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December 12, 2002
M-03-03
MEMORANDUM FOR SELECTED HEADS OF DEPARTMENTS AND AGENCIES
FROM: |
Mitchell E. Daniels, Jr.
Director
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| SUBJECT: |
Improving Customer Service By Establishing a One-Stop Recreation
Reservation System |
One of the key goals of the President's E-Government initiative is to make
it easy for the public to get service from their government. Accordingly,
the Recreation One Stop Initiative is focused on creating a simple Web-based
resource for the public, offering a single point of access to information
and reservations for federal recreational opportunities. The potential benefit
to the public and businesses in this area is dramatic. A recent
E-Government
survey by the Pew Foundation shows that over 52 million Americans go to
government Web sites to find recreation, the number one type of information
sought after by the "e-Citizen."
The purpose of this memorandum is to advise selected agency heads of our
intention to consolidate IT systems relating to recreation reservations
systems as part of the President's Recreation One Stop Initiative. Currently,
the Federal Government operates a number of reservation systems for federal
recreational facilities. Multiple government reservation systems make it
difficult for the public to find and make reservations. Establishing a one-stop
Federal recreational reservation system will make it easier for citizens
to use Federal parks and recreation facilities. At the same time, consolidating
reservation systems will benefit the taxpayers, because maintaining a single
recreation reservation system is more efficient and cost-effective than
having multiple agencies operate their own reservation systems.
Pursuant to Section 5113 of the Clinger-Cohen Act of 1996, OMB evaluates
the information resources management practices of the executive agencies
with respect to the performance and results of information technology
investments. OMB has already identified two Federal recreation reservation
systems that can be consolidated. Spending on these systems totals approximately
$12 M in 2003:
| Agency |
System |
FY '03* |
| DOI/NPS |
National Park Reservation Service |
3.0 M |
| USDA/Forest Service |
National Recreation Reservation Service |
7.5 M |
| USACE |
National Recreation Reservation Service |
1.2 M |
The Departments of Agriculture and the Interior, and the Army Corps of
Engineers, have agreed with OMB that these two systems will be consolidated
into one reservation system, which will allow the public to obtain information
and make reservations for all the recreational opportunities that these
agencies offer. Under this consolidation, the National Recreation Reservation
Service (NRRS) currently run jointly by the Forest Service and Army Corps
of Engineers will become the one-stop recreation reservation system for
the public, and the NRRS is hereby designated as "an executive agent
for Government-wide acquisitions of information technology" under
Section 5112(e) of the Clinger-Cohen Act for recreation reservation systems.
The Interior Department will work with the Agriculture Department and
the Army Corps of Engineers to ensure that there is a single reservation
system for the public in October 2003. In addition to the Park Service,
the Interior Department's Bureau of Land Management, Bureau of Reclamation,
and U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service will be included in the single recreation
system for their reservation and other recreation transaction needs. OMB
will work closely with the Recreation One Stop reservation initiative
team (from Interior, Agriculture, and the Corps) to set up a
Cross-Agency Project Management Office.
This consolidation is an important step in realizing the President's goal
of making government citizen centered, by eliminating redundant agency-centered
systems. OMB is reviewing recreational reservation systems in other agencies
to identify other programs that should be included in this government-wide
system, so that the public can be spared the time, expense, and hassle of
having to go from one Federal Web site to another in order to make their
recreational plans. OMB staff may contact your agency for help in obtaining
information about the recreational opportunities that your agency offers.
I am asking for your agency's assistance in this effort, so that we can
realize the President's goal of leveraging E-Government to improve the services
that the Federal Government provides
to citizens while at the same time
reducing the costs to the taxpayer.
The OMB point of contact for this initiative is Jonathan Womer, Government-to-Citizen
Portfolio Manager, 202-395-0369, jwomer@omb.eop.gov.
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* Approximation from fee collection and contract
administration.
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