Government Accountability Office
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Experts say the 2 percent drop in the number of contracting complaints to GAO disproves the theory that as federal spending drops, contractors will file more protests. Ralph White, the managing associate general counsel for procurement law at GAO, said agencies and vendors have a better understanding than ever about their likelihood of success.
January 08, 2014 -
The Government Accountability Office found in a new report that the 33-month delay in moving to GSA's Networx contract from FTS2001 caused agencies to spend more money and miss out on potential savings.
January 07, 2014 -
The Government Accountability Office says GSA is within its rights to require that joint ventures must be among teams that have a proven track record of success. Aljucar, Anvil-Incus & Co. said it will ask GAO to reconsider its decision or take the case to the Court of Federal Claims.
January 06, 2014 -
The number of total bid protests filed by companies with the Government Accountability Office leveled off last year, falling slightly in fiscal 2013 compared to the previous year. All told, GAO received 2,429 bid protests — 2 percent less than the number received in fiscal 2012, according to figures released Jan. 2 in an annual report to Congress.
January 03, 2014 -
The Homeland Security Department told the Government Accountability Office it is taking corrective action by re-reviewing proposals after 46 unsuccessful bidders protested their exclusion from the largest portion of the $22 billion IT services contract.
January 03, 2014 -
Audits find contract security personnel, which make up the vast majority of the Federal Protective Service's workforce, receive no meaningful training on how to deal with armed attackers. And many operators of X-ray machines and metal detectors at building entrances likely have never been trained to properly use them.
December 18, 2013 -
Three vendors lodged protests over one of the General Services Administration’s latest solicitations under the Federal Strategic Sourcing Initiative (FSSI). GSA confirmed that United Laboratories and GMS filed a joint protest to the agency over…
December 16, 2013 -
Unsuccessful bidders of one unrestricted portion of the EAGLE II contract are taking their arguments to GAO to try to get a spot on the multiple-award contract. Documents show DHS made no awards to any company whose total bid was more than $500 million.
December 13, 2013 -
Despite progress in confirming a new secretary and deputy secretary, DHS still features a large number of officials in acting roles. Former Secretary Tom Ridge told lawmakers the department cannot build nor sustain a mission-focused culture with so many non-permanent positions. NTEU says pay freezes, budget cuts and the government shutdown are more to blame for low morale across DHS and the entire government.
December 13, 2013 -
The Veterans Affairs Department's decision comes as lawmakers are putting this acquisition concept under more scrutiny. House Veterans Affairs and Small Business Committee lawmakers question whether agencies are getting the best prices and whether they are sacrificing competition. GAO, other experts say OFPP needs to develop a governmentwide policy for reverse auctions.
December 11, 2013 -
As the use of reverse auctions continues to rise, the Government Accountability Office says agencies need more clear cut guidance to realize a maximum amount of savings.
December 11, 2013 -
Sen. Tom Carper (D-Del.) and Rep. Jason Chaffetz (R-Utah), are jumpstarting a new effort to get both sides of the Capitol dome on board with a bill to make it easier for agencies to hang the "For Sale" sign outside their doors. Carper, the chairman of the Senate Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs Committee, and Chaffetz, a member of the House Oversight and Government Reform Committee, hosted a Capitol Hill roundtable with private-sector real-estate experts and former government officials Wednesday to discuss a new legislative path forward.
December 06, 2013 -
The Government Accountability Office studied how well the Census Bureau is preparing for the 2020 decennial. When it comes to field testing, the bureau is making progress on following a list of key practices GAO identified.
November 27, 2013 -
Congress, as an institution, doesn't appear to have the technological skills and knowledge to ask the right questions when it comes to increasingly complex agency IT programs. The congressionally-chartered Office of Technology Assessment was defunded in the mid-1990s and former staffers say its absence is sorely felt today. Many people say the time is right for a reboot of the OTA. This article is part of the Federal News Radio special report, A New Era in Technology.
November 21, 2013 -
The House Oversight and Government Reform Committee pressed federal Chief Information Officer Steve VanRoekel, federal Chief Technology Officer Todd Park, Department of Health and Human Services CIO Frank Baitman and Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services deputy CIO Henry Chao to acknowledge the oversight failings, and for someone to declare they were in charge of the program.
November 14, 2013