I
104TH CONGRESS
2D SESSION
H. R. 3982
To establish a Permanent Performance Review Commission.
IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES
AUGUST 2, 1996
Mr. FRANKS of New Jersey (for himself, Mr. HERGER, Mr. HOKE, Mr. KA-
SICH, Mr. KOLBE, Mr. MEEHAN, Mr. SMITH, of Michigan and Mr. SMITH
of Texas) introduced the following bill; which was referred to the Com-
mittee on Government Reform and Oversight, and in addition to the
Committee on Rules, for a period to be subsequently determined by the
Speaker, in each case for consideration of such provisions as fall within
the jurisdiction of the committee concerned
A BILL
To establish a Permanent Performance Review Commission.
Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representa-
tives of the United States of America in Congress assembled,
SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE.
This Act may be cited as the ‘‘Permanent Perform-
ance Review Act of 1996’’.
SEC. 2. CONGRESSIONAL FINDINGS.
The Congress finds that—
(1) the central purpose of our democratic gov-
ernment is to effectuate the will of a free people;
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that, in its pursuit of that purpose, the Congress’
principal purpose is to enact laws which properly
embody that will and which ensure that agencies
charged with the execution of those laws are vested
with such authority and endowed with such re-
sources as may be requisite therefor and useful
thereto; that the corresponding principal function of
the executive is to pursue the implementation of
those laws through the exercise of the authority so
accorded to it; and that beyond the duties peculiar
to each, these two branches of government bear as
well a joint and ongoing responsibility for ensuring
that the implementation of public policy is conducted
effectively and efficiently, that the executive’s exer-
cise of its authority advances the aims and respects
the restrictions incorporated in the law under which
the authority was conferred, that both the regulation
of private behavior and the expenditure of public
moneys continue to be justified by actual benefits
flowing therefrom, that the unintended harms or in-
equities arising from the operation of laws enacted
and implemented in good faith are promptly uncov-
ered and remedied, and that government maintains
in its conduct of the affairs of the people the high
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standards which it is morally and legally obligated to
observe as their steward and trustee.
(2) The Congress finds that, to meet the re-
sponsibilities of government hereinabove declared, it
is necessary and appropriate that the performance of
government be reviewed and evaluated, and that the
scope of the review and evaluation should extend as
broadly as is practicable to the various organiza-
tional, program and budgetary elements of all public
service activities directly or indirectly funded in
whole or in part by the government. The Congress
finds in addition that the review and evaluation of
executive branch performance ought properly to be
undertaken jointly by the Congress and the executive
and with the assistance, where appropriate, of par-
ties outside of the national government; that the
Congress’ participation in the review and evaluation
process can be most effectively conducted by a bipar-
tisan commission which shall, for each review and
evaluation of a particular agency, draw upon mem-
bers having substantial knowledge for the missions
and objectives of that agency; and that the commis-
sion should have available for its use and exercise all
resources and powers appropriate to the duties with
which it is charged. Furthermore, the Congress finds
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that such a commission would also be the most suit-
able instrument through which to conduct the review
and evaluation of agency operations.
SEC. 3. DEFINITIONS.
For purposes of this Act:
(1) AGENCY.—The term ‘‘agency’’ means a cab-
inet-level department listed in section 101 of title 5,
United States Code, or any executive agency, as de-
fined in section 105 of such title 5, whose budget ex-
ceeded $1,000,000,000 in fiscal year 1993.
(2) AGENCY SELF-STUDY.—The term ‘‘agency
self-study’’ means the initial collection, analysis, and
report of performance data developed by each agency
at the direction of the Commission. An agency self-
study is the basis for the subsequent analysis and
recommendations embodied in the Commission’s per-
formance review.
(3) COMMISSION.—The term ‘‘Commission’’
means the Permanent Performance Review Commis-
sion established by section 4.
(4) IMPLEMENTATION BILL.—The term ‘‘imple-
mentation bill’’ means a bill introduced pursuant to
a recommendation from a committee that receives a
performance review from the Commission and holds
hearings regarding the performance review.
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(5) PERFORMANCE GOAL.—The term ‘‘perform-
ance goal’’ means a target level of performance ex-
pressed as a tangible, measurable objective against
which actual achievement shall be compared, includ-
ing a goal expressed as a quantitative standard,
value, or rate.
(6) 
PERFORMANCE
INDICATOR.—The 
term
‘‘performance indicator’’ refers to a particular value
or characteristic used to measure, in either a quali-
tative or quantitative form, the results of a program
activity and how they compare to the program’s in-
tended results or performance goals.
(7) PERFORMANCE REVIEW.—The term ‘‘per-
formance review’’ refers to the Commission’s de-
scription and analysis of an agency’s programs
based on the programs’ performance goals and rel-
evant performance indicators, accompanied by a line-
by-line set of legislative recommendations developed
by the Commission, reviewed by the appropriate
Congressional committees, and then, if approved,
submitted in bill form by the chairpersons of the ap-
propriate Congressional committees.
(8) PROGRAM ACTIVITY.—The term ‘‘program
activity’’ means a specific activity or project as listed
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in the program and financing schedules of the an-
nual budget of the United States Government.
SEC. 4. ESTABLISHMENT OF COMMISSION.
There is established a commission to be known as the
‘‘Permanent Performance Review Commission’’.
SEC. 5. FUNCTIONS OF COMMISSION.
(a) IN GENERAL.—The Commission shall—
(1) establish and manage a schedule of agency
self-studies to be conducted by the agencies of the
United States over a fixed period of time;
(2) hold hearings as part of an overall assess-
ment and transformation of the data presented in an
agency’s self-study into a performance review to be
developed by the Commission;
(3) submit the performance review and legisla-
tive recommendations to the President and the Con-
gress; and
(4) make the performance review and legislative
recommendations available to the public.
(b) SPECIFIC DUTIES.—In carrying out its functions
under subsection (a), the Commission shall—
(1) ensure that each agency is reviewed at least
once every 10 years;
(2) by vote of the majority of the Commission
on or before February 5 of each year, establish a
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schedule of the agencies that will be reviewed and
the order of review for the next 2 years;
(3) notify, in writing, each agency listed on the
schedule of its responsibility for conducting an agen-
cy self-study and the dates on which it must submit
progress reports and the final agency self-study re-
port;
(4) hold hearings on the agency self-study re-
port submitted by each agency;
(5) consult the chairpersons and the ranking
minority members of the appropriate congressional
committees regarding the agency self-study report
submitted by each agency; and
(6) submit a performance review and legislative
recommendations to the President and the Congress
not more than 21 months after receiving an agency
self-study report from an agency.
SEC. 6. MEMBERSHIP OF COMMISSION.
(a) NUMBER AND METHOD OF APPOINTMENT.—The
Commission shall be composed of 28 members, of which
23 will be voting members and 5 will be nonvoting, ex
officio members. The members shall be appointed as fol-
lows:
(1) VOTING
MEMBERS.—All appointments of
voting members of the Commission shall be made
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jointly by the majority and minority leaders of the
Senate and the Speaker and minority leader of the
House of Representatives from individuals rec-
ommended as follows:
(A) RECOMMENDATIONS BY PRESIDENT.—
15 voting members shall be appointed from
among individuals recommended by the Presi-
dent. In making the recommendations, the
President shall ensure that not more than 8
members are affiliated with the same political
party.
(B) RECOMMENDATIONS BY CONGRESS.—8
additional voting members shall be appointed,
with 2 members each appointed from individ-
uals recommended by each of the following:
(i) Majority leader of the Senate.
(ii) Minority leader of the Senate.
(iii) Speaker of the House.
(iv) Minority leader of the House.
(2) NONVOTING, EX OFFICIO MEMBERS.—The
nonvoting, ex officio members of the Commission are
the following:
(A) Director of the Office of Management
and Budget.
(B) Majority leader of the Senate.
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(C) Minority leader of the Senate.
(D) Speaker of the House.
(E) Minority leader of the House.
(b) QUALIFICATIONS OF VOTING MEMBERS.—
(1) OFFICERS AND EMPLOYEES OF THE EXECU-
TIVE BRANCH.—An officer or employee of the execu-
tive branch of the Federal Government may not be
a voting member of the Commission.
(2) EXPERIENCE.—The President shall rec-
ommend for appointment to the commission individ-
uals with a variety of experiences and skills. Of the
individuals 
recommended 
under 
subsection
(a)(1)(A)—
(A) at least 1 shall be a person with ex-
plicit, in-depth experience in reforming large or-
ganizational systems;
(B) at least 1 shall be a person who both
has business experience and has held a high-
level position within an agency; and
(C) at least 1 shall be an individual who
has an extensive research background concern-
ing organizational reform, either in theoretical
work or in analysis of real world events.
(c) TERMS.—
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(1) IN GENERAL.—Each member of the Com-
mission shall be appointed for a term of 2 years, ex-
cept as provided in paragraphs (2) and (3).
(2) TERMS
OF
INITIAL
APPOINTEES.—The
members initially appointed to the Commission shall
serve until the beginning of the next Congress.
(3) VACANCIES.—A vacancy on the Commission
shall be filled in the manner in which the original
appointment was made. Any member of the Commis-
sion appointed to fill a vacancy shall be appointed
only for the remainder of the term for which the
member’s predecessor was appointed. A member
may serve after the expiration of the member’s term
until a successor has taken office.
(d) PAY.—
(1) IN GENERAL.—Each member of the Com-
mission shall be paid at a rate equal to the daily
equivalent of the minimum annual rate of basic pay
payable for level IV of the Executive Schedule under
section 5315 of title 5, United States Code, for each
day during which the member is engaged in the ac-
tual performance of duties of the Commission.
(2) EXCEPTION
FOR
GOVERNMENT
OFFICERS
AND EMPLOYEES.—Members of the Commission who
are full-time officers or employees of the United