Fiscal Year 2003: Performance Report U.S. Department of Agricultire Natural Resources Conservation Service

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Manae m e n t g nes s processes and agency resources Gis ood management of internal busi- more than 1,000 additional providers in the certification process. The Technical es sential to efficient program Service Provider process was authorized Strategies operatiori s that provide high - quality cus- by the 2002 Farm Bill as a strategy for tomer sex—« ice and effective use of the tax- increasing the availability of technical payers' nz vney. In FY 2003, we took action assistance to implement the greatly to impler-T� ant the management strategies increased investment in conservation NRCS receives management that the President's Management Agenda mandated by the Bill. TSPs are non - award (PMA) lza s identified as key to improving USDA technical specialists who are certi- the effect: i---%�eness and accountability of the fied to NRCS Standards to deliver The American Society for Public Federal gv —vernment as a whole. We have conservation technical services to farmers Administration awarded NRCS its lead- developed detailed long -range action plans and ranchers participating in USDA con - ership award for increasing public to meet t1Lz --e criteria for excellence for each servation programs. The names of certi- access and demonstrating greater of the five components of the President's fied specialists are available to landowners, financial accountability. This was the Managers_ ant Agenda. Major tasks in those farmers, ranchers and others seeking con - first time the Society has presented the plans wer--� included in the agency 's annual servation technical assistance on a award to a Federal agency. business 1p_-7am- --Man for FY 2003 and in annual national, web -based registry called The award recognizes NRCS's operating Mans at all levels. These tasks, TechReg. In addition, we established "not Integrated Accountability System, when imp lemented, will enable us to: to exceed" payment rates for categories of which enables the agency to collect • Maintai �� an efficient, high - performing, technical services provided byTSPs for h quality information with minimal g G y diverse �gency workforce, aligned with each State, based on NRCS's total cost to burden on field staff, ensuring consis- missiorz priorities and working coo era- P g P provide technical assistance for conserva- tenc nationwide in the data collected. y tively �T zth our partners and the private tion practices. In 2003, we obligated more The Society's Center for Accountability than $23 million for technical assistance and Performance is dedicated to ins ir- p sector. to be provided by non - Federal sources. ing academicians in their scholarship • Make e J�7Wective use of electronic infor- In 2003, we conducted a streamlining and practitioners in their results -ori- matiorz management systems to mini- study that resulted in approval of 25 rec- ented practices to improve the per- mize t1-z P administrative workload of ommendations that will lead to significant formance of organizations involved emplo3rPes and enable them to provide improvements in NRCS operations. The with public purposes. better s -,�rvice to customers. recommendations were developed from • ImproYP financial management and link suggestions submitted by employees in budget decisions more closely with pro - field, area, and State offices through the gram p c� rformance, providing managers online suggestion system. There is a direct and po 1 zcy makers with timely informa- benefit to our customers for every incre- tion orz -the full cost and the benefits of ment of time and money these improve - activiti P _=s. ments save. NRCS also made progress in strength- In FY X003, we completed public -pri- In its contracting procedures for corrz petitions of about 25 percent of acquiring services from the private sector. acquiring our posit z ins that are considered to be NRCS ranked first among USDA agen- commerc z al in nature, exceeding the 15 ties in accomplishing the performance- percent � oal established by the Office of percent based service contracting goals set for FY and Budget for the year. 2003. NRCS achieved almost 75 percent Tentative or Final Decisions on studies of its goal. For performance -based service covering 2,201 full -time employees (95 contracts, all aspects of an acquisition are percent those studied) determined that v f structured around the purpose of the NRCS r- =employees can provide the services e work to be performed. more eff7k a — iently than any competitor. In FY =003, we also initiated the Technical Service Provider (TSP) process, enabling --=ore than 1,200 providers to be certified y the end of the fiscal year, with Fiscal Yea r Z 4W03 Performance Report 17