Governor Rendell: Latest Performance Report Helps Agencies Manage Resources in Difficult Economy

Report Available in Electronic 'Dashboard' Format for First Time

HARRISBURG, Pa., Jan. 10, 2011 /PRNewswire-USNewswire/ -- The latest Report on State Performance offers an in-depth look at the steps state government agencies are taking to better serve Pennsylvanians in the face of increasingly limited resources, Governor Edward G. Rendell said today.

"It is more important than ever for state government to serve taxpayers as efficiently as possible," the Governor said. "We ask state agencies and offices to measure and review their performance every year so they can prioritize their resources and manage even more effectively."

The 2009-10 report – the fourth from Governor Rendell's administration – promotes government transparency by describing the activities, priorities and challenges of 30 state agencies under the Governor's jurisdiction.

The report presents goals in the areas of education, economic development, health and human services, the environment, public safety, consumer protection and government efficiency. By outlining agencies' key objectives and providing measurable results in dozens of different categories, the report helps readers evaluate state government's ongoing efforts to deliver quality services to taxpayers.

"This emphasis on accountability is especially important when public resources are stretched thin and every cent must be spent wisely," the Governor said. "Because of our focus on containing the administrative cost of government, the number of state employees fell by nearly 5,000 – or 6 percent – from 2003 to 2010. But in recent years the public demand for state services has grown because of the economic downturn."

The latest report, available only online, is in a new "dashboard" format that offers interactive features not possible with a paper report.

"The new online version of the report is itself an example of how state government is doing more with less," Budget Secretary Mary Soderberg said. "Moving to an online format saves the cost of printing and distributing a paper report. In addition, the new dashboard format gives readers the opportunity to explore and review the activities of government agencies in extraordinary detail."

The report describes both the accomplishments and the challenges of state agencies. Among the findings:

• The percentage of students advanced in math and reading more than doubled, from 20.1 percent in 2002 to 42.1 percent in 2010, based on the results of the Pennsylvania System of School Assessment tests (see the lead chart for the Education goal).
• The number of individuals served by the Emergency Food Assistance Program jumped to 4.25 million in 2009-10, up from 3.1 million in 2008-09 and 2.9 million in 2007-08 (see the Nutrition and Food Safety subject area measures in the Health and Human Services goal).
• The number of State Police sobriety checkpoints increased from 64 in 2007-08 to 565 in 2009-10 (see the measures for the Reduce DUI-related Crashes objective in the Pennsylvania State Police section of the Public Safety goal).

"By closely monitoring the results of the programs and services they provide, state agencies can see which work best and focus efforts on those that need improvement," the Governor said. "In this way, we are constantly striving to give our customers – Pennsylvania's citizens – the best value for their tax dollars."

To view the 2009-10 Report on State Performance, go to the Office of the Budget website at www.budget.state.pa.us and click on the report icon.

Media contact: Susan Hooper, Budget Office; 717-265-8067

SOURCE Pennsylvania Office of the Governor