REORGANIZING GOVERNMENT: President Donald J. Trump’s reform and reorganization plan will make the Federal Government more responsive and accountable to the American people.
- Last year, President Trump signed an Executive Order directing the Office of Management and Budget (OMB) to work on a comprehensive plan to reorganize the Executive Branch.
- After a year of planning how to make the Federal Government more efficient, effective, and accountable – which included input from stakeholders, agencies, and the public – key reform proposals were developed, such as:
- Consolidating food safety functions into a single agency, addressing the current fragmented Federal oversight of food safety.
- Merging the Departments of Education and Labor into a single Cabinet agency to better meet the needs of American workers and students.
- Consolidating economic assistance resources to a new Bureau of Economic Growth within the Department of Commerce to increase economic growth nationwide.
- This plan will serve as a cornerstone for a productive, bipartisan dialogue around making the Federal Government work for the 21st century.
- Instead of a “one size fits all” approach to reform, the Trump Administration’s plan to reorganize the Government proposes solutions tailored to each agency’s mission.
MANDATE FOR CHANGE: President Trump recognizes that today’s Executive Branch is not equipped to meet Americans’ 21st century needs.
- The President’s Management Agenda released in March 2018 provided context for what needs to change in Government, including a renewed focus on mission, service, and stewardship.
- Today’s Federal Government lacks the organization and technology to provide the convenient and efficient services that Americans have come to expect in the 21st century. For example:
- Job seekers have to navigate more than 40 workforce development programs across 15 Federal agencies.
- Small businesses face overlapping, bureaucratic certification processes and complicated paperwork challenges when they try to work with the Government.
- Poultry companies have to deal with multiple Government offices and loads of paperwork because chickens and eggs are regulated by different agencies.
- Digitization is a must. Each year, the Federal Government creates millions of new paper documents that take too long to process and often must be physically stored.
- Reorganization will help agencies maintain efficiency and effectiveness over time.
MAKING AN IMPACT: President Trump’s reform efforts follow a number of actions already taken to improve and streamline the Federal Government.
- In May 2018, the President issued three Executive Orders aimed at reforming the civil service to work for the American people and making Federal operations more efficient.
- President Trump signed legislation to bring more accountability to the Department of Veterans Affairs and provide our veterans with more choice in the care they receive.
- The Administration has reduced the footprint of the Federal Government.
- Agencies are repealing a historic number of regulations and streamlining requirements.
