On the recordDecember 20, 2012
as Congress continues its work addressing our Nation's looming fiscal crisis, we must also remember that we have a responsibility to our taxpayers to improve outcomes for young people and their families by driving Federal funds more efficiently toward evidence-based, results-oriented solutions. In August, I shared promising news from my home State, where evidence-based Federal programs, including the Social Innovation Fund, the Investing in Innovation Fund, and the High Quality Charter Schools Replication and Expansion Program, are improving education and other important outcomes for thousands of young people throughout Louisiana. Bipartisan support for investing in what works has been growing for decades. Under the George W. Bush administration, the Office of Management and Budget put a priority on improving the performance of Federal programs and encouraged more rigorous evaluations to assess their effectiveness. In 2010, the Simpson-Bowles Commission Report, the ``National Commission on Fiscal Responsibility and Reform,'' specifically recommended urging all Federal agency heads to ``identify ways to shift from inefficient, unproductive spending to productive, results-based investment.'' And in May of this year, the Office of Management and Budget, OMB, instructed all Federal departments and agencies to demonstrate the use of evidence throughout their fiscal year 2014 budget submissions.…
