Overview
The federal government spent $422 billion in taxpayer funds last year on outside contracts. It is the fastest growing portion of federal discretionary spending, increasing by 100 percent between 2000 and 2006. The projects cover a wide range of expenses from equipment for soldiers in Iraq to relief efforts for victims displaced by Hurricane Katrina.
Americans are familiar with the troubling and high profile scandals involving Blackwater and Halliburton. Sadly, the lack of accountability in federal contracting is not limited to these companies. After Hurricane Katrina, the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) awarded no-bid contracts to a company with a history of defrauding the government. The IRS hired a firm that had experienced several serious data breaches of customer information to manage and secure sensitive data. The Army renewed contracts with companies that failed to test if the aircraft equipment they built worked properly.
If Congress is serious about establishing fiscal responsibility and accountability, they must follow up on efforts to remove the secrecy that surrounds contract awards and make information available to the public. Congress must increase competition and reduce the number of no-bid contracts. And they should develop standards that punish bad behavior. Companies with shoddy or deceitful track records must not have immediate access to additional federal contracts. The current lack of accountability provides no incentive to ensure that the public is getting its money’s worth.
