Today Senator Warner reasserted his role as one of Congress’ leaders in working for more efficient, effective government performance.   

This morning Senator Warner was reappointed chairman of the bipartisan Government Performance Task Force by Senate Budget Committee Chair Patty Murray (D-WA).  The Task Force provides oversight and recommendations on ways to increase the performance and reduce the cost of federal agencies and programs. 

“The continuation of the Task Force represents a strong, ongoing commitment from the Budget Committee to keep looking for smart ways to save taxpayer dollars by improving how our government works,” said Sen. Warner.  “Our Task Force will pursue additional reforms that will reduce duplication, break down agency silos, build a more collaborative culture across government, and modernize how we use technology to improve transparency and accountability. This kind of oversight work typically does not generate a lot of headlines, but I look forward to working with my colleagues from both sides of the aisle to find new ways to save taxpayer money.”

Senator Murray praised Senator Warner’s continued work to improve government performance. “Senator Warner has a long history of fighting for smart and efficient government investments,” she said, “and I cannot think of a better chair for the Task Force.”

Senator Warner also introduced the bipartisan Federal Government Customer Service Improvement Act of 2013, which works to improve customer service delivery across federal agencies.  The legislation aims to make federal government customer service more transparent and efficient, with resources prioritized towards improving front-line customer service.

“Citizens should expect federal agencies to deliver customer services at least as well as the private sector does, but this often is not the case," noted Senator Warner. “Many of our military veterans still wait too long for critical medical services and benefits, and I’ve heard from Virginians waiting over 400 days for their full retirement benefits from the federal government. That simply is not acceptable.”

Sen. Warner has a long record of working to improve government performance.  As Governor of Virginia from 2002 to 2006, he worked in a bipartisan way to implement businesslike reforms that made state government more effective and affordable, resulting in Virginia's designation as the nation’s best managed state in the Pew Charitable Trust’s independent 2005 Government Performance Project. 

In Congress, Sen. Warner successfully sponsored the bipartisan Government Performance and Results Modernization Act of 2010, which requires federal agencies to identify their top priorities, annually report program results, and clearly identify ineffective or overlapping programs for potential consolidation or elimination. 

In addition, Sen. Warner has introduced the Digital Accountability and Transparency Act, which would improve and expand federal fiscal accountability by requiring more transparent reporting of every dollar spent by the federal government.