Congress to enact new accountability in contracting.

• Author: Summerill, Joseph J.
• Position: Ethics Corner

* Congressional interest in oversight of government contracting began early last year with separate bills during the first three months of the 110th Congress in both the House and Senate that provided for contractor oversight and limited the number of sole source contracts.

The House Oversight and Government Reform Committee chairman introduced House Resolution (H.R.) 1362, "Accountability in Contracting Act," on March 6, 2007, which was passed by the full House on March 15, 2007. This bill limits noncompetitive contracts and promotes integrity in contracting by: mandating a one-year limit on sole-source contracts valued at or above $1 million, unless the executive agency head deems the one-year time limit detrimental; requiring the head of an agency awarding $1 billion or more in government contracts for the previous fiscal year to develop and implement a plan to decrease the number of noncompetitive contracts and increasing the number of fixed price contracts; and requiring agencies to publicly disclose justifications for all noncompetitive awards.

It also would have compelled agencies to inform Congress 30 days before a no-bid contract award to a foreign-owned company based in a "terrorist" nation. Finally, it would bar federal procurement officials from participating in contract review, award process, or contract administration within one year of private sector employment by the contractor.

In the Senate, the ranking member of the Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs Committee introduced a separate bill, Senate Resolution (S.) 680, "Accountability in Government Contracting Act," which passed the full Senate on Nov. 7, 2007, with provisions similar to H.R. 1362. They are designed to curb contractor fraud and abuse, and aimed at improving the procurement workforce, with limits on no-bid contracts and enhanced accountability in contract administration.

Both bills would require publicly disclosing justifications of sole source contracts. The Senate bill was much more specific in its expectations of government officials in promoting a more competitive procurement process by: requiring the federal government to dedicate $5 million in personnel training for fiscal year 2008-09; requiring the Government Accountability Office to report on the qualifications of the government's procurement workforce; and directing the Office of Federal Procurement Policy (OFPP) to pass Federal Acquisition Regulations covering multiple award contracts and...