June 26, 1995

NIST Refutes General Accounting Office Report on the Advanced Technology Program

The General Accounting Office report "Performance Measurement: Department of Commerce's Evaluation of Advanced Technology Program" contains serious errors, misrepresentations and omissions of important facts and fails to provide an accurate evaluation of the program according to the Commerce Department's National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST).

• The GAO report (GAO-RCED-95-68) contains serious errors. NIST stands by its evaluation process and statements and has presented the data to back them up. NIST's full response is included as an appendix in the GAO report. The irony is that this report accuses the ATP of using overstated examples when in fact, the report itself is based on overstated accusations. It inappropriately takes a narrow NIST document and draws broad conclusions regarding the program.
• In both title and tone, the GAO report suggests that it is critical of the performance of the Advanced Technology Program. It is not.
• The GAO report is a microscopic study of seven pages concerning the ATP, excerpted from a 38-page handout written to describe the priority-setting and measurement processes used at NIST.
• NIST recently completed a more detailed report on the actual results of its research and activities, including the ATP. That report is much more valuable to the current debate on the ATP. ["Delivering Results: A Progress Report from the National Institute of Standards and Technology" is available by fax request to 301/926-1630 or by email to results@nist.gov.]
  • NIST continues to pursue perhaps the most thorough evaluation plans ever established for a technology program.

  • Delivering Results" contains data demonstrating the ATP's mounting positive effect in enabling industry to more aggressively pursue promising, high-risk research, in shortening the time-to-market for new world-class technologies, and enhancing the growth and competitiveness of U.S. industry.
• NIST provided extensive comments on a draft version of the GAO report, pointing out major shortcomings in the draft. The GAO ignored most of those comments. The GAO also disregarded statements by a major trade association a group cited by GAO in its own report even though those comments confirmed NIST's data and refuted GAO's analysis.

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Date created: June 1995
Last updated: April 11, 2005