TIGHTENING STANDARDS FOR GOVERNMENTAL EFFICIENCY AND INTEGRITY

To develop a foundation to carry out energy policy, we consolidated scattered energy programs and launched the Synthetic Fuels Corporation; to give education the priority it deserves and at the same time reduce HHS to more manageable size, I gave education a seat at the Cabinet table, to create a stronger system for attacking waste and fraud, I reorganized audit and investigative functions by putting an Inspector General in major agencies.  Since I took office, we have submitted 14 reorganization initiatives and had them all approved by Congress.  We have saved hundreds of millions of dollars through the adoption of businesslike cash management principles and set strict standards for personal financial disclosure and conflict of interest avoidance by high Federal officials.

To streamline the structure of the government, we have secured approval of 14 reorganization initiatives, improving the efficiency of the most important sectors of the government, including energy, education, and civil rights enforcement.  We have eliminated more than 300 advisory committees as well as other agencies, boards and commissions which were obsolete or ineffective.  Independent Inspectors General have been appointed in major agencies to attack fraud and waste.  More than a billion dollars of questionable transactions have been identified through their audit activities.

The adoption of business-like cash management and debt collection initiatives will save over $1 billion, by streamlining the processing of receipts, by controlling disbursements more carefully, and by reducing idle cash balances.  Finally this Administration has set strict standards for personal financial disclosure and conflict of interest avoidance by high Federal officials, to elevate the level of public trust in the government.

V. PROTECTING BASIC RIGHTS AND LIBERTIES

I am extremely proud of the advances we have made in ensuring equality and protecting the basic freedoms of all Americans.

—­The Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) and the Office of Federal Contract Compliance (OFCCP) have been reorganized and strengthened and a permanent civil rights unit has been established in OMB.

—­To avoid fragmented, inconsistent and duplicative enforcement of civil rights laws, three agencies have been given coordinative and standard-setting responsibilities in discrete areas:  EEOC for all employment-related activities, hud for all those relating to housing, and the Department of Justice for all other areas.

—­With the enactment of the Right to Financial Privacy Act and a bill limiting police search of newsrooms, we have begun to establish a sound, comprehensive, privacy program.

Ratification of the Equal Rights Amendment must be aggressively pursued.  Only one year remains in which to obtain ratification by three additional states.