Wasserman Schultz Statement for GPO Oversight Hearing

GPO has a critical role to play in disseminating, authenticating, and preserving government information.

I join the Chairman in welcoming the Acting Public Printer, Ms. Davita Vance-Cooks to the subcommittee. We had a chance to meet this week as she gave me an overview of her tenure at GPO.

The major issues with GPO are well covered in a report by the National Academy of Public Administration entitled "Rebooting the Government Printing Office: Keeping America Informed in the Digital Age."

This subcommittee mandated NAPA to conduct this review and the NAPA panel concluded "that GPO's core mission remains valid but that the agency - and the rest of the federal government - will need to continue to 'reboot' for the digital age."

I am glad to see that NAPA recognizes the unique role GPO has in disseminating information to the public.

We have too many Members who use GPO as a political football simply because your name has the word "printing" in it.

If they took the time to learn more about the agency, they would know what I know and what NAPA found: that GPO has a critical role to play in disseminating, authenticating, and preserving government information.

As GPO has repeated time and again, two-thirds of GPO's "print" costs for Congressional work goes toward content development, with the remaining one-third going toward actual printing.

I agree with NAPA that GPO needs to modernize its business model and shift its focus to disseminating and preserving content online, which means changing the current staffing model.

I look forward to a discussion with the Acting Printer about how she plans to steer the agency into a modern era.

And as with every agency that will appear before the panel, I want to hear how your agency will implement sequester cuts, if they go into effect on March 1.

Thank you Mr. Chairman and Ms. Vance-Cooks I look forward to your testimony.