The ACIR: Its Mission and Operations

The U.S. Advisory Commission on Intergovernmental Relations (ACIR) has been operating since 1959. As it approaches its twenty-fifth anniversary, it is appropriate to scrutinize its contributions and effectiveness. No organization can be evaluated correctly apart from the mission it undertakes, however, and assessments of the ACIR should occur within the framework of its statutory charge. Because ACIR's mandate can be interpreted differently by commission members, its staff, and the various constituent groups affected by its work-public officials and the public interest groups of which they are members, academics, and the general public-an examination of its mission and the manner in which it operates to achieve it could help to establish the parameters for proper assessment of its work.