Obituary of Dale Robert McOmber

DALE R. McOMBER Budget Official Dale R. McOmber, a former Assistant Director of the federal Office of Management and Budget, died on the 22nd of August at 3:00pm. He was 87 and lived in the Greenspring Village retirement facility in Springfield. Born in Scott, Ohio, Mr. McOmber attended Bowling Green University in Ohio until he volunteered for military service in 1943. He served in Europe with the First, Third, and Ninth armies from Normandy to the Elbe River as an artillery observer and surveyor. After the war, he received B.S. and M.A. degrees at Bowling Green and taught political science there. In 1951, he came to Washington D.C. as a management intern in the Navy Department. After a succession of budget positions in the old Bureau of Ordnance, Mr. McOmber moved to the Bureau of the Budget in 1957 where he was involved in preparation of the Federal budget in that agency and in its successor, the Office of Management and Budget. He became Assistant Director for Budget Review in 1973. In that role, Mr. McOmber acted as the career coordinator of the preparation of the Federal budget and its review. Mr. McOmber’s many honors included the President’s Award for Distinguished Federal Service from both President Ford and President Carter. He also received a National Civil Service Award for Sustained Excellence as well as several other Federal service awards. A Wall Street Journal reporter once quoted an official as saying that Mr. McOmber was, “…the George Smiley of domestic politics.” He left the federal service in 1981 and became a consultant on budget systems. In that role, he surveyed budget systems in a number of countries including Guatemala, Guam, Kuwait, Liberia, Venezuela, and the Ukraine. He was also involved in a number of efforts to improve procedures in several Washington agencies. Together with his wife, he served as a volunteer to provide tax preparation services for the elderly for 12 years under a program sponsored by the AARP and the IRS. His wife of 52 years, Joan passed away in 2003. His dear friend at Greenspring Village, Mac Feichtinger, passed away earlier this year. Survivors include four children, Marcia Hayes of Ruther Glen, Virginia, Jennifer Lessard of Centreville, Virginia, D. Robert McOmber of Vienna, Virginia, and James McOmber of Alexandria, Virginia; three grandchildren, one great grandson, one great granddaughter and four brothers. An informal memorial service will be held from 11:00 to 12:30 on 9 September at Greenspring Village (7410 Spring Village Drive, Springfield, Virginia) in the Accotink room. In lieu of flowers, contributions may be made to the Benevolent Care Fund, Greenspring, 7410 Spring Village Drive, Springfield, VA 22150.