As a national agency, the EDA is subject to the US Government Performance and Results Act (GPRA), which requires all federal agencies to report to Congress on the achievement of specific goals. As the results of EDA investments often materialise over a number of years, the administration projects and reports on indicators that track outcomes three, six and nine years after programme investments have been made. However, these and other data produced for the GPRA have limited use for short- to medium-term decision making.