The Division also heads various interagency efforts to coordinate Federal agency responses to natural disasters such as the Los Angeles Southwest drought, earthquake, the equine encephalomylelitus epidemic in the Southwest. and the Venezuelan c. Agency management problems and special projects. The Division gives continuing attention to specific agency management problems, and has worked extensively with the Small Business Administration and the Urban Mass Transit Administration to help strengthen their respective programs. Division special projects during this fiscal year included analyzing Federal funding for black colleges, monitoring the air cargo security and sky marshals programs, encouraging Federal agency deposits in minority-owned banks, working with a White House committee to rebuild the District of Columbia riot corridors, and providing staff support for the National Commission Construction Industry Stabilization on Productivity, the Committee, and the Domestic Council Committee on Civil Rights. Field coordination. The large number of closely related domestic 2. programs and activities administered by Federal departments and agencies present a confusing array of opportunities for assistance in a number of fields to States and localities. Most of these assistance programs have different schedules, data requirements, and funding formulas. All are subject to the hazards of delays and uncoordinated administration. While basic changes in the system (grant consolidation, joint funding, decentralization, etc.) are being developed and debated, there are numerous opportunities to solve interagency and intergovernmental bottlenecks in specific cases through improved communications and data sharing. The Division staff concentrates on the operational problems that plague Federal delivery systems by providing support and assistance to the field and in those instances where solutions cannot be implemented in the field, it serves as a linkage to interagency groups in Washington. This staff, based in Washington but active in the field, has no supervisory authority over the operating agencies. Rather, it supports and expedites interagency cooperation and identifies problems and sees that they⚫ are addressed by the appropriate agency or interagency group. a. Regional Councils. At the direction of the President, Federal Regional Councils have been established in the 10 uniform regions. These Councils consist of the regional directors of the Departments of Housing and Urban Development; Health, Education, and Welfare; Labor; the Office of Economic Opportunity; the Environmental Protection Agency; and the Law Administration, Assistance as well Secretarial the Enforcement Representative of the Department of Transportation. Other agencies participate as on an ad hoc basis. The Under Secretaries of the member departments, together with the Deputy Director of the Office of Economic Opportunity and the Associate Director of the Office of Management and Budget, provide general oversight and guidance to the Councils. The Division provides staff assistance and liaison services to the Councils by assigning a staff member to each of the Regional Councils to aid in the performance of their functions, some of which are: participate To evaluate programs in which two or more member agencies - To monitor existing coordination mechanisms - To solve ad hoc problems that involve more than one Council member agency - To develop and strengthen a real partnership with State and local governments, especially with Governors and mayors problems - To resolve expeditiously interagency conflicts and coordination - To improve coordination, and cooperative information exchange between agencies in day-to-day operations The following activities are representative of the Councils' capacity to focus Federal resources across agency lines. In New Bedford, Massachusetts, an interagency task force conducted productive field compliance activities in equal employment opportunities. The Philadelphia Regional Council is conducting pilot efforts in Richmond, Virginia, and York, Pennsylvania, to establish a comprehensive Federal-State-local strategy for socio-economic assistance programs. The Denver Regional Council has supported the Governor of South Dakota in establishing a model rural development program. The Dallas Regional Council cut red tape so that two school districts in southern Texas could obtain free lunches for their school children. This effort involved six Federal agencies, two State agencies, two school districts, two towns, and a community action agency. b. Federal Executive Boards. The Federal Executive Boards (FEB) are associations of the top Federal executives in 25 major metropolitan areas. They were developed to support Government-wide Presidential policies and to assist in solving problems of the community in which they are situated. An FEB Secretariat, established within the Division, is responsible for general policy direction to and liaison with the Boards. Division representatives have been designated for each FEB to participate in their meetings and to work with the Staff. In addition to supporting community service activities and improving the efficiency of Federal operations, the Boards have adopted consumer protection and environmental quality as their major program themes. Special emphasis will also be placed on minority enterprise projects, volunteerism, equal employment opportunity, Jobs for Veterans, Occupational Safety and Health, and Intergovernmental Personnel Act exchanges. The FEB Secretariat is also responsible for general oversight of more than 100 Federal Executive Associations, composed of senior agency officials located in smaller cities. STATISTICAL PROGRAMMING AND COORDINATION The Office of Management and Budget is charged with the responsibility of developing, coordinating, and improving the statistical programs and services of the Federal Government. Activities requiring substantial staff time during fiscal year 1973 are: Statistical program planning and management. This being the 1. major statistical responsibility of the Office, the Statistical Policy Division reviews the budget to develop a coordinated statistical program and requires Federal agencies to obtain Office approval of reporting forms prior to their use in collecting data from the public. Planning the statistical program reflected in the budgets of the various agencies focuses around four major objectives: (a) to extend and improve the basic data required for the system of national accounts (defined broadly to include national income and product input-output, balance of payments, flow of funds, and national sector balance sheets); (b) to improve the accuracy and timeliness of current economic indicators; (c) to organize a set of social indicators within a framework for developing a system of social and demographic accounts; and (d) to develop a systematic and comprehensive program of State and local area data. 2. more Reviewing and monitoring agency statistical activities. Substantial expansion and improvement in statistics recommended in the 1973 budget are summarized in "Special Analysis F, Principal Federal Statistical Programs." Activities of the agencies in carrying out their programs will be monitored carefully to assure that these objectives are achieved effectively and efficiently. 3. Statistical standards and definitions. In fiscal year 1973 the Census Bureau will increase their activity on the planning and testing of a computerized directory of all U.S. business firms. This project will require increased attention of the Division in order to assure that it is designed to meet the requirements of designated Federal agencies. With the publication of the revised Standard Industrial Classification Manual, attention will turn to coordination of agency utilization. Greater effort will also be directed to development of a standard occupational classification. The definitions of all 268 Standard Metropolitan Statistical Areas will be examined and revised in the light of detailed data which will soon be available from the 1970 Census. These revised definitions, as well as any changes in designations and titles, will reflect both the updated information and revised criteria which were recently adopted. 4. Maintenance of objectivity and credibility of statistics. During the last year much attention has been devoted to the method of issuance and the timeliness of statistical reports to assure continual confidence in the objectivity and credibility of the data. Standards have been issued as guides to the agencies to assure further improvement in the accuracy and timeliness of the statistics they compile. Continued surveillance will be maintained over agency performance to assure adherence to these standards. 5. Statistical reorganization. A reorganization of statistical activities was initiated in fiscal year 1972 in four major Departments-Labor, Commerce, Agriculture, and Health, Education, and Welfare-in accordance with guidelines established by the Office of Management and Budget. In brief, the plan called for establishing in each department a unified data planning and analysis office and a centralized, service-oriented data collection and processing center. Refinement and implementation of these plans will continue in fiscal year 1973 with a view toward making these newly created organizational units more effective in serving the statistical needs of their departments and the Government in general. International liaison. Another function of the Office stems from its 6. responsibility for representing the interests of the United States in various international statistical affairs. Continuing activities consist of coordinating the distribution of statistics to the United Nations statistical office and to other international organizations, and participation in the affairs and activities of international statistical organizations. One example of an area where the United Nations has assumed leadership is the development of a system of social and demographic accounts, closely integrated with the system of national accounts, which will describe changes in conditions of persons and families, costs of social services, and a comprehensive evaluation of benefits. 7. Review of reporting plans and recordkeeping requirements of Federal agencies requesting information from the public. The number of clearance actions under the provisions of the Federal Reports Act handled by the Office in 1973 is expected to be about the same as in 1972 - approximately 2900. Increasing use of statistics for policy decisions and for Government program planning and evaluation required increased attention in this field to avoid duplication to minimize reporting burdens and to assure consistency. Attention to these problems is also important in the review of proposals by Federal agencies for collection of information in applications and other administrative reports. In its review of reporting plans, the Office consults with the Business Advisory Council on Federal Reports and its various committees and panels regarding reports requested from industry and business. Since 1969 the Office has invited other interested groups and individuals to participate in these meetings and to give their views on data collection proposals. 8. Report of the President's Commission on Federal Statistics. The report of this Commission appointed by the President in August, 1970 was presented to the President in December, 1971. It contains recommendations regarding privacy and confidentiality in the Federal statistical system, and the nature and scope of responsibilities of the Division, as well as programs and activities of the Federal agencies which compile statistics. The Commission's recommendations are now being studied and evaluated. Steps will then be taken to implement those recommendations which are determined to be appropriate. Budget Review: (estimated position requirements: 1972 64, 1973 64) This Division assists in the exercise of the Office's responsibilities for the Federal budget. Its activities include the recommendation of general budget and fiscal policies, coordination of the entire budget and apportionment processes for the Federal Government, participation in the review of budget requests and recommendations, and determination of appropriate levels of funding for the Government's programs. It assists in the presentation of budget recommendations to the President, and maintains liaison with the appropriations committeees of the Congress. It also assists in presenting information on the budget outlook to the committees of Congress having cognizance over revenue matters and to the Joint Economic Committee, as required. Economic and fiscal analyses are a vital part of the budget task. The economic situation and the Government sector of the economy are reviewed every month by this Division and the Economist in the Director's Office in cooperation with the Treasury Department, the Council of Economic Advisers, and frequently with staff of the Federal Reserve Board. The Division prepares projections and reviews, develops economic assumptions for budgetary use, and makes special analyses related to fiscal policy. It assists in the review of tax legislation, reviews the estimates of receipts, and encourages agencies to impose appropriate levels of user charges for activities for which such charges would be appropriate. The Division has general responsibility for analyzing the fiscal The Division provides leadership in developing control mechanisms to implement the decisions that are reached regarding the budget totals such as those pertaining to employment levels within the Government. The control systems require the priority appraisal of the resource demands of all programs, and the resulting recommendations assist the Director in choosing among competing demands. The Division also carries out the technical work necessary to record the allocations of Government-wide ceilings and limitations, and to maintain surveillance over their operation. With the assistance of the Evaluation Division and the program divisions, the Division analyzes Government programs, their effectiveness, and the relationship between their costs and benefits. The staff develops procedures and information to improve the allocation of resources among different programs and major categories of the budget. It advises on the longer range aspects of the availability and uses of resources and provides analytic support for the Office's concern with State and local government financial and fiscal problems. The Division promotes the use of cost analysis and efficiency considerations in the examination of budget estimates. It coordinates the application of policies requiring the greatest possible absorption of cost increases such as those caused by pay legislation and changes in per diem and travel rates. The Division plans, schedules, controls, compiles, and edits the Budget, Budget Appendix, Special Analyses, and Budget in Brief. It is responsible for the presentation of budget amendments and supplemental estimates. It prepares the annual review of the budget which is usually published in the late summer and answers inquiries from the public with regard to the budget presentation. Evaluation: (estimated positions requirements: 1972 19, 1973 16) This Division assists in the development of evaluation techniques and in the execution of special program analyses. It provides technical assistance to the program divisions and works closely with them in implementing evaluation techniques as a part of the agency and departmental review process. It analyzes Government-wide issues of special interest to the Executive Office of the President; and prepares Government-wide program overviews which show costs, benefits and characteristics of beneficiaries. The Division maintains liaison with the program divisions in identifying major program issues for analysis in the forthcoming budget cycle and future budget cycles, working with the agencies in assuring effective analysis of the issues and participating in the development of recommendations for final disposition. It also prepares major reviews of program effectiveness, bringing to bear the processes of cost-benefit analysis and systems analysis, both on an agency basis and on a Government-wide basis. PROGRAM DIVISIONS Each of the six program divisions deals with a broad segment of the |