1. Legislative Branch Streamlining and Restructuring.

Recommendation: The Speaker should appoint a task force to issue recommendations on achieving savings in the cost of the legislative branch consistent with reductions implemented by the executive branch under the National Performance Review.

The Speaker will appoint a task force to make recommendations and issue a report to the leadership to achieve: (1) economic efficiencies and cost savings in the administrative operations of the legislative branch, and (2) staffing reductions consistent with reductions implemented for the executive branch under the National Performance Review. (Comparable Senate actions also are to occur on these matters.) If these recommendations are fully implemented, the resulting reduction in legislative branch employment will be 12 percent. The base employment level from which reductions would be taken is the number of full-time legislative branch staff employed as of September 30, 1992. The task force must report before the beginning of the second session of the 104th Congress (January 3, 1996). Task force recommendations approved by the leadership will be implemented in the legislative branch appropriation bill for Fiscal Year 1997.

The task force will consist of 12 Representatives appointed by the Speaker, 7 in consultation with the majority leader and 5 in consultation with the minority leader. The expenses and staff of the task force will be provided from existing resources of the Committee on House Administration and the Committee on Appropriations.

Executive branch operations as well as those of private businesses are being downsized systematically. The Congress cannot exclude itself from efforts to make staffing structures and organizations more rational, efficient, and cost-effective. Just as congressional staffs grew in the past to balance the expertise of the executive branch, downsizing in the executive branch should be accompanied by some downsizing in the legislative branch as well.

2. Authorization and Funding of Certain Congressional Instrumentalities.

Recommendation: The permanent authorization for the congressional instrumentalities (the Congressional Budget Office, the Congressional Research Service, the General Accounting Office, the Office of Technology Assessment, and the Government printing Office) should be repealed. These support agencies should be reauthorized on an 8-year cycle beginning in Fiscal Year 1997.

This recommendation eliminates the permanent authorization of the General Accounting Office, the Congressional Research Service, the Government Printing Office, the Office of Technology Assessment, and the Congressional Budget Office. All of the agencies are to be on an 8-year reauthorization cycle beginning with Fiscal Year 1997. This change deletes statutory provisions providing permanent authorization for these entities.

Few executive activities are permanently authorized. Congress should not exempt its own activities from mandatory periodic review and reauthorization. Permanent authorization contributes to irregular and unsystematic oversight. The recent oversight hearing by the House Government Operations Committee on the General Accounting Office appears to be the first formal House oversight hearing on GAO since 1985.

Periodic reauthorization requires the agencies to justify their continued operations, forces substantial oversight review by House legislative committees, and allows for periodic restructuring of the agencies to guarantee that they are performing their functions effectively, efficiently, and without substantial duplication of effort. It also assures that the operations of these agencies remain responsive to the Congress's needs as their sizes are reduced consistent with overall reductions in the legislative branch.

3. Coordination of Legislative Branch Services.

Recommendation: The appropriate committees of the House and the Senate should study means to better coordinate non-partisan services in the legislative branch, minimize duplication, and assess the feasibility of opening such services to competitive bidding by the private sector.

Under this suggested change, the appropriate committees of the House and Senate are to study and report to their party leaders by the end first session of the 104th Congress their recommendations for better coordination of legislative branch services, positions, and organizations. The services for which greater coordination is to be sought include printing, recording, photography, tour guide services, folding and packaging, chaplains' services, flag offices, security and parking, disbursements and receipts of official expenses, legal services, bill drafting services, the Congressional Budget Office, library and research services, computer services, and the operation of the Office of the Architect and maintenance of buildings and grounds. Additionally, the recommendation suggests studies undertaken by the House and Senate committees consider the creation of a bicameral management board comprised of five Representatives and five Senators to implement subsequent coordination strategies.

A study of overlapping and duplicative services in the legislative branch is required before any attempt at combining such services is undertaken. There will be widespread budgetary constraints and staff reductions in the legislative branch over the next decade. The separate service units which could be supported easily when funding was more generous can no longer be maintained at their current levels. Closer management supervision by the Congress over its own operations is crucial if essential services are to be maintained. Careful study followed by remedial legislation is the only way to downsize and economize effectively.

Privatization and Competitive Bidding

It is also recognized that the private sector, the executive branch, and many State and local governments have successfully privatized many services that formerly were performed by employees. A number of services now provided in the House can be described as ``business'' or ``quasi-business'' services and can most economically be performed by contractors on a competitive bidding basis. Accordingly, the appropriate committees of the House and Senate are to study and report during the first session of the 104th Congress on the feasibility of granting to private firms by competitive bid the right to operate certain congressional facilities including congressional barber and beauty shops, gymnasiums and health clubs, health and medical services, restaurants, automobile services (including purchase and leasing), and child care facilities. The privatization study should also make recommendations about the appropriate duration of such contracts and appropriate review and renewal mechanisms.