Federal Agency Performance and Accountability Reports (PARs): Content and Access








Prepared for Members and Committees of Congress



Various financial management improvement laws have established annual reporting requirements
for federal departments and agencies. Under the Reports Consolidation Act of 2000 (P.L. 106-
531), federal departments and agencies are required to submit annual Performance and
Accountability Reports (PARs) to the Office of Management and Budget (OMB) and to Congress.
The PAR summarizes significant financial data, including financial highlights, annual financial
statements, performance metrics and results, and management control practices and initiatives.
Some departments and agencies include data on how they are addressing the President’s
Management Agenda and results of program evaluations required by the Government
Performance and Results Act of 1993 (GPRA; P.L. 103-62).
The financial and performance information reported in the PARs enables the President, Congress,
and the public to assess the performance of an agency relative to its mission and to demonstrate
accountability. Executive agencies post their PARs, both current and some retrospective, on their
public websites. OMB has also posted this information on its website at
http://www.white house.gov/o mb/part /a ge ncy_performance_addresses.html .
This report discusses the contents of the PARs and their availability. It also presents information
on a FY2007 PAR pilot program, recommendations for PAR improvement by the National
Academy of Public Administration (NAPA) workgroup, and the FY2008 continuation of the PAR
pilot program.
This report will be updated as necessary.
This report was originally authored by Merete F. Gerli, Information Research Specialist,
Knowledge Services Group.






Backgr ound ..................................................................................................................................... 1
Performance and Accountability Reports (PARs): OMB Guidelines and Requirements................2
Recommendations for PAR Improvements.....................................................................................2
NAPA Workgroup.....................................................................................................................2
FY2007 PAR Pilot Program......................................................................................................3
PAR Pilot Program to Continue for FY2008...................................................................................6
Availability of Performance and Accountability Reports................................................................6
Appendix. Acronyms Used in OMB Circular A-136, Financial Reporting Requirements.............7
Author Contact Information............................................................................................................8






Each federal department and agency is required to submit an annual Performance and
Accountability Report (PAR) to the Office of Management and Budget (OMB) and to Congress.
The PAR summarizes significant financial data, including financial highlights, annual financial
statements, performance metrics and results, and management control practices and initiatives.
Some departments and agencies include data on how they are addressing the President’s
Management Agenda and results of program evaluations required by the Government
Performance and Results Act of 1993 (GPRA; P.L. 103-62).
The financial and performance information reported in the PARs enables the President, Congress,
and the public to assess the performance of an agency relative to its mission, and to demonstrate
accountability. Copies of the final reports must be provided to the Speaker of the House of
Representatives, the President and the President pro tempore of the Senate, the chairmen and
ranking minority members of the Senate Committee on Homeland Security and Governmental
Affairs and the House Committee on Oversight and Government Reform, and the chairmen and
ranking minority members of the budget committees, relevant authorization and oversight 1
committees, and appropriations subcommittees.
Various financial management improvement laws have established these annual reporting
requirements for federal departments and agencies.
• The Chief Financial Officers Act of 1990 (CFO Act; P.L. 101-576), as amended
by the Government Management Reform Act of 1994 (GMRA; P.L. 103-356),
requires 24 major agencies and departments to prepare and submit audited
financial statements.
• The Government Performance and Results Act of 1993 (GPRA; P.L. 103-62),
among its many provisions, calls for submission of annual performance reports
(APRs).
• The Reports Consolidation Act of 2000 (P.L. 106-531) permits agencies to
submit combined reports in fulfillment of statutory requirements for financial and
performance management information. These reports are called performance and
accountability reports or PARs.
• The Accountability of Tax Dollars Act of 2002 (ATDA; P.L. 107-289), extends
the annual audited financial statements requirement to almost every executive
branch agency and commission.
• The Improper Payments Information Act (IPIA, P.L. 107-300) also establishes 2
new reporting requirements for departments and agencies.
• A memorandum from the OMB director regarding requirements of ATDA listed
78 executive agencies and commissions now subject to coverage (in addition to

1 Office of Management and Budget, Circular A-136, Financial Reporting Requirements, revised June 3, 2008, p. 4, at
http://www.whitehouse.gov/omb/circulars/a136/a136_revised_2008.pdf.
2 For a legislative history of these laws, see CRS Report RL31965, Financial Management in the Federal Government:
Efforts to Improve Performance, by Virginia A. McMurtry.





the original 24 CFO agencies).3 In the same memorandum, the director noted that
all covered agencies will be subject to the provisions of OMB Bulletin 01-09
Form and Content of Agency Financial Statements which requires them to
consolidate their audited financial statements and other financial performance
reports into combined performance and accountability reports and accelerates the
deadlines for submission to November 15, just six weeks after the close of the 4
fiscal year.


Performance and Accountability Reports are prepared in accordance with OMB guidelines
outlined in Circular A-136 Financial Reporting Requirements http://www.whitehouse.gov/omb/
circulars/a136/a136_revised_2008.pdf. The circular establishes “a central point of reference for
all federal financial reporting guidance for executive branch departments, agencies, and entities
required to submit audited financial statements, interim financial statements, and Performance 5
and Accountability Reports (PARs).”
OMB issued a revised version of Circular A-136, Form and Content of the Performance and
Accountability Report (PAR), on June 3, 2008. PARs now contain the annual audited financial
statements, the annual performance reports under GPRA, data on improper payments in
compliance with the IPIA, as well as other mandated reports, such as agencies’ assurances on
internal control assurances, accountability reports by agency heads, and inspectors generals’
assessments of their agencies’ most serious management and performance challenges.
Agencies must submit their PARs to OMB and Congress no later than 45 days after the end of the
fiscal year, or by November 15. Ten working days before issuing the final PAR, agencies must
submit a draft of the PAR, including all sections, to OMB’s Office of Federal Financial
Management (OFFM) and the appropriate Resource Management Office (RMO). The draft and
final reports must be submitted electronically in a PDF format to a specified website.

At the request of the chair of the House Subcommittee on Government Management, Finance and 6
Accountability, and of the then House Government Reform Committee, a National Academy of

3 OMB,Requirements of the Accountability of Tax Dollars Act of 2002,” Memorandum for Heads of Selected
Executive Agencies from Mitchell E. Daniels Jr., December 6, 2002, http://www.whitehouse.gov/omb/financial/
accountablity_of_tax_dollars.pdf.
4 OMB, Form and Content of Agency Financial Statements, Bulletin No. 01-09, September 25, 2001,
https://www.whitehouse.gov/omb/bulletins/b01-09.html.
5 Office of Management and Budget, Circular A-136, Revised June 3, 2008, p. 1, http://www.whitehouse.gov/omb/
circulars/a136/a136_revised_2008.pdf.
6 This committee became the Committee on Oversight and Government Reform in the 110th Congress (2007).





Public Administration (NAPA) workgroup examined ways to strengthen the financial
management of the federal government and recommended potential reforms. The NAPA report,
Moving From Scorekeeper to Strategic Partner: Improving Financial Management in the Federal
Government, was published in October 2006. Section 2, page 21, briefly assessed goals of PARs 7
and observed that many PARs “have grown prohibitively large and excessively detailed.”
To increase the effectiveness of PARs, the NAPA workgroup recommended that OMB issue
additional guidelines on PAR’s length and level of detail, and consider better ways to streamline
information currently in PARs. Specifically the workgroup concluded and recommended the
following:
• PARs should provide more integrated information, such as cost of specific
programs related to amount spent on achieving results;
• PARs should include an additional chart that compares final budgetary
expenditures with congressional appropriations; and
• PARs should be available through a single online website.8 OMB should issue
better guidelines on the PARs ideal length and level of detail.
In FY2007, by way of a memorandum to the heads of executive departments, agencies, and other
entities subject to the Chief Financial Officers Act, OMB announced its FY2007 Pilot Program 9
for Alternative Approaches to Performance and Accountability Reporting. The pilot allowed
agencies to produce an alternative to the consolidated PAR. OMB felt that using an alternative
format should not in any way reduce the public’s access to the detailed financial and performance
information available in a consolidated PAR but should make the presentation of performance
information more meaningful. The pilot had three required components: (1) an Agency Financial
Report (AFR); (2) an Annual Performance Report (APR) with detailed performance information
that meets GPRA requirements and is transmitted with the Congressional Budget Justification
(CBJ); and (3) a “Highlights” document to provide performance and financial information in a
brief, user friendly format.
To allow for greater attention to past performance, the Highlights had to be published no later
than the Friday before the release of the President’s annual budget submission. At a minimum, the
Highlights were to include the following:
• a clear, concise, and outcome-oriented explanation of what core public benefits
the agency was seeking to achieve and its progress or lack of progress toward
achieving them;
• data and discussion of key performance measures, including trend data;

7 National Academy of Public Administration (NAPA). Moving From Scorekeeper to Strategic Partner: Improving
Financial Management in the Federal Government. A Report by a Workgroup of NAPA, October 2006, p. 21. Report
available full-text on website at http://www.napawash.org/about_academy/Financial_Management_Report.pdf.
8 This was accomplished in November 2007 with the creation of the “Agency Performance Related Web Addresses,
available at http://www.whitehouse.gov/omb/part/agency_performance_addresses.html.
9 http://www.whitehouse.gov/omb/memoranda/fy2007/par_alternative.pdf.





• a candid assessment of whether the agency, met, partially met, or did not meet its
performance goals;
• a summary of key management issues that the agency was addressing (e.g., IG
and GAO reports, where appropriate);
• references and Internet links to where the reader could find more comprehensive,
publicly available information about the agency’s program and financial
performance, including ExpectMore.gov and the agency’s website for the full
PAR, AFR, and APR; and
• a table of summary financial statement audit information similar to the table in 10
Other Accompanying Information (OAI) (Section II 5.6).
The goals of the pilot were to allow agencies to explore different formats to enhance the
presentation of financial and performance information, and to make this information more
meaningful and transparent to the public. Some agencies achieved these goals by including their
APRs in their PARs and, at their discretion, they were allowed to continue to use the traditional
PAR format. Agencies participating in the FY2007 pilot realized, however, that there were
benefits to including their Annual Performance Report with their Congressional Budget
Justification (CBJ) and, thus, were allowed to do so. Because the PAR is published before the
release of the President’s Budget, agencies’ discussions of future resource allocations were
somewhat limited. Including the APR along with the annual performance plan in the CBJ allowed
the agency to discuss future programs or resources directed at improving performance more fully.
Agencies participating in the pilot submitted a notification to OMB and identified improvements
in reporting that were expected to be achieved by using the alternative. The eleven Chief
Financial Officer’s Act agencies in the FY2007 pilot were the Department of Defense,
Department of Energy, Department of Health and Human Services, Department of Homeland
Security, Department of State, the National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA), the
National Science Foundation (NSF), the Small Business Administration (SBA), and the United
States Agency for International Development (USAID). Two non-CFO Act agencies also 11
participated, the Corporation for National Community Service and the Denali Commission. The
pilot gave the federal government an opportunity to find the best way to present complete and
candid financial and performance information that is useful to its many stakeholders.
The Performance Improvement Council (PIC) and the Chief Financial Officers Council (CFOC)
reviewed the results of the pilot in order to formulate future guidance on financial and
performance reporting. OMB and agencies also met with other outside groups to receive
feedback. An open forum on the FY2007 PAR pilot program was held on April 10, 2008, at
National Academy of Public Administration headquarters in Washington, D.C. Agencies reported
several benefits from the pilot experience, including the following:

10 OMB Circular A-136, p. 140.
11 Their reports are not on the OMB website but appear on their individual websites as follows: the Corporation for
National Community Service, http://www.nationalservice.org/about/role_impact/performance.asp and the Denali
Commission, http://www.denali.gov/Program_Documents.cfm?Section=Finance.





• increased internal focus on most important measures and management
challenges;
• more readable documents for an agency’s employees and external stakeholders;
and
• reduced lengths of submitted reports with the clear and concise Highlights 12
document.
The FY2007 PAR pilot findings and recommendations, including agency best practices,
developed by the PIC Reporting and Transparency Working Group can be found online in the 13
MAX Federal Community Page. This was previously known as the Budget Community and is
used by OMB and authorized personnel in federal agencies to share information and to
collaborate. It is part of the Budget Formulation and Execution Line of Business at OMB.
In addition, the following changes were proposed by the Performance Improvement Council and
the Chief Financial Officers Council.
(i) Change the “Highlights” to[Agency Name] Citizens Report: FY 20XX Summary of
Performance and Financial Results,” (the Citizens Report) to better capture the objective
and comprehensive nature of the report.
(ii) Include specific Internet links that will take the reader to the evidence supporting
information about the agencys program and financial performance.
(iii) Provide information on the results of the agencys strategic goals, including
shortcomings, successes, and associated costs in the Citizens’ Report.
(iv) Limit the Citizens Report to 25 pages or less.
(v) Change the release date of the Citizens’ Report to no later than January 15, 2008.
(vi) Include a two-page summary in the front of the Citizens Report that provides the public
with:
a. A general description of the agency;
b. Summary of performance for each strategic goal;
c. Budget overview;
d. Stewardship and financial results;
e. Discussion of future challenges; and
f. A second page with a few outcome measures for each strategic goal or objective.
(vii) Include Summary of Financial Statement Audit findings similar to the table in the
Agency Financial Reports (AFR) Other Accompanying Information (OAI).

12 Full agency Performance and Accountability Reports typically are 200-400 pages in length. The FY2007 PAR
Highlights from the eleven PAR pilot participants average just over 50 pages in length.
13 https://max.omb.gov/maxportal.





(viii) Revise the AFR guidance to more clearly state the level of performance information
expected in the Management’s Discussion and Analysis (MD&A).
(ix) Employ the list of best practices generated from the findings to the extent possible.14

On June 5, 2008, the Office of Management and Budget issued OMB Memorandum M-08-20 to
the deputies of executive departments, agencies, and others subject to the Chief Financial Officers
Act, the Accountability of Tax Dollars Act, and government entities subject to the Government
Corporations Control Act. That memorandum provided for the continuation of the PAR pilot
program for FY2008 based upon positive feedback to the FY2007 PAR pilot program.
The pilot continues to allow agencies to explore different formats to enhance the presentation of
financial and performance information. Agencies are encouraged to use innovative technology to
give the reader greater access to pertinent information as well as evidence to support claims.
Based on the positive experience from the FY2007 pilot, OMB expects agency participation in
the FY2008 pilot to increase. Detailed instructions on the FY2008 pilot are to be included in a

2008 update of OMB Circular A-136, Financial Reporting Requirements, and OMB Circular A-15


11, Preparation, Submission, and Execution of the Budget. On August 29, 2008, OMB issued an
updated memorandum (M-08-25) entitled “Guidance for Completing FY2008 Financial and 16
Performance Reports.” Attachment B of this memorandum lists the agencies that will be
participating in the FY2008 PAR Pilot.


Departments and agencies post current and some previous PARs on their websites. Most FY2007
reports were available online shortly after their submission to the Office of Management and
Budget in November 2007. Previously, OMB maintained the Performance and Accountability
Reports on an internal website that was not available to the public. Pursuant to the NAPA
recommendation, OMB began posting the PARs on its website at http://www.whitehouse.gov/
omb/part/agency_performance_addresses.html. In addition, the U.S. Chief Financial Officers
Council, an organization of the CFOs and Deputy CFOs of the largest federal agencies, and senior
officials of OMB and the Department of the Treasury, aims to “link to the most recent” PARs on
its website at http://cfo.gov/index.cfm?function=links.

14 OMB Memorandum M-08-20, “Continuing the Pilot Program for Alternative Approaches to Performance and
Accountability Reporting in FY2008,” Memorandum to the Deputies of Executive Departments, Agencies, and Other
Entities Subject to the Chief Financial Officers Act, the Accountability of Tax Dollars Act, and Governmental Entities
Subject to the Government Corporations Control Act available at http://www.whitehouse.gov/omb/memoranda/fy2008/
m08-20.pdf.
15 http://www.whitehouse.gov/omb/circulars/a11/current_year/a11_toc.html, revised June 26, 2008.
16 http://www.whitehouse.gov/omb/memoranda/fy2008/m08-25.pdf.







AAPC Accounting and Auditing Policy Committee of the FASAB
ACSEC Accounting Standards Executive Committee
AFR Agency Financial Report
AICPA American Institute of Certified Public Accountants
APR Annual Performance Report
ATB Adjusted Trial Balance
ATDA Accountability of Tax Dollars Act of 2002 (P.L. 107-289)
AU Auditing and Attestation Standard
BFEM Budget Formulation and Execution Model
CBJ Congressional Budget Justification
CFO Chief Financial Officer
CFO Act Chief Financial Officers Act of 1990 (P.L. 101-576)
CFOC Chief Financial Officers Council
CSRS Civil Service Retirement System
CY Current Year
FACTS I Federal Agencies’ Centralized Trial-balance System I
FACTS II Federal Agencies’ Centralized Trial-balance System II
FASAB Federal Accounting Standards Advisory Board
FASB Federal Accounting Standards Board
FBWT Fund Balance with Treasury
FCRA Federal Credit Reform Act (P.L. 101-508)
FDIC Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation
FERS Federal Employees’ Retirement System
FFMIA Federal Financial Management Improvement Act (P.L. 104-208)
FHA Federal Housing Administration
FMFIA Federal Managers Financial Integrity Act (P.L. 97-255)
FMS Department of the Treasury Financial Management Service
FR Financial Report of the United States Government
FY Fiscal Year
GAAP Generally Accepted Accounting Principles
GAO Government Accountability Office
GASB Governmental Accounting Standards Board
GFRS Government-wide Financial Report System
GMRA Government Management Reform Act (P.L. 103-356)
GPRA Government Performance and Results Act (P.L. 103-62)
HI Hospital Insurance
IFCS Intragovernmental Fiduciary Confirmation System
IG Inspector General
IPIA Improper Payments Information Act of 2002 (P.L. 107-300)
MD&A Management’s Discussion and Analysis
MRS Military Retirement System
OAI Other Accompanying Information
OASDI Old-Age, Survivors, and Disability Insurance
OFFM OMB Office of Federal Financial Management
OIG Office of Inspector General
OMB Office of Management and Budget
OPM U.S. Office of Personnel Management
PAR Performance and Accountability Report
PART Program Assessment Rating Tool
PIC Performance Improvement Council
PMM Performance Management Module
PP&E Property, Plant & Equipment
PY Prior Year
Q&A Questions & Answers
RMO Resource Management Office





RSI Required Supplementary Information
RSSI Required Supplementary Stewardship Information
SAS Statement on Auditing Standards
SBR Statement of Budgetary Resources
SCA Statement of Custodial Activity
SCNP Statement of Changes in Net Position
SEC Securities and Exchange Commission
SF Standard Form
SFFAC Statement of Federal Financial Accounting Concepts
SFFAS Statement of Federal Financial Accounting Standards
SMI Supplementary Medical Insurance
SNC Statement of Net Cost
SOF Statement of Financing
SOSI Statement of Social Insurance
TCS Treasury Combined Statement
TFM Treasury Financial Manual
TR Technical Release
Treasury U.S. Department of the Treasury
TVA Tennessee Valley Authority
UI Unemployment Insurance
USSGL U.S. Standard General Ledger
Jerry W. Mansfield
Information Research Specialist
jmansfield@crs.loc.gov, 7-0106