Eyeing GPO’s Office Space

The Government Printing Office has long enjoyed a prime location adjacent to its main clients in Congress. But the way it deploys its excess office space is now under the scrutiny of Rep. John Mica, R-Fla., chairman of the House Transportation and Infrastructure Committee.

Mica, who has actively sought to evict the Federal Trade Commission from its headquarters, also has been eying the GPO’s office configuration, he said during a press conference last month called in response to the spending scandal at the General Services Administration.

But GPO staff say they have yet to hear a clue as to what Mica has in mind. Spokesman Gary Somerset says the agency on North Capitol Street is currently renting about 80,000 feet of space to the Capitol Police, the Architect of the Capitol and the Senate Sergeant at Arms, all at standard rental rates for the Washington area as set by the GSA. Another 75,000 to 100,000 square feet may be freed up in the next couple of years, he added.

A Mica spokeswoman said, there are “no specific plans, but it’s something we’re looking into.”