The Joint Committee on Printing hereby transmits its budget estimate of $1,568,000 covering Committee operations and oversight activities for Fiscal Year 1993. Included within this presentation is a discussion of special activities and projects we plan to continue and/or initiate during Fiscal Year 1992 and 1993. JURISDICTION, AUTHORITY AND RESPONSIBILITIES The Joint Committee on Printing, whose authority and responsibilities are prescribed by Title 44 of the United States Code, acts as the policymaker and overseer of the printing, binding, and distribution activities of the Federal Government, as well as acting as a "Board of Directors" for the Government Printing Office. The broad jurisdiction and responsibilities of the JCP are codified in Section 103 of Title 44 which states that the JCP may use any measures it considers necessary to remedy neglect, delay, duplication or waste in the public printing and binding and the distribution of government publications". Other sections of Title 44 enumerate specific activities which are subject to regulation or approval by the JCP. The Joint Committee has completed an active year which involved hearings being held on fugitive documents, modern printing technology to be considered for the use of the GPO and the planned consolidation of printing services by the Department of Defense. As a partial result of the information received from these hearings, the Joint Committee is planning on major new initiatives in oversight of Federal Agency duplicating centers, the beginning of a rechartering process for all JCP-authorized printing plants, working with the Department of Defense to carry out a more cost-effective printing consolidation plan, as well as continuing its guidance to the GPO in their efforts at modernization and providing better services to the Congress and -2 I. ESTABLISHMENT OF POLICY TO AFFECT THE FORMULATION OF THE 1. Reinforcing GPO's Role as the Single Source for The Joint Committee on Printing is actively reinforcing the role of the Government Printing Office as the single source for government printing with the assistance of the Appropriations Committees. Language included in the Legislative Branch Appropriations Act for Fiscal Year 1991, P.L. 101-520, section 206, continued hereafter the requirement to print or procure Government publications through the Government Printing Office, with few exceptions. The JCP appreciates this invaluable assistance and is now seeking minor changes to this language in an effort to clarify Congressional intent and to further reinforce government printing through GPO. The Subcommittee on Defense Appropriations also included JCP approval language in its Conference Report regarding the consolidation of Department of Defense printing and duplicating. This act of support greatly underscored and endorsed the Joint Committee on Printing's role in ensuring the efficient and economical configuration and operation of field printing plants in Executive Agencies. The JCP is further pursuing the efficient operation of field printing plants and economical procurement through the GPO by the initiation of a comprehensive rechartering process for each plant. 2. Fiscal Year 1991 Joint Committee Hearings. A. Management Practices of the Government Printing Office An On January 24, 1991, Chairman Wendell H. Ford and Members of the Joint Committee on Printing held a second hearing to followup on problems identified with management practices at GPO. audit conducted by the General Accounting Office (GAO) in 1989, revealed a number of problems including weak managerial techniques, ineffective record-keeping, waste of paper, manpower and equipment. The hearing focused on obtaining an update from the Public Printer on changes that had been made since receiving the GAO report and recommendations to improve these management 4. -5 Oversight Investigations of Agency Printing Programs During Fiscal Year 1991, the Joint Committee on Printing asked Inspector Generals at several Federal departments and agencies to conduct reviews on the economy, efficiency and effectiveness of printing operations and activities within their organizations. Some of these reviews are completed, some are ongoing, and additional investigations are planned for Fiscal Year 1992, when the Committee staff determine that a more detailed analysis of specific printing programs are warranted. The status of these actions follow: A). General Services Administration – A review by the Agency's Office of Inspector General determined that GSĂ had questionably expanded its role in providing printing services. This expansion has occurred at the expense of commercial procurement through GPO which has proven to be approximately onehalf the cost of in-house printing. It has been estimated that correction of these practices could reduce taxpayer costs by ten million dollars. In March, 1991, Chairman Rose asked GSA's Office of Inspector General to conduct a follow-up review to compare GSA printing prices to GPO commercial contracts. Upon receipt of this report, the Joint Committee may pursue a more vigorous approach and review into this Agency's printing and duplicating activities. B). Department of Defense The Joint Committee staff in coordination with GAO has been conducting a comprehensive evaluation into the economics, efficiency and effectiveness of DOD's planned consolidation of the Service's printing and duplicating operations. As a result of the September 24th Joint Committee hearing, the Secretary of Defense agreed with the Committee that the consolidation should not proceed until the General Accounting Office and the JCP have had an opportunity to review the validation study and its supporting documentation. Additionally, the Joint Committee has worked closely with the Senate and House Committees on Appropriations to ultimately achieve the deletion of the Department's request for $20 million for new printing equipment. GAO is currently reviewing information that has subsequently been provided on the consolidation validation study. C). National Aeronautics & Space Administration - NASA's Office of Inspector General conducted at the Joint Committee's request, a comprehensive review of the Agency's printing and publishing program which identified numerous compliance problems. A major concern to the Committee was private sector printing and publishing arrangements that were entered into outside of normal GPO channels, resulting in higher costs. NASA's Inspector General has recommended downgrading five of the Agency's six authorized printing plants to duplicating operations and has -6 II. OVERSIGHT OF THE GOVERNMENT PRINTING OFFICE'S POLICIES The Joint Committee is directly responsible for overseeing the activities of the Government Printing Office to ensure that the printing needs of Congress and the Executive Branch are met expeditiously and cost-effectively, and to ensure the public has the widest possible access to Government-published information. The Joint Committee fulfills this role by setting policy for the GPO to execute, by providing continuity in GPO programs and encouraging the application of new technologies to GPO's functions. To this end, at the Joint Committee's request, GPO has recently completed and forwarded to the Committee, its recommendations addressing a long-term strategic plan for the Agency designed to further increase its utility and overall operational capabilities. The Joint Committee will actively review and provide its recommendations on all aspects of this plan to assure GPO is properly focused in its future activities. Following are some examples of Joint Committee approvals during 1991 for the modernization of GPO: In cooperation with meeting the needs of the Department of State, a new 6-color passport press was approved by the Joint Committee and ordered to be operational by the Fall of 1992. Joint Committee staff and GPO have worked with the Department of State to identify the most efficient press to acquire for producing the new and more secure passport that will be issued in 1993. The Department of State has committed the continued production of its passports at GPO, and the cost of the new press will be recovered over time, through the normal billing process for ordered work. GPO will also use the same press for printing postal cards for the U. S. Postal Service, thereby producing a cost savings with the more efficient press printing both products. 2. Drug Testing Center The Joint Committee authorized the Public Printer to initiate a drug testing program at GPO and approved the construction of a drug testing facility to be located adjacent to the existing medical unit. Those employees seeking help with drug or alcohol rehabilitation can be enrolled in the program and monitored. Implementation of the program was scheduled for 4. -5 Oversight Investigations of Agency Printing Programs During Fiscal Year 1991, the Joint Committee on Printing asked Inspector Generals at several Federal departments and agencies to conduct reviews on the economy, efficiency and effectiveness of printing operations and activities within their organizations. Some of these reviews are completed, some are ongoing, and additional investigations are planned for Fiscal Year 1992, when the Committee staff determine that a more detailed analysis of specific printing programs are warranted. of these actions follow: The status A). General Services Administration A review by the Agency's Office of Inspector General determined that GSA had questionably expanded its role in providing printing services. This expansion has occurred at the expense of commercial procurement through GPO which has proven to be approximately onehalf the cost of in-house printing. It has been estimated that correction of these practices could reduce taxpayer costs by ten million dollars. In March, 1991, Chairman Rose asked GSA's Office of Inspector General to conduct a follow-up review to compare GSA printing prices to GPO commercial contracts. Upon receipt of this report, the Joint Committee may pursue a more vigorous approach and review into this Agency's printing and duplicating activities. B). Department of Defense The Joint Committee staff in coordination with GAO has been conducting a comprehensive evaluation into the economics, efficiency and effectiveness of DOD's planned consolidation of the Service's printing and duplicating operations. As a result of the September 24th Joint Committee hearing, the Secretary of Defense agreed with the Committee that the consolidation should not proceed until the General Accounting Office and the JCP have had an opportunity to review the validation study and its supporting documentation. Additionally, the Joint Committee has worked closely with the Senate and House Committees on Appropriations to ultimately achieve the deletion of the Department's request for $20 million for new printing equipment. GAO is currently reviewing information that has subsequently been provided on the consolidation validation study. NASA's C). National Aeronautics & Space Administration Office of Inspector General conducted at the Joint Committee's request, a comprehensive review of the Agency's printing and publishing program which identified numerous compliance problems. A major concern to the Committee was private sector printing and publishing arrangements that were entered into outside of normal GPO channels, resulting in higher costs. NASA's Inspector General has recommended downgrading five of the Agency's six authorized printing plants to duplicating operations and has |