GOVERNMENT CONTRACTS

Government contracts don’t get much attention until something goes wrong. Legislation, recently endorsed by the Senate’s Homeland Security Committee, would ensure that contracts are scrutinized and bids solicited and reviewed – and that government personnel are trained and available to do this work – before disasters strike and before billions of federal dollars are spent. These common-sense changes should be supported by Congress.

Part of the problem is that government oversight hasn’t kept pace with the rapid growth in contracts. The dollar amount of federal contracts has doubled since 2000, yet the trained acquisition work force has declined. Government contract purchases now exceed $400 billion a year.

This lack of oversight leads to waste and abuse. For example, 40,000 trailers purchased by the Federal Emergency Management Agency now sit in Hope, Ark., nearly two years after Hurricane Katrina. In addition to the cost of the trailers, which have deteriorated to be unusable, the government is spending $25,000 a month to store them.

The Special Inspector General for Iraq has uncovered billions of dollars worth of subpar and unfinished work and U.S. funds that are simply unaccounted for. An audit earlier this year of eight projects found that in seven the facilities, such as generators at Baghdad’s airport and a water purification system, were not working properly or were substandard. A 2005 report from the inspector general said $9 billion in U.S. reconstruction funds were unaccounted for.

To combat these problems, the legislation, co-authored by Sen. Susan Collins, would require that the government hire and train more people to oversee and manage government contracts. A corps of experienced contract specialists would be ready and available to handle emergency situations.

The bill also would require that the contracting process be more transparent. For example, more information about contracts would be made available on a federal Web site that serves as a clearinghouse for potential bidders and indefinite contracts, such as for information technology services in general, would allow competitors to get more information about the process.

It also would limit sole-source contracts and reduce the practice of awarding contracts with “blanks” during emergencies. Currently contracts are sometimes awarded without specifying the price and details of the services to be provided.

The bill would initiate better tracking of the use of purchase cards. Essentially government credit cards, they were initially used for small purchases but are now used more often and for larger purchases. The cards typically don’t allow the government to receive bulk discounts or to withhold money from vendors that owe federal taxes – things that happen with contract purchases.

These changes will help ensure that government contracts are more carefully written and executed, saving taxpayers money.