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That’s so major! The Partnership’s work supporting leaders of major federal investments programs

When Congress passes and the President signs major legislation, federal agencies must translate it into practical action to ensure its goals are realized.  

Meeting the objectives of large legislative initiatives, however, remains difficult for federal agencies due to fragmented leadership and coordination, inadequate resources for implementation and a lack of attention to collaboration and lasting knowledge management.  

As of now there is no roadmap for how to implement these large initiatives well—and without it, federal employees are often left “drinking water through a firehose” to overcome challenges and achieve the legislation’s mission.  

Recognizing these challenges, The Partnership for Public Service is gathering insights and convening leaders to preserve and disseminate knowledge about implementing major federal investments, with the goal of building a roadmap for this type of work that can be used by leaders of current and future initiatives.  

Our work to date 

The Partnership for Public Service has developed resources – detailed below – to help leaders implement these laws for maximum impact. Specifically, our efforts address The American Rescue Plan Act, the Inflation Reduction Act, the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law and the CHIPS and Science Act, each of which represent an expansive investment by the federal government in American infrastructure, economic relief, energy resilience, manufacturing and national security.  

Major Investments Community of Practice 

Our Major Investments Community regularly convenes 10-15 peer leaders in the federal investments space to share knowledge and address common challenges in implementing investments tied to the laws mentioned above.  

Case studies 

We have published seven micro case studies that examine how federal, state and local government agencies work to implement these laws. From online universal applications to budget allocation for first-time awardees, our case studies highlight implementation practices ensuring agencies distribute federal funding equitably and efficiently.  

Promising practices for technical assistance 

The Partnership also developed a list of promising practices for delivering technical assistance to communities in need, drawn from interviews with 16 subject-matter experts across federal agencies.  

We learned from implementors that strong technical assistance programs are key in helping state and local governments, and communities, apply for and manage federal funding. They can also help ensure equitable access to this funding. 

Our promising practices include conducting customer research on underserved groups that apply for federal funding, selecting trusted technical assistance organizations and fostering an interagency approach to delivering assistance.  

Promising practices for state and local coordination 

Based on the experiences and insights of various subject-matter experts, this resource serves as a guide for federal agencies and leaders to build strong relationships with other levels of government and to support states, localities and tribes to advance the goals of large-scale investment initiatives. 

A Q&A with leaders who implement major investments 

We compiled reflections and recommendations from our interviews with leaders of major investment initiatives.  

Featured officials shared their experiences working in the White House, and in the departments of Transportation and Commerce as they helped to implement the American Rescue Plan Act, Bipartisan Infrastructure Law, Inflation Reduction Act and the CHIPS and Science Act.  

Upcoming work 

The Partnership is looking forward to continuing to support federal employees who implement major investments. Over the next year we plan to: 

• Expand our Major Investments Community with issue-specific practice groups for a broader set of federal experts. 

• Release a best practices resource based on research from the Partnership’s Center for Presidential Transition® that advises transition teams on how to maintain major investments work during the transfer of power or the move toward a second term.  

• Publish a Framework of Implementation Excellence, which will inform public servants’ management strategies and guide our work on further practical resources and advocacy efforts to reform system roadblocks to efficiency.  

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