February 12, 2020 - Issue: Vol. 166, No. 29 — Daily Edition116th Congress (2019 - 2020) - 2nd Session
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STATEMENTS ON INTRODUCED BILLS AND JOINT RESOLUTIONS; Congressional Record Vol. 166, No. 29
(Senate - February 12, 2020)
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[Pages S1043-S1044] From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov] STATEMENTS ON INTRODUCED BILLS AND JOINT RESOLUTIONS By Mr. ENZI (for himself, Mr. Warner, Mr. Grassley, Mr. Johnson, Mr. Perdue, and Mr. Lankford): S. 3287. A bill to modify the governmentwide financial management plan, and for other purposes; to the Committee on Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs. Mr. ENZI. Mr. President, I rise to introduce the Chief Financial Officer Vision Act of 2020, shortened to be the CFO Vision Act of 2020. I am pleased to have Senators Warner, Grassley, Johnson, Lankford, and Perdue join me as cosponsors of this bill to strengthen Federal financial management and improve financial and performance data. Improved financial management--this is numbers; I know this puts people to sleep--improved financial management and better data can help us make more informed budget decisions and ensure that taxpayer money is wisely and appropriately spent. Effective financial management helps to safeguard taxpayer money and ensure that it is used lawfully, efficiently, and effectively for the purposes intended. Thirty years ago, Congress passed the Chief Financial Officers Act of 1990, known as the CFO Act. This law laid a new foundation for Federal financial management. It established a financial management leadership structure, provided for long-range planning, required audited financial statements, and strengthened accountability reporting, among other reforms. The CFO Act also called for improvements in the integration of agency accounting and financial management systems, in performance measurement and cost information, and in our financial management workforce. Since enactment of that act, we have seen substantial improvements in Federal financial management. Today, agencies have CFOs in place to provide leadership and accountability over financial operations, and most agencies receive clean audit opinions on their annual financial statements. However, serious and persistent problems remain. Many agencies have struggled to modernize legacy accounting systems and are unable to integrate their financial and performance data. Oftentimes, the Federal Government is unable to show the relationship between dollars spent and results achieved. After more than 20 years of trying, the Government Accountability Office still cannot give an opinion on the Federal Government's consolidated financial statements. They cite serious financial management problems at the Department of Defense, among other issues. The legislation we are introducing would update that 1990 law in a handful of key ways to ensure sustained progress in improving Federal financial management. It is based in large part on a GAO--Government Accountability Office--review of the 1990 law and testimony last October from the Comptroller General of the United States, Gene Dodaro, before the Senate Budget Committee. First, the CFO Vision Act would standardize CFO and Deputy Chief Financial Officer responsibilities, which do vary across Federal agencies. To allow for better strategic decision making, the Chief Financial Officer Vision Act would specify that the Chief Financial Officer responsibilities should include budget formulation and execution, planning and performance, risk management and internal controls, financial systems, and accounting. The bill would also ensure that the Deputy Chief Financial Officers could provide continuity in the event of a Chief Financial Officer vacancy. Major financial management improvement initiatives can take years to implement, potentially outlasting the CFO's tenure. By establishing appropriate statutory responsibilities for the Deputy Chief Financial Officers, the bill would help minimize the effects of the CFO turnover. Secondly, the bill would update the governmentwide and agency-level planning requirements to ensure they are reasonable and allow for proper planning and monitoring. The updated plans would include projected milestones and estimated implementation costs. Annual status updates would allow Congress to track progress toward these milestones and how closely actual costs match those that were projected. Third, the CFO Vision Act would require the Office of Management and Budget to develop performance-based metrics to determine the status and progress of agencies and how they are making progress toward achieving cost-effective and efficient government operations. Currently, only limited financial management performance-based metrics exist, such as the financial statement audit opinion and reporting of identified material weaknesses. All accountants understand these terms. Currently, only limited financial management performance-based metrics exist, such as the financial statement audit opinion and the reporting of identified material weaknesses. I could say that a third time, and still people wouldn't understand it. This new requirement would provide a more complete and consistent measurement of the quality of the agencies' financial management. These performance metrics would be required to be included in the governmentwide and agency-level financial management plans and status reports. That means we will have more information to work with. Finally, our bill would require agency management to annually assess and report on the effectiveness of internal control--whether they are really keeping track of everything and ensuring that it is correct--the effectiveness of internal control over financial reporting and other key financial management information. Auditors would also be required to independently assess internal controls. Such assessments will improve confidence in the reliability of financial reporting. The CFO Vision Act builds on the CFO Act's foundation. By updating it, we can achieve more effective financial management, which I believe will ultimately lead to increased accountability and results and understanding by the Senators. I am pleased that our bill has been endorsed by the National Taxpayers Union, the Project on Government Oversight, the DATA Coalition, the R Street Institute, Citizens Against Government Waste, Truth in Accounting, and Taxpayers for Common Sense. I think that means that there are accountants on the boards of all of those. This shouldn't be a controversial piece of legislation. It just should be an essential update so we know what is happening with the trillions of dollars that [[Page S1044]] we are allocating, spending, and checking up on. I urge my colleagues to support this bill. ____________________
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