Established by the Civil Rights Act of 1957, the Commission is a fact- finding agency required to report on civil rights issues. It is required to study the impact of federal civil rights laws and policies with regard to illegal discrimination or denial of equal protection of the laws. It must also submit at least one report annually to the President and the Congress that monitors federal civil rights enforcement efforts. Other reports may be required or issued as considered appropriate by the Commission, the President, or the Congress. The Commission serves as a national clearinghouse for information related to its mission. In addition, it investigates charges by individual citizens who claim to be deprived of their voting rights. The Commission may hold hearings and, within specific guidelines, issue subpoenas to obtain certain records and have witnesses appear at hearings. However, because it lacks enforcement powers that would enable it to apply remedies in individual cases, the Commission refers specific complaints to the appropriate federal, state, or local government agency for action. The Commission’s annual appropriation has averaged about $9 million since fiscal year 1995. It is currently directed by eight part-time Commissioners who serve 6-year terms on a staggered basis. Four Commissioners are appointed by the President, two by the President Pro Tempore of the Senate, and two by the Speaker of the House of Representatives. No more than four Commissioners can be of the same political party. With the concurrence of a majority of the Commission’s members, the President may also designate a Chairperson or Vice Chairperson from among the Commissioners. A Staff Director, who is appointed by the President with the concurrence of a majority of the Commissioners, oversees the daily operations of the Commission and manages the staff in six regional offices and the Washington, D.C., headquarters office. The Commission operates four units in its headquarters whose directors and managers report directly to the Staff Director: the Office of Civil Rights Evaluation, Office of General Counsel, Office of Management, and a Regional Programs Coordination Unit. As of June 2004, the Commission employed approximately 70 staff members, including the eight Commissioners and their eight assistants. The Commission also has 51 State Advisory Committees—the minimum required by statute—one for each state and the District of Columbia. The State Advisory Committees are composed of citizens familiar with local and state civil rights issues. Their members serve without compensation and assist the Commission with its fact-finding, investigative, and information dissemination functions. To encourage greater efficiency, effectiveness, and accountability in federal programs, the Congress passed the Government Performance and Results Act of 1993, which requires agencies to develop and issue certain documents to be made available to the public and used by congressional decision-makers. OMB provides guidance to federal agencies on complying with GPRA requirements through its Circular A-11, which is updated annually. In addition, we have published guidance and reports to federal agencies on best practices for complying with GPRA. Under GPRA or OMB guidance, agencies must submit the following three documents to the President, Congress, and OMB: Strategic plan. This document, which must cover a period of no less than 5 years from the fiscal year in which it is submitted, should be updated every 3 years and include the agency’s mission statement and long-term strategic goals. Under GPRA, strategic plans are the starting point and basic underpinning for results-oriented management. Strategic goals are long-term, outcome-oriented goals aimed at accomplishing the agency’s mission. In developing goals for their strategic plans, agencies are required to consult with the Congress and other stakeholders. Annual performance plan. This document sets forth the agency’s annual performance goals, which should be linked to its strategic goals. An agency’s annual goals provide the intermediary steps needed to reach its long-term strategic goals. Annual goals should be objective, quantifiable, and measurable. OMB guidance now directs agencies to include budget information in their performance plans and encourages agencies to align resources with annual goals. Prior to their submissions for fiscal year 2005, agencies were not directed to associate program costs in this way. Annual performance report. This document provides information on an agency’s actual performance for the previous fiscal year. This report should provide information on the results of its progress in meeting annual goals. If agencies have not met their goals, they are required to explain what issues are keeping them from meeting the goals and describe their plans for addressing these issues. Several federal agencies have oversight responsibilities in relation to the Commission, including OMB for financial management and OPM for personnel management. OMB, located within the Executive Office of the President, is responsible for preparing and implementing the President’s annual budget and for providing guidance to agencies on how to comply with GPRA. OPM is the central personnel management agency of the federal government charged with administering and enforcing federal civil service laws, regulations, and rules. OPM is also required to establish and maintain an oversight program to ensure that agencies comply with pertinent laws, regulations, and policies. Oversight can also be provided by an Inspector General. The Inspector General Act of 1978 provides for Offices of Inspector General to serve as independent, objective offices within certain federal departments or agencies to promote economy, efficiency, and effectiveness as well as prevent and detect fraud and abuse. Agencies that do not have their own Office of Inspector General can obtain Inspector General services from other federal agencies. The Commission has not updated or revised its strategic plan since 1997, as required under GPRA, and its most recent annual performance plan and report contain weaknesses that limit the Commission’s ability to effectively manage its operations and communicate its performance. The Commission has not updated or revised its strategic plan since fiscal year 1997 and has missed two scheduled submissions required under GPRA. According to GPRA and OMB guidance, the Commission should have submitted, updated, and revised its strategic plan in fiscal years 2000 and 2003. The 2003 revision should have covered the period through at least fiscal year 2008. Commission officials told us that the agency is working on developing an updated strategic plan and intends to submit it to OMB by Fall 2004. However, while they were in the process of revising their strategic plan as of June 2004, critical actions, such as consulting with the Congress as required by the act, have not yet occurred, according to Commission officials. Because it has not updated or revised its strategic plan, the Commission has not reexamined its strategic goals since 1997 to affirm their ongoing significance to the agency’s overall mission. The Commission has not determined if changes to its strategic goals are warranted due to factors such as external circumstances or not meeting its annual goals. In addition, because the Commission has not updated its strategic plan, its strategic goals also are not informed by a current analysis of the Commission’s purpose and work. Without revisiting its strategic goals, the Commission does not have a firm basis on which to develop its annual goals. The Commission continues to rely on strategic goals from 1997 to formulate its current annual goals. Without a current strategic plan the Commission also lacks a key tool for communicating with the Congress, the public, and its own staff, including informing them of the significance of its work. In addition to serving as a document for external use, the strategic plan can be used as a management tool and, according to OMB guidance, should outline the process for communicating goals and strategies throughout the agency and for assigning accountability to managers and staff for achievement of the agency’s goals. The Commission’s most recent performance plan, for fiscal year 2005, includes several program activities that are referred to as goals; however, it is unclear how these activities will help the agency achieve its strategic goals or accomplish its mission. For example, the plan lists 14 fact-finding projects, each of which has as many as 5 annual goals. Many of these goals, however, are activities, such as holding a public hearing or publishing a report. Similarly, one of the goals in the plan is for each of the Commission’s State Advisory Committees to focus on regular meetings in fiscal year 2005 and on completing their projects. However, this goal is not linked to achieving the agency’s strategic goal to enhance the Committees’ ability to monitor civil rights in the United States. In addition, the annual performance plan does not contain all elements required under GPRA. The plan does not provide information on how the Commission will pursue and accomplish the annual performance goals laid out in its plan. Performance plans must include descriptions of how an agency’s annual goals are to be achieved, including the resources and strategies required to meet the goals. However, the Commission’s fiscal year 2005 plan does not discuss the strategies or resources needed to achieve its goals. For example, according to the performance plan, the Commission will update its Civil Rights Directory, but the plan does not indicate which offices will be responsible or describe the strategies and resources needed to carry out this task. The Commission’s performance plan for fiscal year 2005 also does not include budgetary information in accordance with OMB guidance. Instead of associating the cost of its programs with specific annual goals, the plan includes a single amount for its total operations. The potential problems stemming from the Commission’s failure to associate costs with specific annual goals or break down its budget request by goal may be exacerbated by the large gap between the Commission’s budget requests and its actual appropriations. Since 1999, the Commission’s appropriations have averaged approximately 26 percent less than the amount requested. For fiscal year 2004, the Commission based its annual performance plan on a budget request of $15.2 million, but its appropriation for that year totaled only $9.1 million. In addition, the Commission has consistently not revised its annual performance plans to reflect its actual appropriations and illustrate the impact on its annual goals.