GovernmentExecutive.com

Return to Article: GSA investigation documents widespread contract abuse

• 7583
  

  1. FTS employees used contracts to buy goods and services for which those contracts weren't designed.

  2. Competition for work was sometimes inadequate. Some companies acted as "middlemen" by passing along most of the work they won to other firms that were hand-picked by FTS' client agencies.

  3. Contract administration was "ineffective" or "nonexistent." Descriptions of work were sometimes "misleading."

  4. Contracts were frequently awarded without proper documentation justifying the reasonableness of the prices the government was paying.

  I thought this was the armed services but see it is GSA. Isn't this the way for everyone? GAO should take a look across the government but then Congress may find some of their favorites in doubt.

  taxpayer Posted December 20, 2004 11:35 AM
• 7579
  

  I hope the GSA experience shows the Bush administration what is likely to happen when too many government functions are turned over to the private sector. When GSA went to a reimbursable model, they essentially became a private company dedicated to growing revenue and pleasing customers--just so they could keep the doors open. Even the fact they were still technically a Federal agency charged with safeguarding the process didn't stop them from skirting regulations in the name of customer satisfaction. If we can't keep federal agencies on the straight and narrow when revenues become the primary focus, how do we expect to be able to keep private contractors (who have much more experience at the game than GSA did) to stay on the right side of the law? This "Jekyll to Hyde" evolution at GSA is scary...but the contractors that began as "Hyde" in the first place are scarier.

  GovExec.com reader Posted December 20, 2004 9:16 AM
• 7572
  

  We now know that hundreds of millions of taxpayer dollars were awarded in contracts by GSA that did not comply with the law, etc., so they really have no idea how much fraud (every time) is involved. We now have Mr. Bibbs, Assistant GSA Deputy Director, stating that this is not an epidemic. How many "millions" does it take for Mr. Bibbs before he admits that his agency is having an epidemic of lousy administration, corruption (its always involved), fraud, kickbacks and most of all, a waste of the taxpayers money.?

  GovExec.com reader Posted December 18, 2004 8:15 PM