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THE PROGRAM ASSESSMENT RATING TOOL
(PART):
First Annual
AEA Public Issues Forum Contents: This page contains information and resources related to the November 2006 AEA Public Issues Forum focusing on the Program Assessment Rating Tool (PART). The Program Assessment Rating Tool (PART) is a major initiative of the Office of Management and Budget (OMB) to assess and improve program performance with the goal of achieving better results from Federal government programs. A PART review is designed to help identify a program’s strengths and weaknesses to inform funding and management decisions aimed at making the program more effective. The PART looks at factors that affect and reflect program performance including program purpose and design; performance measurement, evaluations, and strategic planning; program management; and program results. The PART asks approximately 25 general questions about a program's performance and management. For each question, there is a short answer and a detailed explanation with supporting evidence. The answers determine a program's overall rating. Once each assessment is completed, a program improvement plan is developed to enable follow up and improvement of the program's performance. Because the PART includes a consistent series of analytical questions, it allows programs to show improvements over time, and allows comparisons between similar programs. ExpectMore.gov is a new website (launched on February 6th, 2006) that reports on Federal program performance and what is being done to improve results. There are currently nearly 800 PART program assessments available on ExpectMore.gov. As would be expected with any federal program of such magnitude, the PART process and the ExpectMore.gov website have not been without controversy. Several reports of the Government Accountability Office have raised concerns about implementation and advocacy groups outside the federal government, such as OMB Watch, remain critical. Within the evaluation profession, a lively discussion has been joined about the degree to which PART reflects good evaluation practice. It is especially fitting that the first AEA Public Issues Forum be devoted to discussing this major effort that has such important potential implications for the theory and practice of evaluation.
Click here for detailed participant biographies.
White House
information website on PART:
Published
results of PART assessments for Federal programs:
OMB Watch
issues page on PART and government performance:
Heritage
Foundation issues paper on PART:
GAO testimony
to Congress on PART:
Congress needs
a part of PART: GAO says lawmakers should be more engaged in program review
process (article):
Relationship
of PART to changes in FY 2006 budget:
Federal Times
interview with Ted Kniker on PART and performance measurement, October 9, 2006:
"Implementing
OMB's Program Assessment Rating Tool (PART): Meeting the Challenges of
Integrating Budget and Performance," John B. Gilmour, IBM Center for the
Business of Government, 2006:
Malcolm
Baldrige National Quality Award for Performance Excellence, Criteria for
Non-Profit Organization, National Institute of Standards and Technology, U.S.
Department of Commerce:
"Six Trends
Transforming Government," Mark A. Abramson, Jonathan D. Breul, John M. Kamensky,
IBM Center for the Business of Government, 2006:
Federal
Consulting Group: Performance Budgeting: PART
Focuses Attention on Program Performance, but More Can Be Done to
Engage Congress |