While I was looking at the various appropriations committee websites for data regarding the state budget, I ran across some rules that I was excited to see.  The document is titled, “House and Senate Appropriations Chairs’ Guidancefor Subcommittee Chairs”.  When I read through the one-page document I was excited.  The legislature is going to ask some hard questions that really make agencies justify spending.  Looks like performance based budgeting is making progress in North Carolina.

From the document:

  • Evaluate agencies by looking at the programs and services they provide.  Fore each program/service, look at:
    • Does this program fulfill a Constitutional requirement?
    • Is this program required by federal mandate? State mandate?
    • Is this program appropriately funded to complete its mission?
    • Do program outcomes justify expenditures?
    • If funding is too high, reduce funding.
    • If funding is too low,
      • eliminate the program, OR….
      • increase funding so that core services can be provided
    • For mandatory programs, are there ways to manage growth and reduce expenditures?
    • For non-mandatory programs, can priority or rank order be given to them?
  • Where appropriate, look at long-term issues that may be addressed by more than one program.
    • Is the set of services or programs the State offers an effective way to address the issue?
    • Can some programs be eliminated?
    • Can the savings from those programs be used more effectively to run other programs?
  • Use evaluations that are already available: NC GEAR report, Program Evaluation Division reports, study committee reports, audits, and agency reports submitted to Gov Ops, oversight committees, or Fiscal Research.