1. On August 3, 1993, President Clinton signed into law the Government Performance Act and Results Act. 2. The main features of this law are: -- a requirement for Federal departments and agencies to prepare strategic plans, beginning with an initial plan to be submitted to the Office of Management and Budget (which is an agency within the Executive Office of the President) and to Congress by September 30, 1997.-- a requirement that Federal departments and agencies prepare annual performance plans, setting out specific performance goals for a fiscal year, starting with a performance plan for fiscal year 1999. (The Federal Government's fiscal year begins October 1 and ends the following September 30. Fiscal year 1999 begins on October 1, 1998.)-- a requirement that the Office of Management and Budget (0MB) prepare an annual government-wide performance plan, which is based on the agency annual performance plans. The government-wide performance plan is to be a part of the President's budget and is transmitted to Congress. In the agency and government-wide performance plans, the levels of program performance to be achieved will correspond with the program funding level in the budget. The first of these plans will be for the fiscal year 1999 budget, which Congress should receive in February, 1998.-- a requirement that Federal departments and agencies submit an annual program performance report to the President and Congress, and which compares actual performance with the goal levels that were set in the annual performance plan. The annual report is due six months after the end of a fiscal year. The first report, covering fiscal year 1999, is to be submitted by March 31, 2000.-- provisions giving managers greater flexibility in managing by allowing the waiver of various administrative controls and limitations. In return, managers are expected to be more accountable for t