What are the most important services the AO can provide courts in todays austere budgetary environment?
That is a good question. Congress, and particularly those who serve on appropriations committees, are certainly listening to us about our budgetary problems, and have demonstrated their willingness to work with us. However, our piece of the budgetary pie is shrinking relative to our needs, and may continue to shrink for the foreseeable future. Our appropriations are not keeping pace with our workload, even though it is mandated by Congress. At the direction of the Judicial Conference and its Executive Committee, the AO assisted in developing a comprehensive strategy for controlling costs in 2005 and beyond, which was approved by the Conference in September 2004. In conjunction with Conference committees and working closely with court advisory committees, the AO is currently engaged in more than 50 cost-containment initiatives related to space and facilities, workforce efficiency, compensation, technology, and program changes. And, of course, we have applied the same level of scrutiny t
