Lawmakers target mapping agency's privatization proposal

Eleven members of Congress last week urged the Defense Department to review a controversial outsourcing program at the National Imaging and Mapping Agency. In a May 4 letter to Defense Secretary Donald Rumsfeld, the lawmakers criticized NIMA for its plan to directly convert 600 information technology jobs to the private sector, bypassing the public-private competition process. The lawmakers urged Rumsfeld to review the NIMA plan before the conversion is final. "We request, therefore, that before NIMA finalizes this direct conversion that you review their decision to dispense with an A-76 public-private competition," wrote the lawmakers. Members of Congress who signed the letter included Sens. Jean Carnahan, D-Mo., and Richard Durbin, D-Ill., Reps. Connie Morella, R-Md., Ike Skelton, D-Mo., Richard Gephardt, D-Mo., Steny Hoyer, D-Md., William Clay, D-Mo., Albert Wynn, D-Md., Jerry Costello, D-Ill, Jim Moran, D-Va., and Del. Eleanor Holmes Norton, D-D.C. NIMA's direct conversion uses a provision in the 2001 Defense Appropriation Act to circumvent the A-76 process, the lawmakers wrote. This provision, sponsored by Sen. Ted Stevens, R-Alaska, extends the "preferred procurement" authority enjoyed by Native Alaskan corporations to all Native American and Native Hawaiian-owned contractors. As "preferred procurement" sources, these contractors are eligible to receive direct conversions of any size without competition from in-house workers or other contractors. The provision has also been used to outsource federal jobs at the MacDill Air Force base in Florida and Kirtland Air Force Base in New Mexico, according to the lawmakers. "Given DoD's claims that savings are possible through the use of the A-76 process ... there are serious and legitimate questions whether taxpayers are well served and the work of DoD employees is given due consideration by the use of this direct conversion process," the lawmakers wrote. NIMA plans to directly convert 600 information technology jobs at its Washington, D.C., and St. Louis offices to a joint venture of two Native Alaskan-owned corporations, Chenega Technology Services and Arctic Slope Regional Communications. The joint venture could earn $2 billion over the life of a proposed 15-year contract, according to NIMA. NIMA's plans have drawn the ire of the American Federation of Government Employees, which blasted the direct conversion at a closed briefing of the Subcommittee on Readiness of the House Armed Services Committee in March. "Some of our testimony probably prompted [the lawmakers' letter]," said AFGE President Bobby Harnage. He added that public employees should be able to compete for their jobs. "We have for several years now supported competition, because it seems to be the only way that we can lower the cost to taxpayers." The Defense Department received the letter Thursday, according to spokeswoman Susan Hanson. Neither NIMA nor the Arctic Slope Regional Corp. would comment on the letter.