Recent research by the Government Accountability Office (GAO) explores duplication and fragmentation in federal economic development programs.
GAO examined 80 economic development programs across four agencies—the Departments of Commerce, Housing and Urban Development, and Agriculture and the Small Business Administration. These programs include a variety of approaches to economic development, but not tax credit programs. The research found that each of the 80 programs appears to overlap with at least one other in terms of its funded activity. GAO also found that the agencies often lack sufficient data on program outcomes.
GAO recommended that the agencies increase collaboration, such as sharing resources across similar programs and leveraging each program’s strengths to improve existing partnerships. It also recommends that agencies collect better data on program outcomes and use that information to assess how well the programs operate.
Some of the agencies have submitted comments to GAO concerning this research, and GAO is continuing to explore the topic.
