Strategic Plan

FY 2000–FY 2005

U.S. Department of Commerce

Enabling Legislation

Originally established in 1903 as the Department of Commerce and Labor (32

Stat 825;), the Department of Commerce was redefined under the name it

uses today on March 4, 1913 (15 USC 1501). The role of the new Department

of Commerce was “to foster, promote, and develop the foreign and domestic

commerce, the mining, manufacturing, and fishery industries of the United

States.”

Mission

The Department of Commerce promotes job creation and improved living

standards for all Americans by creating an infrastructure that promotes economic growth, technological competitiveness, and sustainable development.

Bureaus

Office of the Secretary (Departmental Management)

Office of the Inspector General (OIG)

Economic Development Administration (EDA)

Economics and Statistics Administration (ESA)

Bureau of the Census (Census)

Bureau of Economic Analysis (BEA)

International Trade Administration (ITA)

Bureau of Export Administration (BXA)

Minority Business Development Agency (MBDA)

National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA)

The United States Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO)

Technology Administration (TA)

National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST)

National Technical Information Service (NTIS)

Office of Technology Policy (OTP)

National Telecommunications and Information Administration (NTIA)

Location/Employees

The Department of Commerce is headquartered in Washington, D.C. It has

staffed field offices in all states and territories, and maintains offices in 70

countries. There are more than 41,000 permanent Department of Commerce

employees.

The Department of Commerce

assembles here the forces

designed by Congress to advance

the interests of industry and trade.

Through experimental research,

the dissemination of knowledge,

and administrative vigilance, it

stimulates the progress of America

upon land and sea and in the air

and thereby speeds the nation in

the march of mankind.

(inscription on the Department of

Commerce Building, 1932)

Department of Commerce

Herbert Hoover Building
U.S. Department of

Commerce

Strategic Plan FY 2000–FY 2005

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TABLE OF CONTENTS

Secretary’s Statement . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1

Organization Chart . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3

Understanding our Strategic Plan . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4

Mission Statement . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4

Strategic Goals and Objectives . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4

Achieving Goals and Objectives . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4

Relationship between Long-Term Goals and 

Annual Performance Goals . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5

Crosscutting Programs . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5

External Factors . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5

Program Evaluation . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5

Strategic Goal 1: Provide the Information and the Framework to Enable the 

Economy to Operate Efficiently and Equitably. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 7

Objective 1.1: Provide the Infrastructure to Enable the Participation of 

All Americans in the New Economy. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 10

Performance Goal: Promote competition within the telecommunications 

sector and promote universal access to telecommunications 

services for all Americans (NTIA) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 11

Performance Goal: Promote exports by small and 

medium-sized enterprises (ITA). . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 13

Performance Goal: Increase U.S. exports by implementing the National Export

Strategy through government-wide coordination of trade promotion and trade 

finance programs (ITA) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 14

Performance Goal: Support job creation and private enterprise

in economically distressed communities (EDA) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 16

Performance Goal: Improve opportunities for minority-owned businesses 

to have access to the marketplace (MBDA). . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 18

Performance Goal: Improve opportunities for minority-owned businesses 

to pursue financing (MBDA). . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .18

Objective 1.2: Promote Responsible Economic Growth and Trade 

while Protecting American Security . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 20

Performance Goal: By use of a dual-use export control system that continuously

is refined to respond to changing requirements, transactions that are contrary 

to U.S. security interests are deterred and transactions without proliferation

potential are facilitated (BXA). . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 21

Performance Goal: The United States is in full compliance with the 

Chemical Weapons Convention (CWC) and all confidential business 

information of U.S. companies subject to inspection under the CWC 

is effectively protected (BXA) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 22

Performance Goal: The U.S. defense industrial base is 

healthy and competitive (BXA) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 22
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Performance Goal: Violations of dual-use export control laws are identified

and violators are sanctioned (BXA) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 22

Performance Goal: Export controls of key nations are 

strong and effective (BXA) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 23

Performance Goal: The nation’s various independent and interdependent 

infrastructure components are secured in accord with an integrated plan (BXA) . 24

Performance Goal: Improve American competitiveness and access to foreign 

markets by enforcing compliance with U.S. trade laws and agreements (ITA) . . . . 25

Performance Goal: Minimize the effects of crises by preparing the U.S. 

telecommunications and information infrastructure to operate under 

extreme conditions (NTIA) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 27

Performance Goal: Ensure allocation of radio spectrum—a scarce natural 

resource essential to all communications—provides the greatest benefit 

to all people (NTIA). . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 28

Objective 1.3: Support Effective Decision-Making of Policymakers,

Businesses, and the American Public . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 29

Performance Goal: Develop relevant, timely, and accurate national and 

community economic and household statistics for decision-making (ESA). . . . . . . 31

Performance Goal: Conduct the Decennial Census (FY2000–FY2001) (ESA) . . . . . 33

Performance Goal: Define, through consultations, policy assessment, planning, 

research, experiments, and evaluations, the plan for the 2010 Census (ESA) . . . . 34

Performance Goal: Build local capacity to achieve and sustain 

economic growth (EDA) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 36

Strategic Goal 2: Provide Infrastructure for Innovation to Enhance 

American Competitiveness . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 37

Objective 2.1: Provide Infrastructural Tools and Capabilities that 

Improve the Productivity, Quality, and Efficiency of Research and 

Innovation Processes . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 40 

Performance Goal: Promote technology-based growth through partnerships 

with industry (US/OTP) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 42

Performance Goal: Provide technical leadership for the nation’s measurement 

and standards infrastructure and ensure the availability of essential reference 

data and measurement capabilities (NIST: Measurement and 

Standards Laboratories) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 43

Performance Goal: Accelerate technological innovation and development 

of the new technologies that will underpin future economic growth 

(NIST: Advanced Technology Program) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 44

Performance Goal: Improve the technological capability, productivity, and 

competitiveness of small manufacturers (NIST: Manufacturing 

Extension Partnership) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 46
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Performance Goal: Assist U.S. businesses and other organizations in 

continuously improving their productivity, efficiency, and customer satisfaction

by adopting quality and performance improvement practices 

(NIST: Baldrige National Quality Program) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 47

Performance Goal: Protect the National Information Infrastructure (NIST). . . . . . . 48

Performance Goal: Collect, organize, preserve, and disseminate government 

scientific, technical, and business-related information (NTIS) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 48

Objective 2.1 Provide Infrastructural Tools and Capabilities That Improve 

the Productivity, Quality and Efficiency of Research and

Innovation Processes (EDA) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 53

Objective 2.2: Protect Intellectual Property. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 55

Performance Goal: Strengthen intellectual property protection in the 

United States and abroad, making it more accessible, affordable 

and enforceable (USPTO) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 56

Performance Goal: Enhance the quality of patent products and services, 

transition to E-Government and optimize patent processing time (USPTO) . . . . . 56

Performance Goal: Enhance the quality of trademark products and services, 

transition to E-Government and minimize trademark processing time. (USPTO) . . 56

Objective 2.3: Provide the Infrastructure for a Digital Economy and 

Digital Government . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 58

Performance Goal: Facilitate transformation of the economy to electronic 

transactions (all bureaus) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 59

Performance Goal: Improve U.S. competitive advantage through 

global e-commerce (all bureaus) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 60

Performance Goal: Promote the availability and sources of advanced 

telecommunications and information services (NTIA) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 61

Strategic Goal 3: Observe and Manage the Earth’s Environment to 

Promote Sustainable Growth . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 63

Objective 3.1: Enhance Conservation of the Natural Environment. . . . . . . . . . . . 65

Performance Goal: Build sustainable fisheries (NOAA) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 66

Performance Goal: Recover protected species (NOAA) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 68

Performance Goal: Sustain healthy coasts (NOAA). . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 69

Objective 3.2 Improve Understanding and Prediction of the 

Natural Environment . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 71

Performance Goal: Advance short-term warning and forecast services (NOAA) . . 72

Performance Goal: Implement seasonal-to-interannual climate forecasts (NOAA) 73

Performance Goal: Predict and assess decadal-to-centennial change (NOAA) . . . . 74
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Performance Goal: Promote safe navigation (NOAA). . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 75

Management Integration Goal . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 76

Objective: Promote Efficient and Effective Resources Management. . . . . . . . . . 76

Performance Goal: Acquire and manage the fiscal and related resources |

necessary to support program goals . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 77

Performance Goal: Acquire, manage, and develop a diverse, skilled, and 

flexible staff, using information technology as an essential tool . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 78

Performance Goal: Acquire and manage the technology resources necessary 

to support program goals . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 80

Management Challenges . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 81

APPENDICES

Appendix A: Crosscutting Activities (by Bureau) between the 

Department of Commerce and Other Federal Agencies . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 83

Appendix B: Obtaining Stakeholder Input. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 102

Appendix C: List of Acronyms . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 104

Appendix D: Table of Strategic Goals, Objectives, and Performance Goals . . . . . 111
U.S. Department of

Commerce

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Secretary’s Statement

The Department’s task over the next five years is a challenging one. We

are in the midst of the longest period of economic growth in American

history, marked by increased productivity, low unemployment, and a

remarkable absence of inflation. A fundamental shift in the structure of

the economy, brought about by the information technology revolution, is

driving this unprecedented period of prosperity. In order to realize the full

benefits of what has come to be known as the “New Economy” and to

ensure that those benefits continue into the future, the Department of

Commerce must understand the forces shaping the current expansion. 

The Department of Commerce’s mission is linked directly to the growth of

the economy and quality of life of all Americans. Our agencies work as a

team united to serve a common mission:

The Department of Commerce promotes job creation and

improved living standards for all Americans through 

programs that promote and assess economic growth, 

technological competitiveness, and sustainable development.

Three major forces are expected to combine to shape the U.S. economy

of the future. These forces are the globalization of markets, technological

innovation, and the drive toward sustainable economic development. 

Globalization is the trend toward a marketplace in which capital, goods,

and services move freely across national borders. As much as 30 percent

of America’s economic growth can be traced to increased exports, and

one out of six new jobs is linked to exports. The Department of

Commerce has a nationwide and worldwide network of export assistance

centers to help U.S. firms find export opportunities; we also advocate on

behalf of U.S. exporters, conduct trade missions, and maintain an active

trade compliance center that ensures that our trading partners live up to

their market-opening trade agreements. The Department is at the same

time responsible for issuing export licenses for sensitive technologies to

control the spread of weapons of mass destruction. 

Over the last 50 years technological innovation has accounted for as

much as half of the Nation’s long-term growth and has been a critical factor in preserving and improving the Nation’s security, the health of its citizens, and the quality of its environment. Over the next five years technological change will continue to transform the U.S. industrial base and

place new demands on the Nation’s scientific and technical infrastructure.

To innovate and compete in these and other areas, technology-intensive

companies will rely increasingly on a constellation of external scientific

and technological resources provided by businesses, universities, government laboratories and technology programs, and other non-profit

research centers and services. For its part, the Department of Commerce

will continue to be an integral component of the U.S. innovation system,

providing solutions for industry’s rapidly changing measurement and

standards needs, stimulating and/or diffusing new technologies and organizational improvement strategies, promoting technical research on the

use of telecommunications technology, efficiently allocating radio frequency spectrum, developing policies to ensure Internet privacy and critical infrastructure protection, and issuing patents and trademarks to both

stimulate and protect new technologies.

Secretary Norman Y. Mineta
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Sustainable development is a doctrine that was originally set forth by the

United Nations and that specifies the need for all nations to pursue

responsible economic growth through strategies that incorporate a concern for understanding, predicting the needs of, and protecting the natural environment. In addition to maintaining and modernizing the Nation’s

advanced weather forecasting and warning system, the Department provides accurate information about the state-of-the-global climate system;

for example, by advancing understanding of the effects of human-influenced emissions on the radiation balance of the earth. We also lead the

Nation’s work in ocean stewardship: we are launching a new era of

ocean exploration as we seek to protect and make accessible to all

Americans culturally and environmentally significant ocean sites; we are

helping conserve sensitive marine habitats through the national marine

sanctuaries and the marine fisheries service; and we are helping maintain

the health of our coasts and the safety of our coastal waters, we are helping build sustainable fisheries, and we are supporting the economies of

fishing communities.

The Department of Commerce must provide accurate and timely information to policymakers and the business community if our Nation is to take

full advantage of the opportunities afforded by globalization and technological innovation and if we are to achieve sustainable development. The

Department does this by collecting, analyzing, and disseminating a wide

range of economic data, including gross domestic product and data on

the trade balance, and by conducting economic censuses and annual and

monthly business surveys. We also provide an accurate assessment of

population shifts and other demographic changes through the decennial

census and household surveys. Further, the Department of Commerce

provides the capacity at the local level to ensure effective economic

development decision-making by policymakers.

It is essential that all Americans share the prosperity enabled by the New

Economy. The Department of Commerce provides financial and technical

assistance for economic development in distressed communities, promotes private and public sector investment in minority businesses, and

promotes economic development in Native American communities. We

concentrate much of our export promotion activities on helping small

and medium-sized enterprises, and we vigorously enforce U.S. trade laws

to ensure that American businesses, workers, and communities are not

harmed by unfair trade practices. In addition, we have launched a major

effort to eliminate the “digital divide”—the separation of those who have

access to computers and the Internet and those who do not—and to

achieve instead digital inclusion. We are focusing on bringing the benefits

of the New Economy to economically disadvantaged urban and rural

areas and to the traditionally underrepresented segment of society, such

as disabled persons, the elderly, and small businesses.

With these principles guiding us, we present the Department of

Commerce’s strategic plan for the fiscal years 2000–2005. The report

highlights our efforts to respond to and influence the three major forces

that will shape the U.S. economy of the future: the globalization of markets (see Goal 1), technological innovation (see Goal 2), and the drive

toward sustainable economic development (see Goal 3). 
U.S. Department of

Commerce

Strategic Plan FY 2000–FY 2005

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Organization chart

The Department’s mission is carried out by the following bureaus

(referred to as bureaus, administrations, agencies, and offices) depicted in

the following organization chart:
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Understanding Our Strategic Plan

How We Have Addressed the Basic

Strategic Planning Requirements:

Mission Statement: The Department of Commerce promotes job creation and improved living standards for all Americans by creating an

infrastructure that supports economic growth, technological competitiveness, and sustainable development.

Strategic Goals and Objectives. The Department has three five-year

strategic goals, supported by eight outcome-oriented objectives. We also

have a Department-wide management integration goal. Each

Departmental bureau will pursue its own specific performance goals in

support of the objectives, and will report in detail on these performance

goals in its annual plans and reports.

Strategic Goal 1: Provide the Information and the Framework to 

Enable the Economy to Operate Efficiently 

and Equitably

Strategic Goal 2: Provide Infrastructure for Innovation to Enhance 

American Competitiveness

Strategic Goal 3: Observe and Manage the Earth’s Environment 

to Promote Sustainable Growth

Each of the Departmental bureaus has developed performance goals and

operating plans to support one or more of these strategic goals. For the

purposes of this report, each bureau is listed under the goal that most

closely corresponds to its mission. Where no single goal is dominant—as

in the case of the Economic Development Administration—the bureau is

included within more than one section.

The Department has also established a management integration goal,

applicable with equal importance to all bureaus:

Management Integration Goal: Strengthen Management 

at All Levels

Just as the first three goals respond to the forces that are expected to drive the

U.S. economy of the future, this fourth goal is a response to the driving trend

toward more effective organizational management in both public and private

settings. For the Department of Commerce, this trend is most importantly manifested in the Government Performance and Results Act of 1993. 

Achieving Strategic Goals and Objectives. The Department’s Annual

Performance Plan will describe in greater detail the performance goals

that we will employ to achieve our goals and objectives, and will include

our analysis of the capital, information, and other resources that we will

require to meet these goals.

Our progress in pursuit of the three five-year goals may be assessed

through the use of specific performance measures. 
U.S. Department of

Commerce

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Relationship between Long-Term Goals and Annual Goals.

Pursuit of our five-year strategic goals will be measured in annual increments, as defined by realistic annual goals established for each objective.

This staged pursuit of our goals can be graphically demonstrated: 

Crosscutting Programs. Crosscutting programs and activities are

jointly undertaken by Department of Commerce bureaus and other government bureaus and agencies to achieve a common purpose or objective. This report includes details of such programs and names the agencies with which our bureaus interact to achieve their objectives and goals.

External Factors. All Departmental bureaus must contend with certain

external factors that are beyond their control. Such factors could potentially obstruct the achievement of our general goals and objectives. 

Program Evaluation. The Department has reviewed the methodologies and systems for program evaluation used by each bureau, and

based on this review has created the management objective of standardizing by FY 2003 the Department’s program evaluation methods and

timetables. Included in this objective is a six-month management review

of program performance in relation to our goals and performance measures. This system will include the latest performance target information

on all of our measures, enabling program managers, staff, and senior officials to monitor our progress toward specific targets. We will use this system, which will also have an historical capacity enabling us to evaluate

trends over time, as a program evaluation tool, allowing us to make midcourse corrections in our program management strategies, to reallocate

resources as appropriate, and to conduct other related tasks.
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STRATEGIC GOAL

STRENGTHEN

MANAGEMENT

AT

ALL LEVELS

Department of Commerce

STRATEGIC GOALS

STRATEGIC

GOAL 1

Prov

di e

t

h

e Information and the Framework

To

E

n

a

ble

the

Economy To Operate

Eff

ci ie

ntly

and Equitably

STRATEGIC

GOAL

2

Provide Infrastructu

re

for Innovation To

En

h

a

n

c

e

American Competitiv

e

n

ess

Environment To Promote Sustainable Grow

Ob

th

serve and Manage the Earth's

STRATEGIC GOAL 3
U.S. Department of

Commerce

Strategic Plan FY 2000–FY 2005

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Strategic Goal 1

Provide the Information and the Framework to Enable the

Economy to Operate Efficiently and Equitably

Objective 1.1

Provide the Infrastructure to Enable the Participation of 

All Americans in the New Economy

Objective 1.2

Promote Responsible Economic Growth and Trade while

Protecting American Security

Objective 1.3

Support Effective Decision-Making of Policymakers,

Business, and the American Public
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The Department of Commerce’s first strategic goal is to encourage and

support economic expansion and to increase the prosperity of all

Americans, regardless of their geographical location or ethnic origin. 

Objective 1.1

Provide the Infrastructure to Enable the Participation of All

Americans in the New Economy

Within the Department of Commerce, the National Telecommunications

and Information Administration is responsible for determining the policies and technical research that are necessary to support the delivery to

all Americans of access to the latest telecommunications technology and

services; for identifying the means, including the potential use of electronic signatures, by which privacy on the Internet may be assured and infrastructure protected; and for encouraging innovative use of the radio frequency spectrum. The International Trade Administration is responsible for assisting the growth of small export businesses; for enforcing U.S.

trade laws and trade agreements; for maintaining U.S trade with established markets and promoting new business with emerging markets such

as China; and for improving access to overseas markets by identifying

and pressing for the removal of nontariff barriers. The Economic

Development Administration assists technology-based development in

areas where local communities have fallen behind national levels of

development, supporting those communities in their implementation of

long-range, technology-based strategies for economic growth. The

Minority Business Development Agency works with the Small Business

Administration and the Economic Development Administration to facilitate minority-owned businesses access to funding and loan guarantee

programs, in order to help these businesses to grow.

Objective 1.2

Promote Responsible Economic Growth and Trade while Protecting

American Security

The Bureau of Export Administration seeks to advance U.S. national

security, foreign policy, and economic interests by regulating exports of

critical goods and technologies that could be used to damage those interests (while furthering the growth of legitimate U.S. exports to maintain

our economic leadership); by enforcing compliance with those regulations; by cooperating with like-minded nations to obtain global support

for this effort; by assisting nations that are key exporters or transit points

for sensitive good and technologies to strengthen their own transit and

export controls; and by monitoring the U.S. defense industrial base to

ensure it remains strong. The International Trade Administration is

responsible for improving access to foreign markets by enforcing compliance with U.S. trade agreements. The National Telecommunications

and Information Administration manages the radio spectrum, with the

joint objectives of promoting the use of spectrum that most efficiently

serves all Americans and of maintaining readiness to administer the U.S.

telecommunications infrastructure in time of crisis. 

Strategic Goal 1

Provide the Information and the Framework to Enable the

Economy to Operate Efficiently and Equitably
U.S. Department of

Commerce

Strategic Plan FY 2000–FY 2005

9

Objective 1.3

Support the Effective Decision-Making of Policymakers, Businesses, 

and the American Public

The Economics and Statistics Administration monitors and measures

socioeconomic and macroeconomic trends. The Bureau of Economic

Analysis measures gross domestic product (GDP), accurate assessment of

which is vital to decision-making on monetary policy, projections of federal budget surpluses, and the allocation of federal funds to the States.

The Census Bureau also provides statistical information about the economy and society. In the past this information has been gathered primarily

through a decennial nationwide census; full implementation of the

American Community Survey will in the future additionally provide annual data, revolutionizing the survey methodology of the federal statistical

system. The Census Bureau also plans to develop official measures of

electronic business (e-business) activity and to evaluate how e-business

affects existing measures of economic activity. The Economic

Development Administration supports effective decision-making by local

officials through its capacity-building programs.
Strategic Plan

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U.S. Department of Commerce

10

Economic Development

Administration

Performance Goal: 

■ Support job creation

and private enterprise

in economically 

distressed 

communities

Minority Business

Development Agency 

Performance Goal: 

■ Improve opportunities

for minority-owned 

businesses to have

access to the 

marketplace

■ Improve opportunities

for minority-owned 

businesses to pursue

financing

International Trade

Administration

Performance Goal: 

■ Promote exports by

small and medium-sized

enterprises

■ Increase U.S. exports

by implementing the

National Export 

Strategy through 

government-wide 

coordination of trade

promotion and trade

finance programs

National

Telecommunications 

and Information

Administration 

Performance Goal: 

■ Promote competition

within the 

telecommunications 

sector and promote 

universal access to

telecommunications

services for all

Americans

Objective 1.1

Provide the Infrastructure to Enable the Participation of 

All Americans in the New Economy

Strategic Goal 1

Provide the Information and the Framework to Enable the

Economy to Operate Efficiently and Equitably
U.S. Department of

Commerce

Strategic Plan FY 2000–FY 2005

11

Performance Goal: Promote Competition within the

Telecommunications Sector and Promote Universal Access to

Telecommunication Services for All Americans

The telecommunications and information sectors account for approximately 10 percent of U.S. gross domestic product (GDP). Driven in large

part by growth of the Internet, this figure is predicted by some experts to

approach 20 percent of GDP by 2004. The uneven penetration of

Internet usage nationwide means the Department of Commerce must

seek ways to redress this imbalance, however, and the National

Telecommunications and Information Administration is accordingly pursuing digital inclusion strategies to increase access to advanced communications technologies.

In addition, NTIA is emphasizing the implementation of the

Telecommunications Act of 1996 as Congress intended. This entails opening the door to increased competition for long-distance and local telephony services for the long-term benefit of both consumers and industry.

Other priority issues to which NTIA will apply its expertise include universal service reform, minority ownership development, introduction of the

e-rate (an education rate to assist the connection of schools, libraries, hospitals, and other nonprofit entities to the information infrastructure),

Internet privacy, consumer billings, broadband services, Internet taxes,

public broadcasting, and other universal service and access issues.

Internationally, NTIA is promoting procompetitive U.S. policies, including

regulatory reform and technical policies related to advanced technologies

and the Internet. Through these activities we aim to improve the international competitiveness of the U.S. telecommunications and information

industry and the access of U.S. businesses and consumers to high-quality,

reasonably priced international services.

Objective 1.1

Provide the Infrastructure to Increase the Participation of 

All Americans in the Economy

The National Telecommunications and Information Administration

advises the President on domestic and international communications

policy, manages the federal government’s use of the radio frequency

spectrum, and performs research in telecommunications sciences. 

Enabling Legislation. In 1992, Congress codified the National

Telecommunications and Information Administration’s (NTIA’s) responsibilities as part of the Telecommunications Authorization Act of 1992,

P.L. 102-538. NTIA is the Executive Branch bureau principally responsible for domestic and international telecommunications and information

policy issues.

NTIA Performance Measure

Increase the number of 

telecommunications and 

information industry- related 

filings, testimony, and speeches 
Strategic Plan

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U.S. Department of Commerce

12

Today’s rapid advances in telecommunications and information services are

widely acknowledged as key drivers of growth in both the U.S. and the

global economies, and it is critical that the government continue to support

NTIA’s work. Without government investment, we would risk American

goods and services losing competitiveness in the global market.

External factors beyond NTIA control that could significantly

affect the achievement of goals and objectives:

■ Consideration of telecommunications policy issues is affected by the

activities of independent regulatory agencies (e.g., the Federal

Communications Commission and the Federal Trade Commission),

and priorities established for NTIA by the Secretary of Commerce, the

White House, and Congress.

■ Key bureau initiatives addressing technology innovation, global markets, consumer and government e-commerce issues, critical infrastructure protection, and public broadcasting’s digital conversion are

dependent upon Congressional funding.

■ Budget limitations on policy and technical research.
U.S. Department of

Commerce

Strategic Plan FY 2000–FY 2005

13

Performance Goal: Promote Exports by Small and Medium-Sized

Enterprises

The International Trade Administration has traditionally focused on opening large, developed markets to increased U.S. trade. With the exception

of China—which represents a unique challenge following

the recent Congressional vote to grant Permanent

Normal Trading Relations status—most of the world’s

larger markets are now open, however; ITA must therefore concentrate instead on maintaining the U.S. presence in these markets and on opening the smaller,

emerging markets. The strategy necessary to open markets has additionally shifted from requiring the simple

reduction and removal of tariffs to the identification and

removal of nontariff barriers.

The increasing role played by international agreements

such as the North American Free Trade Agreement

(NAFTA), by organizations such as the World Trade

Organization (WTO) and the Organization for Economic

Cooperation and Development (OECD), and by trade blocs such as the

European Union means that ITA must deal with a broadening range of

participants in the international trade arena. We must also address the

increasing role of policy imperatives such as environmental and labor

concerns, the relationship between exports and domestic employment,

Objective 1.1

Provide the Infrastructure to Enable the Participation of 

All Americans in the New Economy

Environmental trade mission to Bangkok

The International Trade Administration seeks to develop the export

potential of U.S. firms and to improve the trade performance of U.S. industry.

Enabling Legislation. The International Trade Administration (ITA)

export promotion authority has six principal bases: 

■ Organic authority enacted in 1903

■ Reorganization Plan No. 3 of 1979

■ The Export Administration Amendments Act of 1985

■ The Omnibus Trade and Competitiveness Act of 1988

■ The Export Enhancement Act of 1992

■ The Jobs through Trade Expansion Act of 1994

ITA’s trade law enforcement authority has the following principal bases:

■ The Tariff Act of 1930, as amended, authorizing the Antidumping 

and Countervailing Duty (AD/CVD) program. 

■ The Foreign Trade Zones (FTZ) program, as authorized by the 

Foreign Trade Zones Act of 1934. 

■ The Insular Watch Assembly program, as authorized by 

P.L. 97-446, as amended. 

■ The Florence Agreement program, as authorized by the 

Educational, Scientific, and Cultural Materials Importation Act.
Strategic Plan

FY 2000–FY 2005

U.S. Department of Commerce

14

and the U.S. trade imbalance.

An increasing number of small U.S. businesses are exporting goods and

services. Many of these businesses—as well as larger businesses seeking

to enter new markets—need assistance to achieve market entry and

expansion and to take advantage of trade opportunities. Additionally,

new opportunities are emerging in e-commerce, information technology,

the service sector, and environmental technologies, challenging ITA to

develop new skills to support these industries. We must also review the

way that we address issues such as the export of intellectual property.

In addition to the challenges that they bring, the changes in the information technology sector and the emergence of e-commerce also present

significant opportunities for ITA to improve our information dissemination

and to connect U.S. exporters with foreign buyers. We must also examine

the possibilities of partnering with other agencies and with the private

sector to deliver integrated services, especially through the Internet.

Why the Performance Measure Reflects ITA’s Outcomes or Is a

Proxy for ITA’s Outcomes

Number of New-to-Export Firms

The number of new-to-export firms provides the most appropriate measure by which to evaluate ITA performance in pursuit of this strategy,

because an increasing number of small U.S. businesses are exporting

goods and services and need assistance to achieve market entry and

expansion and to take advantage of trade opportunities. Bureau-wide, we

are introducing new and enhanced products and services that offer

increased flexibility and enable greater customization; and we are harnessing new e-business technologies and exploiting support partnerships

to improve the access of small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) to

the resources and capabilities of the private sector and state and local

government.

Performance Goal: Increase U.S. Exports by Implementing the

National Export Strategy through Government-Wide

Coordination of Trade Promotion and Trade Finance Programs

With trade playing an increasingly important role in the national economy, federal government policymaking must incorporate

longer-term strategic thinking about the dedication of scarce

resources. In the short term, the accelerated pace of the New

Economy demands that Departmental agencies coordinate their

efforts more closely and that they jointly develop new programs

and initiatives that respond to the changing needs of exporters. 

In addition to the annual reporting process, the International

Trade Administration uses the Trade Promotion Coordination

Committee (TPCC) to strengthen, streamline, and leverage its

existing programs and day-to-day activities. Ongoing TPCC initiatives led by ITA include development and implementation of

(1) a TPCC Internet portal responsive to the needs of exporters;

(2) a commercial strategy for China, focused on compliance and

monitoring, technical assistance, and export promotion; and (3)

a services initiative to develop new products, services, and inforITA Performance Measure

Number of new-to-export firms

“New Products USA” Multi-State Catalog Exhibition 

in Ho Chi Minh City, Vietnam
U.S. Department of

Commerce

Strategic Plan FY 2000–FY 2005

15

mation resources tailored to the needs of the services sector. In addition,

ITA’s Advocacy Center is exploring ways to more effectively use the TPCC

Advocacy Network to counter the involvement of foreign governments in

the competition for major projects overseas.

Why the Performance Measure Reflects ITA’s Outcomes or Is a

Proxy for ITA’s Outcomes

Number of New-to-Market Firms

This measure is the best one to use to assess the outcome of this strategy

because the Trade Promotion Coordinating Committee’s National Export

Strategy states that small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) are underachieving in terms of their export business potential. ITA’s trade strategies

are aimed at “leveling the playing field” for SME exporters, and the

agency’s success in doing so may therefore be inferred from growth in

the number of new-to-market firms. ITA clients looking to expand into

new export markets typically seek our assistance in identifying the best

markets for their products, developing an effective market entry strategy,

and locating appropriate public and private trade finance programs.

External factors beyond ITA control that could significantly affect the

achievement of goals and objectives:

■ Economic shocks in foreign markets can adversely affect demand for

U.S. exports.

■ Exchange rate fluctuations and the increasing relative strength of the

U.S. dollar can make U.S. exports more costly in foreign markets.

■ Availability of resources. Implementation of new ITA initiatives is subject to Congressional approval of increased appropriations; standing

projects may also be subject to funding changes.

■ Cooperativeness of other TPCC member agencies.

■ Responsiveness of OMB to TPCC guidance vis-a-vis other

Administration priorities. 

ITA Performance Measure

Number of new-to-market firms
Strategic Plan

FY 2000–FY 2005

U.S. Department of Commerce

16

Performance Goal: Support job creation and private enterprise

in economically distressed communities

The Economic Development Administration is focusing its development

efforts on finding creative new ways to solve complex community-level

economic problems. The agency has expanded its traditional focus from

areas of poverty (defined as areas where economic indicators are below

national averages) to respond also to community-level stresses caused by

jobs lost to imports and to plant and military base closures. EDA also

works with communities affected by major economic dislocations arising

from interruptions of natural resource supplies, and is increasingly called

upon to assist in cases where natural disasters have damaged economic

infrastructure. For example, EDA is working with other bureaus to explore

the use of community-based actions to mitigate or avoid the hazards of

natural disasters, such as by using more sophisticated siting or rebuilding

practices to reduce the risk to structures in flood plains.

EDA is confronting its new challenges by developing strategic

plans to deliver community assistance. The bureau funds a

national network of more than 320 Economic Development

Districts, 64 Native American planning organizations, and 69

University Centers, through which we are able to support development of locally led Comprehensive Economic Development

Strategies (CEDS) to address the needs of economically distressed communities and to provide technical assistance with

the implementation of restructuring plans. The bureau supports

CEDS that promote sustainable economic development and

opportunity, foster effective transportation systems, enhance

and protect the environment, and balance resources through

sound management of development. A successful CEDS process

should lead to the formulation and implementation of a program that creates jobs, raises income levels, diversifies the economy, and improves the quality of life, while simultaneously protecting the environment. The process must adopt a logical

approach to long-term development but must also identify and

implement short-term solutions to problems, with the goals of

achieving early results and thereby maintaining public support.

EDA also operates infrastructure and revolving loan fund 

Objective 1.1

Provide the Infrastructure to Enable the Participation of 

All Americans in the New Economy

The Economic Development Administration provides loans, grants,

and technical assistance for economic development projects in economically distressed communities and regions.

Enabling Legislation. The Economic Development Administration (EDA)

was established under the Public Works and Economic Development

Act of 1965 (42 U.S.C. 3121) and reauthorized for five years by the

Economic Development Administration Reform Act (P.L. 105-393) to

generate new jobs, help retain existing jobs, and stimulate industrial

and commercial growth in economically distressed areas of the

United States. The Trade Adjustment Assistance Program is authorized under the Trade Act of 1974 (19 U.S.C. 2101, 2341).

EDA Performance Measure

Dollars invested in technologyrelated projects in distressed areas

as a result of EDA’s investment

EDA awarded a grant to the Erie County, NY EDIC. 

This grant was used to construct the 

Gaither Incubator Building.

EDA Performance Measure

Create and retain jobs in

distressed communities
U.S. Department of

Commerce

Strategic Plan FY 2000–FY 2005

17

programs to help finance this work and has long supported innovative

approaches to economic development, such as incubator buildings and

revolving loan funds, and ‘smart’ industrial parks and buildings. By providing distressed communities with the capacity to help themselves, the

bureau ensures the best possible use of its limited resources.

The globalization of trade, and specifically increasing imports, can also

cause economic distress at the community level. EDA maintains a national network of Trade Adjustment Assistance Centers, University Centers,

and Economic Development Districts to help communities prepare for

and deal with the challenges of a growing global market, primarily by

providing trade adjustment and strategic community planning assistance.

EDA is also addressing the new imperative to embrace all communities

within the emerging digital economy, by investing in technologies such

as broadband communications and e-commerce.

External factors beyond EDA control that could significantly affect

the achievement of goals and objectives:

■ Both the Trade Act and the Public Works and Economic Development

Act need to be reauthorized in the next few years. While reauthorization is largely under the control of other institutions, both the

Department of Commerce and the Economic Development

Administration can suggest appropriate modifications to enhance program performance and ensure that new legislation reflects the needs

of the agency and its constituency. Timely reauthorizations are also

important to reenergize and refocus the agency, to support long-term

strategic planning, and to provide for the continuity of services to the

nation’s distressed communities.

■ A major economic downturn could have serious implications for EDA,

by impacting existing program investments and by increasing the

overall demand for EDA assistance.
Strategic Plan

FY 2000–FY 2005

U.S. Department of Commerce

18

Performance Goal: Improve Opportunities for Minority-Owned

Businesses to have Access to the Marketplace.

Performance Goal: Improve Opportunities for Minority-Owned

Businesses to Pursue Financing.

The Minority Business Development Agency works to increase the number of minority-owned businesses by providing a broad spectrum of technical assistance and information services for current and new businesses.

Trade globalization and the rapid growth of the Internet have greatly

increased MBDA’s opportunities to connect with and to successfully

expand minority businesses. 

MBDA’s new business development services are designed to leverage the

full benefit of telecommunications technology, including the Internet, to

raise the level of service that our Minority Business Development Centers

(MBDCs) provide to their clients. MBDC program guidelines additionally

increase the impact of MBDC projects by requiring that project operators

not only deploy their business assistance services directly, but also that

they develop a network of strategic partnerships with third-party organizations within the geographic service area. These strategic partnerships

will be used to expand the reach of the MBDC project into communities

and market segments that the project might be otherwise unable to

reach.

MBDA will use electronic tools to increase the availability of business

development resources to all minority-owned firms, regardless of size,

industry type, or geographic location, and to facilitate the expansion of

ready-to-grow firms in the domestic, international, and new technology

growth markets. In addition, we have developed a high-speed network

strategy to link all MBDCs into a single virtual organization, via the

Minority Business Internet Portal (MBIP). Our goal is to create a state-ofthe-art environment to deliver to minority businesses continuously updated information, access to resources anywhere in the country, and the best

available assistance in any given subject area at any time. Using this

strategy, we expect to increase our client base 500-fold, from 6,000 to

300,000.

Objective 1.1

Provide the Infrastructure to Increase the Participation of 

All Americans in the Economy

The Minority Business Development Agency seeks to promote private and public sector investment in minority businesses.

Enabling Legislation. The Minority Business Development Agency

(MBDA) operates under the authority of Executive Order 11625 of

October 13, 1971. The Bureau was created to assist minority businesses in achieving effective and equitable participation in the American

free enterprise system.

MBDA Performance Measures

Increase the dollar value of contracts

Increase the number of financial

packages

Increase the dollar value of

financial packages
The Minority Business Development Agency has an electronic database

(the Phoenix Database) that matches business opportunities to qualified

vendors. By raising the population of the database to more than 290,000

minority vendors, we expect to similarly achieve an increase in the number of electronically matched business opportunities. This should result in

a comparable increase in procurement, financing, and other business

opportunities for minority-owned businesses.

The agency’s new approach to business development reflects two major

developments: the emergence of the digital economy, and a new demographic reality. The business environment is changing, and a minority

marketplace is emerging that will provide new business opportunities but

will also require new approaches to business development, such as the

use of strategic alliances and joint ventures. Ready-to-grow firms must be

prepared to take advantage of these new opportunities. 

The demographic change, as projected by Census data, is that minority

groups will in 50 years account for 47.2 percent of the population of the

United States, with minorities accounting for 90 percent of the period’s

expected population growth of more than 120 million. The success of

minority businesses during this period will depend on their ability to

adopt e-commerce practices and to move to larger business transactions. 

External factors beyond MBDA control that could significantly affect

the achievement of goals and objectives:

■ Changes in the business environment; in particular, economic pressure on minority businesses to engage in joint ventures to exploit

business opportunities.

■ Budgetary funding. MBDA exists via Executive Order, and there has

been no push to codify the agency since the early 1990s. We have

no guarantee of continued funding. 

U.S. Department of

Commerce

Strategic Plan FY 2000–FY 2005

19

MBDA staff viewing a Commerce Department exhibit on

the Metric System. A hands-on demonstration of the Phoenix Database
Strategic Plan

FY 2000–FY 2005

U.S. Department of Commerce

20

Bureau of Export 

Administration

Performance Goal: 

■ By use of a dual-use export 

control system that 

continuously is refined to 

respond to changing 

requirements, transactions 

that are contrary to U.S. 

security interests are deterred 

and transactions without 

proliferation potential are 

facilitated

■ The United States is in full 

compliance with the Chemical

Weapons Convention (CWC) 

and all confidential business 

information of U.S. companies 

subject to inspection under

the CWC is effectively protected

■ The U.S. defense industrial 

base is healthy and competitive

■ Violations of dual-use export 

control laws are identified and 

violators are sanctioned

■ Export controls of key nations 

are strong and effective 

■ The nation's various 

independent and 

interdependent infrastructure 

components are secured in 

accord with an integrated plan

International Trade 

Administration

Performance Goal:

■ Improve American 

competitiveness and 

access to foreign markets 

by enforcing compliance 

with U.S. trade laws and 

agreements

National Telecommunications 

and Information 

Administration

Performance Goal:

■ Minimize the effects of 

crisis by preparing the 

U.S. telecommunications 

and information 

infrastructure to operate 

under extreme conditions

■ Ensure allocation of radio 

spectrum—a scarce resource

essential to all 

communications— provides 

the greatest benefit to 

all people

Objective 1.2

Promote Responsible Economic Growth and Trade while

Protecting American Security

Strategic Goal 1

Provide the Information and the Framework to Enable the

Economy to Operate Efficiently and Equitably
U.S. Department of

Commerce

Strategic Plan FY 2000–FY 2005

21

Performance Goal: By Use of a Dual-Use Export Control System

That Continuously Is Refined to Respond to Changing

Requirements, Transactions That Are Contrary to U.S. Security

Interests Are Deterred and Transactions Without Proliferation

Potential Are Facilitated

The Bureau of Export Administration serves U.S. businesses engaged in

international trade by analyzing applications for export of controlled commodities in accordance with Export Administration Regulations. The

bureau also serves its clientele by expediting the export licensing process

and by providing guidance to exporters on how to conform to applicable

laws and regulations. BXA is particularly vigilant in evaluating transactions involving advanced technologies and dual-use products that potentially can be diverted to use in chemical, biological, nuclear, or conventional weapons or missile programs. 

Responding to increased concern about the proliferation of weapons of

mass destruction, BXA has brought U.S. export controls in line with the

new international political environment by reforming the dual-use export

control system. It will continue to refine that system. The bureau also

seeks to enhance its export regulatory effectiveness by educating stakeholders in the export licensing process, thereby improving industry compliance with export control regulations and strengthening international

export control efforts. These two efforts together will result in deterring

transactions that threaten U.S. security interests and will produce a

streamlined dual-use commodity control list and an improved license

application cycle for controlled items that will reduce the license application/processing burden on U.S. exporters, enabling them to be more competitive in world markets and thereby benefiting both the exporters and

the U.S. economy. 

Objective 1.2

Promote Responsible Economic Growth and Trade while

Protecting American Security

The Bureau of Export Administration seeks to advance U.S. national security, foreign policy, and economic interests by regulating

exports of critical goods and technologies that could be used to damage those interests (while furthering the growth of legitimate U.S.

exports to maintain our economic leadership); by enforcing compliance with those regulations; by cooperating with like-minded nations

to obtain global support for this effort; by assisting nations that are

key exporters or transit points for sensitive good and technologies to

strengthen their own transit and export controls; and by monitoring

the U.S. defense industrial base to ensure it remains strong.

Enabling Legislation. The Bureau of Export Administration (BXA) was

established as a separate agency within the Department of

Commerce on October 1, 1987, and draws its authority from the

Export Administration Act of 1979, as amended, and related statutes.

BXA licenses commodities, technologies, and software and enforces

export control laws and regulations mandated by Congress or

through Executive Orders.

BXA Performance Measure

Number of high-risk 

transactions deterred
Performance Goal: The United States Is in Full Compliance with

the Chemical Weapons Convention (CWC) and All Confidential

Business Information of U.S. Companies Subject to Inspection

under the CWC Is Effectively Protected

The Bureau of Export Administration is responsible for ensuring U.S. compliance with the treaty requirements of the Chemical Weapons Convention. BXA

collects, validates, and aggregates data from those U.S. businesses that manufacture or use chemicals covered by the Convention, educates those businesses on their treaty rights and obligations, and serves as the lead U.S.

Government agency for hosting international inspectors who are inspecting

U.S. business facilities subject to Convention requirements. BXA’s primary host

team role is to ensure that confidential business information is protected during the inspections of U.S. chemical firms. 

Performance Goal: The U.S. Defense Industrial Base Is Healthy

and Competitive

BXA is the focal point within the Department of Commerce for issues

relating to the health and competitiveness of the U.S. defense industrial

base. The bureau plays a leadership role in a wide range of issues that

relate to both the national and economic security of the United States. Its

efforts include assisting U.S. companies in diversifying from defense to

commercial production and markets, promoting the sale of U.S. weapon

systems to U.S. allies, and conducting primary research and analysis on

critical technologies and defense-related sectors.

Performance Goal: Violations of Dual-Use Export Control Laws

Are Identified and Violators Are Sanctioned 

To be effective, export controls must be enforced. BXA enforces dual use

export controls for reasons of national security, nonproliferation, counterterrorism, foreign policy, and short supply by detecting illegal exports for prevention

and prosecution. The Bureau also enforces the antiboycott provisions of the

Export Administration Regulations, the Chemical Weapons Convention

Implementation Act of 1998, and the Fastener Quality Act.

BXA conducts outreach and education programs to train U.S. exporters to

identify and avoid illegal transactions. BXA investigates suspected violations of the Export Administration Regulations and refers them to the

Department of Justice for criminal prosecution and to the Department’s

Chief Counsel for Export Administration for civil remedies.

Strategic Plan

FY 2000–FY 2005

U.S. Department of Commerce

22

BXA Performance Measure

Number of investigations 

accepted for criminal or

administrative remedies

BXA Performance Measure

Number of U.S. facilities in

compliance with the Chemical

Weapons Convention regulations

BXA Performance Measure

The dollar value of contracts won

in international competitions by

U.S. defense firms
Conducting on-site visits of foreign end-users of sensitive technology is a

key element of BXA’s preventive enforcement program. Pre-license

checks (PLCs) are performed prior to issuance of licenses to determine the

reliability of foreign end-users. The majority of PLCs are conducted by

U.S. & Foreign Commercial Service (FCS) officers stationed in the destination countries. BXA enforcement agents and FCS officers conduct post

shipment verifications (PSVs) to ensure that the exported items are being

used in accordance with the terms of the export license. A

significant number of PSVs are conducted on high performance computers as mandated by the National Defense

Authorization Act of 1998. 

BXA works with foreign counterpart agencies to encourage

other governments to implement enforcement measures

that will compliment U.S. efforts.

Performance Goal: Export Controls of Key Nations Are

Strong and Effective

Although strong enforcement of U.S. export regulations is critical

to protect our security interests, U.S. national interests are equally

jeopardized if sensitive materials and technologies reach nations of

concern or terrorists through other nations. For this reason, BXA s

strategy also includes promoting the establishment of effective

export control systems by other nations. The bureau has been

assisting the republics of the former Soviet Union and the former

Warsaw Pact nations of Central Europe to strengthen their export control and

enforcement, and is extending technical assistance to China, India, and other

countries considered export or transit proliferation risks.

Through a series of bilateral and regional cooperative activities, BXA helps the

nations with which it works to establish the legal authority and to develop procedures and requirements to regulate the transfer of sensitive goods and technologies, to enforce compliance with those procedures and requirements, and to

promote the industry-government partnership necessary for an effective export

control system meeting international standards.

In the countries with which it is working on this agenda, BXA seeks to

gain consensus on what commodities and technologies need to be controlled and to whom controls should apply. The bureau also promotes

adherence to existing nonproliferation guidelines and norms pertaining to

nuclear, chemical, biological, and conventional weapons and missile

delivery systems.

In BXA-sponsored bilateral and regional cooperative activities, BXA draws

on the expertise of other agencies as well as U.S. industry in assisting

countries to develop export control systems tailored to their unique circumstances and requirements.

U.S. Department of

Commerce

Strategic Plan FY 2000–FY 2005

23

BXA Performance Measure

Number of targeted deficiencies

remedied in the export control

systems of cooperating transit or

exporting nations

Participants from 31 nations and four multilateral export

control regimes at the 2000 Oxford Conference on Export

Controls sponsored by BXA consider ways to make export

controls more effective globally as an instrument to reduce

the danger of proliferation of destructive weapons.
Strategic Plan

FY 2000–FY 2005

U.S. Department of Commerce

24

BXA Performance Measure

Number of Agency plans

implemented within the

framework of the National Critical

Infrastructure Protection Plan

Performance Goal: The Nation’s Various Independent and

Interdependent Infrastructure Components Are Secured in

Accord with an Integrated Plan

The information revolution and the introduction of the computer into virtually every dimension of our society has changed how our economy

works, how we provide for our national security, and how we structure

our everyday lives. There is an inherent need to protect the government’s

own critical assets from cyber attack and a need to remedy deficiencies

in order to become a model of information security. In order for these

efforts to succeed, government and the private sector must work together

in a partnership unlike any we have seen before.

Presidential Decision Directive (PDD) 63 directed the establishment of a

national plan coordination staff (the Critical Infrastructure Assurance

Office (CIAO)) that operates as an office of the Bureau of Export

Administration. Responding to this mandate and to increasing concern

about the integrity of our nation’s infrastructures, CIAO developed an

update to the National Plan for Information Systems Protection and now

is seeking to strengthen and build on that work, increasing the participation of other federal agencies in analysis of critical dependencies and

interdependencies within their systems, pursuing further outreach through

a partnership with the private sector, and seeking greater involvement of

state and local governments. These efforts will better enable the federal

government to coordinate and encourage the development and implementation of a comprehensive plan for the protection of our infrastructures and, ultimately, the use of that plan by government and the private

sector to secure our nation’s critical infrastructures.

External factors beyond BXA control that could significantly

affect the achievement of goals and objectives:

■ The increasing volume and complexity of international commerce

directly increase the difficulty of applying and enforcing export controls and, more broadly, of preventing proliferation; these factors seldom yield to control by the United States Government, much less by

BXA. 

■ Other external factors include the legislative process, the federal

budget process, the actions of other federal departments, and the

actions of other nations.
U.S. Department of

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Strategic Plan FY 2000–FY 2005

25

Performance Goal: Improve American Competitiveness and

Access to Foreign Markets by Enforcing Compliance with U.S.

Trade Laws and Agreements.

The International Trade Administration (ITA) carries out its functions of

combating unfair trade practices and ensuring compliance with trade

agreements through two program units: Market Access and Compliance

(MAC) and the Import Administration (IA).

MAC is the U.S. Government’s focal point through which it seeks to

reduce foreign market barriers and thus increase market access for nonagricultural U.S. exports. It is the place within the government’s trade

enforcement and negotiation structure to which U.S. companies, especially small and medium-sized firms, bring the problems they encounter in

foreign markets and the place where they seek U.S. Government assistance in overcoming export barriers. MAC’s overriding objectives are to

obtain market access for American firms and workers and to achieve full

compliance by foreign nations with the trade agreements they sign with

the United States. MAC is especially oriented to smaller and medium-sized

exporters that lack the resources to determine their rights under the 240

U.S. trade agreements. 

The goal of the Import Administration is to improve American competitiveness through effective administration of U.S. trade laws and enforcement of the sector-specific trade agreements that govern U.S. imports. IA

addresses this goal by taking prompt, aggressive action against unfair

trade practices and by administering efficiently, fairly, and in a manner

consistent with U.S. international obligations the antidumping and countervailing duty laws of the United States. The major objectives of this program area are to process and complete investigations, administrative

reviews, and sunset reviews within the statutory time limits of the trade

laws.

Commerce Among

Nations Should Be Fair

and Equitable -- 

Ben Franklin

Official signing of the Seoul Declaration on the Asia Pacific Economic

Cooperation (APEC) Tourism Charter at the First APEC Tourism Ministerial.

APEC, founded in 1994, is the primary international organization for

promoting open trade and economic cooperation 

ITA Performance Measure

Number of

antidumping/countervailing 

duty cases processed.
Why the Performance Measure reflects ITA’s Outcomes or Is a

Proxy for ITA’s Outcomes

Number of Antidumping/Countervailing Duty Cases Processed

This performance measure provides the most accurate appraisal of the

outcome of this strategy because ITA defends American industry against

injurious trade practices, and thus improves America’s competitiveness, by

administering efficiently, fairly, and in a manner consistent with U.S. international obligations the antidumping (AD) and countervailing duty (CVD)

laws of the United States.

External factors beyond ITA control that could significantly

affect the achievement of goals and objectives:

■ Foreign financial crises can trigger import surges, dumping, subsidies,

and other unfair trade practices.

■ New or changing governments can create new barriers to market

access for U.S. companies.

■ Changes in trade policy by foreign nations.

■ Emergence/expansion of markets just starting to open, especially

China.

Strategic Plan

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U.S. Department of Commerce

26
U.S. Department of

Commerce

Strategic Plan FY 2000–FY 2005

27

Performance Goal: Minimize the Effects of Crises by Preparing

the U.S. Telecommunications and Information Infrastructure to

Operate under Extreme Conditions

The National Telecommunications and Information Administration (NTIA)

has been assigned the role of lead agency for protecting the U.S. information and communications infrastructure from intentional cyber or physical

attack. This critical infrastructure underpins virtually every national imperative, including national security, economic competitiveness, and the

health and welfare of the American people. It is also increasingly vulnerable to attack, yet is owned and operated by companies that manage their

business risks according to the measure of impact upon their own enterprises. The calculus of risk management, as practiced by industry, does

not take into account the potential for devastation on a national scale

that is far beyond the responsibilities of these enterprises. The nation

rightly expects the U.S. Government to bear that responsibility, but while

government is charged with protecting national interests, it does not have

the access, technical capability, or resources to solve the problem alone.

The President has therefore directed U.S. Government agencies to work in

partnership with the private sector to meet this responsibility. Developing

this partnership, which involves the establishment of new, intricate relationships between government and industry to eliminate or mitigate sector vulnerabilities, has been difficult, but the partnership is slowly beginning to show promise of growth.

Satellite antennae array

NTIA Performance Measures

Increase the percentage of

information provided to and

communications made with the

private sector to address critical

infrastructure security issues

Increase the number of state, city,

and county governments actively

engaged in critical infrastructure

protection programs

Increase the number of NTIArequested spectrum assignments
Performance Goal: Ensure Allocation of Radio Spectrum—a

Scarce Natural Resource Essential to All Communications—

Provides the Greatest Benefit to All People 

The availability of the radio frequency spectrum is key to the development and implementation of innovative telecommunications technologies. The National Telecommunications and Information Administration

(NTIA) manages the federal government’s use of spectrum and is involved

in designing a cooperative interagency process with regard to the development of third-generation wireless networks. NTIA’s activities include

identifying and supporting new wireless technologies that promise innovative applications that would benefit both federal and private sector

users; providing the 53 federal agencies with the spectrum needed to

support their missions for national defense, law enforcement and security, air traffic control, national resource management, and other public

safety services; developing plans and policies to use the spectrum effectively and efficiently; satisfying the United States’ future spectrum needs

globally through participation with the 190 other countries of the

International Telecommunication Union in establishing binding treaty

agreements through the world radio communication conference process;

and improving, through telecommunications research and engineering, the

understanding of radio-wave transmission and thereby improving spectrum

utilization and the performance of radio communications systems.

Strategic Plan

FY 2000–FY 2005

U.S. Department of Commerce

28
U.S. Department of

Commerce

Strategic Plan FY 2000–FY 2005

29

Objective 1.3

Support Effective Decision-Making of Policymakers,

Businesses, and the American Public

Strategic Goal 1

Provide the Information and the Framework to Enable the

Economy to Operate Efficiently and Equitably

Economic Development

Administration

Performance Goal: 

■ Build local capacity to

achieve and sustain

economic growth

Economics and Statistics

Administration

Performance Goal: 

■ Develop relevant, timely,

and accurate national

and community economic and household

statistics for decisionmaking

■ Conduct the 

Decennial Census

■ Define, through 

consultations, policy

assessment, planning,

research, experiments,

and evaluations, the

plan for the 

2010 Census
Strategic Plan

FY 2000–FY 2005

U.S. Department of Commerce

30

Objective 1.3

Support Effective Decision-Making of Policymakers,

Businesses, and the American Public

The Economics and Statistics Administration provides information

on the state of the economy through preparation, development, and

interpretation of economic data and provides analytical support to

help Department officials meet their policy responsibilities. The

Agency comprises two bureaus: the Bureau of Economic Analysis

and the Census Bureau. The Bureau of Economic Analysis is the

nation’s economic accountant, producing periodic estimates of such

measures as gross domestic product (GDP) and the balance of payments. The Census Bureau is the prime gatherer and purveyor of

data on our population and economy.

The Economics and Statistics Administration also operates STAT-USA,

a user-friendly "one-stop shop" for the dissemination of business, economic, and trade statistics.

Enabling Legislation. The Bureau of Economic Analysis’s (BEA’s) predecessor, the Bureau of Foreign and Domestic Commerce, was established under 15 U.S.C. 171 et seq., which provides the authority and

responsibility for the functions of BEA. The following U.S. Code citations also apply:

■ 15 U.S.C. 1516 provides the Secretary of Commerce with the authority

to gather and distribute statistical information.

■ 22 U.S.C. 286f provides that the President shall make available balance of payments information as required by the Bretton Woods

Agreement Act. BEA was assigned responsibility by Executive Order

No. 10033, as amended, and subsequent Departmental delegation

for the collection of certain balance of payments data and the publication of the U.S. balance of payments accounts.

■ 22 U.S.C. 3101 et seq. provides that the President shall undertake

mandatory surveys of U.S. direct investment abroad and foreign

direct investment in the United States. BEA was assigned responsibility for the direct investment surveys under this act by Executive Order

No. 11961 and subsequent Departmental delegation.

Enabling Legislation. Title 13 of the United States Code established a

Bureau of Census (Census) and provides for and ensures the confidentiality of various surveys and censuses. Section 401 of Executive

Order 12656 directs the Secretary of Commerce to provide for the

collection and reporting of census information on human and economic resources and to maintain a capability to conduct emergency

surveys to provide information on the status of these resources as

required for national security. Parts 30–100 of Title 15 of the Code of

Federal Regulations contains regulations for foreign trade statistics,

for the training of foreign participants in census procedures and general statistics, and for special services and studies; cutoff dates for

recognition of boundary changes for the Decennial Census, for furnishing personal census data from census of population schedules,

and for procedures for challenging certain population and income

estimates; and the official Bureau seal.
Bureau of Economic Analysis

Performance Goal: Develop Relevant, Timely, and Accurate

National and Community Economic and Household Statistics for

Decision-Making

The Bureau of Economic Analysis (BEA) is entering a critical five years.

The threat to the quality of the bureau’s statistical data is recognized by

the Administration, as noted in the “Sustaining Our Economic Prosperity”

section of the President’s FY 2001 budget, presented to Congress in

February 2000:

“Data on population, real GDP, the CPI [consumer price index],

and the trade deficit, for example, are critical inputs to monetary,

fiscal, trade, and regulatory policy. They also have a major impact

on government spending, budget projections, and the allocation

of federal funds. [However,] . . . the current funding levels of the

government’s statistical agencies have not kept pace with the

need for good statistics. The relevance and accuracy of some of

our nation’s key statistics are in question.”

In a recent private study, BEA’s quarterly advance gross domestic product

(GDP) report was named as one of the three most important statistical

releases for its effect on financial markets. GDP has a direct and real

impact on the stability of our economy, influencing the rise and fall of

stock and bond markets; interest rates, as set by the Federal Reserve

Board; investment decisions by business leaders; and the formulation of

federal budget and revenue projections.

Despite the importance of its data in promoting economic stability and

the increasing complexity of its mission to track the U.S. economy, BEA’s

budget has decreased by 12 percent in real terms over the last seven

years. The bureau’s primary strategies are to stabilize its funding and to

implement its multiyear plan to upgrade the GDP accounts.

The emergence of the New Economy, with its rapid growth, increasing

complexity, and heavy dependence on services and technology industries, makes it substantially more difficult than in the past to produce

accurate, timely, and relevant economic data. Although BEA has a comprehensive multiyear plan to maintain and improve the quality of GDP

and other economic accounts data, in recent years no funding has been

provided to implement that plan. As a result, we face the prospect of a

significant decline in the quality of our GDP accounts.

With an adequate infusion of resources, BEA would be able to move forward with its multiyear plan and address the key weaknesses in the GDP

accounts, thereby preventing a major breakdown in our statistical system.

The bureau’s plan includes the following actions:

U.S. Department of

Commerce

Strategic Plan FY 2000–FY 2005

31

BEA Performance Measures

Maintain and improve accuracy

and timeliness of economic data:

■ Statistical quality 

■ On-time delivery 

Maintain and improve customer

satisfaction:

■ Web site utilization 

■ Customer survey results 

Develop updated and improved

GDP processing system
■ Close gaps in coverage of GDP source data by developing new and

updated measures of services, compensation, and other key GDP

components.

■ Develop new, quality-adjusted price indexes and real GDP indexes for

GDP components with significant measurement problems, such as

high-tech goods and financial services.

■ Develop new estimates of output for nonprofit institutions.

■ Develop updated measures that would integrate the Federal Reserve

Board’s financial accounts with BEA’s economic accounts.

■ Develop new measures that more accurately reflect the status of the

global economy by filling gaps in the coverage of international trade

and finance.

In addition, we plan to upgrade BEA’s information technology system

with the development of a new GDP processing system, the redesign and

improvement of BEA’s Internet site, the implementation of electronic

reporting of BEA’s surveys of multinational companies, and the establishment of electronic data exchange capabilities with major data suppliers.

Why the Performance Measures Reflect BEA Outcomes or Are a

Proxy for BEA Outcomes

Maintain and improve accuracy and timeliness of economic data:

a) Statistical quality

b) On-time delivery

Two of the key elements of our strategy are developing accurate and

timely economic statistics. These two performance measures provide a

clear evaluation of how effective our strategy is in addressing these two

elements.

Maintain and improve customer satisfaction:

a) Web site utilization

b) Customer survey results

A key element of our strategy is developing relevant economic statistics,

and the best way to evaluate relevance is to see whether or not we are

providing what our customers want. That can be done by observing customer use of our Internet site and by surveying customer satisfaction with

our products and service.

Develop updated and improved GDP processing system

Our strategy is based on our mission of producing high-quality economic

statistics that provide a comprehensive picture of economic activity.

Because our statistical output is dependent on an outdated processing

system that is in desperate need of major improvements, the measurement of our progress in rebuilding that system provides a key indicator of

our ability to fully implement our strategy.

Strategic Plan

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U.S. Department of Commerce

32
External factors beyond BEA control that could significantly

affect the achievement of goals and objectives:

■ Lack of resources to carry out planned improvements in the economic accounts.

■ Failure of other statistical agencies to make needed improvements in

source data used by BEA.

Bureau of Census

Performance Goal: Develop Relevant, Timely, and Accurate National

and Community Economic and Household Statistics for Decision-Making

Performance Goal: Conduct the Decennial Census

The Census Bureau (Census) provides vital information about the U.S.

economy and about our society. The data produced by Census affect

political redistricting and the allocation of federal funds. 

The Census Bureau is the largest statistical agency of the federal government. It conducts:

■ The constitutionally mandated (Article 1, Section 2) Census of

Population and Housing (the Decennial Census) every 10 years for

apportioning seats in the House of Representatives and to provide

information for the administration of federal programs to communities.

■ Eight censuses every five years related to businesses and state and

local governments, covering more than 91,000 governmental units

and more than 20 million businesses.

■ More than 100 business activity and household surveys on a monthly, quarterly, and annual basis. Examples include surveys of retail

trade, services, manufacturers, imports and exports, education,

employment, income, health, consumer spending, housing, and crime. 

The vast array of data that Census collects forms a valuable base of statistical information by which to document, analyze, and improve the

products, services, and resources we use every day. It forms the basis for

decision-making by the Administration, Congress, communities, businesses, trade associations, and academicians. 

Fully Implement the American Community Survey. The American Community

Survey (ACS) is the single most important improvement in federal household statistics since the middle of the last century. It is the cornerstone of

the bureau’s effort to keep pace with ever-increasing demands for timely

and relevant data. If Census and Congress are to maintain our leadership

in providing information to the knowledge society, we must invest in full

development of the ACS. It is no longer acceptable that planners and policymakers must use data that are up to 12 years old. The ACS will not

only provide more frequent, detailed data for small geographic areas, but

it will also revolutionize the way we conduct the Decennial Census.

U.S. Department of

Commerce

Strategic Plan FY 2000–FY 2005

33

Census Bureau Performance

Measures

Fully implement the American

Community Survey 

Measure e-commerce activity

Disseminate Census 2000

products

Complete plan for operational test

of Census 2010 

U.S. Census Bureau field representative collecting data for one of their

household surveys.
Measure E-Commerce Activity. The extraordinary growth of the Internet is

changing the way we communicate, seek and access information, purchase goods, and interact. The successful integration of information, communications, and computer technology opens new purchasing channels

to consumers and provides firms with the opportunity to fundamentally

change the way they conduct their business. Electronic commerce (e-commerce) is growing rapidly and will likely cause as much change in the

structure and performance of the American economy as did the introduction of the computer. There are as yet no official measures of e-commerce activity, however, and little understanding of how it is affecting

current measures of economic activity. A major challenge for Census will

be to develop such measures and to meet the growing demand of policymakers and industry for information.

Disseminate Census 2000 Products. The bureau will prepare and deliver to

the President by December 31, 2000 the certified state population counts

used to apportion Congressional seats. Census data are tabulated for

each state, including counts from federal administrative records of overseas military personnel and their dependents and of overseas federal

civilian employees and their dependents. Public Law 94-171 requires the

Census Bureau to prepare and deliver by April 1, 2001 the census data

and geographic products used by states for redistricting. Census 2000

data products will be available on a flow basis beginning January 2001.

Census 2000 data will be disseminated mainly using a new data retrieval

system called the American FactFinder(AFF). The American FactFinder will

be accessible to the widest possible array of users through the Internet

(http://factfinder.census.gov), through intermediaries, including the nearly

1,800 State Data Centers and affiliates providing training and technical

assistance in accessing and using Census data, through the 1,400 Federal

Depository libraries, and through other libraries, universities, and organizations nationwide. 

Performance Goal: Define, through Consultations, Policy

Assessment, Planning, Research, Experiments, and Evaluations,

the Plan for the 2010 Census

Complete Plan for Operational Test of Census 2010. The Census Bureau

will prepare a planning, research, and testing plan to improve the

accuracy and efficiency of the 2010 Census. The plan will project

the major design components of the 2010 Census, include the

important early consultation with external partners and stakeholders, define a five-year research program for those components

requiring testing, and subsequently use the research findings to

design the 2005 operational test. 

External factors beyond Census control that could significantly affect the achievement of goals and objectives:

There is a growing negative public perception of government intrusion into personal and business information privacy. This affects the

response to surveys and censuses and is the most significant factor affecting the future goals, objectives, and program plans of the Census Bureau.

Strategic Plan

FY 2000–FY 2005

U.S. Department of Commerce

34

U.S. Census Bureau field representative collecting

data for the 2000 Census.
STAT-USA

Performance Goal: Develop Relevant, Timely, and Accurate National

and Community Economic and Household Statistics for Decision-Making

STAT-USA assists government agencies by collecting and distributing data

through a variety of products and services. Businesses, academia, and

individuals use this information to make intelligent and informed decisions that support economic growth and improvements in our everyday

lives. Since 1990, STAT-USA has been a leader in providing the public with

electronic access to economic and statistical data generated by the government. Working with many organizations in the federal government,

STAT-USA organizes and indexes this data, adding value by improving its

accessibility and ease of use.

STAT-USA obtains financial support for its activities through the sale of its

information products and services. It receives no funding from Congress.

STAT-USA plans to:

■ Increase customer involvement

■ Increase supplier involvement

■ Identify new markets for products and services.

External factors beyond STAT-USA control that could 

significantly affect the achievement of goals and objectives:

■ Dependence on federal agencies to make source data available in a

timely manner.

■ Inability to recruit sufficient information technology (IT) resources to

remain a competitive Internet service provider.

■ Increased availability of free online data competing with STAT-USA data.

■ STAT-USA originates few of the many thousands of files in its information base. Rather, it obtains files from major economic agencies in the

government (BEA, Census, BLS, and the Federal Reserve) and agencies

providing export information (Census, ITA, the State Department, and

others). STAT-USA also provides IT solutions to other Commerce agencies to help them meet their IT needs.

U.S. Department of

Commerce

Strategic Plan FY 2000–FY 2005

35

STAT-USA Performance

Measures

On-time delivery and up-to-date

content

Customer survey results

New products and services initiatives
The Economic Development

Administration

Performance Goal: Build local capacity to achieve and sustain

economic growth.

For more than 35 years, the Economic Development Administration

(EDA), through its planning and technical assistance grants, has promoted

effective decision-making by local public policy makers. The validity of

these programs was affirmed in A Path to Smarter Economic Development,

prepared by the National Academy of Public Administration. This report stated

that the federal role in economic development should be refocused to

provide states and localities with better information to assist them to

leverage all available resources and to link scattered initiatives to better

serve local needs. 

The nation is currently enjoying an unprecedented period of economic

growth. Many areas of the country, however, such as Appalachia, the

Mississippi Delta, many Native American reservations, and inner city

neighborhoods, have not fully shared in that economic growth. The challenge of keeping pace with the global New Economy means that the

nation’s distressed communities increasingly need the capacity at the

local level to develop strategies to bring economic growth to their own

areas. EDA will work with its partners in economic development to ensure

these communities have the resources and skills necessary to benefit

from our strong economy. EDA will also work with its sister agencies in

the Department of Commerce and with other federal statistical agencies

to ensure that local economic development decision-makers have the

best information possible to support their programs.

Strategic Plan

FY 2000–FY 2005

U.S. Department of Commerce

36

EDA Performance Measures 

Percentage of clients satisfied with

assistance provided by Trade

Adjustment Assistance Centers

EDA Performance Measures 

Increase the percentage of

Economic Development Districts

and Indian Tribe grantees whose

Comprehensive Economic

Development Strategy is on time

and acceptable

Increase the percentage of clients

satisfied with the technical

assistance provided by University

Centers for local economic

development and business

development
U.S. Department of

Commerce

Strategic Plan FY 2000–FY 2005

37

Strategic Goal 2

Provide Infrastructure for Innovation to Enhance American

Competitiveness

Objective 2.1

Provide Infrastructural Tools and Capabilities 

That Improve the Productivity, Quality, and

Efficiency of Research and Innovation Processes 

Objective 2.2

Protect Intellectual Property

Objective 2.3

Provide the Infrastructure for a Digital Economy

and a Digital Government
Strategic Plan

FY 2000–FY 2005

U.S. Department of Commerce

38

The Department of Commerce’s second goal is to provide the infrastructure that will enable American businesses to maintain their technological

advantage in world markets. Globalization and the technology-driven

productivity gains of the New Economy are providing us with new challenges. Continued partnership, collaboration, and cooperation between

the Department of Commerce and industry will enhance and promote

America’s technological edge.

Objective 2.1

Provide Infrastructural Tools and Capabilities That Improve the

Productivity, Quality, and Efficiency of Research and Innovation

Processes

The Technology Administration serves as the focal point for leadership

on civilian technology policy in the federal government, and it conducts

various programs to support government and industry through the provision of comprehensive technical services (measurements and standards)

and the development and application of new technology. The National

Institute of Standards and Technology is strengthening the international system of standards and measurements to facilitate U.S. trade; building

the Advanced Measurement Laboratory to provide the world’s best facility for highly demanding measurements and research; and helping manufacturing supply chains increase productivity and competitiveness. The

National Technical Information Service continues to meet the challenge of permanent preservation and ready access of the taxpayers’

investment in research and development through the acquisition, organization, and preservation of the titles added annually to the permanent

collection; promotes the development and application of science and

technology by providing technologically advanced global e-commerce

channels for dissemination of specialized information to business, industry, government, and the public; makes public access to the bibliographic

database available to all users; and is implementing an initiative that will

enable users to locate and download information directly from agency

Internet sites.

Objective 2.2

Protect Intellectual Property

Intellectual property is a potent force in the competitive free enterprise

system. By continuing to protect intellectual endeavors and encouraging

technological progress, the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office seeks to

preserve the United States’ technological edge, which is a key to our current and future competitiveness. 

Strategic Goal 2

Provide Infrastructure for Innovation to Enhance American

Competitiveness
U.S. Department of

Commerce

Strategic Plan FY 2000–FY 2005

39

Objective 2.3

Provide the Infrastructure for a Digital Economy and a Digital

Government

The Department of Commerce’s strategy to promote e-commerce (electronic business transactions via the Internet) requires that a sound legal

framework be constructed to govern the entire process. The Department

will advocate a legal framework that balances the interests of businesses,

consumers, and governments at all levels and that ensures the reliability,

security, and integrity of e-commerce transactions. The Department of

Commerce will also promote the broadest access to e-commerce technology, both domestically and internationally.
Strategic Plan

FY 2000–FY 2005

U.S. Department of Commerce

40

Technology Administration

Performance Goals: 

■ Promote technology-based

growth through partnerships

with industry (US/OTP)

■ Provide technical leadership for

the nation’s measurement and

standards infrastructure and

ensure the availability of essential reference data and measurement capabilities (NIST:

Measurement and Standards

Labs)

■ Accelerate technological innovation and development of the

new technologies that will

underpin future economic

growth (NIST: Advanced

Technology Program) 

■ Improve the technological capability, productivity, and competitiveness of small manufacturers

(NIST: Manufacturing Extension

Partnership) 

■ Assist U.S. businesses and other

organizations in continuously

improving their productivity, efficiency, and customer satisfaction

by adopting quality and performance improvement practices

(NIST: Baldrige National Quality

Program)

■ Protect the National Information

Infrastructure (NIST)

■ Collect, organize, preserve, and

disseminate government scientific, technical, and business-related

information (NTIS)

Objective 2.1

Provide Infrastructural Tools and Capabilities That Improve 

the Productivity, Quality, and Efficiency of Research and

Innovation Processes 
U.S. Department of

Commerce

Strategic Plan FY 2000–FY 2005

41

Objective 2.1

Provide Infrastructural Tools and Capabilities That Improve 

the Productivity, Quality, and Efficiency of Research and

Innovation Processes 

The Technology Administration (TA) comprises the Office of the Under

Secretary and Office of Technology Policy (US/OTP), the National Institute

of Standards and Technology (NIST), and the National Technical

Information Service (NTIS). The US/OTP works in partnership with the private

sector to develop and advocate national policies that maximize technology’s

contribution to U.S. economic growth, the creation of high-wage jobs, and

improvements in our quality of life. NIST strengthens the U.S. economy and

improves the quality of life by working with industry to develop and apply

technology, measurements, and standards. NTIS facilitates public access to federal information; develops guidelines, implementation methods, and procedures for federal agencies to transfer their government information to NTIS;

maintains a permanent repository of unclassified scientific, technical, engineering, and business information; collects and disseminates this information worldwide; and develops new and enhanced methods for expeditious dissemination

of information.

Enabling Legislation. 

The Office of the Under Secretary and Office of Technology Policy (US/OTP)

operates under the authority of 15 U.S.C. 3704, which established the positions

of Under Secretary and Assistant Secretary for Technology Policy and provides

the basic authority for preparing technology policy analyses, industry studies,

policy experiments, and associated reports.

The National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST) operates under the

authority of the National Institute of Standards and Technology Act (15 U.S.C.

271) which modified the Organic Act that created the National Bureau of

Standards (NBS) in 1901. Several important legislative changes were adopted in

1988. In addition to renaming NBS as NIST, the changes include the establishment of Regional Centers for the Transfer of Manufacturing Technology (15

U.S.C. 278k) and the establishment of the Advanced Technology Program (15

U.S.C. 278n). Separately, the National Quality Program was established and its

functions assigned to NIST by the Malcolm Baldrige National Quality

Improvement Act of 1987 (15 U.S.C. 3711a).

The National Technical Information Service (NTIS) operates under the authority

of 15 U.S.C. 3704b, which authorizes NTIS to establish and maintain a permanent repository of nonclassified scientific, technical, and engineering information; to make selected bibliographic information products available to depository libraries; to collect, translate, and disseminate unclassified foreign scientific,

technical, and engineering information; to implement new methods or media

for the dissemination of scientific, technical, and engineering information; and

to maintain the responsibilities enacted in 1950 (15 U.S.C. 1151).
Technology Administration

Performance Goal: Promote Technology-Based Growth through

Partnerships with Industry(US/OTP)

The Department of Commerce relies on the Technology Administration’s

Office of the Under Secretary/Office of Technology Policy (US/OTP) to promote technology-based growth through partnerships with industry.

US/OTP serves as the focal point within the federal government for leadership on civilian technology policy, supporting technology-based growth

through a variety of programs that provide technical support to industry

and helping to develop and transfer new technologies to the private sector for commercial application.

US/OTP plays an important role in developing and coordinating national

technology policy, working in partnership with industry and serving as an

advocate for policies that would best leverage the benefits of new technology and contribute to the nation’s economy. The bureau’s undertakings include providing leadership for the Partnership for a New

Generation of Vehicles Initiative between the federal government and the

nation’s auto makers; monitoring foreign government science and technology policies and encouraging the adoption of policies that would promote a favorable environment for U.S. business partnerships overseas;

promoting the commercialization of space-related technologies; and

working to promote productive research partnerships between the federal

government and the private sector across the full spectrum of federal

research programs.

National Institute of Standards and Technology

In the past, the National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST) has

provided key components of the nation’s technological infrastructure.

Since its inception in 1901 as the National Bureau of Standards, NIST has

provided essential measurement and standards resources and services.

More recently, NIST’s roles have expanded to accommodate new needs

for technology development and diffusion programs, as well as new

demands for public leadership on organizational quality and performance

excellence. 

NIST envisions even greater demand for its services in the future. As competition becomes ever more technology-intensive, firms will rely increasingly on a constellation of external scientific and technological resources

provided by other firms, universities, government laboratories and technology programs, and other nonprofit research centers and services. If it

is to maintain its support of U.S. industry, NIST will need to continuously

improve its ability to anticipate and provide solutions for industry’s rapidly changing measurement and standards infrastructure needs, and to creatively address the evolving challenge of stimulating the development

and uptake of new technologies and organizational improvement strategies.

Strategic Plan

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U.S. Department of Commerce

42

Technology Administration

Performance Measure

Increase the number of

roundtables, seminars,

negotiations, and other meetings

held with industry, government,

and academia to advance TA

policy goals
Performance Goal: Provide Technical Leadership for the Nation’s

Measurement and Standards Infrastructure and Ensure the

Availability of Essential Reference Data and Measurement

Capabilities (NIST: Measurement and Standards Laboratories)

The National Institute

of Standards and

Technology (NIST)

Measurement and

Standards Laboratories

have been the stewards of the nation’s

measurement infrastructure since their

inception in 1901 as

the National Bureau of

Standards. Through

their fulfillment of the

constitutional responsibility to “fix the standards of weights and

measures,” NIST laboratories underpin the fair exchange of goods and

services throughout the U.S. economy. NIST further supports commerce

by providing the measurement techniques, instrument calibrations, and

standards that are essential tools for research, production, and buyer-seller transactions. 

As global commerce becomes more technology-intensive, and as trade

becomes a more significant determinant of the health of the U.S. economy, the nation’s measurement infrastructure will grow in economic

importance and strategic value. NIST will respond to the need of established industries for measurements of increasingly high precision and

selectivity. Technology-based industries, for example, can be extremely

measurement-intensive, with measurements in the semiconductor industry accounting for 25–30 percent of manufacturing costs. High-technology industries also tend to produce and sell on a global basis, highlighting

the need for more rapid and extensive international harmonization of

standards and measures. The emergence of new industries means that

NIST must also provide new measurement and testing tools—the necessary technical infrastructure exists only in part in such important areas as

information technology, biotechnology, wireless communications,

advanced materials, nanotechnology, and microelectromechanical systems.

U.S. Department of

Commerce

Strategic Plan FY 2000–FY 2005

43

Data acquisition system for NIST 

mammographic x-ray instrument 

calibration range.

NIST Measurement and

Standards Laboratories

Performance Measures 

Quality and technical merit: Annual

external peer review, conducted by

the National Research Council

Outcomes: Economic impact studies

Outputs: Production of key products

and services, including standard

reference materials, standard

reference databases, calibrations

and tests, and technical publications 
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Over the next five years, the NIST Measurement and Standards

Laboratories will pursue this performance goal by:

■ Anticipating and addressing the nation’s most important needs for

physical and information-based measurements and standards. 

■ Strengthening the national system of measurement, measurement

traceability, standards, and conformity assessment.

■ Providing the leadership and technical competencies required to harmonize measurements and standards to facilitate international trade. 

Performance Goal: Accelerate Technological Innovation and

Development of the New Technologies that Will Underpin

Future Economic Growth (NIST: Advanced Technology Program)

Changing Sources of U.S. R&D Funds, 1960-1999

0%

10%

20%

30%

40%

50%

60%

70%

80%

1960196219641966196819701972197419761978198019821984

1986198819901992199419961998

percent of total U.S. R&D funds

Federal Government Industry Other sources Data source: NSF

NIST Advanced Technology

Program Performance

Measures

Outcomes: Economic impact studies

Intermediate outcomes: Cumulative

numbers of new technologies

commercialized and patents and

publications generated

Research and development (R&D) funding in the United States has changed

profoundly over the last 40 years. Once the primary source of funding, the federal government now provides just 27 percent of all R&D funds; funds from private industry, in contrast, expanded from 33 percent in 1960 to 69 percent in

1999. The nation’s recent economic success and its future prospects depend in

large measure on the R&D strategies of private firms. 

While private industry has emerged as the nation’s R&D powerhouse,

market pressures often deter firms from investing in particular types of

technology. Little of the nation’s basic R&D has historically been funded

by private industry because firms must be able to secure returns on their

investment within a timeframe and at a level satisfactory to investors. For

the same reasons, industry tends to avoid investing in certain types of

enabling technologies, including infrastructural technologies, which

require distinct competencies and are broadly applied; multiple-use technologies, which benefit multiple segments of an industry or group of

industries; and high-potential breakthrough technologies, which typically

involve risk levels and timeframes that far exceed the horizons of individual firms. In each of these areas, the financial and market interests of

individual firms tend to produce a suboptimal level of investment for the

economy and society as a whole. 
The reconfiguration of R&D funding in the United States and the competitive orientation of industrial R&D heighten the need for public policies

that support investment in infrastructural, multiple-use, and breakthrough

technologies. The Advanced Technology Program (ATP) works with industry to identify and promote investment in technologies that offer significant potential for broad-based economic benefits but which suffer from

inadequate levels of private investment. Over the next five years, ATP will

continue to accelerate technological innovation and the development of

new technologies by:

■ Utilizing cost-sharing partnership strategies to encourage industry to

increase investment in R&D for high-risk, broad-impact technologies.

■ Accelerating the commercialization and broad diffusion of ATP-funded

technologies.

U.S. Department of

Commerce

Strategic Plan FY 2000–FY 2005

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The technology for processing larger and better wafers was developed by a small

Massachusetts startup, Diamond Semiconductor Group, Inc., with co-funding from NIST's

Advanced Technology Program (ATP).
Performance Goal: Improve the Technological Capability,

Productivity, and Competitiveness of Small Manufacturers

(NIST: Manufacturing Extension Partnership)

Productivity is the key to competitiveness. Firms typically seek to improve

productivity through a combination of capital investment, investment in

new technologies, adopting more efficient production processes, improving the skills of the labor pool, and tightening cost control of the production process. 

While U.S. manufacturing firms are among the most productive in the

world, small manufacturers consistently lag behind their larger counterparts, which are able to apply their greater financial, technical, and

human resources to production modernization and continuous performance improvements. But the nation’s 382,000 small plants and factories

employ about 12 million people—nearly two-thirds of the manufacturing

workforce—and produce intermediate parts and equipment that contribute approximately 55 percent of the value of finished products. Their

role in the supply chain means that the nation’s future manufacturing

productivity will rest largely on the ability of these small firms to improve

their quality, raise their efficiency, and lower their costs. 

The comparatively low productivity growth of small U.S. firms can be

attributed to numerous factors, including technical, cost, and information

barriers. NIST helps small firms overcome these barriers through the

Manufacturing Extension Partnership (MEP). MEP provides information,

decision support, and implementation assistance to help small businesses

adopt new and more advanced manufacturing technologies, techniques,

and business practices. Over the next five years, MEP will continue to

improve the technological capability, productivity, and competitiveness of

small manufacturers by:

■ Transforming a larger percentage of the nation’s small manufacturers

into high-performance enterprises. 

Strategic Plan

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U.S. Department of Commerce

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An assembly line employee of CP Films of

Martinsville, Va., adjusts a target to a cathode

for use in a sputtering machine. The company—

which makes polyester films for the defense,

automotive, and aerospace industries - received

advice from an affiliate of NIST's

Manufacturing Extension Partnership.

NIST Manufacturing Extension

Partnership Program

Performance Measure

Intermediate outcomes: Client

competitiveness, indicated by

changes in sales, cost savings,

and capital investment attributed

to Manufacturing Extension

Partnership services
Performance Goal: Assist U.S. Businesses and Other

Organizations in Continuously Improving Their Productivity,

Efficiency, and Customer Satisfaction by Adopting Quality and

Performance Improvement Practices (NIST: Baldrige National

Quality Program)

NIST operates the Baldrige National Quality Program (BNQP) to provide a

systematic and proven set of business values, performance criteria, and

assessment methods to any organization seeking to improve its productivity and overall effectiveness. 

The Baldrige Program represents a value system that encompasses a definition of performance excellence and that provides a vehicle for cooperation and a catalyst for change. Each year, the Malcolm Baldrige National

Quality Award (MBNQA) is granted to companies in the categories of

manufacturing, service, and small business and to organizations in the

health care and education sectors. The award emphasizes core process

management, a focus on customers and markets, company responsibility

for programs and policies that support its key communities (including

environmentally conscious management), and—most importantly—the

achievement of superior business results. 

Firms throughout private industry have made enormous gains by implementing the quality practices and maintaining the performance improvement standards advocated by the program. Over the next five years,

BNQP will emphasize: 

■ Widening the potential impact of the Malcolm Baldrige National

Quality Award by promoting quality awareness and performance

excellence within all organizations, including health care, education,

and nonprofit organizations.

■ Promoting quality awareness and business excellence practices

among small manufacturing and service businesses.

U.S. Department of

Commerce

Strategic Plan FY 2000–FY 2005

47

William M. Daley (left), then Secretary of Commerce, and President William J.Clinton congratulate

Mary Etta Coursolle, BI Senior Vice President of Human Resources, and BI President and Chief

Quality Officer Guy Schoenecker on winning the 1999 Malcolm Baldrige National Quality Award.

NIST Baldrige National Quality

Program Performance

Measures

Increase applications per year to the

MBNQA and to Baldrige-based state

and local quality programs

Increase number of Baldrige criteria

mailed by the BNQP and Baldrigebased state and local quality

programs
Performance Goal: Protect the National Information

Infrastructure (NIST)

The ubiquitous and interconnected nature of information technology (IT)

increases the extent to which even limited attacks or failures can broadly disrupt the nation’s information infrastructure. The U.S. economy and society now

depend broadly upon computers and computer networks, and the reliability,

security, and quality of those systems must be strengthened. The potential

negative consequences of inadequate assurance accumulate as IT systems

expand and often are not apparent until major systems fail. Without adequate

assurance, the viability of the entire information infrastructure—and therefore

the entire U.S. economy—is put at risk.

Included in the FY 2001 President’s Budget is a request to establish a program at NIST to develop the R&D capacity, technologies, and knowledge

needed to protect the nation’s critical information infrastructure. Because

vulnerabilities affecting the information and communications infrastructure can potentially affect the entire U.S. economy, there is a substantial

need for significant new research into advanced technologies, measurements, and methods that can raise the level of reliability and security of

critical information technology-based systems and networks. As proposed, the program will build this R&D capacity by providing research

grants to universities, industry, and government to develop the appropriate R&D expertise. 

Assuming Congressional support, over the next five years, NIST will pursue this performance goal by:

■ Establishing the proposed program.

■ Developing appropriate performance measures.

■ Evaluating program progress and results.

National Technical Information Service

Performance Goal: Collect, Organize, Preserve, and Disseminate

Government Scientific, Technical, and Business-Related

Information (NTIS)

The National Technical Information Service operates a central clearinghouse of

scientific and technical information that is useful to American business and

industry. NTIS is directed to collect scientific and technical information; catalog,

abstract and index the information, permanently archive the information and

disseminate products in the forms and formats most useful to its customers;

develop electronic and other new methods and media to disseminate information; provide information processing services to other federal agencies; and

charge fees for its products and services.

NTIS collects its information material primarily from U.S. government

agencies and their contractors and grantees, as well as from international

sources. The NTIS collection includes approximately 3 million titles, comprising reports describing the results of federally sponsored research; statistical and business information; audiovisual products; computer software

and electronic databases developed by federal agencies; and reports prepared by foreign research organizations. NTIS maintains a permanent

repository of its information products and offers copies of this material to

Strategic Plan

FY 2000–FY 2005

U.S. Department of Commerce

48

NTIS Performance Measures

Number of items in archive 

Number of documents

reproduced from electronic media
its many customers—mainly researchers and business managers in private

industry. The disseminated materials may include computer downloads or

paper, microfiche, audiovisual, or electronic media.

Dissemination metrics adequately convey NTIS’s performance relative to

its statutory responsibilities, but they do not fully represent its output and

performance—for example, further to its statutory responsibilities, NTIS

also assists other agencies in the production and dissemination of their

information. Moreover, these metrics do not convey the impact of all of

NTIS’s services.

The five-year outlook for the National Technical Information Service will

be impacted by external events. The General Accounting Office and the

National Commission on Libraries and Information Sciences are reviewing

the NTIS mission and functions and their effect on the federal government’s scientific and technical information dissemination policies and programs.

External factors beyond TA control that could significantly

affect the achievement of goals and objectives:

■ Discontinuous scientific and/or technological change. 

■ Economic and/or market changes that could affect the level, rate,

and/or manner in which private firms assimilate infrastructural and

generic technologies and deploy them in market-specific applications. 

■ Congressional funding of the Advanced Technology Program (ATP) 

program.

■ Business expansion and retraction from investment in high-risk technologies.

Why the Performance Measures Reflect NIST Outcomes or Are a

Proxy for NIST Outcomes

Figure 1 illustrates the overall structure of NIST’s planning and performance evaluation system. NIST evaluates its performance and plans its

work in part through direct customer feedback, but also through three

distinct evaluation methods: (1) peer review and other forms of external

assessment; (2) economic impact studies; and (3) quantitative output

tracking. In addition, NIST as a whole benefits from the agency-wide

external reviews and guidance provided by the Visiting Committee on

Advanced Technology, a legislatively mandated panel of 15 external advisors that meets quarterly to review NIST’s general policy, organization,

budget, and programs. Other NIST programs also have external advisory

bodies, such as the MEP National Advisory Board and the Board of

Overseers for the Baldrige National Quality Program. 

U.S. Department of

Commerce

Strategic Plan FY 2000–FY 2005

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Strategic Plan

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U.S. Department of Commerce

50

NIST has designed its performance evaluation system to accommodate its

diverse outputs and to respond to the intrinsic difficulty of measuring the

results of investments in scientific and technological products and services. The primary output of research is scientific and technical knowledge,

which is inherently difficult to measure directly and comprehensively. In

addition, the outcomes from research often do not begin to accrue until

several years after the research program has been completed, and the

diffusion of benefits often affects broad segments of industry and society

over long time periods. 

No single metric or measurement method can capture the diversity and

complexity of NIST’s outputs and outcomes. Different measurement

methods have inherent strengths and weaknesses, as detailed in Table 1

(below). By utilizing diverse yet complementary sources of performance

data, NIST can thoroughly evaluate its products, services, and processes

at different stages and from different perspectives. Although rich and

diverse, these measures as a whole do not and cannot comprehensively

capture the full range of the agency’s outputs and outcomes. As a result,

it is not possible to directly compare NIST inputs (costs) with this (or any

other) set of outputs. In short, while NIST can accurately and completely

account for its cost inputs, the nature of its scientific and technological

outputs and outcomes does not allow simple determinations of the

agency’s efficiency or cost-effectiveness. 

As described below, NIST’s programs each use a different mix of these

three measurement methods, tailored to the program’s core functions,

particular outputs, and unique management needs (see Table 2 below).

No single measurement method can provide a robust and comprehensive

source of performance evaluation data. Taken together, however, all

three methods, combined with continual feedback from customers, function as a performance evaluation system that provides NIST management

and external stakeholders with empirically rich and reliable data encompassing the agency’s diverse outputs and outcomes.

Administration

Priorities Congress

Science &

Technology

Conferences/

 Workshops

Industry Interaction &

Roadmaps

Long-Term

Strategic

Planning

Annual Program

Planning Cycle

Performance

Evaluation

Program

Implementation

& Management

Figure 1: NIST Planning and Performance Evaluation System

Strategic

Planning

Studies

External

Assessment

Quantitative Output

Metrics

Customer

Feedback

Economic

Impact Studies
U.S. Department of

Commerce

Strategic Plan FY 2000–FY 2005

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Table 1: NIST Performance Measurement Methods:

Strengths and Limitations

Scope and

Purpose

Strengths Limitations

Peer

Review

Assesses technical

quality within

operating units.

Provides data for

quality control,

laboratory

management, and

planning

Broad and highly detailed review by

external technical experts. Balanced

panels with expertise matching each

operating unit. NRC independence,

high technical capability, and

internal quality controls. Review

process well established in

corporate culture

Intrinsic features of peer review: panel

judgments are not quantifiable;

observations and findings are highly

contextual and detailed; assessments

are not comparable (e.g., no

cumulative performance ranking)

Quantitative

Output

Measures

Diverse output

indicators represent

key functions.

Important to track

for internal

management and

resource planning

Direct counts of activities and

outputs generate highly reliable

quantitative data. Robust data

collection systems. Data are

cumulative and allow trend analysis

for each indicator

Provide no information about quality

or impact; trends require contextual

interpretation; indicators not

uniformly relevant to all operating

units; indicators as a whole do not

comprehensively represent NIST

output

Impact

Studies of

Research

Outcomes

Assess downstream impacts of

research projects

and

infratechnologies.

Provide data for

evaluating research

outcomes and longterm planning

Provide quantitative and qualitative

data about outcomes. Provide data

on impacts over long time periods

and across several layers of the

supply chain affected by NIST

technology. Highly qualified

economists and technical specialists

conduct detailed analyses using

well-developed research methods

Studies are intermittent and results are

not cumulative; elements of user

population often are too diffuse to

measure; uneven availability and

quality of industry data;

methodological problems specific to

each measure; outcomes are specific

to each project (limited

comparability); studies are complex

and expensive
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Table 2: NIST Goals and Measures by Responsibility Segment
U.S. Department of

Commerce

Strategic Plan FY 2000–FY 2005

53

Economic Development Administration

(EDA)

EDA programs provide support for the efforts of the nation’s distressed

communities to become competitive in the new global economy. By supporting technology-based economic development, EDA offers those parts

of America that have lagged behind for years the opportunity to leapfrog

other areas and to become leaders in the New Economy. EDA programs

are driven by locally developed needs and strategies. The Agency will

explore methods of reflecting its technology-based economic development support in distressed communities for fiscal year 2003. The agency

maintains a comprehensive array of program tools, technical assistance,

and infrastructure and revolving loan programs to help communities

develop, test and refine, and ultimately implement their own technologybased economic development strategies.

EDA’s Trade Adjustment Assistance (TAA) program provides a means by

which firms that have been undercut by imports can regain their economic competitiveness. Under the program, EDA funds a national network of 12 Trade Adjustment Assistance Centers (TAACs) to help these

firms complete the TAA eligibility petition and prepare and implement an

adjustment proposal. The adjustment proposal thoroughly analyzes a

firm’s strengths, weaknesses, opportunities, and threats, and serves as the

basis for its economic recovery strategy. It also outlines specific technical

assistance tasks, such as market research, productivity improvements,

Internet-site development, new product development, and quality assurance certification, which would help the firm in its economic recovery.

Independent consultants, selected by the firm, are hired to complete

these tasks, with the TAAC and the firm equally sharing the consultancy

costs. The value of technical assistance contributed by the TAAC is normally limited to $75,000 per firm.

EDA’s programs provide the nation’s distressed communities with the

resources to locally develop and implement technology-based economic

development strategies. Water, sewage treatment, electricity, and roads

comprised the basic infrastructure of the old economy, and fiber-optic

cables, telecommunications, and smart industrial parks and buildings are

becoming just as fundamental for economic development in the new

global economy. Where EDA would once have supported the development of an industrial park for traditional manufacturers, today the agency

is likely to develop a research incubator park to develop a whole new set

of products and companies. 

Growth of the technology sector, and particularly of telecommunications

and computing, has been the driving force behind the nation’s extraordinary economic performance over the last several years. This phenomenon has been acknowledged by leading economists, including Federal

Reserve Board Chairman Alan Greenspan, who have accredited technology-led economic development and productivity growth with successfully 

Objective 2.1

Provide Infrastructural Tools and Capabilities That Improve 

the Productivity, Quality, and Efficiency of Research and

Innovation Processes 
delivering the previously elusive combination of strong economic growth

and low inflation. According to some estimates, technology accounts for

up to one-half of the growth in economic productivity. 

This technological change, however, has resulted in uneven development,

with some areas growing quickly while others are stagnating or even losing jobs and population. This is detrimental to the efficiency of the overall

national economy, because it leaves some places with excess capacity

while obliging growth areas to spend to add new capacity. 

The traditional argument for economic development investments in distressed communities is based upon the federal government’s long-standing commitment to ensure equality of economic opportunity. Investments

in productivity-enhancing infrastructure are crucial to national economic

competitiveness. A large number of communities, especially those experiencing adverse economic conditions such as high unemployment, low

per capita income, and population out-migration, or handicapped by an

under skilled work force or aging infrastructure, are struggling to create

sustainable economies and to establish a technological base from which

to compete in today’s economy. 

To address these problems, the Economic

Development Administration provides grants to construct the infrastructure that is needed for technology-driven economic development. Examples of eligible grant activities include the construction of

broadband infrastructure for high-speed Internet

access, infrastructure for distance-learning networks,

smart rooms and/or smart buildings, business incubator facilities, technologically advanced research

and manufacturing facilities, and business and

industrial parks prewired with fiber-optic cable.

Other projects eligible for grants include the development of publicly owned telecommunications

infrastructure and facilities capable of creating economic opportunity and encouraging and supporting

the economic development of distressed areas.

The agency’s recent investment in site development

of the Los Alamos Research Park in New Mexico

provides a specific example of this work. In addition

to basic utilities, the Park will have telecommunications infrastructure offering state-of-the-art connectivity, to enable companies to commercialize product technologies developed by the National

Laboratory. This will be a collaborative effort involving corporate, academic, and institutional researchers and technologists, including those of

the Los Alamos National Laboratory.

Strategic Plan

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U.S. Department of Commerce

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Springfield Technical Community College (STCC) constructed Springfield,

Massachusetts’ first facility dedicated exclusively to the launching of the

new high tech business initiatives and assisting recent start-ups achieve

profitability with the assistance from an EDA project. The incubator is

located in the center of Springfield’s two major disadvantaged areas

where poverty and unemployment are the highest in the area.
U.S. Department of

Commerce

Strategic Plan FY 2000–FY 2005

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U.S. Patent and Trademark Office 

Performance Goals: 

■ Strengthen intellectual property

protection in the United States

and abroad, making it more

accessible, affordable and

enforceable

■ Enhance the quality of patent

products and services, transition

to E-Government and optimize

patent processing time

■ Enhance the quality of trademark

products and services, transition

to E-Government and minimize

trademark-processing time

Objective 2.2

Protect Intellectual Property
Strategic Plan

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Performance Goal: Strengthen intellectual property protection

in the United States and abroad, making it more accessible,

affordable and enforceable.

Performance Goal: Enhance the quality of patent products and

services, transition to E-Government and optimize patent processing time.

Performance Goal: Enhance the quality of trademark products

and services, transition to E-Government and minimize trademark-processing time.

All forms of intellectual property protection—patents, trademarks, and

copyrights—uphold the philosophy of rewarding individual effort as the

best way of utilizing the talents of creators to advance public welfare.

Intellectual property is a potent force in the competitive free enterprise

system. By continuing to protect intellectual endeavors and encouraging

technological progress, the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office seeks to preserve the United States’ technological edge, which is a key to our current

and future competitiveness. 

For over 200 years, the basic purpose of USPTO has been to administer

the patent and trademark laws of this nation. For patents, these laws

Objective 2.2

Protect Intellectual Property

The U.S. Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO) examines patent and

trademark applications and issues patents and registers trademarks. 

Enabling Legislation. The foundation for the U.S. Patent System was a law enacted in 1790 based on Article 1, Section 8, Clause 8 of the Constitution that gives

Congress has the power to "promote the progress of science and useful arts by

securing for limited times to authors and inventors the exclusive right to their

respective writings and discoveries." The current trademark system is grounded

in the Trademark Act of 1946, although the first American federal trademark

legislation was passed in 1870. Statutes for USPTO are embodied in Titles 15

(Trademarks) and 35 (Patents) of the U.S. Code. 

The American Inventors Protection Act of 1999 was signed into law (P.L. 106-

113) on November 29, 1999, as part of the conference report (H. Rept. 106-479)

on H.R. 3194, Consolidated Appropriations Act, Fiscal Year 2000. The text of the

American Inventors Protection Act is contained in Title IV of S. 1948, the

Intellectual Property and Communications Omnibus Reform Act of 1999. S.

1948 was enacted by reference in Division B of the conference report on H.R.

3194. The Act adjusted patent and trademark fees, required USPTO to conduct

a study of alternative fee structures, and provided a guarantee for patent terms

against excessive delay in patent application processing. It provided for the

publication of patent applications 18 months after filing, with certain exceptions, and broadened the circumstances under which a patent could be reexamined. The Act also reestablished USPTO as an agency within the

Department of Commerce, created two advisory committees (one for patents

and one for trademarks) to watch over the agency, and granted USPTO flexibility in procurement and other administrative and managerial areas.
derive from the U.S. Constitution (Article 1, Section 8): “To promote the

progress of science and the useful arts by securing for limited times to

authors and inventors the exclusive right to their respective discoveries.”

The current trademark system is grounded in the Trademark Act of 1946.

Under this system of protection, American business has flourished. New

products have been invented and marketed, and employment opportunities created for millions of Americans.

Today Americans are operating in a global marketplace. Major advances

in communication and transportation enable modern corporations

to operate easily across national borders. Now, more than ever, it

is imperative that U.S. intellectual property holders receive effective

protection worldwide.

The primary services provided by USPTO include processing patent

and trademark applications and disseminating patent and trademark information. Through the issuance of patents, we encourage

technological advancement by providing incentives to invent,

invest in, and disclose new technology worldwide. Through the registration of trademarks, we assist businesses in protecting their

investments, promoting quality goods and services, and safeguarding consumers against confusion and deception in the marketplace.

By disseminating both patent and trademark information, we promote an understanding of intellectual property protection and facilitate the development and sharing of new technologies worldwide.

In 2000, USPTO expects to grant more patents and register more

trademarks than ever before in its history. 

With the passage of the American Inventors Protection Act of 1999,

USPTO became the second performance-based organization in the federal government. The Act establishes USPTO as an agency within the

Department of Commerce. The Undersecretary of Commerce for

Intellectual Property and Director of the United States Patent and

Trademark Office carries out dual responsibilities: advising the Secretary

of Commerce, the President of the United States, and the Administration

on all domestic and global aspects of intellectual property, and managing

and directing USPTO. The new USPTO is explicitly responsible for decisions regarding the management and administration of its operations,

and has independent control of many major management functions.

Patent operations and trademark operations are treated as separating

operating units. 

Consistent with the management flexibility provided by the Act, USPTO

will issue its own strategic plan that will provide details as to how it is fulfilling its mandate as a performance-based organization.

External factors beyond USPTO control that could significantly

affect the achievement of goals and objectives:

■ Continued diversion of USPTO’s fee collections to fund new or continuing government programs.

■ Business factors that foster dramatic increases or decreases in patent

and trademark application filings.

U.S. Department of

Commerce

Strategic Plan FY 2000–FY 2005

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Strategic Plan

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All Commerce Bureaus

Performance Goals: 

■ Facilitate transformation of the

economy to electronic transactions

■ Improve U.S. competitive advantage through global e-commerce

■ Promote the availability and support new sources of advanced

telecommunications information

services

Objective 2.3

Provide the Infrastructure for a Digital Economy

and a Digital Government
U.S. Department of

Commerce

Strategic Plan FY 2000–FY 2005

59

All Department of Commerce Bureaus

Performance Goal: Facilitate Transformation of the

Economy to Electronic Transactions

Implementation of new information technology applications

is central to the New Economy and to the Department of

Commerce’s responsibility to maximize technology’s contribution to American competitiveness. The strategy to promote ecommerce will involve all parts of the Department during FY

2000–FY 2005. 

Perhaps the most remarkable aspect of the explosive growth

of e-commerce transactions over the Internet has been its

spontaneous, decentralized, and largely unregulated character. Internet-based business is expected to continue its exponential growth in the next five years, raising the urgency for

creation of a sound legal framework to govern the process.

That legal framework will necessarily have both domestic

and international dimensions, and a careful balance must be

struck at all levels between supporting the interests of business, consumers, and government. This is especially true in regard to the imposition of a tax or fee structure. 

On a technical level, the Department will encourage the development of

a robust system infrastructure of hardware and software, in all three

areas of server and client use and connectivity. Full interoperability within

the system is essential and will be emphasized by the Department.

Achievement of the appropriate infrastructure will be best obtained

through free and open competition. 

As the value of e-commerce expands, the need for business and consumer confidence in the reliability, security, and integrity of e-commerce

transactions will increase. The Department will advocate appropriate legal

and regulatory responses to this need, but voluntary actions by businesses are expected to also be significant in generating confidence in the

process.

The Department will also seek to achieve the broadest access to e-commerce technology, both domestically and internationally, and will seek to

address some of the concerns raised by new Internet users. As of March

2000, there were an estimated 304 million Internet users worldwide, an

increase of almost 80 percent from 1999. To many of these people, the

Internet is an entirely unfamiliar technology, and privacy issues are a

major concern. The Department will examine issues such as privacy, consumer protection, authentication, security, content, and intellectual property protection with the objective of advocating responsible measures to

build confidence in e-commerce.

Objective 2.3

Provide the Infrastructure for a Digital Economy

and a Digital Government

Fiber-optic cable strands 

(size comparison to sewing needles.)

DOC Performance Measures

Number of studies completed to

address the creation of a sound

legal framework

Number of legislative measures

introduced

Number of legislative measures

passed
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The Department will also be an aggressive advocate for a balanced

approach to the development of a sound legal framework for e-commerce. In particular, the Department will analyze and assess the policy

issues surrounding such topics as electronic contracts, electronic signatures, taxation, tariffs, and jurisdiction. The Department will use its findings, particularly those that address the specific needs of business and the

consumer, to support its advocacy to the Executive Branch, Congress, and

international authorities.

Performance Goal: Improve U.S. Competitive Advantage through

Global E-Commerce

The Department of Commerce will leverage its expertise in telecommunications, provided primarily by the National Telecommunications and

Information Administration (NTIA) with the technical support of the

Technology Administration (TA), to support its responsibilities in promoting e-commerce. As the U.S. Government facilitates and oversees construction of the technological infrastructure for e-commerce, NTIA, in

cooperation with other Department units, will address the policy issues

underlying promotion of the new infrastructure.

NTIA will focus on policy issues related to telecommunications competition, spectrum allocation, and, in cooperation with other agencies, operational protocols such as domain names management. In addition,

through the National Technical Information Service (NTIS), TA is promoting the development and application of science and technology by developing technologically advanced global e-commerce channels for dissemination of specialized information to business, industry, government, and

the public. As the Department seeks to bridge the digital divide, NTIA and

the Economic Development Administration (EDA) will additionally promote increased access to broadband communications in communities

currently underserved by Internet technology. EDA will assist its local,

state, and regional planning partners with training and in acquiring the

information technology necessary to position distressed communities to

compete in the new digital economy. Overseas, NTIA will work with the

International Trade Administration (ITA) to open foreign markets to

American telecommunications technology. 

The International Trade Administration will focus on the trade

policy and promotion aspects of electronic commerce. ITA’s

export promotion program has four main goals: helping small

businesses use the Internet to find markets overseas; helping

established U.S. information technology companies to expand

overseas; helping emerging economies make the transition to

the digital age; and ensuring that both the Internet and foreign

markets are open and accessible. Domestically, ITA will provide

exporters with desktop access to the international marketplace,

through the use of electronic products and services.

Internationally, ITA will develop country-specific and regional

strategies tailored to each market. On the policy side, ITA is

working in international forums with other Department of

Commerce and government agencies to develop and advocate

U.S. policy positions on a range of e-commerce issues, including

privacy, consumer protection, infrastructure access, telecommunications liberalization, diffusion of information technology (IT) to

NTIA and EDA Performance

Measures

Number of studies completed to

address policy issues related to

telecommunications

management (NTIA)

Number of distressed areas

assisted with the utilization of

broadband and information

technologies (EDA).

Light Stream Technologies Signing of Memorandum of

Understanding with India
small and medium-sized exporters (SMEs), standards, IT tariff elimination,

and expanded IT market access. Finally, as part of the government initiative, ITA will play a lead role in developing a government-wide export

portal, an on-line source for all U.S. Government trade promotion

resources.

Why the Performance Measure reflects ITA’s Outcomes or Is a

Proxy for ITA’s Outcomes

The number of clients making contacts through virtual trade shows is the

most effective performance measure by which to assess the progress of

this strategy. Recognizing that the Internet and other methods of electronic commerce, such as video conferencing, are excellent tools for expanding services to SMEs and increasing exports, ITA has developed an

Internet site that provides a menu of virtual, video, and e-commerce solutions for U.S. companies. The menu includes E-ExpoUSA, a virtual trade

show that showcases U.S. products and services in distant markets and

matches interested buyers with U.S. suppliers.

National Telecommunications and

Information Administration

Performance Goal: Promote the Availability and Support New

Sources of Advanced Telecommunications and Information

Services

Attaining access to broadband technology is the critical next step

in the evolution of advanced telecommunications and information services. The National Telecommunications and Information

Administration will seek to support the spread of this technology

by participating in a joint federal and state conference, creating

a wireless broadband development task force, funding broadband demonstration projects at the community level, and helping public broadcasters adopt digital technologies to improve the

public broadcasting infrastructure and expand public services.

NTIA helped define the U.S. positions on e-commerce and the

Internet and is now advocating adoption of these positions

abroad. It is also largely through NTIA’s efforts that the

Department of Commerce has succeeded in transferring responsibility for the management of Internet domain names to a new

corporation, thereby making domain name registration competitive. Management of the .com, .net and .org domains has been

transferred to the Internet Corporation for Assigned Names and

Numbers (ICANN) and there is now competition among multiple

registrars in those domains.

U.S. Department of

Commerce

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ITA Performance Measure

Number of clients making

contacts through virtual trade

shows

NTIA microwave and satellite antennae receivers.
Under this strategy, NTIA aims to demonstrate advanced, innovative

applications of telecommunications and information technology in the

nonprofit and public sectors; promote domestic and international growth

of e-commerce and Internet use; meet the telecommunications research

needs of other federal agencies and industry through cooperative

research and development; promote international acceptance of U.S.

spectrum proposals; participate in International Telecommunication Union

(ITU) and domestic standards development to benefit U.S. industry and

user interests; and develop next-generation Internet broadband protocols.

External factors beyond Department of Commerce control that could

significantly affect the achievement of goals and objectives:

■ E-commerce is a rapidly evolving global phenomenon that is not

open to control by national government. 

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NTIA Performance Measure

Achieve legal agreements

Obtain agreement on

infrastructure architecture

Build user confidence

Expand access

Number of models/grants

available for nonprofit or public

sector organizations

Number of technical studies for

government and industry

completed annually
U.S. Department of

Commerce

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Strategic Goal 3

Observe and Manage the Earth’s Environment to Promote

Sustainable Growth

Objective 3.1

Enhance Conservation of the Natural Environment

Objective 3.2

Improve Our Understanding and Prediction

of the Natural Environment
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The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) envisions

a 21st century in which environmental stewardship, assessment, and prediction serve as keystones to enhancing economic prosperity and quality

of life, to improving the protection of lives and property, and to strengthening the U.S. balance of trade.

Objective 3.1

Enhance Conservation of the Natural Environment

NOAA is responsible for promoting global environmental stewardship,

with the goal of conserving and wisely managing the U.S. marine and

coastal resources. Our vision is that by 2005, U.S. ocean and coastal

regions will be places of healthy ecosystems. This vision includes:

■ Adding to the nation’s wealth and to the quality of life of millions of

Americans by improving the use of fishery resources.

■ Leading in the preservation of marine biodiversity by balancing the

exploitation of natural resources with the management of protected

species.

■ Ensuring that coastal ecosystems are managed to maintain biodiversity

and long-term productivity for sustained use. 

Objective 3.2

Improve Understanding and Prediction of the Natural Environment

NOAA monitors and predicts changes in the Earth’s environment in order

to ensure and enhance sustainable economic opportunities. Our vision is

that by 2005, the U.S. will have an integrated and reliable environmental

observation, assessment, and forecasting service that will enable us to

make informed decisions regarding public safety, economic development,

and environmental quality. This vision will require:

■ improved short-term warning and forecast services.

■ reliable seasonal-to-interannual climate forecasts.

■ better understanding of decadal-to-centennial environmental changes.

■ modernization of navigation and positioning services through the

application of new positioning and bathymetric sensing technologies.

Strategic Goal 3

Observe and Manage the Earth’s Environment to Promote

Sustainable Growth
U.S. Department of

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National Oceanic and Atmospheric

Administration

Performance Goals:

■ Build sustainable fisheries

■ Recover protected species 

■ Sustain healthy coasts

Objective 3.1

Enhance Conservation of the Natural Environment
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Performance Goal: Build Sustainable Fisheries

Our vision is to increase U.S. wealth and quality of life by developing and

maintaining sustainable fisheries that provide safe seafood, support a

healthy fishing industry, and provide recreational opportunities. This

vision requires sound biological, economic, and social information to

focus policy decisions and to prevent the sort of scientific uncertainty that

fuels controversy and confusion. It includes implementation of ambitious

Fishery Management Plans (FMPs) prepared by eight Congressionally

established Fishery Management Councils. The FMPs will address problems of uncontrolled participation in fisheries, overcapitalization, overfishing and resource depletion, controversial allocation decisions, wasteful

bycatch of nontarget species, and habitat degradation that diminishes

fish population. Efforts to ensure the sustainable use of fishery resources

will provide long-term economic opportunities.

To support implementation of this vision, we will maintain our existing

partnerships and will institute new ones with parties affected by or interested in our living marine resources (LMRs), including Congress, Fishery

Management Councils, the industry itself, and the recreational community. To ensure that our efforts are implemented and that our investment in

these efforts is returned with interest over the long term, we must develop innovative approaches to mitigate the short-term costs that will be

incurred during rebuilding. Our vision includes the application of new

methods and solutions, such as implementation of Fisheries Ecosystem

Plans as a means to enhance the scope of fishery management decisions,

promotion of a growing U.S. marine aquaculture industry as a tool to

Objective 3.1

Enhance Conservation of the Natural Environment

The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA)

provides scientific, technical, and management expertise to promote

safe and efficient marine navigation; assess the health of coastal and

marine resources; monitor and predict coastal, ocean and global

environments (including weather forecasting); and protect and manage the nation’s coastal resources.

Enabling Legislation. NOAA was established by the Reorganization

Plan Number 4 of 1970, which became effective on October 3, 1970.

The reorganization plan transferred to the Secretary of Commerce

various functions relating to oceans and atmosphere, including commercial fishery functions. NOAA’s programs and activities are authorized by a number of permanent organic acts and a variety of

statutes, including:

■ The National Weather Service Organic Act

■ The National Sea Grant College Program Act

■ The Marine Mammal Protection Act

■ The Endangered Species Act

■ The Magnuson-Stevens Fishery Conservation and Management Act

■ The Coast and Geodetic Survey Act

■ The Coastal Zone Management Act

■ The National Marine Sancturaies Amendent Act

NOAA Performance Measures

Build Sustainable Fisheries

Fewer overfished fisheries

Maintain sufficient essential 

habitat to support fish stocks 

Increase in economic 

contribution of aquaculture 

to gross domestic product

Increase employment in 

non-capture fishing and 

other sector fishing communities
help restore depleted populations; implementation of effective international agreements to conserve and manage transboundary LMRs; and

promotion of global LMR stewardship and geopolitical stability by providing technical assistance to developing countries. 

Key elements supporting the transition to sustainable fisheries are the

rebuilding of overexploited fish stocks, by eliminating overfishing and

improving fish habitat, and improving the economics of fisheries, achievable by reducing overcapitalization. These activities will result in a more

viable and competitive U.S. fishing industry, which in turn will lead to economic and social improvement in fisheries-dependent communities.

Improved fisheries management and conservation will additionally

enhance recreational opportunities and save lives by eliminating the dangerous and wasteful race for the fish. Development of environmentally

sound aquaculture will also enable the industry to meet the increasing

demand for seafood with high quality and reliable products, without contributing to the overfishing of wild populations.

Specific actions to build sustainable fisheries include the following:

■ Eliminate and prevent overfishing and overcapitalization. As evidenced by the Sustainable Fisheries Act amendments, there is strong

consensus among lawmakers, fishery managers, the fishing industry,

the recreational community, and the public that depleted fishery

resources must be restored and that healthy fisheries must be maintained and managed for greater efficiency. Fishery Management

Plans aim to rebuild overfished stocks.

■ Attain economic sustainability in fishing communities. The rebuilding

of overfished fisheries as required under the Magnuson-Stevens

Fishery Conservation and Management Act (P.L. 94–265) will initially

result in lower harvest levels and therefore fewer fishing vessels and

fishing-related jobs in many coastal communities. To minimize the

economic impact of fisheries management decisions on such communities, the Department of Commerce is working with federal, state,

and local agencies to develop a variety of mitigating programs,

including loan programs, commercial fishery failure assistance, vessel

and permit buyouts, and community planning.

■ Develop environmentally and

economically sound marine

aquaculture. A growing number

of wild stocks have been overfished or fully utilized. Sound

marine aquaculture will enhance

the nation’s ability to meet the

rising domestic and global

demand for seafood.

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Commerce

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Alaskan native fisherman

Commercial purseine fishing

vessel and catch
Performance Goal: Recover Protected Species

NOAA’s strategy is to conserve marine species and recover those in danger of extinction. By 2005, we will be on the road to recovering every

marine species at risk and to maintaining the healthy ecosystems upon

which they depend.

Through conservation of living marine resources (LMRs), we will enhance

the economic and cultural opportunities for future generations. The

Marine Mammal Protection Act, the Endangered Species Act, and other

legislation provide a clear indication of public support for strong efforts to

conserve LMRs. NOAA’s fulfillment of this strategy will enable the preservation of marine biodiversity by balancing the utilization of natural

resources with the management of protected species. By recovering

species and preventing the further decline of others, we will contribute to

the overall health of marine ecosystems and to our understanding of

those systems. Improved science will enable us to develop better longterm management and conservation strategies.

Specific actions to ensure that our national treasure of marine biodiversity will

be protected and enhanced for future generations include the following:

■ Prevent the extinction of protected species by reducing the commercial and recreational activities that threaten the survival of marine

species and ecosystems.

■ Maintain the status of healthy species by recovering protected

species, preventing the further decline of other species, and improving science in order to develop better long-term conservation and

management strategies.

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NOAA Performance Measures

Recover Protected Species

Reduce the probability of

extinction of endangered

species

Reduce the probability of

extinction of threatened

species

The mortality of strategic

marine mammal stocks

incidental to commercial

fishing operations in strategic

fisheries will be at

insignificant levels

NOAA divers rescuing entangled Hawaiian monk seal from derelict fishing gear.
Performance Goal: Sustain Healthy Coasts

Our vision is that by 2005, the U.S. coast will have more productive and

more diverse habitats for fish and wildlife, and cleaner coastal waters for

recreation and the production of seafood. Coastal communities will have

thriving, sustainable economies based on well-planned development and

healthy coastal ecosystems.

Our strategic plan calls for NOAA to provide information, technology,

solutions, and other valuable tools to coastal resource managers at local,

state, tribal, and federal levels. Our coastal activities form an integrated

program of monitoring, research, assessment, restoration, information dissemination, and resource management that provides governmental and

nongovernmental groups with the basis for sound decision-making and

sustainable development of coastal areas. Federal–state partnerships

such as the Coastal Zone Management Program, National Marine

Sanctuary Program, National Estuarine Research Reserve System, and

National Sea Grant College Program support this goal. Research is a critical tool that enables understanding of the way in which coastal ecosystems and society function and that increases our ability to predict the

responses of ecosystems to human activities. The information that we

provide allows managers and stakeholders to take appropriate action to

support the sustainable use of coastal resources and to avoid costly damage. Our coastal programs are effective tools to ensure that the nation’s

coastal ecosystems are managed for the long-term benefit of the public.

Specific actions include the following:

■ Protect, conserve, and restore coastal habitats

and their biodiversity by identifying and

assessing the habitat requirements of key

species, by building the capability to use biodiversity as an indicator of coastal health, and

by improving our understanding of habitat

functions, threats, and the consequences of

change to living resources.

■ Promote clean coastal waters to sustain living

marine resources and to ensure safe recreation, healthy seafood, and economic vitality,

by increasing understanding of the factors

that affect water quality and of how water

quality affects ecosystem functions.

■ Foster revitalized and well-planned coastal

communities that sustain coastal economies,

that are compatible with the natural environment, that minimize the risks from natural

hazards, and that provide access to coastal

resources for the public’s use and enjoyment. NOAA will work with our

partners at the state, territorial, tribal, and local government levels to better understand the physical processes and cumulative impact of developments affecting coastal shorelines and the economic value of coastal

resources and recreational activities.

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Commerce

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NOAA Performance Measures

Sustain Healthy Coasts

Number of acres of coastal

habitat restored (cumulative)

Number of U.S. coastal

regions in which the

introduction and impact of

nonindigenous species is

reduced (total of six regions)

Percentage of U.S. shoreline

and inland areas with

improved ability to identify

the extent and severity of

coastal hazards

Florida Keys National Marine Sanctuary
External factors beyond NOAA’s control that could significantly

affect the achievement of goals and objectives:

■ Climatic, biological, and other natural conditions, such as El Niño,

may affect NOAA’s efforts to enhance environmental stewardship of

the nation’s marine and coastal resources. 

■ National and/or local economic conditions may limit the ability of the

Department of Commerce to reach certain targets for building sustainable fisheries. Many of NOAA’s coastal stewardship activities

depend on contributions from multiple partners, particularly states,

territories, and other federal agencies, including the Environmental

Protection Agency, the Departments of Interior and Transportation,

the Coast Guard, the Federal Emergency Management Agency, the

National Science Foundation, and the Department of Agriculture.

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U.S. Department of

Commerce

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National Oceanic and Atmospheric

Administration

Performance Goals:

■ Advance short-term warning 

and forecast services

■ Implement seasonal-tointerannual climate forecasts

■ Predict and assess decadal-tocentennial change

■ Promote safe navigation

Objective 3.2

Improve Our Understanding and Prediction

of the Natural Environment
Performance Goal: Advance Short-Term Warning 

and Forecast Services

Increasing our understanding of the environment through research and

investing in new technologies will enable us to provide more accurate

and timely weather warnings and forecasts. Improved forecasts will in

turn support water resource management to help avoid flood damage.

Extended forecasts of geomagnetic disturbances will assist space operations, power generation, and management of satellite communications

networks. Advanced modeling techniques and more complete observations will improve hurricane tracking prediction and save millions of dollars by eliminating unnecessary evacuation costs. Accurate forecasts will

provide better information for planning weather-sensitive activities over

land and ocean. Expanded real-time observations and improved forecasts

will also reduce losses of life and property by providing advanced warning of hazardous conditions.

Modernization of our weather services has already paid huge dividends.

A cost-benefit analysis by the National Institute of Standards and

Technology estimated the economic benefits from modernization to be

about eight times greater than its cost, with the country’s annual benefits

expected to approach $7 billion.

Specific actions that we will

take to implement this strategy include:

■ Sustaining modernized

weather service operations.

■ Maintaining continuous

operational satellite coverage for warnings and

forecasts.

■ Strengthening observing

and prediction systems.

■ Improving customer service to the public, emergency managers, the

media, and the commercial weather industry.

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NOAA Performance Measures

Advance Short-Term Warning and

Forecast Services

Increase lead time (minutes) and

accuracy (%), and decrease

false alarm rate (%) for tornado

warnings 

Increase lead time (minutes) and

accuracy (%) for flash flood 

warnings 

Increase lead time (hours) of

hurricane warnings

Increase accuracy (%) of threeday precipitation forecast

Increase lead time (hours) and

accuracy (%) of winter storm

warnings

Increase accuracy (%) and

decrease false alarm rate (%) of

critical aviation ceiling / visibility

forecasts

Increase accuracy (%) of marine

winds / waves forecasts

“NOAA’s National Weather Service

Modernization”
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Commerce

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Performance Goal: Implement Seasonal-to-Interannual 

Climate Forecasts

Climate services are rapidly

becoming as important as

weather forecasting. We can

now predict El Niño events

with sufficient accuracy and

lead-time to enable savings

of hundreds of millions of

dollars a year, both by the

U.S. and by other countries.

The ability to perfectly forecast El Niño Southern

Oscillation (ENSO) events

one year in advance, for

example, would permit U.S.

agriculture to reduce corn

inventories by 8 percent,

producing annual savings of

nearly $240 million. The

Tropical Ocean Global

Atmosphere (TOGA) program

was designed to understand

and model ENSO. A costbenefit analysis of TOGA further indicates a real economic return on investment

of at least 13 to 26 percent

for U.S. agriculture alone.

ENSO forecasts can potentially also improve fisheries

management, as warm

ENSO events have been

associated with reduced

marine catches. On a larger

scale, a global ENSO forecast could enhance agricultural and water resources

and other economic and social response planning, increasing society’s

ability to mitigate economic losses and social disruption. 

Specific actions that we will take to implement this strategy include:

■ Implementing climate prediction systems to deliver useful seasonal-tointerannual climate forecasts for the United States, and collaborating in a

multinational effort to generate and use similar forecasts.

■ Enhancing the global observing and data systems required to provide

data for the initialization and validation of model predictions of seasonal-to-interannual climate variations.

■ Investing in new processes and modeling research to improve the

predictability of temperature and rainfall distribution.

■ Assessing the impact of climate variability on human activity and economic

potential, and improving public education so that climate forecasts are

better understood and acted upon.

NOAA Performance Measures

Provide Seasonal-to-Interannual

Climate Forecasts

Accuracy of El Niño Southern

Oscillation (ENSO) forecasts

Skill score of U.S.

temperature forecasts

New and improved data sets

developed and produced

(cumulative per year)

Percentage of Global

Ocean–Atmosphere–Land

System (GOALS) experiment

implemented

Satellite view of El Nino/La Nina
Performance Goal: Predict and Assess Decadal-to-Centennial

Change

Decadal-to-centennial global projections are critical in forming decisions

that may need to be addressed decades ahead of predicted changes in

ozone layer depletion, air quality, and climate. More effectively anticipating the natural and human-influenced environmental changes of the

approaching decades means that policy and economic decisions, trade,

lifestyles, and other dimensions of our lives could be better adapted to

the environment of the future. In one notable example, signatories to the

Montreal Protocol have now committed themselves to eliminating the

production of compounds that deplete the ozone layer. Researchers are

investigating safe replacement compounds, monitoring declining atmospheric levels of ozone-depleting substances, and observing the gradual

recovery of the ozone layer. NOAA research has further identified problems, such as localized high concentrations of surface ozone in rural

areas that will require further investigation to determine their causes. 

The cornerstones of good environmental stewardship include the provision of research results that address key scientific uncertainties, the timely

dissemination of these results, and the summation of the results for government and industrial leaders in policy-relevant terms. 

Specific actions that we will take to implement this strategy include:

■ Characterizing the agents and processes that force decadal-to-centennial climate change.

■ Understanding the role of the ocean as a reservoir of both heat and

carbon dioxide in order to address a major source of uncertainty in

climate models.

■ Ensuring a long-term climate record by enhancing domestic and international weather networks, observation procedures, and information

management systems. 

■ Documenting present and past changes and variations in climate to

include extreme events and rapid climate changes, by exploiting

information from national and international observing networks and

satellites and by using paleoclimatic data.

■ Guiding the rehabilitation of the ozone layer by providing a scientific

basis for policy decisions regarding ozone-depleting compounds and

their replacements.

■ Providing the scientific basis for better air quality by improving the

understanding of high surface ozone episodes in rural areas; by

strengthening the monitoring network to detect cleaner air; and by

improving the characterization of fine airborne particles.

■ Developing models for the prediction of long-term climate change,

including extreme events and rapid climate changes; performing scientific assessments; and providing information about the human

influence on climate change.

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NOAA Performance Measures

Predict and Assess Decadal-toCentennial Change

Publish updated trend results of

air quality measurements

Lead development of a peerreviewed initial assessment of

regional ozone in North

America, including

summarizing results 

for customers

Results of research activities

cited in 2001 IPCC third

assessment of 

climate change

Monitoring the ozone hole at the

Amundsen-Scott South Pole Station
Performance Goal: Promote Safe Navigation

New technology, including full-bottom nautical surveys, digital charting,

the Global Positioning System (GPS), and real-time observations of tides

and currents, promises to reduce maritime transportation risks, enhance

environmental protection, and heighten the competitiveness of the U.S.

shipping industry. Each additional inch of clearance for a deep-draft container ship, for example, can translate into tens of thousands of dollars

worth of additional cargo. New technologies will result in more thorough

and more accurate surveys of the ocean floor, and will tell the mariner

the ship’s precise position relative to charted obstacles as well as its

depth and underkeel clearance. These technologies also will support the

needs of coastal zone planners, regulatory officials, and researchers as

they work to ensure the safe, sustainable, and efficient development of

our coastal and ocean resources. 

Specific actions that we will take to implement this strategy include:

■ Updating nautical surveys of U.S. coastal areas using full-bottom coverage technologies.

■ Defining the national shoreline in an accurate and consistent manner

using state-of-the-art technology, to serve U.S. navigational and

coastal managers. 

■ Providing mariners with real-time observations of water levels, tides

and currents, and weather conditions in ports.

■ Building, maintaining, and delivering a digital nautical charting database to underpin new electronic navigation systems that use satellite

positioning, tidal heights and currents, radar and sonar, and navigational aids.

■ Continuing to develop the National Spatial Reference System to anticipate and fulfill the growing demand for the more accurate and timely

positioning services that are critical to digital mapping, charting, and

surveying.

External factors beyond NOAA’s control that could 

significantly affect the achievement of goals and

objectives:

■ Improving our understanding of the natural environment

requires advanced infrastructure and therefore a continuous investment in new technology such as supercomputers and environmental satellites. 

■ We rely on our partners in the media, the private sector,

and the state and local emergency management community to disseminate weather warnings.

U.S. Department of

Commerce

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NOAA Performance Measures

Promote Safe Navigation

Percentage reduction of

critical area survey backlog

(cumulative reduction)

Percentage completed of

National Spatial Reference

System (cumulative complete)

NOAA hydrographic survey vessel,

homeport, Norfolk, VA 
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Objective: Promote Efficient and Effective Resources Management

Performance Goal A: Acquire and Manage the Fiscal and 

Related Resources Necessary to Support 

Program Goals 

Performance Goal B: Acquire, Manage, and Develop 

a Diverse, Skilled, and Flexible Staff,

Using Information Technology as an 

Essential Tool 

Performance Goal C: Acquire and Manage the Technology 

and Related Resources to Support 

Program Goals

This second Department of Commerce Strategic Plan reflects significant

progress on a number of issues since the initial Plan was issued: 

■ In the financial management area, as a Department, we received

clean opinions for FY 1999 on all of our financial statements, and we

reduced by two-thirds our Material Weaknesses and Reportable

Conditions over the three-year period from FY 1996 through FY 1999.

We are compliant with the requirements of the CFO Act. We are in

the process of implementing an integrated financial system in compliance with the Federal Managers’ Financial Integrity Act (FMFIA). 

■ We have realigned our information technology resources to maximize

our return on investment, and have brought in Chief Information

Officers (CIOs) for the Department and its bureaus. We attained full

Y2K compliance before the critical date. 

■ We have improved accountability within our security functions by

developing a new system that allows for tracking documents more

closely, and we have reduced the number of staff security clearances

by 40 percent. 

■ We continue to improve, through effective contracting strategies, the

ability of our acquisition personnel to meet the Department’s program objectives. We have also implemented initiatives to strengthen

our Small Business Program and to enhance prime and subcontracting opportunities for small, businesses owned by minorities, women,

and people with disabilities.

■ We are developing the fiscal and related resources necessary to manage human capital as a strategic asset. We need to ensure the continuity of leadership and professional staff at a time when “baby

boomer” leadership and professional staff are retiring at accelerating

rates. These fiscal and related resources will be used to more effectively and efficiently recruit talent, develop, and retain diverse and

skilled leaders and professional staff within the Department. In a

robust economy, these fiscal and related resources are critical to

establishing effective and efficient resource management programs

within the Department.

Mangement Integration Goal:

Strengthen Management at All Levels
■ We recognize that the make-up of our nation is changing at the same

time as new trading nations are emerging and global competition is

rapidly evolving. In the near future, it is projected that minorities will

soon become the majority in the U.S. workforce. More than half of

global commercial Internet sites are not in English, and the proportion

of non-English sites is projected to increase. In response to these

facts, the Department of Commerce is exploring ways to develop the

diversity of skills and roles that it will need in the future. Special consideration will be given to fiscal (and related resources) planning to

support each Departmental agency and bureau as it competes for

and develops new talent in what has become an increasingly aggressive climate of public and private sector demand for skilled workers. 

These concerns are used as focal points in this portion of the

Department’s strategic plan, and provide the objectives supporting the

drive toward our goal of strengthening management.

Performance Goal A: Acquire and Manage the Fiscal and Related

Resources Necessary to Support Program Goals

The purpose of this strategy is to ensure that the Department of

Commerce does business as successfully as possible with the public and

with its partner agencies, both as a $5 billion, worldwide enterprise and

as an integrated set of individual programs. This clearly includes an ambitious range of activities:

■ Ensure that we include a clear customer service strategy in our programs and that we achieve excellence in customer satisfaction.

■ Ensure that we adopt and use effective financial controls to manage

resources according to best practice standards.

■ Ensure that resources are used in accordance with the laws governing

the Department’s mission and that they are protected from fraud,

waste, and mismanagement.

■ Use government-wide acquisition performance measures and technology to improve the quality and effectiveness of the Department’s

acquisition workforce.

■ Manage facilities efficiently and reduce energy consumption.

■ Ensure security for Department visitors, staff, facilities, resources, and

information.

■ Use an integrated budget, acquisition, and information technology

planning process to increase the proportion of small, businesses

owned by minorities, women, and people with disabilities in the

Department’s acquisitions.

■ Use an integrated budget, human resource acquisition and development, and information technology planning process to enhance the

Department’s diversity standards and to meet Departmental goals of

increasing the proportion of minority and physically challenged professional staff and leaders during a period of anticipated internal staff

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Management Performance

Measures

Financial Management

Maintain 100 percent funds 

covered by clean audits

Energy and Space Usage

Reduce energy costs per 

square foot

Security Profile

Provide more information and 

staff protected from risk/disaster

Grants and Contracts

Increase grants and contracts to 

Minority Serving Institutions

Increase use of credit card 

purchasing

Increase contract dollars 

awarded to small, minorityowned, and women-owned 

firms

Customer Satisfaction

Increase the number of 

customers responding "fully 

satisfied" in our surveys
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turnover. This process will include obtaining the necessary fiscal and

related resources for improved diversity data collection and reporting

on the provision of program services and on hiring and recruitment

within the Department.

■ Ensure that grants and contracts are awarded in ways that are 

consistent with best practice standards, including those of diversity.

External factors beyond Department of Commerce control 

that could significantly affect the achievement of goals 

and objectives:

■ Customers of the Department are diverse and often have a broad

array of needs and expectations that cannot be adequately addressed

by a universal approach.

■ A rapidly changing economy and technology advances present special challenges to small companies.

■ Continually increasing demands for greater productivity and more

services, against a backdrop of limited federal funds.

■ An aging physical plant, which requires modernization in order to

meet our technical and scientific demands as well as to ensure the

safety of our staff, information, and customers.

Performance Goal B: Acquire, Manage, and Develop a Diverse,

Skilled, and Flexible Staff, Using Information Technology as 

an Essential Tool

In the near future, and certainly within the period covered by this

Strategic Plan, the Department of Commerce and other federal agencies

will face a very real and far-reaching change in the composition of their

workforce, as members of the post-World War II baby boom generation

begin to retire: fully 67 percent of the Department’s Senior Executive

Service staff and 26 percent of its general workforce will be eligible for

retirement during this period. This will clearly produce an unprecedented

human capital drain on our institutional memory, on our capacity to provide mature leadership to the next generation of Department employees,

and thus on our capacity to serve the public and meet our customers’

needs. We must ensure that the Department continues to reflect the

diversity of the American population and increasing global competitiveness and partnering. 

Management Performance

Measures

Planning and Innovation

Increase effectiveness of HR

transaction delivery strategy and

system

Increase capacity for data

analysis, simulation, modeling,

job design, and competency

development

Increase the number of

management reports available

to support decision-making and

resources allocation 

Increase development of

innovative approaches to hiring
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We must recruit, develop, retain, and promote professionals who have

the skills to move our programs ahead and who are fully representative

of a changing America. We must make the best use of information technology to enable quick and effective hiring, to take advantage of online

venues, and to identify and act on emerging trends in the employment

arena. 

These are the actions that we will undertake:

■ Develop innovative hiring approaches, within statutory and regulatory parameters.

■ Nurture relationships with universities and other learning organizations, including those with diverse student populations, as part of a

comprehensive recruitment plan.

■ Partner with universities and other learning organizations to develop

Department-specific curricula.

■ Identify and develop high-potential employees at all levels. 

■ Strengthen leadership capabilities through systematic development

and mobility.

■ Develop employee-oriented programs to enhance the workplace culture and increase the retention of employees working collaboratively

with employee organizations.

■ Identify diversity underrepresentation in critical professional series to

help target recruitment and retention priorities.

■ Use a systems approach to information technology.

External Factors beyond Department of Commerce control that could

significantly affect the achievement of goals and objectives:

■ A large portion of the workforce approaching retirement age.

■ The growing technological orientation of our work means we are

increasing our engagement in a highly competitive marketplace for

individuals with skills in science, technology, and related fields.

■ Increasing diversity in the American workforce.

■ Need to attract new workers to the public sector, which has been portrayed as unattractive and lacking the flexibility sought by new professionals.

Much of our work involves collaboration across bureaus and with federal,

state, and local governments. Department employees are to be encouraged and rewarded for actively participating in activities that we can

influence, even though these activities are often beyond our direct control. These crosscutting activities involve collaboration and risk and need

to be acknowledged and rewarded (see Appendix A).

Management Performance

Measures

Workforce Replacement and Intake

Increase the information

available to organizations by

which they can measure the

hiring and retention of their

human capital

Increase recruitment

opportunities through

partnerships with learning

organizations, including those

with diverse student populations

Management Performance

Measures

Organizational Culture and

Work/Life Support

Increase capacity for analysis of 

organizational cultures

Increase motivational value of

performance management

system, including incentives

Increase application of

employee-oriented programs to

enhance workplace culture and 

employee satisfaction

Increase number and scope of

developmental programs to

meet individual and

organizational needs
Performance Goal C: Acquire and Manage the Technology

Resources to Support Program Goals

The purpose of this strategy is to ensure that the effective use of information technology and other forms of technology receive prominent attention in this strategic plan.

These are the actions that we will undertake:

■ Ensure efficient and customer-friendly use of information technology

(IT) resources, and ensure the increasing integration of IT applications

in program management and service delivery.

■ Ensure that the Department’s IT laboratory and related resources continue to make major technological advances.

■ Resolve information security weaknesses.

External factors beyond Department of Commerce control that could

significantly affect the achievement of goals and objectives:

■ The rapidly changing information technology environment, including

changes in hardware, software, applications, Internet use, and the

user community.

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Management Performance

Measures

Telecommunications Use

Increase the amount of goods 

and services provided via 

electronic means

Increase the acquisition and 

application of shared 

technology (e.g., fiber-optic 

backbones)

Technology Grants

Increase the economic 

contribution of grants

Federal Policy Leadership

Increase the number of 

government-wide technology 

policy leadership functions by 

the Secretary 

Customer Satisfaction

Increase the number of 

customer surveys, and the 

number of customers 

responding "fully satisfied" in 

those surveys
Management Challenges

The Department of Commerce faces a number of key challenges. We

view the following as among the most significant, for their importance to

our mission or to the nation’s well-being; for their complexity; for their

cost; or for the urgency of their need for management improvements:

Improving the Nation’s Statistical Infrastructure

Spearheaded by the Bureau of Economic Analysis (BEA), this plan aims to

improve the quality and timeliness of the information we deliver to businesses and policymakers and to provide an accurate measure of the

effect of technology on the economy.

Implementation of the Commerce Administrative Management

System

Implementation of the Federal Managers Financial Integrity Act (FMFIA) is

critical as we seek to achieve full FMFIA compliance and to realize our

goal of a single integrated financial management system capable of providing timely, complete, and reliable information. We have made much

progress in this endeavor, but full implementation is proving to be a challenge as we are continually required to revise our strategies and timetables.

Financial Stability of the National Technical Information Service

To ensure continued fulfillment of the National Technical Information

Service (NTIS) vital role in information collection and dissemination and

the agencies continued financial stability, the Department will review the

findings of the General Accounting Office and the National Commission

on Libraries and Information Sciences and determine the best course of

action for the NTIS over the next five years.

Government Performance and Results Act

Although we made much progress toward GPRA compliance in FY 2000,

much more remains to be done in this evolving process. Specifically, we

are strengthening our data validation and verification processes to ensure

that performance information is based on reliable and accurate data. We

are developing an automated system for tracking performance measures.

The system will provide a management tool for Departmental bureaus

and the Office of Secretary to use in tracking bureau performance, and an

information-handling device that will greatly streamline the production of

the Annual Performance Plan and Annual Program Performance Report.

The system will be Internet-based, so that it can be accessed easily. 

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Valuing the Dynamics of Diversity

The Department plans to continue its efforts to champion diversity, both

within the Department and in serving its customers. Plans relating to this

effort include building capacity through continuing partnerships with institutions that serve minority groups, promoting and making use of welfareto-work programs, pursuing an Hispanic employment initiative, working

collaboratively with employee organizations, supporting the individual

development planning process as a tool for building personal skills and

fostering organizational development and flexibility, developing a

Department-wide mid-level management development program and

maintaining and improving the current SES candidate development program, and improving our Department Diversity Council.

USPTO Challenges: Space Requirements and Financing

On June 1, 2000, the U.S. General Services Administration (GSA) signed a

lease award to LCOR Alexandria, L.L.C. for the U.S. Patent and Trademark

Office (USPTO) space consolidation project. GSA awarded the lease after

U.S. District Court Judge Sullivan dismissed a lawsuit filed by The Charles

E. Smith Companies and three Alexandria citizens alleging that GSA had

failed to comply with the National Environmental Policy Act in selecting

USPTO’s new location. As a result of the lease signing, occupancy of the

new headquarters in Alexandria is now scheduled to begin in late 2003,

with all employees expected to be relocated by 2004. GSA and USPTO

are working with LCOR to establish the project development schedule,

which includes a groundbreaking ceremony anticipated to occur during

the latter part of 2000.

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Appendix A:

Crosscutting Activities (by Strategic

Goal, Objective, and Performance Goal

by Bureau) between the Department of

Commerce and Other Federal Agencies

Strategic Goal 1: Provide the Information and the Framework to

Enable the Economy to Operate Efficiently and Equitably

Objective 1.1: Provide the Infrastructure to Enable the Participation of

All Americans in the New Economy

Performance Goal: Promote competition within the telecommunications

sector and promote universal access to telecommunications services for

all Americans (NTIA)

National Telecommunications and Information Administration

(NTIA) Crosscutting Activities

Intra-DOC

The National Telecommunications and Information Administration (NTIA)

supports the Secretary of Commerce in a broad range of policy issues.

NTIA works with the International Trade Administration on international

trade promotion activities.

Other Government Agencies

NTIA coordinates with the White House, including the Office of the Vice

President, and participates in working groups with other federal agencies

on issues that cross jurisdictional boundaries.

Performance Goal: Promote exports by small and medium-sized enterprises (ITA)

Performance Goal: Increase U.S. exports by implementing the National

Export Strategy through government-wide coordination of trade promotion and trade finance programs (ITA)

International Trade Administration (ITA) Crosscutting Activities 

Intra-DOC

The International Trade Administration (ITA) works with the following

Department of Commerce agencies on crosscutting activities:

■ The National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST), to (1)

coordinate technology commercialization efforts with the

Manufacturing Extension Program; (2) coordinate efforts to help small

business exporters export new technology and to execute a cooperative agreement to provide standards attaches; and (3) coordinate elements of the environmental technologies export initiative with NIST’s

technology development and commercialization programs.
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■ The Minority Business Development Agency, to craft and implement the Urban Export Initiative for minority-owned businesses.

■ The Office of the General Counsel, on guidance for interpreting

existing agreements, defining the rights of U.S. firms and workers

under U.S. and international trade law, and in negotiating future bilateral and multilateral agreements.

■ The Census Bureau, to fund reimbursable agreements to produce

customized statistics and to collaborate on the development of

methodologies to generate data on services exports.

■ The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, to coordinate elements of the Environmental Technologies Initiative with

NOAA’s environmental programs.

Other Government Agencies

ITA works with the following non-Department of Commerce government

agencies on crosscutting activities:

■ The Small Business Administration (SBA), sharing clients to provide

complementary counseling services.

■ The Export–Import Bank, sharing clients and providing complementary counseling services.

■ State/Local Government Agencies, sharing clients and providing

complementary counseling services.

■ Local Chambers of Commerce, sharing clients and providing complementary counseling services.

■ The Department of Energy. The DOE provides industry expertise for

U.S. and Foreign Commercial Service (US&FCS) trade events.

■ The Department of Defense/U.S. Air Force. The Air Force provides

industry expertise for ITA trade events involving aircraft sales (e.g., the

Paris Air Show).

■ The Department of Transportation. DOT provides industry expertise

for US&FCS trade events.

■ The Department of Education. The Department of Education provides industry expertise for US&FCS trade events.

■ The Department of State. The Department of State’s Economic

Officers assist with market research projects in countries where

US&FCS does not maintain staff.

■ The Department of Agriculture (USDA). USDA provides grant assistance for US&FCS export counseling in rural areas.

■ The Bureau of Indian Affairs. BIA provides industry expertise for ITA

tourism development efforts.
■ The U.S. Agency for International Development (USAID). USAID

provides grant assistance for various overseas projects, such as the

American Business Centers in Russia.

■ The Trade Promotion Coordinating Committee (TPCC). ITA coordinates implementation of the Environmental Technologies Initiative

with the Environmental Trade Working Group of the TPCC.

■ The U.S. Trade Representative (USTR). In support of the USTR, ITA

monitors and reports on foreign developments affecting the formulation of U.S. trade policy.

Performance Goal: Support job creation and private enterprise in economically distressed communities. (EDA)

Performance Goal: Build local capacity to achieve and sustain economic

growth. (EDA)

Economic Development Administration (EDA) Crosscutting Activities 

Intra-DOC

The Economic Development Administration (EDA) works with the following Department of Commerce agencies on crosscutting activities:

■ The Technology Administration / National Institute of Standards

and TechnologyTA/NIST, on technology policy and the

Manufacturing Extension Partnership (MEP).

■ The National Telecommunications and Information

Administration, on telecommunications and information infrastructure grants.

■ The Minority Business Development Agency, on business assistance services.

■ The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, on natural

disaster reduction, sustainable development, and recovery from natural resource depletion.

Other Government Agencies

EDA works with the following non-Department of Commerce government

agencies on economic development:

■ U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) Rural Development/Rural

Utilities Service (RD/RUS), on community facilities and intermediary

lending programs and supplemental funding for projects in distressed

rural areas.

■ U.S. Department of Transportation Federal Highways

Administration (FHA) and the Federal Aviation Administration

(FAA), to coordinate development projects in close proximity to federal highways and FAA-controlled airports.

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■ Appalachian Regional Commission (ARC), on community economic

development in the 13-state ARC service area.

■ Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA), disaster

response, recovery and mitigation.

EDA works with the following government agency on environmental

issues:

■ Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), on brownfields redevelopment and air quality. EDA was the first agency to partner with EPA on

brownfields redevelopment.

■ Department of Defense (DOD), defense adjustment and base reuse.

Performance Goal: Improve opportunities for minority-owned businesses

to have access to the marketplace. (MBDA)

Performance Goal: Improve opportunities for minority-owned businesses

to pursue financing (MBDA)

Minority Business Development Administration 

(MBDA) Crosscutting Activities 

Intra-DOC

The Minority Business Development Agency (MBDA) works with the following Department of Commerce agencies on crosscutting activities:

■ The International Trade Administration, to ensure that minorityowned businesses are included in Department trade missions and

other international trade opportunities, and that they have access to

the M&TA services of the Export Assistance Centers. 

■ The National Institute of Standards and Technology and the

National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, to include

minority-owned businesses in programs involving new and emerging

technology such as aquaculture and manufacturing technology, and

to ensure that they have access to the M&TA services of the

Manufacturing Extension Program Centers. 

■ The Census Bureau, to expand annual surveys of minority-owned

businesses and to conduct research on the emerging minority marketplace in order to provide market information about this fastestgrowing consumer segment.

■ The Economic Development Administration, to move minorityowned businesses into its high-technology business incubators. 

Other Government Agencies

MBDA works with the following non-Department of Commerce government agencies on crosscutting activities: 

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■ The Small Business Administration, to assure that minority-owned

small businesses benefit from the management and technical assistance services already offered by MBDA to other businesses.

■ The Export-Import Bank, to ensure that minority-owned businesses

have access to export financing and export markets.

■ The U.S. Agency for International Development, on referral of trade

opportunities to ensure that minority businesses have access to

export markets.

Objective 1.2: Promote Responsible Economic Growth and Trade

while Protecting American Security

Performance Goal: By use of a dual-use export control system that continuously is refined to respond to changing requirements, transactions that

are contrary to U.S. security interests are deterred and transactions without proliferation potential are facilitated (BXA)

Performance Goal: The United States is in full compliance with the

Chemical Weapons Convention (CWC) and all confidential business information of U.S. companies subject to inspection under the CWC is effectively protected (BXA)

Performance Goal: The U.S. defense industrial base is healthy and competitive (BXA)

Performance Goal: Violations of dual-use export control laws are identified and violators are sanctioned (BXA)

Performance Goal: Export controls of key nations are strong and effective

(BXA)

Performance Goal: The nation’s various independent and interdependent

infrastructure components are secured in accord with an integrated plan

(BXA)

Bureau of Export Administration (BXA) Crosscutting Activities 

Intra-DOC

■ The Bureau of Export Administration (BXA) works with the Chief

Counsel for Export Administration on administrative cases developed

by BXA’s Export Enforcement unit including its Office of Antiboycott

Compliance.

■ BXA works closely with the International Trade Administration, and all

other Departmental units with a relevant interest, to ensure the thorough review of all Committee on Foreign Investment in the United

States (CFIUS) cases as well as coordinate CFIUS issues.

■ BXA works with the International Trade Administration’s U.S. and

Foreign Commercial Service offices located around the world to coordinate work associated with planning and conducting export control

seminars and conducting pre- and post- shipment export license

reviews. 

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■ BXA has a full time Export Administration Specialist dedicated to

working in the Commerce Public Information Office located in the

Reagan International Trade Center. The Specialist operates as an

export counselor providing information in response to walk-in or telephone inquiries. BXA is one of eight Commerce agencies represented

in the Reagan International Trade Center.

■ BXA works with the Census Bureau on seminars and data sharing.

■ BXA coordinates with the Bureau of the Census to ensure the quality

of shared Shipper’s Export Declaration (SED) data. BXA is also working closely with Census on the Automated Export System, a joint venture with other U.S. Government agencies, which allows SED data to

be submitted electronically by the exporter. 

■ BXA works with the National Telecommunications and Information

Administration (NTIA) to assist NTIA in its capacity as lead agency for

the Information and Communication sector of the national infrastructure.

■ BXA works with the Departmental Chief Information Office in activities relating to determining the dependencies and interdependencies

of systems within other Federal agencies.

■ The International Trade Administration, including its U.S. and Foreign

Commercial Service, and the Chief Counsel for Export Administration

make invaluable contributions of their expertise, knowledge, and abilities to the BXA’s program to assist key nations to establish strong,

effective export controls.

Other Government Agencies

The international export control system represents the integration of the

interests of several distinct interest groups. Each makes a unique contribution to the system. The groups are:

■ Governments of nations that administer and enforce internationally

agreed-upon standards.

■ Industries of nations that produce items and technologies requiring

control.

■ Multilateral control regimes that establish the standards and norms

implemented by individual nations.

■ Various nongovernment and academic organizations of individual

nations.

■ The Departments of State, Defense, Energy, Treasury, and Justice:

BXA works with these Executive branch organizations to develop and

implement U.S. export control policy and programs, including developing encryption policy, high performance computer control policy,

implementing sanctions, and participating in multilateral regimes such

as the Missile Technology Control Regime, CWC and Wassenaar

Arrangement. BXA also coordinates intelligence and enforcement

operations with these agencies.

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■ The U.S. Customs Service and the Nonproliferation Center: BXA

coordinates with these agencies on export control cooperation technical exchanges and activities with other nations. .

■ The Departments of State, Defense, Energy , Justice, and U.S.

Customs, and the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI): BXA works

with these agencies to coordinate assessment of the international

export control system and to prioritize, design, and fund programs in

which interagency resources are focused on specific national and

regional issues.

■ The U.S. Customs Service, FBI, Postal Service, the Departments of

Justice and State, and the Intelligence Community: BXA works

with these agencies on matters involving law enforcement cooperation, development of leads, intelligence coordination, implementation

of export control policy, and coordination regarding issues such as

export license investigations and fastener quality. Field offices and

headquarters participate in interagency working groups with the FBI

and the Postal Service, and BXA shares data with the Customs Service

via the Treasury Enforcement Computer System (TEC).

■ The Department of Energy (DOE): BXA participates in an interagency review of foreign participation in DOE-sponsored Research and

Development Agreements. DOE is partnered with BXA in promoting

the reuse of surplus manufacturing equipment at former U.S. military

bases.

■ The Departments of Labor, State, and Treasury, and the U.S. Trade

Representative (USTR): Representatives from these departments

participate in an interagency group chaired by BXA which prepares

the annual report, Offsets in Defense Trade, for Congress.

■ The Department of Defense (DOD): BXA works closely with DOD in

providing support for U.S. industry competing for international

defense procurement opportunities. 

■ The Department of State: BXA participates in the State-chaired

Conventional Arms Transfer Committee and co-chairs the Market

Impact Committee, an interagency advisory committee to the Defense

Department’s Material Defense Stockpile.

■ The U.S. Trade Representative (USTR): BXA is part of a USTR-led

interagency team that is developing and implementing the

U.S.–European Union Transatlantic Economic Partnership.

■ BXA monitors certain forms of technology transfer as part of its overall responsibilities for the defense industrial base. Among these

responsibilities are participating in the Treasury Department-chaired

Committee on Foreign Investment in the United States (CFIUS).

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■ BXA operates as, in effect, an inter-agency planning office to support

the National Security Council in coordinating U.S. Government programs

designed to protect the Nation’s critical infrastructures.

■ Through the Federal Critical Infrastructure Coordinating Group, BXA provides the central focal point for all agencies engaged in developing a

national plan for protecting the Nation’s critical and interdependent

infrastructures.

■ Through various Memoranda of Agreement and assignment of detailees

from other agencies, BXA is working with various Federal agencies (e.g.,

the Departments of Treasury, Health and Human Services, Energy, and the Social

Security Administration) to identify the dependencies and interdependencies

within and among their internal critical modes.

■ Through ongoing interactions with the FBI’s National Infrastructure

Protection Center (NIPC), GSA’s FedCIRC program, and efforts elsewhere

in the government, BXA is coordinating its role with those of other

agencies. Generally, BXA provides a focus for inter-agency planning;

other entities have a variety of operational responsibilities in preventing, responding to, or managing the consequences of critical infrastructure protection-related attacks.

Government/Private Sector

■ Through its partnerships with the U.S. Chamber of Commerce, the

Institute of Internal Auditors (IIA), and other professional groups, BXA

is engaged with the private sector to strengthen and solidify their

involvement in developing, and subsequently implementing, the

National Critical Infrastructure Protection Plan.

■ Through various state bar associations, BXA is working to engage the

legal community in assessing the legal ramifications of infrastructure

vulnerabilities and protections.

■ Through a Joint Project Agreement with James Madison University,

BXA supported the National Colloquium for Information Systems

Security Education (NCISSE) to encourage educational institutions to

incorporate appropriate information systems security courses in their

curricula. BXA has also worked extensively with the Chief Information

Officers Council, Office of Personnel Management and other agencies to

promote better security practices.

■ BXA consults with the President’s Export Council Subcommittee on

Export Administration (PECSEA), a senior level advisory committee

whose members are appointed by the Secretary of Commerce to

advise the U.S. Government on matters and issues pertinent to implementation of the provisions of the Export Administration Act (EAA)

and the Export Administration Regulations (EAR), as amended, and

related statutes and regulations. These issues relate to U.S. export

controls as mandated by law for national security, foreign policy,

non-proliferation, and short supply reasons.

■ BXA consults with the President’s Export Council Subcommittee on

Encryption (PECSENC), a senior level advisory committee whose members are appointed by the Secretary of Commerce to advise the U.S.

Government on matters pertinent to United States policies regarding

commercial encryption products.

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■ Technical Advisory Committees (TAC) are mandated by the Export

Administration Act (EAA to advise the Department of Commerce and

other agencies on technical issues related to export control regulations and policy.

Performance Goal: Minimize the effects of crises by preparing the U.S.

telecommunications and information infrastructure to operate under

extreme conditions (NTIA)

Performance Goal: Ensure allocation of radio spectrum—a scarce natural

resource essential to all communications—provides the greatest benefit to

all people (NTIA)

Performance Goal: Improve American competitiveness and access to foreign markets by enforcing compliance with U.S. trade laws and agreements (ITA)

International Trade Administration (ITA) Crosscutting Activities 

Intra-DOC

■ The International Trade Administration (ITA) works with the Office of

the General Counsel on guidance for interpretation of existing agreements, defining the rights of U.S. firms and workers under U.S. and

international trade law, and in negotiations for future bilateral/multilateral agreements.

Other Government Agencies

ITA works with the following non-Department of Commerce agencies on

crosscutting activities:

■ The U.S. Trade Representative (USTR): ITA works with the USTR to

develop strategies for solving market access disputes, and participates

with USTR in major trade negotiations. ITA and the USTR jointly

administer the Industry Consultations program, consisting of 20 trade

advisory committees, which provides input to the government on

trade policy issues. The Import Administration (IA) works closely with

U.S. industry to analyze potential subsidy practices that might violate

the subsidies agreement of the Uruguay Round Agreement Act of

1994 (URAA) and cause harm to U.S. industry. Based upon this analysis, IA prepares a recommendation that the USTR take action before

the World Trade Organization (WTO). IA and the USTR issue a joint

annual report to Congress on their subsidies enforcement activities.

Market Access and Compliance (MAC) also supports trade policy initiatives initiated by the USTR, frequently providing the bulk of the analysis, expertise, and staff support needed to achieve negotiating objectives.

■ The International Trade Commission (ITC): In an antidumping (AD)

or countervailing duty (CVD) case, IA conducts the investigation and

ITC concurrently conducts the industry injury investigation. If both IA’s

and ITC’s investigations result in affirmative determinations, then IA

issues an AD/CVD order to the U.S. Customs Service, which results in

a tariff rate adjustment. 

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■ The U.S. Customs Service: Because the AD/CVD law requires collection of offsetting duties at the time merchandise enters the country,

IA communicates regularly with Customs to ensure the prompt and

accurate implementation of IA’s decisions. Customs then collects cash

deposits and final duty assessments. IA responds to inquiries from

Customs headquarters and port offices regarding the scope and

potential evasion of AD/CVD orders, as well as other enforcement

concerns.

■ The Department of the Treasury: IA works closely with Treasury to

monitor subsidy-related commitments contained in International

Monetary Fund (IMF) stabilization packages.

■ The Department of State: In AD/CVD proceedings, IA verifies information provided by foreign governments and companies in those

countries. IA works closely with the Department of State to obtain

country clearances, arrange meetings, and make necessary trip

arrangements. In addition, IA works with State to obtain pertinent

information on subsidy enforcement issues. MAC works on a daily

basis with the State Department, U.S. embassies abroad—including

State Department Economic Officers—and U.S. and Foreign

Commercial officers to implement strategies for removal of foreign

trade barriers to U.S. exports.

■ The Department of Justice: IA, in conjunction with the Office of the

General Counsel, works with the Department of Justice’s attorneys on

pending AD/CVD litigation before the Court of International Trade

and the Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit.

Government/Private Sector

The President’s Export Council, chaired by the Secretary of Commerce,

advises the President on trade policy issues. Its membership includes 28

CEOs of private sector companies, senior officials of eight federal agencies (Commerce, State, Treasury, Labor, Agriculture, Small Business

Administration, Export-Import Bank, and USTR) and 10 Congressional representatives.

Objective 1.3: Support Effective Decision-Making of Policymakers,

Businesses, and the American public

Performance Goal: Develop relevant, timely, and accurate national and

community economic and household statistics for decision-making (ESA)

Performance Goal: Define, through consultations, policy assessment, planning, research, experiments, and evaluations, the plan for the 2010

Census (ESA)

Bureau of Economic Analysis (BEA) and Census Bureau Crosscutting

Activities

Other Government Agencies

The Bureau of Economic Analysis (BEA) and Census Bureau work with 

the following government agencies on crosscutting activities:

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■ The Census Bureau, the Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS), and the

Internal Revenue Service (IRS): BEA works closely with its source

data agencies, including Census, BLS, and the IRS, to make them

aware of BEA’s data needs and to encourage their cooperation in

meeting those needs. In addition, BEA obtains source data from most

government agencies that produce statistics.

■ The Interagency Council on Statistical Policy: Under the auspices of

the Office of Management and Budget, BEA and Census are major

participants in the Interagency Council on Statistical Policy, which

works to improve the collaborative activities of federal statistical

agencies. Activities of the council have led to standardization of data

and concepts, transfers of technology, methodology exchange, collaborative research, process improvement, improved customer service,

reduced respondent burden, and infrastructure sharing.

■ The Census Bureau and the Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS):

Scheduling of BEA’s releases is based on the availability of source

data provided by other agencies, including the Census Bureau and

BLS.

■ Additionally, Census participates in numerous nonstatistical federal

agency activities, such as being a data supplier, a survey collection

resource, and an advisory and research resource.

Performance Goal: Build local capacity to achieve and sustain economic

growth. (EDA)

Economic Development Administration (EDA) Crosscutting Activities

Intra-DOC

The Economic Development Administration (EDA) works with the following Department of Commerce agencies on crosscutting activities:

■ The Technology Administration / National Institute of Standards

and Technology (TA/NIST), on the Manufacturing Extension

Partnership (MEP).

■ The National Oceanic and Atmosphere Administration (NOAA), on

coordination and planning for natural disaster reduction; sustainable

development, and recovery from natural resource depletion.

■ The Minority Business Development Agency (MBDA), on Business

Assistance Centers and minority-serving institutions. 

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Other Government Agencies

EDA works with the following non-Department of Commerce agencies on

crosscutting activities:

■ The Appalachian Regional Commission (ARC), on economic development planning in the 13-state ARC service area.

■ Indian and Alaskan Native Village Economic Development (the

White House Conference on Building Economic Self-Determination in

Indian Communities): EDA will work with other departments to study

the technology infrastructure needs of Indian communities and to

develop a strategic plan for coordinating economic development

activities for Native American and Alaska Native communities.

Strategic Goal 2: Provide Infrastructure for Innovation to Enhance

American Competitiveness

Objective 2.1: Provide Infrastructural Tools and Capabilities That

Improve the Productivity, Quality, and Efficiency of Research and

Innovation Processes

Performance Goal: Promote technology-based growth through partnerships with industry (US/OTP)

Technology Administration (TA) Crosscutting Activities

Other Government Agencies 

Through the Committee on Technology of the President’s National

Science and Technology Council, the Under Secretary helps to establish

clear national goals for federal science and technology investments and

to ensure that federal civilian research and development (R&D) priorities

reflect the requirements of industry customers. The committee currently is

coordinating several major Administration R&D initiatives in materials,

construction and building, manufacturing infrastructure, electronics, and

automotive technologies.

Performance Goal: Provide technical leadership for the nation’s measurement and standards infrastructure and ensure the availability of essential

reference data and measurement capabilities (NIST: Measurement and

Standards Laboratories)

NIST Measurement and Standards Laboratories Crosscutting

Activities

Intra-DOC

The NIST Measurement and Standards Laboratories work with other

Department of Commerce bureaus on issues of joint interest to the

Department, Administration, and Congress. For example, NIST and NTIA

cooperate to support the development of ultrawideband signal technology, a new wireless technology that will improve communications for

emergency services and other applications.

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Other Government Agencies

The National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST) provides

research and services in measurement and standards to almost every

other agency in the federal government with scientific missions, contracted through specific interagency agreements or memoranda of understanding. NIST measurement research, services, and facilities have long

contributed to national defense and security, to the nationwide safety

and quality assurance systems that ensure the accuracy of health care

measurements, to the accuracy of environmental measurements, and to

law enforcement standards.

Performance Goal: Accelerate technological innovation and development

of the new technologies that will underpin future economic growth (NIST:

Advanced Technology Program) 

NIST Advanced Technology Program (ATP) Crosscutting Activities 

Other Government Agencies

The Advanced Technology Program leverages the expertise of scientists

and engineers from a wide variety of government agencies and laboratories by engaging their participation on its Source Evaluation Boards. In

addition, ATP program managers work with program managers from

other government agencies to ensure that projects are complementary

and relevant: coordination committees in several disciplines have been

brought together for this purpose. This also affords an opportunity to

examine government R&D from a high level for specific technologies.

Performance Goal: Improve the technological capability, productivity, and

competitiveness of small manufacturers (NIST: Manufacturing Extension

Partnership)

NIST Manufacturing Extension Partnership (MEP) Crosscutting

Activities 

Intra-DOC

The Manufacturing Extension Partnership collaborates with the

International Trade Administration (ITA) on a number of projects, including efforts to open global markets to American small and medium-sized

manufacturers interested in, but new to, exporting activities.

Other Government Agencies

MEP collaborates with a wide range of other government agencies that

regulate or provide programs and services that affect small manufacturing businesses, including the Departments of Agriculture, Defense, Energy,

Health and Human Services, Housing and Urban Development, and

Labor, as well as the Environmental Protection Agency, National

Aeronautics and Space Administration, and the Small Business

Administration. 

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Performance Goal: Assist U.S. businesses and other organizations in continuously improving their productivity, efficiency, and customer satisfaction by adopting quality and performance improvement practices (NIST:

Baldrige National Quality Program)

NIST Baldrige National Quality Program (BNQP) Crosscutting

Activities 

Other Government Agencies

The BNQP provides the Office of Personnel Management (OPM) with

Baldrige Criteria, Processes, and Baldrige Examiner Board members for

the Presidential Quality Award.

Performance Goal: Protect the National Information Infrastructure (NIST) 

National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST) Crosscutting

Activities 

Other Government Agencies

The proposed program to protect the National Information Infrastructure

will involve close collaboration with a wide range of government agencies. 

Performance Goal: Collect, organize, preserve, and disseminate government scientific, technical, and business-related information (NTIS)

National Technical Information Service (NTIS) Crosscutting Activities

Other Government Agencies

The National Technical Information Service provides a variety of services

that assist other agencies in developing, producing, and disseminating

their information.

Objective 2.2: Protect Intellectual Property

Performance Goal: Strengthen intellectual property protection in 

the United States and abroad, making it more accessible, affordable 

and enforceable.

Performance Goal: Enhance the quality of patent products and services,

transition to E-Government and optimize patent processing time.

Performance Goal: Enhance the quality of trademark products and services, transition to E-Government and minimize trademark-processing time.

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U.S. Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO) Crosscutting Activities 

Intra-DOC

Through the Chief Information Officer (CIO) organization, the U.S. Patent

and Trademark Office provides the Census Bureau with its annual report

on patent statistics for the Statistical Abstract of the United States.

Other Government Agencies

USPTO works with the following non-Department of Commerce agencies

on crosscutting activities:

■ The U.S. Trade Representative (USTR): The Administrator for

External Affairs partners with this office in assessing trade issues especially as they relate to Special 301 and the Trade-Related Aspects of

Intellectual Property Rights (TRIPs). The Policy area also works with

USTR in reviewing laws for TRIPs compliance.

■ The Department of Justice, the Customs Office, and the Federal

Bureau of Investigation: The Administrator for External Affairs partners with this Office in providing technical assistance to developing

countries and in developing methods for combating piracy and counterfeiting of U.S. goods in foreign countries. Under a recent passage of

legislation, the head of USPTO and the Department of Justice will

jointly chair an Intellectual Property Enforcement Council.

■ The United States Agency for International Development (USAID):

The Administrator for External Affairs partners with this Office in providing technical assistance to developing countries. The Patent organization partners with USAID to improve systems for effectively granting and protecting intellectual property rights.

■ The Departments of State and Agriculture and the Copyright

Office: The Administrator for External Affairs partners with these

agencies in the formulation of intellectual property proposals.

Additionally, USPTO reports technical assistance activities to the

Department of State on an annual basis.

■ The Departments of Agriculture, Justice and State: The Patent

organization partners with these agencies in the formulation of intellectual property proposals.

■ The Departments of Defense and Energy and the National

Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA): The Patent organization partners with these agencies in handling patent applications

having national security implications.

■ The Department of Health and Human Services (HSS): The Patent

organization partners with HHS in handling both AIDS-related and

recombinant DNA information.

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■ The U.S. Customs Service: The Trademark organization partners with

the Department of Treasury’s U.S. Customs Service regarding counterfeit goods or services. The USPTO additionally provides Customs with

CD-ROMs of trademark information.

■ The Government Printing Office (GPO): GPO replicates USPTO’s CDROM products and makes them available to USPTO’s depository

libraries (PTDLs).

■ The National Science Foundation (NSF): The USPTO partners with

NSF on the Report to the President on Science and Engineering

Indicators.

Objective 2.3: Provide the Infrastructure for a Digital Economy and a

Digital Government 

Performance Goal: Facilitate transformation of the economy to electronic

transactions

Performance Goal: Improve U.S. competitive advantage through global ecommerce

Performance Goal: Promote the availability and sources of advanced

telecommunications and information services (NTIA)

Strategic Goal 3: Observe and Manage the Earth’s Environment to

Promote Sustainable Growth

Objective 3.1: Enhance Conservation of the Natural Environment

Performance Goal: Build sustainable fisheries

National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA)

Crosscutting Activities 

Intra-DOC and Other Government Agencies

NOAA will focus on reducing overfishing and overcapitalization of U.S.

fishery resources by improving stock assessment and prediction, improving essential fish habitat, and reducing fishing pressure, including downsizing of fishing fleets. The Department of Commerce, enlisting the support of key bureaus such as EDA, MBDA, and NIST, and other federal

agencies, such as the U.S. Department of Agriculture, the Small Business

Administration, and the U.S. Department of Labor, will play a key role in

mitigating the impact of these critical resource conservation decisions in

the transition to economically sustainable communities.

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Performance Goal: Recover protected species

National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA)

Crosscutting Activities

Other Government Agencies

Over the past year, NOAA has developed innovative partnerships with

the Department of the Interior and the states of Maine, Washington,

Oregon, and California to promote the recovery of listed and at-risk

salmon and steelhead species. 

Performance Goal: Sustain healthy coasts

National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA)

Crosscutting Activities 

Intra-DOC and Other Government Agencies

NOAA has leveraged its resources through a variety of effective international, interagency, state, local, private sector, and other partnerships.

These partnerships are essential to effectively integrate coastal science,

assessment, monitoring, education, and management activities.

In FY 2001, for example, the NOAA program to Sustain Healthy Coasts

(SHC) will work with other federal agencies, states, and academic partners

to initiate new research necessary to sustainably manage the Nation’s

coastal ecosystems. This research will provide managers and decision

makers with information, solutions and technologies as part of interagency initiatives developed by the National Science and Technology

Council’s Committee on Environment and Natural Resources. Through

SHC, NOAA provides technical and scientific assistance to a variety of

partners involved in the protection, monitoring, and restoration of coastal

resources. For example, NOAA provides critical information to the U.S.

Coast Guard to help the Coast Guard respond to approximately 70 serious oil and chemical spills every year. Through SHC, NOAA is also working closely with other agencies, Department of Commerce bureaus, states,

local governments, and industry on important crosscutting activities such

as reducing the risks and impacts of natural hazards, protecting and

restoring essential fish habitats, reducing run-off pollution, forecasting

and preventing harmful algal blooms, and exploring the deep ocean and

new uses of the ocean’s rich biodiversity.

Objective 3.2 Improve Understanding and Prediction of the Natural

Environment

Performance Goa: Advance short-term warning and forecast services

National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA)

Crosscutting Activities 

Intra-DOC and Other Government Agencies

As a participant in the Federal Natural Disaster Reduction Initiative, NOAA

is working closely with the National Institute of Standards and

Technology, the Economic Development Administration, the Federal

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Emergency Management Agency (FEMA), the Corps of Engineers, the

Bureau of Reclamation, and state and local governments. The initiative

aims to reduce the costs of natural disasters and to save lives through

delivering improved warnings and forecasts and providing information

that will improve resiliency to disaster.

Other Government Agencies

NOAA delivers weather and climate services to the public and industry in

partnership with the private meteorological sector, providing forecasts

and warnings that the private sector then tailors for individuals and businesses and broadcasts for use.

NOAA also works closely with the Department of Defense (DOD) to complement DOD meteorological services in the interests of national security,

and works with the U.S. Coast Guard for the dissemination of marine

weather warnings and forecasts. NOAA also works directly with the

Federal Aviation Administration on aviation forecasts and with the

National Aeronautics and Space Administration on launch forecasts and

on predicting the occurrence of solar activity.

Performance Goal: Implement seasonal-to-interannual climate forecasts

National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA)

Crosscutting Activities 

Other Government Agencies

NOAA works with a wide variety of partners in the area of climate forecasts, including federal agencies such as the FEMA and the Agency for

International Development; state and local agencies, including state

departments of environmental protection and emergency preparedness

managers; academia; foreign government agencies; and international

organizations. In preparing for the 1997–98 El Niño, NOAA worked closely with FEMA and state and local officials, greatly improving public preparedness for the severe weather that was experienced.

Performance Goal: Predict and assess decadal-to-centennial change

National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA)

Crosscutting Activities 

NOAA, in partnership with the International Trade Administration and the

Technology Administration (TA), other federal agencies, the private sector, and

academia, is providing the knowledge base the nation will depend upon in

order to lead new emerging global industries in economically and environmentally sustainable ways.

For example, NOAA depends greatly on universities to help accomplish its science objectives, working through a network of Joint and Cooperative Institutes

and universities. NOAA also funds academic researchers through competitive,

peer-reviewed programs, including the Global Climate Change Program.

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Performance Goal: Promote safe navigation

National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA)

Crosscutting Activities 

Intra-DOC and Other Government Agencies

NOAA, in partnership with TA, the National Telecommunications and

Information Administration, and other civil agencies, participates on the

Interagency Global Positioning System (GPS) Executive Board, which jointly

manages the GPS satellites as a national asset with the Department of

Defense. Now a dual-use system heavily employed by civilian and commercial

sectors, GPS is a global information utility that the United States provides free

to the world for use as the international standard for navigation, positioning,

and timing. 

Other Government Agencies and the Private Sector

NOAA works closely with agencies such as the Department of Transportation,

the U.S. Coast Guard, and the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers in support of

Marine Transportation System goals and objectives to identify and improve

navigation services for maritime commerce, while preserving navigation and

environmental safety. NOAA and the Department of Transportation also cooperate on the development of the Nationwide Differential GPS, which employs

NOAA’s Continuously Operating Reference Stations to enable high-accuracy

GPS positioning in three dimensions across the U.S. This system benefits from

a multipurpose cooperative effort between government, academia, and the

commercial sector, and supports numerous NOAA objectives and activities. 

NOAA’s Physical Oceanographic Real-Time Systems (PORTS) also involve partnerships between NOAA, local government, and the private sector. PORTS is a

public information system developed by NOAA that furnishes real-time information to the general public for safe and cost-effective navigation, search-andrescue, hazardous material and oil-spill prevention and response, and scientific

research. PORTS builds on NOAA’s National Water Level Observation Network

of 175 stations to provide real-time water level, currents, oceanographic and

meteorological data, nowcasts, and predictions from bays and harbors to the

maritime community in a variety of formats, including telephone voice

response and the Internet. Port authorities underwrite the system’s operation

and maintenance, and NOAA provides data quality assurance and dissemination. NOAA hopes to expand its quality assurance capabilities to support

future PORTS systems.

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Appendix B: Stakeholder Input

Each bureau sent the strategic plan to their stakeholders for input. The

strategic plan was also available on the Department of Commerce

Internet site with an invitation to comment on the strategic plan. A stakeholder meeting was held on September 19, 2000. We received, considered, and incorporated many of the comments from stakeholders from

the following organizations: 

■ Asian Pacific American Network, a nonprofit Commerce-chartered

Asian advocacy employee’s organization

■ Association of Public Data Users (APDU)

■ Atmospheric and Environmental Research, Inc. 

■ Census Bureau State Data Center Steering Committee

■ Dyncorp

■ IBM

■ Maine State (Census) Planning Office

■ Metropolitan New York District Export Council 

■ Raytheon

■ Sandia National Laboratories 

■ Schulman, Ronca, and Bucuvalas, Inc.

In addition, the National Telecommunications and Information

Administration (NTIA) and the National Oceanic and Atmospheric

Administration (NOAA) receive input from their stakeholders on a regular

basis. A summary of their procedures for gathering this input follows:

National Telecommunications and Information Administration

Public Telecommunications Facilities Program. Program staff regularly consult

with constituents to receive their input on the program’s goals and operations. For example, the program consults with industry organizations

throughout the year, including holding industry meetings and advisory

panel discussions during the application review process, to solicit comments and feedback on the program. The program also consults with representatives from public broadcasting stations and networks, via regular

discussions with program staff, industry meetings, and debriefing of

expert reviewers during the application review process. In addition, the

program periodically solicits public comment, inviting feedback during the

renewal process.

Technology Opportunities Program. Program staff regularly consult with constituents to receive their input on the program’s goals and operations. For

example, the program consults with industry organizations and individual

constituents throughout the year, including holding industry meetings

and debriefing expert reviewers during the application review process, to

solicit comments and feedback on the program. The program also conducts outreach workshops for prospective applicants and holds an annual

conference for its constituents during which NTIA requests feedback. In

addition, the program periodically solicits public comment, inviting feedback during the renewal process.
NTIA last surveyed its federal agency customers in 1998, seeking an evaluation of its performance. Customers were asked to specify (1) the key or

most important benefits; (2) new functions desired but not currently provided; (3) irritants, bugs, and turn-offs; (4) turn-ons; (5) communications

performance; and (6) any other suggestions. A customer survey was

developed in 1998 for the 20 federal agencies represented on the

Interdepartmental Radio Advisory Committee (IRAC). Twelve of these 20

agencies responded. In general, the most important NTIA/OSM activity,

as determined by the survey, was the functioning of IRAC, wherein federal spectrum users were able to give advice and recommendations on

spectrum matters. Other important activities were the frequency assignment process, the spectrum certification process, and the NTIA Manual.

On a qualitative ranking by the agencies, NTIA was graded as satisfactory

in 16 categories and commendable in two. NTIA adopted a number of

the IRAC agency recommendations. 

NTIA is planning to conduct a new survey at the end of CY 2000,

resources permitting.

Constituent Involvement in the National Oceanic and Atmospheric

Administration’s Planning Process

Within the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA),

each strategy is managed by a team of experts from key management

and from the agency’s operations and research divisions. This allows

each team to integrate cross-organization and multidisciplinary expertise

to address crosscutting issues, utilize ongoing organizational investments

to support multiple applications, and reduce the duplication of programmatic efforts. In order to effectively implement the NOAA Strategic Plan, it

is important to provide consistent, predictable opportunities for obtaining

and incorporating stakeholder input on the specific activities NOAA will

propose to meet its stated goals. NOAA designed two workshops, one for

each of its missions, entitled Environmental Assessment and Prediction and

Environmental Stewardship. The workshops are held at the beginning of

the budget formulation cycle so constituents can contribute early on in

the process, rather than after decisions are made. The objectives of the

workshop are to review plans and discuss how effectively they support

mission goals and objectives within the five-year time frame; to identify

new work or modifications to existing work and programs needed to

ensure progress toward our goals and objectives; and to examine opportunities to promote collaboration across activities and among interested

parties to ensure the most effective application of resources.

Using the recommendations developed at the workshop, the Strategic

Planning Teams prepare five-year Implementation Plans. These plans

serve as NOAA’s primary mid-range planning tool leading to the development of annual budgets, and include information on base programs, proposed budget year and outyear initiatives, performance measures and

completion dates, work milestones and dates of completion, and fiscal

and personnel requirements. The five-year Implementation Plans also

constitute the foundation upon which funding requests are made.

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Appendix C: List of Acronyms

ACDA Arms Control and Disarmament Agency

ACS American Community Survey

AD antidumping

ANCS II Automated Nautical Chart System II

ARC Appalachian Regional Commission

ASOS Automated Surface Observing System

ATP Advanced Technology Program

AWIPS Advanced Weather Interactive Processing System

BEA Bureau of Economic Analysis

BEMs big emerging markets

BLS Bureau of Labor Statistics

BXA Bureau of Export Administration

CAMS Commerce Administrative Management System

CAPs Corrective Action Plans

CBAD Current Business Analysis Division

CEMSCS Central Environmental Satellite Computer System

CENR Committee on Environment and Natural Resources

CFO/ASA Chief Financial Officer/Assistant Secretary of 

Administration

CIAO Critical Infrastructure Assurance Office

CIP Critical Infrastructure Protection program

CM continuous measurement

CMS Client Management System

CPI Consumer Price Index

CVD counterveiling duties

CWC Chemical Weapons Convention

DAS days at sea

DOD Department of Defense

DOE Department of Energy

DOL Department of Labor

EAA Export Administration Act

EACs Export Assistance Centers

EAR Export Administration Regulations

EAS Electronic Application System

ECASS Export Control Automated Support System

EDA Economic Development Administration

EE Export Enforcement

EMT Executive Management Team

ENSO El Niño Southern Oscillation

EPA Environmental Protection Agency

ERL Environmental Research Laboratories

ESA Economics and Statistics Administration

EZ/EC Empowerment Zone–Enterprise Community

FAA Federal Aviation Administration

FBI Federal Bureau of Investigation

FEMA Federal Emergency Management Agency

FFS Federal Financial Systems

FHA Federal Highways Administration

FMFIA Federal Managers Financial Integrity Act 

FMP(s) Fishery Management Plan(s)

FSL Forecast Systems Laboratory

FTZ free trade zone

GAO General Accounting Office

GDI gross domestic income

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GDIN Global Disaster Information Network

GDP gross domestic product

GFDL Geophysical Fluid Dynamics Laboratory

GMF Government Master File

GMRA Government Management and Reform Act

GOALS Global Ocean–Atmosphere–Land System

GOES geostationary operational environmental satellite

GPRA Government Performance and Results Act

GPS global positioning satellite system

HCHB Herbert C. Hoover Building

HHS Department of Health and Human Services

HIA high-impact agency

HPC Hydrometeorological Prediction Center

I&C information and communications

IA Import Administration

ICM integrated coverage measurement

IMF International Monetary Fund

IRAC Interdepartmental Radio Advisory Committee

IT information technology

ITA International Trade Administration

ITU International Telecommunication Union

ITU International Trade Union

LATs Latin American Telecommunications Seminar

LMR Living Marine Resource

MAC Market Access and Compliance

MBDA Minority Business Development Agency

MBEs minority-owned business enterprises

MBNQP Malcolm Baldrige National Quality Program

MEP Manufacturing Extension Partnership

MOU memorandum of understanding

MSL Measurement and Standards Laboratories

NAFTA North American Free Trade Agreement

NAICS North American Industrial Classification System

NASA National Aeronautics and Space Administration

NAPA National Academy of Public Administration

NATO North Atlantic Treaty Organization

NBS National Bureau of Standards

NCEP National Centers for Environmental Protection

NDAA National Defense Authorization Act

NDR Natural Disaster Reduction 

NEC Nonproliferation Export Control

NESDIS National Environmental Satellite, Data, 

and Information Service

NEXRAD next-generation weather radar

NGI next-generation Internet

NHC National Hurricane Center

NIOSH National Institute of Occupational Safety and Health

NIST National Institute of Standards and Technology

NMFS National Marine Fisheries Service

NMIs National Metrology Institutes

NOAA National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration

NOS National Ocean Service

NRC Nuclear Regulatory Commission

NRC National Research Council

NSTC National Science and Technology Council

NTEs new-to-export firms

NTMs new-to-market firms

NTIA National Telecommunications and Information Administration

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NTIS National Technical Information Service

NTTC National Technology Transfer Center

NURP National Undersea Research Program

NWS National Weather Service

OAR Office of Oceanic and Atmospheric Research (NOAA)

OCRM Office of Ocean and Coastal Resource Management (NOAA)

OEA Office of Economic Adjustment

OECD Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development

OEE Office of Export Enforcement

OGP Office of Global Programs

OIG Office of Inspector General

OLIA Office of Legislative and International Affairs

OPM Office of Personnel Management

ORF operations, research, and facilities

OSTP Office of Science and Technology Policy

OTEM Office of Trade Event Management

OTP Office of Technology Policy

PAC procurement, acquisition, and construction

PALM Patent Application Locator and Monitoring 

PBO performance-based organization

PCT Patent Cooperation Treaty

PNGV Partnership for a New Generation of Vehicles

POES polar-orbiting operational environmental satellite

PORTS physical oceanographic real-time telemetry systems

PSN promote safe navigation

PTDL Patent and Trademark Depository Library

QPF Quantitative Precipitation Forecast

RLF revolving loan fund

RWA returned without action

SBA Small Business Administration

SHC Sustain Healthy Coasts

SMEs small and medium-sized enterprises

SMOBE Survey of Minority-Owned Business Enterprises

SRD standard reference data

SRMs standard reference materials

TA Technology Administration

TAACS Trade Adjustment Assistance Centers

TCC Trade Compliance Center

TD Trade Development

TDA Trade and Development Agency

TIC Trade Information Center

TICRS Trademark Image Capture and Retrieval System

TIIAP Telecommunications Information Infrastructure 

Assistance Program

TIS Trademark Information System

TOGA Tropical Ocean Global Atmosphere (program)

TPCC Trade Promotion Coordinating Committee

TRAM Trademark Application Monitoring 

TRIPs Trade-Related Aspects of Intellectual Properties

UNEP United Nations Environment Program

URAA Uruguay Round Agreements Act

USFCS U.S. and Foreign Commercial Service

USACE U.S. Army Corps of Engineers

USAF U.S. Air Force

USAID U.S. Agency for International Development

USDA U.S. Department of Agriculture

USEAC U.S. Export Assistance Centers

USG U.S. Government

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USIP U.S. Innovation Partnership

USPTO U.S. Patent and Trademark Office

USTR U.S. Trade Representative

WFO Weather Forecast Office

WIPO World Intellectual Property Organization

WMO World Meteorological Organization

WTO World Trade Organization

Y2K year 2000

U.S. Department of

Commerce

Strategic Plan FY 2000–FY 2005

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Department of Commerce FY 2000-2005

Strategic Plan Acknowledgements

Office of Secretary

Robert Mallett, Deputy Secretary

Linda Bilmes, Chief Financial Officer and Assistant Secretary for

Administration

Raul Perea-Henze, Deputy Assistant Secretary for Administration

Barbara Retzlaff, Director, Office of Budget

Stephanie Shipp, Office of Budget (on detail)

Cheryl Kelley, Office of Budget (on detail)

Stephen Leeds, Office of Budget

Bill Tatter, Office of Budget

Executive Strategic Planning Group

Karen Hogan, Chief Information Office

Lewis Podolske, Economic Development Administration

Kim White, Economics and Statistics Administration

Tim Hauser, International Trade Administration

Linda Cheatham, International Trade Administration

Scott Bunton, Bureau of Export Administration

Edith McCloud, Minority Development Business Administration

Sue Fruchter, National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration

Frances Michalkewicz, US Patent and Trademark Office

Kelly Carnes, Technology Administration

Karen Brown, National Institute of Standards and Technology

John Sopko, National Telecommunications & Information Administration

David Festa, Office of Policy and Strategic Planning

Lisa Casias, Office of Financial Management 

Bernard Carreau, Office of the Secretary

Elliott Maxwell, Office of the Secretary

Debra Tomchek, Office of Human Resources Management

GPRA Task Force

Economic Development Administration 

Gerald Lucas

Economics Statistics Administration 

Kate Hickman

Cheryl Kelley

Barry Beckman, Bureau of Economic Analysis

Joseph Bellomo, Census Bureau

Jennifer Hess, Census Bureau

International Trade Administration

Mitch Luxenberg

Dick Irving

Halina Malinowski

Bureau of Export Administration

Jeannette Chiari

Alan Hellawell

Kelli McCarthy

Strategic Plan

FY 2000–FY 2005

U.S. Department of Commerce

108
U.S. Department of

Commerce

Strategic Plan FY 2000–FY 2005

109

Minority Development Business Administration

Glenn Clark

Pecola Davis

National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration 

Catherine Marzin

Laura Cook

Tom Watson

Margaret McCalla

US Patent and Trademark Office

Dan Haigler

Technology Administration

Paul Doremus, National Institute of Standards and Technology

Janet Miller, National Institute of Standards and Technology

Jennifer McCarthy McAndrew , National Institute of Standards and Technology

Nancy Moore, National Technical Information Service

National Telecommunications & Information Administration

Sarah Maloney

Charlie Franz

Office of Financial Management

Melissa Loughan

Gordon T. Alston

Julie Tao

Printing Office

Ira White

Thomas Quarles

Desiree McKinney
NOTES

Strategic Plan

FY 2000–FY 2005

U.S. Department of Commerce

110
Mission Statement: The Department of Commerce promotes job creation and improved living standar

technological competitiveness, and sustainable development

Appendix D: Table of Goals, Strategic Objectives, and Performance

Objective 1.1: Provide the Infrastructure to Enable the Participation of 

All Americans in the New Economy

Performance Goal: Promote competition within the telecommunications 

sector and promote universal access to telecommunications services for all 

Americans (NTIA)

Performance Goal: Promote exports by small and medium-sized enterprises 

(ITA)

Performance Goal: Increase U.S. exports by implementing the National 

Export Strategy through government-wide coordination of trade promotion 

and trade finance programs (ITA)

Performance Goal: Support job creation and private enterprise in 

economically distressed communities (EDA)

Performance Goal: Build local capacity to achieve and sustain economic 

growth (EDA)

Objective 1.2: Promote Responsible Economic Growth and Trade while 

Protecting American Security

Performance Goal: By use of a dual-use export control system that 

continuously is refined to respond to changing requirements, transactions 

that are contrary to U.S. security interests are deterred and transactions 

without proliferation potential are facilitated (BXA)

Performance Goal: The United States is in full compliance with the Chemical 

Weapons Convention (CWC) and all confidential business information of U.S. 

companies subject to inspection under the CWC is effectively protected 

(BXA)

Performance Goal: The U.S. defense industrial base is healthy and 

competitive (BXA)

Performance Goal: Violations of dual-use export control laws are identified 

and violators are sanctioned

(BXA)

Performance Goal: Export controls of key nations are strong and effective 

(BXA)

Performance Goal: The nation's various independent and interdependent 

infrastructure components are secured in accord with an integrated plan 

(BXA)

Performance Goal: Improve American competitiveness and access to foreign 

markets by enforcing compliance with U.S. trade laws and agreements (ITA)

Performance Goal: Minimize the effects of crises by preparing the U.S. 

telecommunications and information infrastructure to operate under 

extreme conditions (NTIA)

Performance Goal: Ensure allocation of radio spectrum—a scarce natural 

resource essential to all communications—provides the greatest benefit to all 

people (NTIA)

Objective 1.3: Support Effective Decision-Making of Policymakers, 

Businesses, and the American Public

Performance Goal: Develop relevant, timely, and accurate national and 

community economic and household statistics for decision-making (ESA)

Performance Goal: Conduct the Decennial Census (ESA)

Performance Goal: Define, through consultations, policy assessment, 

planning, research, experiments, and evaluations, the plan for the 2010 

Census (ESA)

Strategic Goal 1: Provide the Information and the Framework to 

Enable the Economy to Operate Efficiently and Equitably

Strategic Goal 2: Provide Infrastructure for Innovation to 

Enhance American Competitiveness

Objective 2.1: Provide Infrastructural Tools and Capabilities that 

Improve the Productivity, Quality, and Efficiency of Research and 

Innovation Processes 

Performance Goal: Promote technology-based growth through partnerships 

with industry (US/OTP)

Performance Goal: Provide technical leadership for the nation’s 

measurement and standards infrastructure, and ensure the availability of 

essential reference data and measurement capabilities (NIST: Measurement 

and Standards Labs)

Performance Goal: Accelerate technological innovation and development of 

the new technologies that will underpin future economic growth (NIST: 

Advanced Technology Program)

Performance Goal: Improve the technological capability, productivity, and 

competitiveness of small manufacturers (NIST: Manufacturing Extension 

Program) 

Performance Goal: Assist U.S. businesses and other organizations in 

continuously improving their productivity, efficiency, and customer 

satisfaction by adopting quality and performance improvement practices 

(NIST: Baldrige National Quality Program)

Performance Goal: Protect the National Information Infrastructure (NIST)

Performance Goal: Collect, organize, preserve, and disseminate government 

scientific, technical, and business-related information (NTIS)

Objective 2.2: Protect Intellectual Property

Performance Goal: Strengthen intellectual property protection in the United 

States and abroad, making it more accessible, affordable and enforceable. 

(USPTO)

Performance Goal: Enhance the quality of patent products and services, 

transition to E-Government and optimize patent processing time. (USPTO)

Performance Goal: Enhance the quality of trademark products and services, 

transition to E-Government and minimize trademark processing time. 

(USPTO)

Objective 2.3: Provide the Infrastructure for a Digital Economy and a 

Digital Government 

Performance Goal: Facilitate transformation of the economy to electronic 

transactions

Performance Goal: Improve U.S. competitive advantage through global ecommerce

Performance Goal: Promote the availability and sources of advanced 

telecommunications and information services (NTIA)
rds for all Americans by creating an infrastructure that promotes economic growth, 

e Goals

Strategic Goal 3: Observe and Manage the Earth’s Environment to 

Promote Sustainable Growth

Objective 3.1: Enhance Conservation of the Natural Environment 

Performance Goal: Build sustainable fisheries (NOAA)

Performance Goal: Recover protected species (NOAA)

Performance Goal: Sustain healthy coasts (NOAA)

Objective 3.2: Improve Understanding and Prediction of the Natural 

Environment

Performance Goal: Advance short-term warning and forecast services 

(NOAA)

Performance Goal: Implement seasonal-to-interannual climate forecasts 

(NOAA)

Performance Goal: Predict and assess decadal-to-centennial change 

(NOAA)

Performance Goal: Promote safe navigation (NOAA)

Goal: Strengthen Management at All Levels

Objective: Promote Efficient and Effective Resource 

Management

Performance Goal: Acquire and manage the fiscal and 

related resources necessary to support program goals

Performance Goal: Acquire, manage, and develop a 

diverse, skilled, and flexible staff, using information 

technology as an essential tool

Performance Goal: Acquire and manage the technology 

resources necessary to support program goals

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