Gardner describes self-limitation as a ing process, a part of what has been called ing may induce agonizing self-doubts that progressive narrowing of the scope and va- “natural life cycles,” has been described by can cause employees to needlessly blame riety of our lives. lo He says, “Of all the in- Gail Sheehy and Daniel Levinson. While themselves for what has happened. terests we might pursue, we settle on a Sheehy and Levinson divide these stages Dr. Bardwick points out that Americans, few. Of all the people with whom we differently, they describe the process that more than any other national group, link might associate, we select a small number. people undergo in much the same way. work to personal merit. Consequently, We become caught in a web of fured rela- when movement up the career ladder tionships. We develop set ways of doing Levinson says that between the ages of 3% stops or work ceases to be challenging and things.” and 40, people undergo a process in which interesting, Americans tend to question they settle for a few key choices in life. their personal worth.” It is no surprise, Gardner says that we build self-created They feel a greater sense of urgency to be- then, that many employees experience dis- prisons that cause us to level off our ob- come more serious about their long-range appointment and frustration when they jectives too quickly in life, often long be- plans and invest heavily in their work, fam plateau. fore we reach our full potential. ily, community, solitary interests, friend- ships, el,c. Then, they enter what Levinson One of the common myths about plateaued How Do I Continue To Grow? employees, however, is that they lose moti- calls “the miti-life transition.” This seg- Growth is the process of continued self- vation and stop performing their work at ment, he says, marks the end of early renewal. When people reach the career an acceptable level. According to Dr. Janet adulthood, and, at this time, people tend to plateau, they must renew themselves to es- Near, one of the few researchers to study judge their relative success or failure in cape it. reaching personal goals. In mid-life, Levir- the problem empirically, that is not neces- son says, people often identify a crucial sarily the case. Some plateaued employees Education is one key to renewing oneself event that, if it turns out favorably, assures work fewer hours per week, are absent and leaving the career plateau. As John them that they have achieved success. If, more frequently, and are less likely to de- Gardner points out, discovering talent is however, the event tu~~ out unfavorably, scribe their health as excellent.7 However, people may feel a profound sense of fail- no direct link exists between career ure, not only in their work but in them- plateauing and productivity. Some 2Earl C. Gottschalk, Jr., “Blocked Paths Promo- plateaued employees continue to perform tions Grow Few as ‘Baby Boom’ Group Eyes selves. For many people. such as .John, Managers’ Jobs,” Wall Street Journal (Ott 22, that key event is the attainment of a par- their work very well. Indeed, these individ- 1981), p 1. ticular position or grade leveL3 uals probably compose the largest group in 3Daniel J. Levinson. The Seasons of a Man’s most organizations and often perform up Life (New York. Alfred A. Knopf, 1979) pp 191- Similarly, Sheehy talks about the period to 80 percent of an organization’s work, 208. between ages 35 and 45 as being the according to Dr. Bardwick. 4Gail Sheehy, Passages: Predictable Crises of Adult i!fe (New York: Bantam Books/E. P. Dut- “deadline decade,” a crossroads that offers Thus, while many people feel embittered ton & Company, Inc 1976). pp. 350-364. opportunities and dangers. At this time, 5Berkelev Rice. “Whv Am 1 In This Job?” Psv- Sheehy says, people have the chance to re- when confronted by the career plateau, choiogy today (Jan ’ 1985), pp 54-59. ’ work the narrow identity by which they others seem able to adjust to it and than- 6Bardwlck, p. 68. have defined themselves in the first half of nel their energy into a number of pursuits, ‘Janet P Near, “A Discriminant Analysis of such as leisure, family, outside hobbies, Plateaued Versus Non-Plateaued Managers,” their lives.” Journal of Vocational Behavior, Vol. 26 (1985), and, perhaps, even a second career. Dr. pp. 177-188. While a mid-life transition may not cause Donald Hall notes that the increased em- *BardwIck. p. 68. people la plateau, it often causes them to phasis during the 1960% and 1970’s on per- gD.T. Hall, “Potential for Career Growth,” Per- assess the importance of career versus sonal growth and fulfillment, lifestyle ex- sonnel Adrrmstration, Vol 34 (1971), pp. 18. other life priorities. Some people emerge perimentation, and individualism has 30. loJohn W Gardner, Self-renewal The /ndiv!dual from the mid-life transition recommitted to caused employees to reexamine career and and the /nnovat/ve Society (New York, Harper & work and upward advancement, while family priorities and demand more from all Row, 1965) p 9.

Page 25 Career one side of education; the other side is mine which factors related to the organiza- of the overall organization. These compa- gaining self-knowledge. tional plateau are within our control ad nies noticed that such employees, having which are not. For example, being part of learned first-hand the strengths and weak- Self-renewing people are able to view a baby-boom generation faced with fewer nesses of various departments, were less themselves objectively. Viewing oneself ob- opportunities and stiffer competition is be- likely to engage in turf wars with other de- jectively is not only limited to dwelling on yond our control. Several factors, however, partments. In addition, the employees means discover- one’s shortcomings; it also are within our control, and we can work to tended to offer better, more comprehen- ing one’s strengths and using this knowl- influence them. sive solutions when organizational prob- edge for self-renewal. lems arose. Sometimes people plateau earlier than they Leaving the career plateau, or looking for need to. Even so, people can take certain Although reaching a career plateau may new directions, may mean risking failure. steps to avoid needless career plateauing. stop your career advancement within your But, as people mature, they become less Jacques Gayer says that continuing to ex- present organization, you may still be able willing to take risks. Adults dislike failure; cel on your present job is the best in- to advance elsewhere. Many employees that is the major reason why they become surance against plateauing early.14 Simi- have continued their upward advancement comfortable with the status quo. However, larly, former Comptroller General Elmer B. by transferring to another agency or lndus- fear of failure is also a major obstacle to Staats wrote that “The best opportunity is try. One of the keys to changing organiza- leaving the career plateau. That fear often the one you have,“‘” implying that your tions, though, is personal timing: Do not al- helps us rationalize our tolerating an un- current job is your best career opportunity. low yourself to languish too long in a job comfortable career plateau: We may not He contended that even when promotions you dislike before making a change. like the scenery, but it is familiar. Gardner are limited, organizations can still recog- maintains that if you want to continue Another potential solution to the career nize excellence by giving awards, rotations, learning, you must develop the courage to interesting assignments, and training op- plateau problem is changing careers alte fail.” portunities to employees. gether. Many employees think that if they have been trained in a particular area, then Self-renewing people, he says, are highly Guarding against obsolescence is also es- they can work only in that area. By doing motivated. They have some extra drive or energy that enables them to break down sential to avoiding the career plateau. Pea- a thorough inventory of their talents and the walls of conformity that grow around ple who have been out of school for years abilities, however, they might discover that usually find that techniques have changed some of those talents and abilities are ,them as they mature. Their self-motivation and their skills and knowledge have transferrable to several job or careers. Do combines physical energy, enthusiasm, and the ability to control one’s own mind. eroded. Janet Near found that people with not assume that if you have always Gardner, noting the importance of the higher levels of education have less of a worked in a particular field, then you are physical side of motivational energy, says, tendency to plateau early in their careers. suited only for jobs in that same field. “There is an immensely important physical If possible, people should choose a job Career Plateauiug element in one’s capacity to learn, grow, they like, even if it does not lead to a pro- Need Not Halt Your Career recover, from defeats, surmount obstacles, motion. A job that allows you to use your Career plateauing is likely to be a serious and live life with vitality and resilience.“12 skills and interests and gives you a sense concern for increasing numbers of federal of accomplishment can ease the frustration Another characteristic of self-renewal is employees during the next several years. of knowing you will advance no further. conviction. Gardner notes that self- While it can be a frustrating, anxiety- Many people have enriched their present renewing people have a deep conviction ridden experience, career plateauing need jobs by developing certain areas of interest about what they are doing. People should not halt any individual’s career. By focus- within those jobs. For example, a re- participate in something they care deeply ing rationally and realistically upon the searcher who was tiring of her work stud- about, whether it be a career or a part- multidimensional aspects of the career ied merent teaching styles and used that time activity. The ability to control one’s plateau, an individual, such as our up- knowledge to help make a videotape for mind is another key to self-renewal. Robert wardly mobile friend, John, can still con- her organization’s training staff, While she McKain, Jr., suggests that if people do not tinue to grow both personally and profes- continues to work in the same job, the re- control their minds, they spend time think- sionally. That knowledge, alone, may be searcher has enriched it by developing ing about living instead of actually living.‘g the key to escaping the career plateau. n To overcome the anxiety and indecision of other training films for her organization. career plateauing, people must regain con- Others have introduced a new level of trol of their thought processes and focus challenge into their work by making a lat- rationally upon the situation. eral transfer. Such a move not only allows “Gardner, p. 14. 12Gardner, p 16. them to learn a new job with a new set of Take Control of Your 13Robert J. McKaln, Realize Your Potential Situation responsibilities, it helps them gain a (AMACOM, 1975), p 38. broader understanding of how their organi- 14Jacques Goyer, “To the Plateau. and Be- One of the best ways to focus on the ca- zation operates. Companies that have es- yond,” Opm!ons. Vol. 3, No. 1 (Office of Auditor reer plateau is to acknowledge that, for tablished policies of periodic rotation axe General, Canada, 1985), p. iii. lSElmer B Staats, “Career Planning and Devel- most people, organizational plateauing is discovering that rotated employees de- opment: Which Way Is Up?” GAO Review, inevitable. Another technique is to deter- velop a greater appreciation for the work Vol. 10, No. 4 (fall 1976), pp. l-6.

Page 26 The GAO Reviewkhmmer 1986 Executive Summaries: Implementing a New Concept in GAO

Nancy A. Patterson Loretta K. W&h

Ms. Patterson is a senior evaluator in ik In- When the executive summary concept was The Office of Quality formation Management and Technology Divi- introduced in GAO in 1985, its acceptance Assurance Looks for a so72 (IMTEG). Curratly, she is h@ing to pilot, was almost immediate. Even so, implemen- test an organizational improvemat project Suitable Vehicle within IMTEC. Before coming to IMTEC, she tation took many turns. Fortunately, sev- worked in ULeOffice of Quality Assurance eral factors-not the least of which was The Office of Quality Assurance (O&A) (OQA), the Wmkington Regional Oflice, and the GAO staffs enthusiasm for the con- was tasked with defining a vehicle that sevaal GAO hm&uartem divisions. She has a cept-contributed to a relatively smooth would address these issues. OQA consid- B.A. degree fnnn thx University of Virginia implementation process. This article de- ered and discarded several alternatives and has done graduate wvrk at George Mason University in Virginia. scribes how GAO developed and imple- while searching for an ideal document. For mented the executive summary. example, a press release might convey a message quickly, but we decided that it Genesis of a Concept would provide too little supporting infor- mation. Similarly, we concluded that an ab- The executive summary has replaced the stract would be too brief to adequately digest as the vehicle for efficiently provid- convey a GAO report’s message. We ing important overview material to busy needed a specialized format-literally an readers of GAO reports. Originally in- executive summary-that could contain as tended as a way of quickly conveying a re- much information as a busy reader needs port’s message, the digest had deteriorated to understand the main message in a GAO into a document that often contained su- report. perfluous information that could actually detract from the report’s message. For ex- The director of OQA, Ira Goldstein, now ample, although digests were officially re- deputy director in the Human Resources quired to contain 5 pages or less, some di- Division (HRD), and his staff-chiefly gests contained 10 OF 12 pages. Excessive Sally Frazier, now an associate director in repetition occasionally afflicted digests, the Resources, Community, and Economic which sometimes contained entire para- Development Division (RCED); Burma graphs that had been lifted from the body Klein, now a group director in HRD; and Ms. Watch ,is a management analyst with O&A. of the report. Facts were sometimes re- Claire Doyle, currently an evaluator in the Sk joined GAO’s Washington Regional Office peated several times-for no good rea- General Government Division (GGD)-en- in 1975 as an auditor. She has a B.S. degree in son-within the same document. And, visioned a modular format and standard- business administration frr,m George Mason most important, readers sometimes found ized side captions (see Table 1) for this University in Virginia. that after having read a digest, they were document. As envisioned, the side captions still unable to identify the “bottom line,” or would function as signposts that lead busy main message, of the report. And when readers through the executive summary or some of GAO’s most influential readers allow them to skim the document for just (such as Members of the congress and the information they need. The OQA team their staffs, who are also among GAO’s reasoned that if readers only want to know busiest readers) frequently said that they a report’s bottom line, they need read only rarely read beyond the digest, we realized the “Results in Brief’ module. If readers we were missing an important opportunity want to know what actions GAO recom- to communicate GAO’s message. mends to change a situation discussed in

Page 27 The draft guidelines and workshop design were pilot tested using jobs programmed Table 1 by AFMD, GGD, HRD, the National Secu- Standard Modulesa Defined Purpose of Module rity and International Affairs Division, and RCED. The Atlanta, Boston, Cincinnati, fwpase l Catches the reader’s attention. Dallas, Kansas City, and Washington re- l @plains why GA6 undertook the review. gional offices also participated. The test l T&s Ih6 rea& the objectives for the report. called for staff on these selected jobs to attend the Z-day workshop, write an execu- l Gives readersthe background information that is tive summary, and process the reports relevant to GAO’s main message. through the normal review chain. Lessons l Provides the perspective to put GAO’s message in we learned during the pilot test enabled us context. to refine the guidelines and the workshop presentations before agency-wide imple- o States GAO’5 bottomdine conclusions or answers mentation began. to the objectives or questions stated in the To carry the message quickly to as many Tufpose” module. GAO staff members as possible, we devel- l Prepares the readers to anticipate the principal oped a training package and asked each recommendations. GAO division and regional office to volur- tarily designate staff members who would PriW@M Elndt~s l Presents the hightights of what GAO found to sup become trainers in their home unit. The port its concWons and dev&ops its recommenda- staff designated as trainers attended the OAB”s %HyssS tians. workshop held in their unit as well as a “train-the-trainers” session. Some units re- Rec6mmandatians * Presents the principal recommendations based quested that OQA administer all of their upon GAO’s findings and conclusions. training, while others chose to have their l Discioses when GAO is not making recommenda- trainers conduct the workshops. tions . Implementing the Concept Agmwp Cummsnts e Presents the substance of the official comments Although the pilot test had gone well, we concerning GAO% major findings and conclusions. approached the uncharted ground of r Wcloses when comments were not obtained, agency-wide impelmentation with some un- certainty. First, in collaboration with the aAn executive summary cari contain a seventh moduk “Matters for Congressional Consid- advisory group, we had tried to anticipate eration,” when appropriate. and prepare for all questions that might arise. Even so, unanticipated questions “Results in Brief,” they can also read the Tell, Show, and Do were still surfacing. “Recommendations” module. After some First, we formulated guidelines GAO staff Further, we were operating under a time fine tuning (Should we call it “Results in would use to draft executive summaries. constraint: The implementation of execu- Brief” or “Results in a Nutshell”?), the con- The objective was to provide maximum tive summaries was scheduled to coincide cept was ready for demonstration. help to those staff who would be writing with the implementation of the new visual The 0Q.A staff briefed GAO’s top manage- summaries. The group also considered and discarded several methods of disseminat- design for GAO reports (developed by ment in February 1984 on the proposed ex- Robert P. Gersin and Associates), a proc- ing the knoweldge of how to write execu- ecutive summary format, and management ess that, at that time, was scheduled to be- agreed that it seemed to be the ideal vehi- tive summaries, such as sending the guide- lines to all GAO staff or providing gin in June 1985. To ensure that executive cle to replace a digest. Although this in- summaries were included in all appropri- portant. decision had bven made in our fa- videotapes. Among all the alternatives, the group’s consensus was that workshops ate reports by June 1985, our first priority vor, we knew that a great deal of work was holding the workshops for key staff, seemed to be the best vehicle for spread- remained. that is, evaluators who would soon be ing the knowledge throughout the organi- Planning the Implementation zation. Two types of workshops were de- preparing reports for issuance and review- signed: an awareness briefing for those Once the executive summary concept was who would not be writing executive sum- ‘The executive summary advisory group con- approved, we had to develop a plan for im- maries (usually senior managers) and a sisted of Jeanine Knowles, from the Office of plementing it. The executive summary ad- X-day workshop for writers. The workshop Publishing and Communications (OPC); Glenn visory group’ worked with two OQA staff was designed so that participants learned Spiegel [then with OPC, now with the Office of to draft the guidelines for use in writing Information Resources Management); Renee about the new concept. by using visual aids Pettis (HRD); Dennis 0 Connor, from the Wash- executive summaries. Recognizing that the and were shown how each executive sum- ington Regional Office (WRO); Joyce Corry project would create a major change at mary module should be developed. Finally, (GGD); Michael Hrapsky. from the Accounting GAO and would benefit from the perspec- participants were asked to write each and Flnanclal Management Division (AFMD), tives of staff who knew how GAO (and module and discuss their efforts with and Tim Outlaw (WRO). This advisory group each unit within GAO) works, we recruited worked with OQA staff members Burma Klein workshop leaders and other workshop and Claire Doyle to draft the executive sum- staff from other units. participants. (Stbrb‘ 1’;llll~~ I illl(1 Fig. 1 ) mary writing guidelines.

Page 28 The GAO Review/Summer 1986 ing &-aft reports and executive summaries. three principal modules-“mupose,” sect their jobs to develop logically orga- To meet this requirement, we conducted “Results in Brief,” and “Recommenda- nized executive summaries. The exercise (with the assistance of the advisory group tions”-encourages staff members to dis- can bring an added focus and clarity to a and some report reviewers) 26 work- job. shops-15 in regional offices, 1 in the Far East Office, and 10 in headquarters diti- sions-during the fist 12 weeks of irnple- Figure 1 mentation (February through April 1985). We were also aware of the normal resis- EXECUTIVE SUMMARY* tance to change. Early in implementation, Serious questions and allegations were raised pub- this resistance usually surfaced at the be- licly regarding the propriety of the Vietnam Veterans ginning of each workshop. However, by Memorial Fund’s financial operations. These allega- the afternoon of the first day, the resis- tions included questions regarding the Fund’s tance usually was replaced by the partici- -accounting for and reporting of its operations, and pants’ enthusiastic acceptance. Workshop -fundraising costs in relation to receipts. participants repeatedly commented, “If you At the request of nine Members of the Congress, know that at the end of your assignmenl. GAO conducted a comprehensive audit of the Fund’s you will have to draft an executive sum- financial operations to determine the validity of the mary, you will make a greater effort to ask allegations. the right questions at the beginning of the The Vietnam Veterans Memorial Fund was incorpo- job.” Also, workshop participants often Background rated as a non-profit corporation in Washington, said that the executive summary helps D.C., in 1979 to raise funds to erect a monument to clarify a writer’s thinking, especially in the veterans of the Vietnam War. (See p. 1.) area of fmdings and conclusions. In 1980, Public Law 96-297 authorized the Fund to As the workshops continued [through erect the Memorial on a two-acre site near the Lin- February 1986, we had conducted ‘77 work- coln Memorial. Forbidden by law to break ground until sufficient funds had been raised, the Fund hired shops) and word of the benefits of the professional fundraisers to seek contributions from workshop approach got around, we rarely private and corporate sources. Ground was broken encountered resistance. More often, we de- on the project in March 1982, and the work was ex- tected XI attitude of wonderment: “This pected to be completed by Veterans Day 1984. (See concept makes so much sense. Why ch. 1.) haven’t we been doing it all along?” The Fund has been involved in a number of financial controversies regarding access to its records. A Evolution of the Concept: major contributor, a lawyer, and a television reporter GAO Finds Additional Uses requested access to the records, but were denied. During the 2 years sincr the concept was Additionally, in 1983, a four-part television investiga- developed, executive summaries have not tive report raised questions regarding the propriety of only successfully replaced digests but have the Fund’s operations. (See pp. 9 to 11.) also developed into multipurpose docu- Results in The numerous allegations regarding the Vietnam ments. Other uses have arisen as staff have Brief Veterans Memorial Fund were not substantiated. The realized the benefits of organizing a report Fund’s financial operations were conducted in a outline along the lines of an executive proper manner and the Fund’s summary. -receipts and disbursements were properly ac- counted for and reported, and Staff have written letter reports, chapter- -fundraising costs were reasonable in relation 10 the format reports, and briefing documents receipts. after drafting an outline based upon the or- ganization of an executive summary. Exec- Principal The Fund collected over $8.3 million in contributions, utive summaries have also been included Findings primarily from individuals and veterans organizations. in decision packages for jobs going from GAO found that the Fund adequately controlled and survey to review and in documents pre- Accounting accounted for these receipts. (See pp, 19 to 21.) pared fnr report conferences. They have The disbursements made by the Fund were for also been produced during a report confer- goods and services received and were adequately ence to document the ageed-upon report supported by documentary evidence. These dis- bursements were consistent with the Fund’s charter message and its supporting evidence. and its publicly announced purposes. Actual and an- Very early in the GAO-wide implementa- ticipated program disbursements represent 55 per- tion process, we discovered not only that cent of total receipts. This disbursement to receipt the document itself was versatile but that ratio is higher than the 50 percent standard set by the Better Business Bureau but lower than the the workshop approach was equally adapt- 60 percent standard set by the National Charities In- able to several GAO needs. Teaching par- formation Bureau. (See ch. 4.) ticipants to develop executive summaries by forgmg strong linkages between the / Page 29 Summaries I of its work will remain in the forefront. My goal is that GAO continually improve its Figure 1 (Cont.) service to the Congress by more closely working with its members and more suc- EXECUTIVE SUMMARY cessfully anticipating their needs.

Reporting Prior financial audits of the Fund were properly con- How GAO does its work and addresses its ducted in accordance with generally accepted audit- subjects will change. I fully expect to con- ing standards by independent public accountants and tinue to produce formal GAO reports, but the Fund’s special audit committee. Also, GAO found the congressional need for more informa- no evidence that prior financial reports, including re- tion more quickly challenges GAO to ports to the Congress, were inaccurate or misleading search for alternative communication ap- nor was any attempt made to conceal financial infor- proaches. The videotaping of the Re- mation. (See ch. 5.) sources, Community, and Economic Devel- Fundraising While GAO cannot conclude that aliernative methods opment Division Superfund report ls an costs of fundraising would not have produced greater con- excellent example. I also see the Task tributions at a lower cost, it is GAO’s opinion that the Force on GAO’s Responsiveness to Con- fundraising disbursements of the Fund are reason- gressional Requests resulting in a serious able in relation to the receipts. The fundraising costs look at expanding the use of briefings, let- to receipt ratio of 31 percent is lower than the Better ters, etc., to meet customers’ needs for Business Bureau’s standard of 35 percent but is slightly higher than the 30 percent standard set by more timely information. the National Charities Information Bureau. (See As GAO searches for more efficient and ef- pp. 21 to 24.) fective approaches to doing its work, the Recommendations GAO is making no recommendations. process of the work will be changed. I be- lieve that a top quality organization must Fund Comments The officers and directors of the Vietnam Veterans continually examine how it does its work, Memorial Fund agreed with GAO’s findings. (See seeking ways to work smarter, not merely app. XII.) harder and faster. That is, in fact, the thrust of the operations improvement in- aThis executive summary example was based upon a GAO report entitled “The Vietnam Veter- ans Memorial Fund’s Financial Operations Were Properly accounted For and Reported” (GAO/ tiative GAO is implementing. AFMD-84-59. May 23. 1984). GAO has an important role in the federal Several Factors Figured in concisely. We believe that the executive government. The next decade will bring Summary’s Success summary, as a communications vehicle, many challenges and exciting changes to helps GAO do just that. l GAO. It is difficult to predict what subjects The success of the executive summary im- will be of greatest concern to the Congress plementation effort was directly related to and the nation in the next 10 years. Re- several factors, including GAO’s Work: 1986-96 gardless of the subject matter, however, I l commitment from top management; fiily believe GAO will be ready and able l input from those who would ultimately to respond.’ determine its success or failure (the staff Ed. note: On a related note, responsible for preparing reports); we provide here some ’ From an Interview with Comptroller General l an implementation plan that was de- comments by Mr. Howsher on Charles A. Bowsher in Adnsor (Feb. 1986). the signed to be as helpful, unobtrusive, and GAO Career Level Council newsletter. nodisruptive as possible to the agency; and other approaches to doing l a core group of staff with the knowledge GAO’s work. and expertise to provide a consistent focal point for implementing the concept. In the last few years, GAO has made many These elements helped make the executive changes. It has reorganized itself to better summary concept a success. In the execu- accomplish its mission, refocused its issue tive summary, GAO now has a document area plans, and improved report quality. that solves the problems that afflicted the GAO is now working on some of the most digests: redundancy, excessive length, oc- important issues facing the nation. I expect casional incoherence, and superfluous this emphasis to continue over the next data. Not only has it become the concise, 10 years. readable document we believed our read- ers needed, the executive summary has also exhibited an unanticipated degree of Providing reliable information to the Con- flexibility and versatility that GAO staff gress for its oversight, as well as its autho- have exploited in some novel ways. rization and appropriation responsibilities, will continue to be our mission. Our con- To be effective, GAO must communicate cern for responsiveness; timeliness; and its message to the Congress clearly and the overall accuracy, reliability, and quality

Page 30 The GAO Review/Summer 1986 An Improved Performance Reporting System at the Local Level

Alan D. Ash

The effects of the Gramm-Rudman-Hollings Gainesville is working with other cities on Alan Ash is a perjonaance auditor for the City of Gainesville, Florida. Mr. Ash has worked in legislation (see p. 1 and the spring 1986 the Governmental Accounting Standards computer systems and management analysis %ew), which requires cuts in the federal Board’s (GASES) experimental project that for the past 15 years. He compbted his under- deficit each year through 1991, will not be brings together representatives of local graduate studies in hmsportation at St. Louis felt only at the federal level. Currently, governments nationwide to gather informa- University and earned an M.B.A. degree from public managers at the federal, state, and American University in Washington, DC. tion on what they are doing to prepare for Mr. Ash is un occasional guast lecturer at the local levels are coping with continuing re- the storm.’ The GASB project is also work- University of Florida ductions in available funds for the pro- ing to develop a service-level measuring grams they oversee. As revenues become system that will aid interperiod analysis more limited, we at the local government within agencies. This system will be based level will need more, better, and more cur- on relatively objective criteria to encour- rent data to compare the available pro- age comparisons among similar agencies gram management alternatives: We need to and simplify the measurement process. put into place systems that provide addi- Gainesville has already developed its own tional information. conceptual framework that will eventually be the hub of a newly created performance Support Services Likely audit function. To Bear Brunt of Cuts Where will the cuts start? With the police? New System Offers Structure Fire fighters? Public works? Probably not. The primary objective of the new service How about recreation programs, cultural level measurement system is to provide activities, or library services? Doubtful as meaningful, performancerelated infonna- starting points, these “nonessential” gov- tion ta operating managers, top manage- ernment services will certainly be affected ment, and legislators. The system, adopted soon after the early cuts are made. The ini- from a similar concept developed during tial cuts, however, will most likely be in the late 1970’s by the Government Finance those areas that are vital to providing qual- Officers Association, provides a common, ity services but are less visible to the pub- centralized information base from which to lic. These secalled “support services,” assess departmental performance and ser- such as personnel, purchasing, fleet vice levels. The system uses four service- maintenance, finance, accounting, and in- level indicators-demand, work load, unit formation systems, will most likely bear cost, and effectiveness-that are always the initial brunt of the storm. expressed in quantitative terms. Gainesville Prepares Demand and Work Load How can legislators prepare themselves for The demand indicator describes the level the impending storm? How can administra- of demand for the program or service, for tors plan to manage their resources effec- example, the number of bookmobile stop tively while addressing budget issues? What information will help both legislators ‘The GASB encourages state and local govern- and administrators to balance finite re- ments to parkrpate In experiments on service- sources against a great universe of needs? level and infrastructure reporting. Anyone already providlng data on either of these sub- jects or wishing to start should contact the The City of Gainesville, Florida, has been GASB dlrector of research at High Ridge Road, working for several years to get ready for P-0. Box 3821, Stamford, Connecticut 06905, the looming budget-cutting storm. (203) 968-7300.

Page 31 locations in the library system or the num- prudent management would look to other To illustrate, let’s analyze the cost of ber of calls for police assistance. Demand- analytical techniques to assist in reahocat- providing a single parking space to citi- related information (data on cxtemal fac- hg current staff so that more officers zens. This type of analysis is commonly tors that create the need for the program work during higher-demand times than used by local governments when attempt- or service) enables policy- and decision- durmg lower-demand times. The work load ing to derive an appropriate user fee for makers to modify service delivery levels in indicator, thus, can provide meaningful in- facilities or services provided by a munici- response to changes in the direction and form&ion that may point to alternative, pal agency. Fully allocated cost includes magnitude of the demand. The demand in less obvious solutions. sunk cost (the cost of land and construc- dicator is useful in answering questions Unit Cost tion); direct marginal cost (parking space about the need for the service and the marking, security and enforcement, and The unit-cost indicator is derived by calcu- level of service required to meet the need. grounds maintenance); and indirect cost lating the ratio of inputs (dollars) to out- (indirect administrative cost and cost for puts (units of service). Data describing the The work load indicator describes the such support services as personnel, ac- use of resources to produce a given level amount of service the program is currently counting, finance, information systems, and of output (work load) allow managers to providing. When work load data are com- fleet services). pared to demand data, management gains determine cost effectiveness, establish pro- tools for evaluating whether or not service ductivity improvement goals, and monitor If fully allocated cost is used to determine adjustments are required. Work load indi- the allocation of resources to programs on the cost per unit, including opportunity cators for the above examples include the a unit-cost basis. The unit-cost indicators cost (the “price” of choosing to use scarce number of bookmobile stops actually made for the examples given ahove include the resources for parking spaces, for example, during a given period of time and the num- average cost per bookmobile stop and the rather than something else) may also he ber of calls for service that police actuahy average cost per call that the police de- appropriate. Partial sunk cost recovery responded to during a given period of partment responds to. plus direct marginal cost includes all direct time. Several major considerations become ap- marginal costs plus the cost of construc- The demand and work load indicators will parent when developing unit-cost indica- tion The analyst may choose to disallow usually he unequal. For example, let’s as- tors. One of the most important decisions the cost of land (and, thus, the use of the sume that the number of bookmobile stop regarding the unit-cost indicator is identify- term “partial sunk cost recovery”) and the cost for indirect administration and sup- locations in the library system is 10 and ing the appropriate input elements used in that each stop is serviced by a bookmobile providing a given service. IJnit cost is cal- port services. culated as dollars per output. What ele- 12 times per year, or once a month. The Which cost computation to choose de- ments of expenditure should be included demand indicator equals 10, and the work pends on how the information is to be when formulating the cost per output unit? load indicator equals 120. used. If the information is being developed Figure 1 shows the range of possible cost to assist in determining a user fee for a For I.he police example, the demand indi- elements when computing dollars’ required service, the partial-sunk-cost-plus-direct- cator c~quals the total number of calls for to provide a service. These cost elements marginal-cost approach may be the most assistance. The work load indicator in this fall into three broad categories: appropriate. If the information is required example, however, can he further suhcate- 9 Direct marginal cost includes only those for service-level or performance measure- gorized to provide meaningful management annual, recurring operating and main@ ment or hudget analysis, the direct mar- information. That is, total calls for police nance costs required to provide the ginal cost approach is probably the best. pa&d a%iStame comprise Calk from pa- service. The fully allocated cost approach is useful trol officers and calls from citizens. In l Partial sunk cost recovery plus direct for reporting to federal agencies for grant some cases, the justification for additional marginal cost includes all direct marginal reimbursement purposes. Thoughtful con- patrol officers is derived from increases in costs plus a portion of sunk cost. sideration should he given to which cost- total calls for service. However, as officers l Fully allocated cost includes sunk cost, ing methodology is used, as adjustments to are added each year to the patrol ranks, direct marginal cost, and indirect cost a~- the methodology will certainly affect the total Calls for service may continue to in- sociated with the construction and mainte- interperiod compatibility of data. crease because the number of officer- nance of the assets and resources required initiated calls increases. In this situtaion, to provide the service. The probability of misuse and abuse of the unit-cost indicator is higher than for the other three service-level indicators. Users Figure 1 and interpreters of this information often Alternative Costing Methods for place too much emphasis on its credibility Unit-Cost Calculations and accuracy, not understanding that it goes through many filters and, hence, that its reliability may be questionable. The unit-cost indicator should be used only as a guide to show relative trends from one period of time to another. This is not to say, however, that the information is not valuable, and periodic review of the inter- nal controls over data collection can go a long way in increasing the reliability of this information.

Page 32 The GAO Beview/Summer 1986 Effectiveness and circulation per stop drops 5.8 percent, of information system, they were still un- from 189 to 178. able to sustain the momentum required to Effectiveness indicators are used to assess support it. Because program design and the quality of service provided. Measure- Column 4 shows the effect on service lev- development generally require a minimum ments of effectiveness are used to com- els when demand is decreased 5 percent, of 3 years before any valuable information plete the evaluation of a program by con- from 33 stop locations to 27, and the bud- is produced, council members and man- sidering whether or not the program is get allocation is reduced 5 percent, from agers who initially reviewed and approved achieving the intended objective. Examples $187,590 to $178,657. Work load decreases the system design often have left the orga- of effectiveness indicators include the to 648 stops per year (which may increase nization by the time the system bears fruit. book circulation per bookmobile stop and the number of citizen complaints); cost per The people who replace the system design- the ratio of felons apprehended to the stop increases from $237 to $276; and cir- ers often have different notions about the number convicted. culation per stop incrcayes 22 percent, from 189 to 230. management structure, and they make The Service-Level Matrix changes accordingly. Consequently, data Commitment: The Main collection mechanisms and comparability The four indicators can be integrated to Ingredient suffer. provided a framework for various scenar- ios representing several unique service The value of this type of service evaluation But committed local government leaders, levels, The main advantages of this type of and analysis is twofold: It clearly portrays in a relatively stable environment, can sus framework are that it allows legislators, the level of service currently provided, and tain the system’s momentum through its managers, and analysts to get a clearer pic- it allows comparisons of the levels of ser- initial stages, and it is well worth their ture of services currently provided; PFO- vice a city would like to provide with struggle to do so. A successful service- vides useful information for making logical those it can afford to provide. This type of level measurement system can mean the budget and program decisions; and offers a information is as important to managing difference between getting caught in the context for long-range strategic planning. the municipal budget as the information storm and sitting comfortably in a rocker that a prospective car buyer seeks out is by the fueplace while the storm outside Table 1 shows how this framework might to managing his OF her personal budget. plays havoc with those who forgot to be used to determine service levels and an Most managers are keenly aware of inter- check the forecast. Where would you annual budget for various scenarios affect- est rdteS, monthly payments, and expected rather be? l ing the bookmobile service. The service- years of service when deciding on a new level matrix includes performance indica- car. They should be as deeply committed tors for the current year (column 1) and to obtaining all the information available three alternative scenarios (columns 2, 3, when evaluating public purchases. and 4), representing increases or decreases in one or more of the four indicators. Members of local city councils and top managers must demonstrate total commit- In column 2, the number of bookmobile ment to designing, developing, and imple- stop locations (D) and the budget alloca- menting the system if it is to succeed. But tion for the bookmobile service (B) are in- this is easier said than done. A few U.S. creased 5 percent. The result is a 6-percent cities have made similar attempts, but, increase in work load and a 1.3-percent de- even understanding the value of this type crease in the cost per bookmobile stop. Note that the work load indicator is calcu- lated by assuming that each bookmobile Table 1 stop is served twice monthly. Therefore, in Service-Level Matrixa column 2, if the number of bookmobile stop locations is increased to 35, total work load increases to 840 stops per year (35 x 24). 1Jnit cost is derived by dividing the budget allocation by the work load in- dicator. Effectiveness is measured by di- viding the average yearly circulation, here Demand: Numbw af assumed at 149,305, by the work load indi- bwkmot#e stop k%ctio~s cator. So, with a &percent increase in de- mand and budget, we see a small negative Work load: Number af annual effect on the average circulation per stop. bookmob@ stcyx2 made In column 3, demand increases 5 percent, i.e., the number of bookmobile stop loca- tions increases from 33 to 35; however, the budget. allocation decreases 5 percent to $178,657. What is the effect on work load, unit cost, and effectiveness? Work load in- creases from a current level of 792 stops a Assumes aruual bookmobile circulation is 1r49,355 units. Unit cost equals bi&j~jet per month to 840; unit cost drops 10 per- allocation divided by work load, and effectiveness equals average circulation per year cent, from $237 per stop to $213 per stop; divided by work load.

Page 33 When U.S. Citizens Die Abroad: GAO’s Role

Dennis R. Devine

When U.S. citizens die abroad. the after- that show a home address or other emer- Mr. De&e, a management analyst in the Gem effects of the tragedy can reverberate for gency contacts. Usually family or friends end C;overnment~vision'sGlaimsgroup,is years, often long after the deceased has take care of the remains and personal be- the designated custodian of effects in GAO. After serving 3 years with US? US. Amy, h.e been buried. One sobering issue that must longings immediately after notification. In gradualed from the Unlniversity of South Caro- be addressed when U.S. citizens die abroad some cases, relatives respond to dispose of lina in 1973 with a B.A. degree in intema- is the question of what happens to their remains but fail to request or claim any of tiomd studies and joined GAO in 1974. More personal effects. the personal property or monetary assets. recently, he has been working toward an M.S. degree in computer scimce. In other cases, known relatives refuse to Not many people know it, but GAO’s respond at all, or multiple claimants car- claims group’ in the General Government not agree on how to distribute the estate. Division (GGD) maintains a secured room However, in a few cases, no known blood containing the personal effects of some relatives or other acquaintances exist for U.S. citizens who have died outside the the consular officer to contact. country. As of March 1, 1986, GAO held property belonging to more than 170 such The consular officer is authorized to re- people who were involved in accidents or ceive the property or estates of deceased other mishaps. Some of the articles are citizens.” Since 1792, laws enacted by the valuable items that belonged to collectors, Congress have empowered consular ofii- and some are simply the personal belong- cials to dispose of these estates. This offi- ings of tourists. Photographs, eyeglasses, cer, also known as the provisional conser- stamp collections, tropical insect collec- vator, collects assets, pays debts of the tions, cigarette lighters, jewelry, and cam- estate, and disburses the remainder to the eras are some of the personal effects GAO proper recipients. In addition, the provi- is holding. The property was recently sional conservator should keep the next of transferred from the custody of the Office kin or their legal representative apprised of Security and Safety to the clatis group of the progress made in handling the per- to simplify procedures and merge within sonal effects. The conservator would make one unit GAO’s custodial and conservato- a complete inventory of the effects and de- rial roles. velop a statement of the dollar value of each item. The legitimate debts of the State Department Attempts decedent must be paid from the cash re- To Locate Surviving Heirs sources of the personal effects taken into GAO functions as the legal conservator possession by the consular officer. If this and custodian of estates or the residue of source is insufficient, the officer obtains estates belonging to U.S. citizens who die funds from the next of kin or a legal repre- abroad.2 After such a death, this estate sentative or, if necessary, may auction a property is forwarded to GAO from the portion of the personal estate sufficient to Department of State after that agency has cover the debts. kept the property for the prescribed period of time and attempted to locate surviving After disposing of all known legal debts, heirs and distribute the remaining prop- the officer prepares a Final Statement of erty. ‘See Eric Berezin, “A History of the Claims Dlvi- When a U.S. citizen dies overseas, the local son," The GAO Review (summer 1980). pp. 24-33. authorities usually contact the nearest U.S. ‘22 u S.C. 4195-4197. consular officials. In most cases, the dead 3Fofergn Affam Manual, Volume 7, pp, 640- person has a passport or other documents 646.

Page 34 The GAO Review/Summer 1986 Account that will serve as the tinancial though some of them cooperate quite read- relatives living somewhere in the Soviet transaction document for the disposition ily and forward any deposits, others Union. The estate consists of about $5,000 of the remains as well as the personal es- respond by citing various legal technicali- in cash, an impressive array of saver and tate. All transactions shown on this docu- ties. In addition, such items as travelers gold utensils and souvenir pieces, a collec- ment must be expressed in the equivalent checks and airline tickets are also re- tion of foreign currency, and a substantial of US. dollars. deemable. (Since most airlines honor un- collection of interesting personal belong- used tickets only 1 year after purchasing, ings. On the other hand, relatives in an How GAO Becomes Involved we must act within that time to redeem other estate are fighting over what appears The consular officer prepares to transfer the unused tickets.) to be a small packet of items having little the estate to GAO if, after 1 year, no claim monetary value. Finding Next of Kin or satisfactory proof of entitlement has Disposing of the Estates been received. The transfer terminates the Once the estate is secure with GAO, the officer’s responsibilities as provisional con- difficult part of the process begins. The After 6 years GAO must dispose of estates, servator. Actually, only certain items are claims staff begins by reviewing the State and it has several means of doing SO. If a transferred when the officer disposes of an Department-supplied Report of Death of an legal heir makes a valid claim, GAO will estate. One such category of items in American Citizen Abroad, a document that arrange to deliver the property to this per- eludes negotiable instruments, such as should provide names and addresses of the son. Determining who is or is not the legal money, stocks and bonds, bankbooks, next of km or any other relatives or heir can be difficult. The determination checks, deeds, bills of exchange, articles of friends. Although the consular officer usu- must be based upon the applicable laws of sentimental value, and the proceeds from ally has corresponded with the next of kin, the state or territory in which the dead previous auctions and sales. Other articles, many surviving relatives often are unaware person last lived. In most cases, ~JI individ- such as clothing and foodstuffs, are do- that responsibility for administering the es- ual must be appointed by the court to act nated to charitable organizations or appro- tate has been transferred to GAO. We as executor for the estate, and appropriate priately disposed of. The officer then for- write letters to anyone listed by the State documentation must be forwarded to GAO. wards the estate’s remaining effects Department and whomever else we can This sounds simple enough, but all too through the State Deparment headquarters identify as a relative or friend. Occasion- often the perseverance of the heirsappar- in Washington, DC., to GAO. ally, correspondence or address books ent seems to falter at the mention of courts and judges. Other possible GAO Assumes Responsibility among the personal effects can help us identify the next of kin. Unknown relatives claimants quickly lose interest when they Once the estate is received from the State or friends often reply to our letters, and learn that a large sum of cash is not in- Department, the Comptroller General as sometimes they supply us with a long list volved. sumes the responsibilities of conservator. of additional relatives. The Comptroller General has delegated the If no one submits a valid claim within When a large number of claimants appear, group director of GGD’s claims group to 6 years, GAO must take further action to the difficulties involved in reaching a set- act on his behalf. The conservator appoints dispose of the estate.5 If an estate is tlement also increase. One of the most se- a staff member to act as the custodian, valued at more than $500 (cash deposits rious problems we encounter is the ab- that is, the person responsible for securing and the inventory-estimated value of prop- sence of valid wills for all but a few of the and storing the personal effects in GA0.3 erty), and the U.S. state or territory of the estates. A properly executed will can Each estate is first assigned a file number, dead person’s last residence is also known, greatly ease disposition of an estate. In and then the conservator and the custo- GAO must advertise the estate’s pending those few cases in which a valid will ex- dian must verify the contents of the estate disposal. GAO arranges for a newspaper ists, the estate can be delivered to the le- against the inventory record furnished by notice to be printed once a week for gal executor, and GAO can terminate its the State Department. Each estate file 4 consecutive weeks, using the Sunday edi- should include the Report of Death, the in- responsibilities as conservator. However, tions of the largest daily newspaper in the ventory, and the Final Statement of in most cases, we receive either no replies metropolitan area nearest to the dece- or insufficient replies that usually provide Account. dent’s last residence. Most of the time, little more than an acknowledgment of dis- even advertising does not result in any Money received from the State Department tant kinship. claims, so GAO must then transfer the is in the form of U.S. Treasury checks GAO is required to maintain the estate for cash and property to that state or territory. payable to the order of GAO. This money a period of 6 years from the date it re- Remaining are those estates for which usually represents the proceeds from sales ceives the effects. During this tune, many of any personal effects not transferred and (1) no claims have been received, (2) next things can happen regarding the status of of kin, relatives, or friends are unknown, any cash left by the decedent. However, the estate as a result of GAO’s efforts to this represents, in many cases, only part of and (3) the decedent’s last domicile (place settle the matter. Since we often receive of residence) is unknown. Any remaining the monetary value. GAO also receives no replies to our correspondence and no passbooks to savings accounts and check- cash deposits are transferred from the in- claims on the effects, they might sit in the dividual trust accounts into the U. S. ing accounts, foreign and domestic. AR security room for 6 years or longer. conservator, GAO is authorized to draw Treasury as miscellaneous receipts. Those upon these accounts and deposit the pro- Surprisingly, some of the estates include personal effects determined to be of no ceeds into the trust accounts. We generally considerably valuable items and cash. For have good luck with accounts housed in example, the decendent of one such estate 4GA0 Order 1161.1 US. banks and other institutions, but for- had no known relatives or friends with the 522 U.S.C. 4195-4197. eign banks can be a different matter. Al- possible exception of one or two distant See Citizens, p.40

Page 35 Citizens A Week’s Worth

Wyley P. Neal

Monday James was among the co-op applicants Wyley Ned, an evaluator wz the research, deuel- who had been interviewed and offered a opment, acquisition, and procurement area of The first item on the week’s agenda is position by GAO. However, he declined the tk National Security and lnternalional Ajjaiw planning: Last week’s plans for this week DiWion, joined GAO in 1976. Mr. Neal i-e- offer and accepted a full-time position at need to be reviewed and revised. Monday &V& a bachelor’s degree in mathem&ics and the Department of Labor. psych&>gy.fmm Prairie Vieu, A&M University morning is a good time for this since a in Prairie View, Texas. He has completed grad- weekend away from the office has in- Our conversation concerns, among other uate courses in business managmt and is proved my ability to be objective. I things, a high-level political appointee at attknding the National Defense University’s ncl- reschedule the week’s activities by priority the Depaxtment of Labor who is being tional security management course. Before prosecuted for alleged wrongdoing com- joining GAO, Mr. Neal worked at the Depart- and update my calendar. Then 1 am off and ment qf Dtzfenseand in private industry. running. mitted before his appointment. We also discuss the forum on legal issues involved Enrique Olivares, who is working with me in procurement and contracting that is be- on a spare parts assignment, calls at ing planned by an association of attorneys 830 a.m. from the San Antonio suboffice to to which James belongs. It sounds interest- discuss plans for a job conference. We ing, and, with lunch over, James agrees to work out the details after a few minutes’ get back to me with the details. discussion and agree that the more impor- tant matter is how to respond to the ques- I have received two calls while at lunch, tions of the House committee chairman one from a California newspaper reporter who requested the review. After a few and the other from someone who is un- more minutes, we are satisfied with our re- aware that I no longer serve on the GAO sponses, and everything seems to be on credit union’s board of directors. The re- track. I make a few notes on the discus- porter wants to know if GAO has done any sion with Emique and check one item off follow-up work on this year’s Army/Navy my list of things to do. football game. 1 tell the reporter that that job was requested by Senator Froxmire This assignment interests Department of and that -I am not aware of a follow-up as- Defense officials because it concerns lo- signment on the subject. cally purchased spare parts. Previous re- views of spare part purchases have found The second caller has several questions that parts may have been purchased from concerning interest on savings accounts the local hardware store at much lower and individual retirement accounts, and, prices than those paid by military service after quickly checking my notes on the buyers. Rarely a week passes without at credit union, I answer his questions. He last one call on the spare parts assignment. seems satisfied with the information, but, This week is no exception: At IO:30, the because he may want additional informa- Navy’s contact person calls for an update tion later, I give him the name and current on our progress. He seems concerned that telephone number of the credit union we may find additional purchases of exor- manager. bitantly priced nuts, bolts, or hammers. I assure him that we are still collecting data John Yakaitis and Dave Cooper, both in and that we will keep him apprised of the research, development, acquisition, and developments. procurement subdivision of the National Security and International Affairs Division, It is lunchtime already, and I have ar- come by to discuss an urgent matter: We ranged to meet with James McQuade, an need to receive a report segment being attorney at the Department of Labor. electronically b-ansmitted from St. Louis to

Page 36 The GAO Review/Summer 1986 Washington. After exploring the software When 1 return to my office, Bill Sanchez of microcomputer. Today, I use the word application, I agree to set up a personal the Los Angeles Regional Office calls to processor capability to prepare a memo- computer and receive the report on Thurs- give me an update on a contractar’s refund randum to the Office of Congressional Re- day morning. I confer with Art James and to the Navy for overpriced spare parts. Bill lations (OCR) on our briefing to the con- Buck Sykes of our technical assistance also has another hot lead on potential gressional committee staff. After preparing staff, who are cautious about the accuracy overcharging for Army helicopter spare a draft, I put it aside. I believe I have of electronically transmitted data-espe- parts. Apparently, a contractor purchased recorded all the facts correctly, but I de- cially the Lotus l-Z-3 spreadsheets that surplus spare parts from the Canadian gov- cide to mull it over and finish it in the may contain mathematical formulas-be- ernment and sold them to the Army for a morning. cause of recent unfortunate experiences. I handsome profit. After two more telephone On the way back to my desk, I almost run consider their warnings but proceed with calls, Enrique Olivares agrees to look into into Sharon Washington as we approach plans t,o receive the report segment on the the matter and provide me with more an intersection of the narrow aisles be- personal computer. information. tween the cubicles. She jokes that if these As I am about to leave the of&e for the It’s almost 5 p.m., so I make notes on the near-accidents continue, we’ll need traflic day and return several books to the li- events of the day and prepare to leave the signals at the aisle intersections for our brary, Paul *Jones, my former group diiec- office. I arrive home to find that the safety. I ask her if she is interested in join- tor, calls regarding a problem with the per blower motor in the heating system is ing the GAO BIG chapter. She wants to sonal computer. I solve the problem emitting distressing sound. Certain that I know what BIG has done and what it is quickly--with the help of a little guess- cannot get a repair-person right away, I now doing. Since I am rushing to a meet- work-and leave the office proud of my take on the job. I disassemble the blower ing, we agree to meet soon to discuss BIG. ingenuity. and find that the solution is easy: Cleaning and lubricating solves the problem, and we Almost time to change scenes for a few My schedule shows that I have agreed to are warm and cozy again. hours. Let’s see, is it PTA, tutoring, home- tutor several junior high school students in owner’s association, church, lodge, or fra- mathematics tonight. On the way home, I Wednesday ternity meeting night? Whatever it is will try to guess the questions they will ask have to wait, because I have assured This morning my normal routine is altered and prepare my answers. Helen, Pamela, and Paul-my family-that by a slight detour to dehver audit results tonight will be theirs. We dine out on for a local chapter of Jack and Jill of Tuesday seafood, a favorite around our house, and America. This is a nonprofit organizabon, Crossing the 14th Street bridge this morn- take in a movie. and, accordingly, 1 donate my services. I ing, I have a brief image of water skiing. leave the information with the treasurer The water is like a mirror-ideal condi- Thursday and am in my office by 7% tions for skiing-but not here and not This is the morning that I plan to receive now. It is much too cold. After doing a few office chores and read- the report segment from St. Louis. In an ef- I arrive at the office a few minutes early to ing the pile of papers that have collected fort to circumvent Murphy’s Law, I check do some reading and prepare for my Na- in my in-box, I check my watch to make out the computer and verify that every- tional Defense University national security sure that Sid Wolin (a group director), thiig is ready. But somehow, since noon management course. During class, we get Paul Math (an associate director), and I yesterday, computer bugs (and/or human into a discussion of the effects of the will be on time for our 10 a.m. meeting errors) have managed to gobble up every Gramm-Rudman-Hollings Amendment (the with the committee staff’. I complete the thing-about 1.7 million bytes-in the root Balanced Budget and Emergency Deficit briefing outline and, after reviewing the directory of the hard disk drive. How did Control Act of 1985) on the Department of written facts we plan to leave with the all that data disappear? Hurriedly, I try to Defenscl and other agencies, including staff, we leave for the Hill. The committee restore the files to the hard disk from GAO. We do not develop any solutions, but staff seem pleased with our briefing and backup disks and get ready to receive the the discussion is high-spirited and interest- fact sheet and say that the committee may transmission. Finally, everything seems ing. hold hearings on our findings. ready, but then I discover that the modem cable is not working. To avoid defeat, I lo- At noontime, I forgo lunch to attend a The briefing extends beyond lunch, so cate the portable personal computer with a Blacks in Government (BIG) meeting. when we are through everyone is eager to built-in modem, and by noon the report George Shelton, the president, asks me to grab a bite to eat. We stop off at My segment is transmitted, verified as error- audit the books of the GAO BIG chapter, Brother’s Place and analyze our briefmg free, printed, and delivered to Dave Either 1 look like an auditor (a detail per- over lunch. Afterwards, we walk off the Cooper. One small step for the computer, son) or they trust me to be objective and excess calories, maintaining a brisk pace one giant step for GAO. thorough. back to the office. After lunch I review my notes, revise the I reviewed the books once before, and, in This afternoon I meet with my group direc- briefing memorandum to OCR, and return sistent upon accounting for every penny, 1 tor to discuss plans for a job on govern- several calls. Remembering that Sharon is encouraged the treasurer to prepare a ment contractor travel costs. We decide waiting to hear from me on the activities three-sentence explanation of the 3-cent that rather than doing a fullblown job, we of BIG, I call her to set up a meeting in variance that had been discovered. Net will respond to the congressman’s request her office. She is aware of BIG’s national many people are enthusiastic about being by using previous GAO reviews. After the training conference held annually but that detailed, but this effort set a prece- meeting, I take notes on our discussion dent, and it’s hard to find good help at my and use the last hour of the day to main- prices: grai.is. tain a certain level of proficiency on the See Week’s Worth, p.40

Page 37 Week’s Worth Bookmark

Giants in Management Former Comptroller General President sign or veto legislation. And staats later, after World War II, he worked with Edited by Robert L. Haught the Council of Economic Advisors and National Academy of Public Administration, Former Comptroller General Staats is de- 1985 members of the White House staff to scribed by coauthors Elaine L. Orr, direc- shape the government’s role in advancing What kind of person does it take to moni- tor of GAO’s Office of International Audit basic and applied science. Mr. Staats’ pro- tor the operations of the entire federal Organization Liaison, and former Assistant fessional affiliations were many. He was a government? To run the country’s largest Comptroller General John Heller as a man- founder and president of the American So- automobile company? To administer the ager who achieved his goals through con- ciety for Public Administration and the Na- affairs of America’s largest city? Giants in sensus building. Accomplishing certain tional Academy of Public Administration. Manugmmt provides some answers to changes in the organization required pa- Since retiring from GAO, he has remained these questions by describing the skills, tience, and colleagues described the active in public service, serving as presi- management styles, and accomplishments Comptroller General as a man who “knew dent of the Harry S. Truman Scholarship of eight leaders of nationally known the value of waiting and making his move Foundation, which awards the scholarships organizations. at the right time.” Former Assistant to deserving public administration stt- Comptroller General Sam Hughes said: “I The book grew out of a 1978 symposium dents. One colleague summarized his ca- believe neither his best friend nor his of the Academy of Management. Each syn- reer as follows: “. . .Elmer Staats has devel- worst enemies would say that he is flashy. posium panelist presented an analytical oped the ability to create organizations Instead, having a direction of motion paper on a leader known for his contribu- and processes which are more permanent clearly in mind, he persists until he has tions to the resolution of major, new man- than personalities, even his own.” done what he wants to do using his combi- agement problems. These papers, corn- nation of traits and talents.” Mr. Staats rec- Other Managers’ Contributions bined with papers commissioned by the ognized that some observers would say he National Academy of Public Administra- The same can be said of the other subjects had not always been firm, but he preferred tion, compose Giants in Management. of Giants in Management, whose ideas, the risks of participative management to decisions, and styles of management have The eight captains of industry and govern- those of authoritarian leadership. Surprised made lasting contributions to their organi- ment, honored in Giants in Managernat by the reluctance of GAO staff to “argue zations and to the theory and practice of are Elmer B. Staats, who built GAO’s repu- and debate and come forth with their own management. tation as a government watchdog; James E. ideas,” he counteracted that tendency by Alfred P. Sloan, for example, applied scien- Webb, who headed the National Aeronau- encouraging division directors to express tific management techniques and consen- tics and Space Administration (NASA) dur- their opinions more freely. sus building at General Motors. Luther H. ing the crucial years of the Apollo pro- Some of Mr. Staats’ accomplishments were Gulick, as not only an administrator but a gram; David E. Lihenthal, who made the self-evident to those of us who served purveyor of ideas, improved New York Tennessee Valley Authority a model of under him. He transformed a fiance and City’s management by emphasizing plan- government effectiveness; Alfred P. Sloan, accounting culture into an organization ning rather than “muddling through.” whose leadership at General Motors set concerned with the issues of program ef- James E. Webb, director of the former Bu- the pace for the entire U.S. automobile in- fectiveness. Moreover, under his direction reau of the Budget and administrator of dustry; Robert S. McNamara, who guided GAO developed more cooperative relations NASA, believed in feedback, planning, re- the Department of Defense through the with the Congress and a more visible pub- search, and using all kinds of resources Vietnam era; Robert E. Wood, who made lic image. and disciplines. Sears, Roebuck and Company a successful business and household name; L. P. Cook- Other accomplishments of the former Certain organization leaders are well ingham, who helped eradicate corruption Comptroller General in his 41 years of gov- known for emphasizing human resources. in Kansas City, Missouri, government; and ernment service were less obvious to many David E. Lilienthal made the Tennessee Luther H. Gulick, who improved the man GAO staff. For example, at the age of 33, agement of New York City and set stand- as assistant director, Bureau of the Budget, ards for public administration. he regularly recommended whether the See Bookmark, p.41

Page 38 The GAO Review/Summer 1986 Legislative Developments

Judith G. Hatter

Health Research Extension tional areas that the Comptroller General Act of 1985 determines deserve or require evaluation. The Health Research Extension Act of Veterans Administration 1985 revises and extends authorities under Health-Care Amendments of the Public Health Service Act relating to 1985 the National Institutes of Health (NM) and the National Research Institutes. The law The Veterans Administration (VA) Health- provides that the sum of the amounts obli- Care Amendments of 1985 (FL. 99-166, gated in any fiscal year for NIH’s adminls- Dec. 3, 1985) require the Administrator of trative expenses may not exceed 5.5 per- VA to provide a detailed plan and justifica- cent of the total amount appropriated for tion to the Committees on Veterans’ Af- that fiscal year for NIH. The Secretary of fairs of the Senate and House of Represen- Health and Human Services shall consult tatives before implementing a systematic with the Comptroller General to identify reduction to (1) the average salary for VA the administrative expenses incurred to ad- employees in certain categories and (2) the minister NIH and those incurred to pre- number of such VA employees at a specific pare reports to the Congress about grade level. amounts obligated for administrative ex- Not later than 45 days after the Adminis- penses (P. L. 99-158, Nov. 20, 1985, 99 Stat. trator submits his or her report, the 820, 832). Comptroller General shall submit to the Congressional Award committees a report on the Administrator’s Amendments of 1985 compliance with the law and the accuracy of the VA determination and the data sup- Public Law 99-171, November 25, 1985, QQ porting the determination. Stat. 934, the Congressional Award Amend- ments of 1985, amends the Congressional Arts, Humanities, and Award Act to require a biennial audit by Museums Amendments of 1985 GAO of the Congressional Award Board. Public Law 99-194, December 20, 1985, the The audit performed shall, at a minimum, Arts, Humanities, and Museums Amend- assess (1) the adequacy of the Board’s fis- ments of 1985, requires the Comptroller cal control and funds accountability proce- General to report to the Congress the re- dures and (2) the propriety of expenses al- sults of a study to determine the feasibility lowed to the director and other employees of supplementing, through other federal of the Board. As part of the fmst audit, the funding mechanisms, expenditures made Comptroller General shall include an evil- from the general fund of the U.S. Treasury uation of the programs and activities under on behalf of the National Endowment for this act, including an examination of the Arts, the National Endowment for the (I) the extent to which the Congressional Humanities, and the Institute of Museum Award Program and activities are achiev- Services. The law delineates certain alter- ing their stated purposes, (2) the standards native funding methods and directs the of achievement and procedures for verify- ComptroIler General to consider the im ing that individuak satisfy standards estab- pact that their implementation would have lished by the Board, (3) the Board’s on the following: fundraising efforts, (4) the organizational structures of the Board, particularly the use of regional directors, and (5) addi- See Legislative, p. 41

Page 39 comment on issues that affect its members and emphasized that his open-door policy applied to GAO-BIG as a representative of Epilogue real value (old photographs, papers, ex- a GAO constituency. Since that time, GAO- pired driver’s licenses and credit cards, BIG has assumed a very active role in the OUT experience at the Court was educa- Advisory Council on Civil Rights. In addi- tional. as well as historic. Argument before small trinkets, etc.) may be destroyed. tion, the chapter sponsors seminars, train- the Court is a privilege reserved for attor- Normally, value would be decided by the ing and informational sessions, and other neys admitted to the Supreme Court Bar conservator, but when a doubtful situation activities that are open to all GAO staff. and follows an elaboratr protocol. As we occurs, GAO is authorized to convene a The highly visible GAO-BIG members who observed the attorneys arguing before the committee-which includes a representa- participate in the annual observance of Court, WC% became aware of an “informally tive from the Office of the General Coun- Black History Month in February are only formal” process of legal education occw sel-to advise or assist in establishing a few of the committed individuals who ring, The Justices questioned the attorneys value.” This committee makes final deci- work to make the month’s programs and at length on points of law and interpreta- sions concerning items of questionable tion, evoking an uncomfortably familiar activities possible. Additionally, the contri- V&IC and the legality of claims made by butions of the GAO BIG chapter and its in- memory of recitation &fore a classroom; certain individuals. arguments were dissected and probed for dividual members during the past 6 years to the International Auditor Fellowship weaknesses of law, logic, or common Taking inventories in this area is more Program have included sponsoring the sense. Earlier in the morning, Solicitor than just counting trinkets and looking at annual welcoming reception for Fellows General Fried extricated himself from a old pictures. Sometimes, it can be very from around the world. line of questioning by the Justices that time consuming to go through hooks and would have removed the substance of his manuscripts (that were possibly someone’s BIG'S gwdk iIh& prOKIOting prOfeSSiOna argument hefore the bench. At several lifetime project), rolls of undeveloped film development through training and educa- times during the hearing, the courtroom (Who knows what sort of espionage could tion; realizing equal employment opportu- was filled with laughter as the Justices ver- he uncovered?), and costume jewelry nity and eliminating vestiges of racism and bally jousted with an attorney on the basis [enough to fill a small department store). discrimination; and contributing toward of a semantic flaw in the argument pre- Even the heaps of papers (some written in the socioeconomic, cultural, and political sentcd foreign languages and some containing well-being of black people. Further, GAO- original poetry) may yet yield useful infor- BIG acts as liaison with regional members The experience gave us a sense of the in- mation. We know that people exist who tricacies of constitutional law and litiga- and other chapters and provides a forum would consider these items very valuable. tion at its highest level. Given the contro- for information on GAO and government- GAO’s challengtb is to find these individu- versial history of the Gramm-Rudman- wide issues affecting BIG’s constituency. als so that the estates of their deceased Hollings legislation, the experience was relatives can be properly disposed of. n After hearing my explanation and asking a certainly one of history in the making and few questions, Sharon seems more inter- one very special day in our careers and in ested in participating in GAO-BIG and the history of GAO. m agrees to attend the next meeting.

That long-awaited snow has finally arrived, and a few of the people in the office leave wants to know more about the activities of early to avoid the rush. I enjoy skiing in GAO-BIG. I start hy giving her some snow, but since I can’t do so today I’ll set- history. tle for walking in the snow to the Metro l What consideration are we giving to the station. Ideally, I would live a 15-minute longer-term impact of microcomputers on GAO-BIG was started in 1979, thanks to walk from work (I am a great supporter of the jobs held by our staff, especially ad- the leadership and contributions of several abolishing the commute). However, realism ministrative and clerical? GAO staff members, including Aletha dictates otherwise. 1 am home after what l To what extent will such jobs, as we Brown, Rosa Chevalier, Melvin Horne, Toni seems a much faster commute than usual. known them today, be changed radically or Jenkins, Paul Jones, and *John Luke. Since even eliminated? its formation, GAO-BIG has been among ti What will happen to the people? the chapters that are most active at the re- Friday gional and national levels. This morning I meet with Sid and Paul to The effects of new technologies are by no discuss our response to a recent request means neutral. If we allow computers to GAO-BIG’s activism and influence have from Congressman Howard. Fortunately, become means and ends ln themselves, we grown over the 6 years of its existence. we are able to respond to this request in will find ourselves continually adapting to For example, in May 1982 GAO-BIG offi- near-record time: I have already completed whatever environments the technology cre- cers met with the Comptroller General to ates for us, and we become victims of the brief him on the activities of the chapter. silicon idol. 8 Mr. Bowsher invited GAO-BIG to formally See Week’s Worth, p. 41

Page 40 The GAO Review/Summer 1986 concerned with the professional develop- l public participation in the arts and the ment of those who worked for him. At humanities; Sears, Roebuck and Company, General l private, corporate, and foundation sup- my research and developed a reply based Robert E. Wood delegated responsibility port for the arts and the humanities; on previous work. Paul, Sid, and I agree and authority as much as possible because, l the overall quality of the arts and the that the draft reply responds fully to the like Lilienthal, he realized the importance humanities in the United States; congressional request, and, after our of the organization’s human resources. l the creative activities of individual au- lengthy discussion, the only question that Mr. Wood believed that “our whole future thors and artists; and remains unanswered is who will sign the depends on the proper selection, proper l the activities and operations of private reply. record, and proper elimination of person- copyrighting organizations. nel. . . Put your personnel work fnst,l( he Within GAO’s operations improvement pro- Food Security Act of 1985 gram, an effort is under way to devolve in- said, “because it is the most important.” creassrd and broader signature authority to Since management is an art more than a The Food Security Act of 1985 [P.L. 99-198, the associate director level. Paul suggests science, the contrasting styles of these Dec. 23, 1985) establishes a National Com- that we brief the division director on our eight managers show that no certain for- mission on Dairy Policy to study and make plan for him to sign the reply. After several mula for success exists. The final chapter recommendations concerning the future discussions, some coordination, and minor does note, however, certain threads of operations of the federal program estab- revision, the reply to the congressman is commonality among the styles of these lished to support the price of milk mar- completed, signed by Paul, and on its way leaders, each of whom keted by producers in the United States. to the rcquestir. l had a “grand scheme” or vision of his The Comptroller General shall have access goals; to the records of the Commission for pur- I have a very positive attitude by the end l motivated others; poses of audit and examination. Addition- of the day because we have responded to l communicated with employees, con- ally, if requested to do so, the Comptroller the congressional request so quickly and stituencies, communities, and supervisors; General shall furnish the Commission in- because it is Friday and another job has and formation, personnel, and support services. been completed. Without the help of our l took risks and proceeded toward their Another provision of the Food Security Act administratve staff-Helen Smith, Audrey goals, even though they could not foresee of 1985 requires the Comptroller General Dyson, and Jean Worley-the task might future problems and their solutions. to conduct a study of the Department of have taken much more time to complete. I Health and Human Services’ and the De- thank them for their assistance in getting Although the book is a good source of partment of Agriculture’s current product the job done. A little later, I am on my way information on progressive management, it purity and inspection requirements and to the Metro, planning to start my week- is incomplete in two areas. First, the au- regulations for imported food products and end with a 50.minute commute and a bout thors have avoided critical comments. For agricultural commodities. with a shovel and a short driveway that example, the chapter on former Secretary sometimes seems a mile long. Anyway, I of Defense Robert S. McNamara reduces Overseas Private Investment need the exercise. I’ll just substitute shov- criticism of him and his role in the Viet- Corporation Amendments eling snow for 40 sit-ups and 50 push-ups. nam War to a footnote. Second, although a Act of 1985 comprehensive portrait of each person is At the Metro station, I notice that my fare Public Law 99204, December 23, 1985, the not possible in a IOO-page text, the authors card ne*,ds a boost, and I increase the fare Overseas Private Investment Corporation have omitted some of their subjects’ major by a few dollars. No problems with Metro Amendments Act of 1985, requires the accomplishments. The chapter on Mr. today: The trains are prompt, electrical Comptroller General to report to the Con- McNamara, in particular, fails to mention power is working, and some scats are still gress the results of a study of the impact his considerable achievements at the vacant, so I read the paper until I reach of the activities of the Overseas Private In- World Hank. my stop. Waiting at the bus stop, I remem- vestment Corporation on employment in ber that 1 need exact change and ask a fel- On the whole, though, the book describes the United States. low commuter to change a dollar for me. very well the management styles of famous The law also amends the Foreign Assis- This leads to a conversation about work at administrators who helped solve major or- tance Act of 1961 concerning audits of the GAO. My fellow commuter bends my ear ganizational problems. In this regard, stt- Overseas Private Investment Corporation. about the inefficiencies and lack of econ- dents of management will find Giants in A financial and compliance audit of the fi- omy in electronic communications man- Manugmtmt a useful contribution to man- nancial statements of the Corporation shall agement and procurements. He suggests agement theory and prat.tice. be made by an independent certified pub- that GA(.) look into the problems. We ex- lic accountant at least once every 3 years change business cards and depart, agreeing Reviewed by Daniel J. Semick in accordance with auditing standards is- that he will caI1 me at the office for a GAO Resources, Community, and sued by GAO. GAO may review the audit contact. Economic Development Division n n and resulting report to the Congress, as necessary. At the request of the Congress, or if considered necessary by the Offtce, GAO may perform the audit. l Bookmark ((w Inul’t~~j.olll Ilagc :IH’ j Legislative ( I OIIt.11111(Yi I’hlrrl[,a# ’:I!))

Valley Authority a model of government ef- l international copyright treaties, commit- fectiveness. He saw his job as more than ments, and obligations to which the United “getting things done,” however, and was States is a party;

Page 41 Senior GAO Staff Changes

Ed. note: The staff changes in this section and those that follow occurred during the approximate period October to December 1985.

Clarence L. Forbes Mary R. Hamilton Robert W. Hanlon Mr. Clarence L. “Chuck” Forbes retied as Ms. Mary R. Hamilton has been appointed Mr. Robert “Bob” W. Hanlon, manager of manager of GAO’s New York Regional Of- manager of GAO’s New York Regional Of- GAO’s Denver Regional Office, retired fice in November 1985, ending 40 years of fice effective December 1985. from GAO on December 21, 1985. Mr. Han- federal government service. After 10 years’ experience in academe and lon joined in 1958 and served at headquar- private industry, Ms. Hamilton joined ters for 7 years. He served in the Washing- Mr. Forbes joined GAO in 1967 after retir- GAO’s former Program Analysis Division in ton Regional Office from 1965 to July 1972 ing from the U.S. Army as a lieutenant 1979 and became group director for sci- and as manager of GAO’s Cincinnati Re- colonel. He served as an audit manager in ence and technology in 1981. She served as gional Office from July 1972 until August the former Logistics and Communications staff director of the Comptroller General’s 1979, when he was named manager of the Division, headed the LJpward Mobility Pro- reports task force in 1982 Since January Denver Regional Office. gram, and served as an assistant director 1983, Ms. Hamilton has served as assistant in GAO’s Offices of Staff Development and Mr. Hanlon served in the U.S. Army and regional manager for operations, assistant Personnel Management. After serving as an graduated from Northeastern University in regional manager for planning and report- assistant director in the former Field Oper- Boston with a B.S. degree in 1958. He also ing, and acting regional manager, New ations Division, Mr. Forbes became an as- received a bachelor’s degree in commercial York. sistant manager in the New York Regional science from Benjamin Franklin University, Office, in charge of the Albany sublocation, Ms. Hamilton received a Ph.D. degree in Washington, D.C., in 1960. and later became assistant manager in the sociology, with specializations in demogra- Boston Regional Office. He became man- phy and research methodology, from the Mr. Hanlon attended the American Mar- ager of the New York Regional Offlce in University of Maryland. She also received agement Association’s Advanced Manage- 1979. an MA. degree in sociology from the Uni- ment Program the Federal Executive Insti- versity of North Carolina at Chapel Hill tute’s Residential Program in Executive Mr. Forbes attended the City College of and a BA. degree in sociology and psy- Education, and the Brookings Institution’s New York and the University of Maryland, chology from Bethel College in Minnesota. Conference for Senior Executives on Pub- He is a certified internal auditor and holds Ms. Hamilton has received many academic lic Policy Issues. He holds memberships in memberships in the Association of Govern- honors and several GAO awards. She has the American Management Association, the ment Accountants and the American Man- also been active in such professional orga- Association of Government Accountants, agement Association. Mr. Forbes received nizations as the American Association for and the Denver Federal Executive Board numerous awards for his work at GAO. the Advancement of Science, the New and chairs the Mountain and Plains Inter- York/New Jersey Intergovernmental Audit governmental Audit Forum. Forum, and the Association of Government Mr. Hanlon received three GAO Meritori- Accountants. She has published numerous ous Service Awards, the GAO Career De- articles on energy policy and on science velopment Award, and the GAO Distin- and technology policy. Ms. Hamilton was a guished Service Award. member of the third class of GAO’s Execu- tive Candidate Development Program.

Page 42 The GAO Review/Summer 1986 Other GAO Staff Changes

Additional Staff Changes Name Division/Office Title Broderick, Thomas R. Accounting and Financial Management Group director

Carnahan, Terry Accounting and Financial Management Supervisory accountant

Clark, David L., Jr. Accounting and Financial Management Group director

Culkin, Charles W., Jr. Accounting and Financial Management Group director

Skelley, Jerry Accounting and Financial Management Supervisory accountant

Smith, Darby Accounting and Financial Management Supervisory evaluator solis, William Accounting and Financial Management Assistant to deputy director for hu- man resources

Gannon, Arthur G. National Security and International Af- Assistant to director for human re- fairs sources

Berkin, Gerald Security and Safety Director New Staff Members Name Division/Office From Adebayo, Aldoria Accounting and Financial Management DST Systems, Inc.

Anderson, Lisa Accounting and Financial Management Equal Employment Opportunity Commission

Doerning, Greg Accounting and Financial Management University of Minnesota

Mutari, Ellen Accounting and Financial Management Business and Professional Women’s Foundation

Bumgardner, Donald Human Resources West Virginia University

Marszalek, Cynthia Human Resources George Washington University

Radish, ElIen Human Resources Vassar College

Lewin, Marian E. National Security and International University of Wisconsin Affairs

Fangman, Karin General Counsel University of Pittsburgh

Nicholson, Jeannette Administration and Management Analysis Private industry staff

Seeterlin, Robert Administration and Management Analysis Private industry Staff

Page 43 New Staff Members (cont.) Name DivisioxdOffke From

Turner, Chester Budget Library of Congress

Voight, Regina Financial Management Private industry

Gee, Sheryl Information Resources Management Virginia State University

Jenkins, Jeremiah Personnel Government Printing Office

Name Regional Office From Jolley, Margaret Atlanta Private industry

Williams, Domita Atlanta Revco Drugs

Roque, Phillip G. Chicago Indiana University

Trimble, David C. Chicago University of Chicago

Zarem, John Chicago Department of the Navy

(:onradi, Phyllis Cincinnati Social Security Administration

Pennington, Michele A. Cincinnati Internal Revenue Service

Guthrie, Ronald J. Denver Forest Service

Honaker, Brenda B. Denver Not specified

Wilke, Rita Kansas City Central Community High School, Breese, Illinois

Billiter, Suzanne Los Angeles Co-op conversion

La Coste, Melody Los Angeles Webster Business College

Billinghurst, Barbara Seattle Co-op conversion

Keenan, Druscilla Seattle Co-op conversion Attritions Name DivisiodOffke Title Anderson, Robert Accounting and Financial Management Accountant

Baker, Stephanie Accounting and Financial Management Secretary

Conklin, Maureen A. Accounting and Financial Management Evaluator

Flynn, Mary Ann Accounting and Financial Management Accountant

King, Janice M. Accounting and Financial Management Secretary

Martin, Patricia A. Accounting and Financial Management Secretary

Parker, Myrna H. Accounting and Financial Management Accountant

Arnold, Susan General Government Social science analyst

Dentinger, Carlton P. General Government Evaluator

dcWolf, Virginia A. General Government Social science analyst

Page 44 The GAO Review/Summer 1986 Attritions (cont.) Name Division/Office Title Ho, Rose Wai Ling General Government Evaluator

Oliver, Margie General Government Clerk-typist

Spraggins, Martha General Government Secretary (typing)

Beauregarde, Barbara Human Resources Secretary (typing)

Brenner, Barbara Human Resources Evaluator

Hill, Becki Sue Human Resources Evaluator

Blais, Maurice S. National Security and International Senior evaluator Affairs

Douglas, Rose M. National Security and International Secretary Affairs

Erhart, Melanie G. National Security and International Secretary Affairs

Palmer, Theresa D. National Security and International Secretary Affairs

Goodrich, Robert General Counsel Attorney-advisor

Ruprecht, Richard General Counsel Attorney-advisor

Chaffier, Anthony Budget Budget analyst

Newman, Marianne Budget Secretary - Anderson, Judith Library Services Secretary

Richardson, Ulrike Library Services Reference librarian

Wimbush, Priicella Library Services Library technician

Bridge, Daniel C. Personnel Personnel management specialist

Hagens, Sandy C. Personnel Personnel management specialist

Hoyle, Katherine R. Personnel Personnel management specialist

Massie, Jacqueline A. Personnel Employee relations clerk

Neal, Darlene M. Personnel Employee relations asst.

Savqy, Louise M. Personnel Clerk typist

Traupel, Melodye L. Personnel Personnel staffing specialist

Name Regional Office Title Asher, Elaine Atlanta Technical information specialist

Cattell, Leigh Atlanta Evaluator

Glass, Penelope Atlanta Office services Supervisor

Godwin, Bridgett Atlanta Administrative clerk

Page 45 Other Staff Attritions (cont.) Name Regional Office Title Reyes-Barrios, Jaime Atlanta Evaluator

Weeks, Larry Atlanta Evaluator

Ellis, Charles W. Boston Evaluator

Nicoli, Gail M. Boston Secretary

Szeto, Arthur K. Boston Evaluator

Ziguloski, Jane A. Boston Information processing supervisor

Kelly, Kathleen Chicago Evaluator

Brettl, Diana T. Cincinnati Evaluator

Johnson, Susan T. Cincinnati Secretary

Alberts, Nancy M. Denver Evaluator

Bame, Carolyn J. Denver Writer-editor

Cordova, Lucille Denver Evaluator

Kirkland, Mae D. Denver Secretary

Brunell, Roberta Los Angeles Secretary

Groneman, Robert Los Angeles Evaluator

Grano, John San Francisco Management assistant

Green, Barry San Francisco Clerk-typist

Edgar, Dolores Seattle Administrative clerk

Huffman. Gertrude Seattle Evaluator

Seymour, Juanita Seattle Clerk-typist Retirements . * Name Dwsion/Office Title DeRyder, Gerald K. Accounting and Financial Management Group director

Eland, Kenneth W. Accounting and Financial Management Systems accountant

MacDonald, Yvonne E. Accounting and Financial Management Evaluator

Tobin, Harry National Security and International Evaluator AfTFliTS

Barclay, F. Henry General Counsel Assistant to the general counsel

Shipman, Richard E. General Counsel Senior attorney

Klekner, Arthur Security and Safety Director

Name Regional Office Title Velasquez, Herman H. Denver Senior evaluator

Ruggiero, Dominic Los Angeles Assistant regional manager

Name Overseas Office Title Uyeno, Jane S. Far East Travel and budget assistant

Page 46 The GAO Review/Summer 1986 Professional Activities

Ed. note: GAO staff participated in the Mid-America Intergovernmental Audit Department of Defense conference on following professional activities during the Forum, Kansas City, KS, Dec. 6. “Problems in Implementing Productivity in approximate period August to December Institute of Internal Auditors, Washington Management,” at the National Academy of 1985. Chapter, December meeting on GAO’s Public Administration, Washington, Dec. 4. Office of the Comptroller audit oversight and the role of financial au- Human Resources Division diting in government, Washington, Dec. 13. General Michael Zimmerman, associate direc- John J. Adair, associate director, ad- Charles A. Bowsher, Comptroller Gen- tor, discussed “Constraining National dressed the following groups: eral, addressed the following groups: Health Care Costs” before the American Congressional Assistant Program confer- Mid-Atlantic Intergovernmental Audit Guild of Patient Account Management, Bal- ence, Washington, Oct. 9. Forum, on the hearings being held by Con- timore, Oct. 11. gressman John Dingell on the accounting .John F. Kennedy School of Government, profession, Williamsburg, VA, Nov. 1. Jay Eglin, group director, participated in Harvard University, Cambridge, MA, a panel discussion on financing guarantee Oct. 11. National State Auditors’ Association, on agencies in the Guaranteed Student Loan GAO’s work in the areas of fraud preven- Evaluation Research Society, Toronto, Program at the fall conference of the Na- tion and audit oversight, Washington, Oct. 17. tional Council of Higher Education Pro- Nov. 4. grams, New Orleans, Nov. 5. Teddy Roosevelt Club, Washington, Oct. 29. Virginia B. Robinson, associate direc- Gaston Gianni, group director, partici- Federal Executive Institute Alumni Associ- tor, moderated a panel discussion on sys- pated in a panel discussion on “What Can ation, Washington, Nov. 19. tems audit methodology, sponsored by the Be Learned From Job Training Partnership Association of Government Accountants, President’s Blue-Ribbon Commission on Act Research: Some Practical Appllca- Washington, Nov. 5. Defense Management, Washington, Dec. 11. tions,” at the National Association of Coun- Institute of Internal Auditors, Miami Chap- Jeffrey C. Steinhoff, deputy associate ties’ annual employment policy conference, ter, Miami, Dec. 12. director, participated in a panel discus- Atlanta, Nov. 11. sion on GAO’s role in improving federal ti- Equitable Assurance Society of the United nancial accounting, College of William and Paul Posner, group director, and Ted States, New York, Dec. 18. Mary, Williamsburg, VA, Oct. 19. Wagner, evaluator, Washington Re- gional OffIce, spoke on GAO’s reviews of Ernst Stockel, group director, gave a Accounting and Financial the alcohol, drug abuse, and mental health presentation on the CARE methodology at Managment Division block grant before the National Associa- the Association of Government Account- Frederick D. Wolf, director, addressed tion of Community Mental Health Centers, ants’ capital region’s professional develop- the following groups: Washington, Oct. 31. ment seminar, Washington, Nov. 5. Governmental accounting symposium on Susan Van Gelder, senior evaluator, mcreasing the use and usefulness of gov- General Government Division and Don Benson, evaluator, Atlanta ernmental financial reports, University of Wiiiam J. Anderson, director, spoke at Regional OffIce, discussed GAO’s analysis Illinois, Chicago, Nov. 7. the Office of Personnel Management Exec- of Medicare home health beneficiaries be- Joint meeting of the Association of Gov- utive Seminar Center on “Working Effec- fore the American Public Health Associa- ernment Accountants and Government Fi- tively With Oversight Organizations,” Oak tion, Washington, Nov. 18. nance Officers’ Association, Detroit, Ridge, TN, Nov. 6. Susan Kladiva, evaluator, discussed Nov. 19. Brian Usilaner, associate director, ad- GAO’s review of medical malpractice is- District. of Columbia institute of Certified dressed the following groups: sues, at the third annual conference on Public Accountants’ governmental account- Conference on white-colIar productivity, medical malpractice, sponsored by the ing and auditing committee, on Title II, Ar- sponsored by the American Productivity Federation of Jewish Philanthropies Ser- lington, VA, Nov. 21. Center, Dallas, Oct. 30-31. vice Corporation, New York, Oct. 11. National Academy of Public Admlnlstra- American Productivity Management Asso- Sigurd Nilsen, labor economist: tion, on financial management in the fed- ciation, on revitalizing federal manage- Participated in a symposium on rural labor eral government, Washington, Nov. 22. ment, Toronto, Nov. 13. market research issues, sponsored by the

Page 47 Department of Agriculture’s Economic Re- Liselott Lisle, actuary, cochaired a North Alabama Chapter of the Federal Bar search Service, Washington, Oct. 17-18. workshop on “Public Plan Issues” at the Association, on “Fiscal Controls on Federal annual meeting of the Conference of Actu- Government Procurement,” Huntsville, AL, Presented a paper, “Early Retirement: aries in Public Practice, Honolulu, Aug. 16. Nov. 7. Trends and Costs,” at the annual meeting of the Gerontological Society of America, Rob Orwin, evaluator, and Christine Seymour Efros, associate general coun- New Orleans, Nov. 22-26. Fossett, social science analyst, Pre- sel, spoke before the North Alabama sented results from their survey of evalua- Chapter of the Federal Bar Association on National Security and tars’ experience with and perceptions of “CICA (Competition in Contracting Act) International Affairs Division evaluating defense programs at a joint Developments,” Huntsville, AL, Nov. 7. Frank Conahan, director, discussed cur- meeting of the Canadian Evaluation Soci- Richard R. Pierson, associate general rent national defense issues before the ety, the Evaluation Network, and the Evil- counsel, discussed GAO’s report, ‘The Washington Chapter of the American Soci- uation Research Society, Toronto, Oct. 17. Armed Services Board of Contract Appeals ety of Military Comptrollers, Washington, Margaret S. Boone, social science ana- Has Operated Independently,” at the Amer- Nov. 19. lyst, organized and chaired a session, ican Bar Association’s public contract law Brad Hathaway, group director, accom- “Profit, Fame, and Professional Responsi- section’s winter conference, Boca Raton, panied by Harold Andrew& evaluator, bility: Sharing Knowledge as an Ethical FL, Nov. 9. spoke on “Audit Results: A-76 Cost Com- Issue,” at a meeting of the American An- Bertram J. Berlin, senior attorney, parison” at the fifth national conference on thropological Association, Washington, spoke on “Fiscal Control and the General A-76, sponsored by the George Washington Sept. 16. Accounting Office” at the Judge Advocate University School of Government and Busi- Christine A. Fossett, social science an- General’s School, Charlottesville, VA, Nov. ness Administration, Washington, Oct. 23. alyst, gave a paper on the “Evaluation of 14. Julia Denman, senior evaluator, ad- the Special Supplemental Food Program for Women, Infants, and Children” at a Joint Financial Management dressed the following groups: Improvement Program Philadelphia Chapter of the Society of Lo- joint meeting of the Canadian Evaluation gistics Engineers on “Optimizing Limited Society, the Evaluation Network, and the Ken Wine, accountant, spoke to the Defense Dollars: A Challenge for Log&- Evaluation Research Society, Toronto, Federal Executive Board on fmancial man- cians,” Philadelphia, Nov. 20. Oct. 17. agement initiatives of the central agencies, Baltimore, Oct. 23. Management of acquisition logistics course Cynthia L. Siegel, social science ana- at the Defense Systems Management Col- lyst, presented a paper, “The Social Scien- Personnel lege, Fort Belvoir, VA, Dec. 19. tist in a Legislative Agency: Ethical Re- sponsibilities and the Sharing and Felii R. Brandon II, director, discussed Robert Fain, evaluator, discussed GAO’s Protection of Knowledge,” at a meeting on “Enhancing Performance Through the Fed- report, “The Armed Services Board of Con- Ethics of Sharing Knowledge at the Ameri- eral Personnel Management System” at the tract Appeals” before the section of public can Anthropological Association, Washing- Office of Personnel Management’s Execu- contract law, at the American Bar Associa- ton, Dec. 5. tive Seminar Center, Denver, Dec. 6. tion’s winter conference, Boca Raton, FL, Nov. 9. Office of the General Patricia A. Moore, task group director, was elected to the board of directors of John Yakaitis, evaluator, spoke on Counsel the International Personnel Management “Congressional Efforts To Reinstate the Harry R. Van Cleve, general counsel: Association, federal section, 19861989. Cost Accounting Standards Board,” at the Discussed GAO’s role and coordination Army Logistics Management Center, Ft. with the Congress and executive branch Stephen J. Kenealy, national recruit- Lee, VA, Dec. 13. agencies with participants in the U.S. ment program manager, was appointed Chamber of Commerce’s Corporate Execu- to the ethics committee of the Southwest Program Evaluation and College Placement Association, 1986. Methodology Division tive Development Program, WASHINGTON: NOW, Washington, Oct. 21. Regional Offices Lois-ellin Datta, associate director, has Lectured on “Bid Protests” at the Depart- Atlanta written “Microcomputers and Young Chil- ment of Justice’s Office of Legal Education dren: A Public or a Private Affair?,” a chap- seminar, Washington, Oct. 30. Patricia O’Berry, evaluator, spoke on ter in Young Chilb-ert and Microcomput- Discussed “Bid Protests Under the Rules “Productivity and Budgeting in Federal ers, edited by P. Campbell and G. Fein, of the 1984 Competition in Contracting Agencies” and “Department of Rehabilita- Prentice-Hall, 1986. Act” as a participant in the American Cor- tion Services: The Management Control Benjamin Gottlieb, principal actuary: porate Counsel Association’s video tele- Project” at the Southeastern Conference of Participated in a discussion of “The Role conference, beamed live by satellite from Public Administration, Charleston, SC, of the Federal Actuary” at the annual Washington to cities throughout the United Oct. 2. meeting of the Society of Actuaries, New States, Dec. 11. Boston Orleans, Oct. 14. Rollee H. Efros, associate general Wiiiam Reis, technical assistance Spoke on “The Proposed Federal Pension counsel, addressed the following group manager, spoke on “Quality Assur- System” and chaired a workshop on groups: ance and Data Security in Audit Use of Mi- “Public Pension Plans” at the fall meeting Basic contracts seminar, sponsored by the crocomputers” at a meeting of the New of the Middle Atlantic Actuarial Club, Legal Education Institute, Department of England Intergovernmental Audit Forum, Greensboro, NC, Nov. 22. Justice, Washington, Oct. 30. Burlington, VT, Nov. 1.

Page 48 The GAO Review/Summer 1986 Jeffrey Rose and Paul Slater, evalua- and Security,” sponsored by the Electronic Audit Forum, and the Honolulu-Pacific tors, discussed GAO’s role at a conference Data Processing Auditors’ Association and Federal Executive Board, Honolulu, sponsored by the Becker CPA review the Electronic Data Processing Auditors’ Sept. 18-19. course, Providence, RI, Oct. 3. Foundation, Los Angeles, Nov. 19. Denver Taught an undergraduate course on EDP auditing for the Computer Information Sys- Robert W. Hanlon, regional manager, tems Department, California State Poly- and James A. Reardon, senior evalua- technic University, Pomona, fall 1985 tor, planned and conducted the fall 1985 meeting of the Mountain and Plains Inter- quarter. governmental Audit Forum in their respec- Received notification from Auerbach Publi- tive roles as chairman and executive direc- cations that the following articles have tor, Park City, UT, Oct. 10-11. been published in the Jourml of Account- irLg und EDP, winter 1985 issue: “A Pro- Ralph R. Hovda, microcomputer man- ager, accompanied by Steve Jue, tech- gram for Auditing Operating Systems,” coauthored with Rod Kocot, Security nical assistance group manager, Seattle Regional Offwe, and Joe Martorelli, Pacific Corp. (portfolio #75-04-10); “Software Tools and Techniques for Audi- computer programmer analyst, San tors” (portfolio #73-02lO); and, coau- Francisco Regional Office, discussed thored with Dan Basica of Dannys, Inc., GAO’s evaluation of lap-size microcomput- ers and demonstrated several models at “Microcomputer Security: Audit Problems and Solutions.” the 1986 conference of the Hawaii Tnter- governmental Information Processing Mike Dolak, evaluator, spoke on Council, Maui, Sept. 23-25. “Medical ADP Audits in the Federal Gov- ernment” at the U.S. Air Force’s third an- Kansas City nual medical information systems sympo- David A. Hanna, regional manager: sium, Sheppard Air Force Base, TX, Spoke to members of the Beta Alpha Psi Oct. 10. accounting fraternity about current issues San Francisco and trends in financial management and fi- nanciai auditing, University of Missouri, St. Jim Mansheim, assistant regional man- Louis, Nov. 2. ager: Keceived a Meritorious Service Award in Was appointed to the steering committee of the newly formed San Francisco Bay recognition of outstanding service to ac- counting education, the advancement of Area Federal Financial Managers’ Council, the accounting profession, and Beta Alpha 1986. Psi from the Gamma Psi Chapter of Beta Was appointed to the California State Soci- Qlpha Psi, St. Louis, Nov. 2. ety of WAS’ government accounting and Susanne Vaidez, executive director, auditing committee to represent the West- Mid-America Intergovernmental Audit ern Intergovernmental Audit Forum, 1986. Forum, planned and organized the Beta Larry Calhoun, senior evaluator, dis- Alpha Psi conference, St. Louis, Nov. 2. cussed recent GAO automation initiatives at a meeting sponsored by the Western Los Angeles Intergovernmental Audit Forum in Carson Vie Ell, assistant regional manager: City, NV, Nov. 7. lectured on “Operational Auditing Tech- niques” al. a seminar on “A Common Body Seattle of Knowledge for Accountants,” California John P. Carroll, regional manager, and State University, Los Angeles, Oct. 12. Gary D. McGill, assistant regional man- Spoke to a graduate class in public organi- ager, spoke at a meeting of the Seattle zation and management on “The Opera- Pacific University School of Business on tions of the General Accounting Office,” GAO’s responsibilities and activities, llniversity of Southern California, Los An- Seattle, Nov. 6. geles, Oct. 25. Patricia K. Thomas, evaluator and for- Spoke at an MBA seminar in public ac- mer executive director of the Western counting on “How TO Approach Opera- Intergovernmental Audit Forum, helped tional Auditing,” California State Univer- arrange the speakers’ program and served sity, Los Angeles, Nov. 19. on a panel on “Resolving Audit Findings” Pred Gallegos, manager, management at the 1985 Pacific Emerging Issues Con- science group: ference, jointly sponsored by the Hawaii Spoke at a conference on “Personal Chapter, Association of Government Ac- ( ‘omputing-Management, Audit, Control, countants, the Western Intergovernmental

Page 49 Professional

Awards for the Best Articles Published in The GAO Reuiew

Cash awards of $500 each are presented each year (see GAO Order 1551.1) for the best two articles written by GAO staff and published originally in 7%e GAO Review. Staff through grade GS-15 at the time they submit the article are eligible for these awards. A noncash award is available for best article by a member of the Senior Executive Service (SES) or candidate pool. The awards are presented during the GAO Awards Program held annually in Washington, D.C. The awards are based on recommendations of a panel of judges that is independent of 7% GAO Review staff. The panel of judges is chaired by the director, Office of Policy (UP), who, together with the director, Office of Public Information, serves as a perma- nent panel member. Two other SES-level panel members will be selected for a l-yea-r term by the director, OP. These selections will be made from among the members of GAO’s Office-wide awards committee. The judges evaluate articles from the standpoint of their overall excellence, with particular concern for the following: l Originality of concepts and ideas. (The authors demonstrated imagination and innova- tion in selecting and developing a topic.) l Degree of interest to readers. (The article, by virtue of the topic and its treatment or its relevance to GAO’s mission, was of special interest to GAO staff.) l Quality and effectiveness of written expression. (The article was well organized and written in polished prose.) l Evidence of individual effort expended.

Statement of Editorial Policy

This publication is prepared primarily for use by the staff of the General Accounting Of- fice and outside readers interested in GAO’s work. Except where otherwise indicated, the articles and other submissions generally express the views of the authors and do not represent an official position of the General Accounting Office. 17w GAO Rtiew’s mission is threefold. First, it highlights GAO’s work from the perspec- tives of subject area and methodology. (The &K&W usually publishes inherently interest- ing or controversial articles on subjects generated by GAO audit work and articles re- lated to innovative audit techniques.) Second, and equally important, the Review provides GAO staff with a creative outlet for professional enhancement. Third, it acts as historian for significant audit trends, GAO events, and staff activities. Potential authors and interested readers should refer to GAO Order 1551.1 for details on Review policies, procedures, and formats. For sale by the Superintendent of Documents, U.S. Government Printing Office, Washing- ton, DC. 20410. Documents published by the General Accounting Office can be ordered from GAO Docu- ment Distribution (202) 275-6241.

The GAO Review

Editor Resources, Community, and Chicago Harry S Havens Economic Development Division Stewart Herman Walter Hess Assistant Editor Cincinnati Carol A. Codori Offrce of the Chief Economist Elmer Taylor Nancy Hamilton Features Coordinator Dallas Alberta E. Tropf Civil Rights Office Frank Bizzell Ryan Yuille Publishing Services Denver Office of Congressional Relations Pamela K. Tumler Editing Staff Chris Brennan Judy Oberdick Merrill Detroit Gerard S. Burke Offke of the General Counsel Randall Conley Marilynn M. Eaton Nancy Brothers Kansas City Diane Lee General Services and Controller Bernard G. Farrell Graphics Staff Susan schriner Los Angeles Deny McNeil Office of Information Robert Brown Richard Rockburn Resources Management Ozell Simmons New York Rich Devore Eric Johnson Printing staff Offke of Internal Evaluation Thomas Kneeland Norfolk Arley M. Whit-sell William K. White Melissa van Tine Distribution Staff Office of International Audit Organization Liaison Philadelphia Ann Morton John Gunner Alberta Tropf Liaison Staff Office of Organization and San Francisco Office of the Comptroller Human Development Gerhard Brostrom General Don O’Sullivan Seattle Linda Kemp Personnel Alvin S. Finegold Accounting and Financial Rose Decker-unit staff Washington Management Division Linda Tudor-SES staff Dennis O’Connor Paul S. Benoit Office of Policy Europe General Government Division Elizabeth Poe1 Ralph Running Teruni Chanmugam Office of Program Planning Far East Human Resources Division Linda Morra Frank Etze Joseph Eglin Office of Public Information Latin America Information Management and Laura Kopelson Tom Brogan Technology Division Daniel Long Office of Publishing and Communications National Security and Beverly Vick International Affairs Division Irene Robertson Atlanta William Ball Program Evaluation and Methodology Division Boston Wallace Cohen Paul Slater, Jr.

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