RFA Encouraged that U.S. House Speaker Ryan and U.S. Senator Murray Plan to Introduce Legislation to Enact Key Recommendations
WASHINGTON – Results for America (RFA) today issued the following statement on the final report of the Commission on Evidence-Based Policymaking — “The Promise of Evidence-Based Policymaking” — which was developed over 15 months and agreed to unanimously by the members of the Commission:
“This report is a big step forward for evidence-based policymaking, providing a bipartisan roadmap for lawmakers on how we can use data and evidence to address our country’s greatest challenges,” CEO and Co-Founder Michele Jolin said.
“We commend Commission Chair Katharine Abraham, Commission Co-Chair Ron Haskins and the 13 other Commissioners who spent more than a year carefully developing these nearly two dozen bipartisan recommendations.
“We are particularly pleased that the Commission included in its final report several recommendations that Results for America promoted through our Commission testimony, annual federal Invest in What Works Indexes, and through two Invest in What Works Coalition letters, including proposals to create Chief Evaluation Officers at all federal agencies, invest up to 1 percent of federal program funds in evaluations, and create learning agendas at all federal agencies.
“We also thank U.S. House Speaker Paul Ryan (R-WI) and U.S. Senator Patty Murray (D-WA) for championing the creation of this Commission, and for announcing that they will soon introduce legislation to enact many of its key recommendations.
“We urge Congress and the Trump Administration to work together to improve outcomes for all by implementing the bipartisan recommendations included in the Commission on Evidence-based Policymaking’s final report.”
Results for America was a strong supporter of S.991, the Evidence-Based Policymaking Commission Act — sponsored by Speaker Ryan and Senator Murray and signed into law by President Obama in March 2016 — which created the Commission. The Commission was charged with developing recommendations for increasing the availability and use of data in order to build evidence about government programs, while protecting privacy and confidentiality. To read the full report and learn more about the Commission’s work, go to www.cep.gov.
About Results for America
Results for America is helping decision-makers at all levels of government harness evidence and data to solve our world’s greatest challenges. Our mission is to make investing in what works the “new normal,” so that when policymakers make decisions, they start by seeking the best evidence and data available, then use what they find to get better results.
In November, 2014, Results for America published Moneyball for Government, the national bestselling book that brings together a group of bipartisan leaders and makes the case for government at all levels to inform public policy and funding decisions by using the best possible data, evidence and evaluation about what works. In January, 2016, RFA published the second edition of Moneyball for Government featuring a new bipartisan chapter about the importance of using data and evidence to drive U.S. foreign assistance. Go to www.results4america.org for more information about Results for America.
Contact: Zachary Coile [email protected]