Anti-Contracting Out Amendment Coming up for a Vote on Wednesday, May 18

Although this anti-contracting out amendment would be to the House defense authorization bill, it could ultimately lead to serious government-wide reform of the entire privatization process, so it should be of interest to all AFGE Activists. The anti-contracting out amendment will be offered by Representative Jim Langevin (D-RI) when the defense authorization bill is marked up on Wednesday, May 18, by the House Armed Services Committee.

The Langevin Amendment would ensure that

  1. We are able to compete in defense of our own jobs, including being able to submit our most competitive bids (pursuant to Most Efficient Organization plans) and requiring contractors to at least promise savings sufficient to offset costs of conducting privatization reviews;
  2. We are able to compete for new work and contractor work; and
  3. We are able to appeal, like contractors, to independent, third parties like GAO and the Court of Federal Claims to overturn agencies' contracting out decisions.

Last year, Representative Langevin successfully offered virtually the same amendment to the House defense authorization bill. Similar language was included in the Senate defense authorization bill. However, it was all dropped in the House-Senate conference at the insistence of the pro-contractor OMB.

What’s our message? Allowing civilian employees opportunities to compete against contractors to see who can do the work better, instead of just giving the work to contractors, is good for taxpayers and fair to civilian employees. Given that contractors often acquire and retain work without competing against other contractors or federal employees, it makes sense to ensure that civilian employees can compete against contractors for new work and contractor work.

This amendment is particularly important because of BRAC. Everyone is concerned that the Pentagon may use BRAC to contract out work performed by civilian employees without any public-private competition. This amendment would prevent that from happening. This amendment would also allow civilian employees who might otherwise lose their jobs through BRAC to remain in the civil service performing new work or contractor work, provided it can be shown that they would be more efficient.

Contractors, but not federal employees, can appeal agencies' contracting out decisions to independent, third-parties for review, including the Government Accountability Office and the Court of Federal Claims. The integrity of every single privatization review is undermined when one side, contractors, can hold the contracting officer accountable, but the other side, federal employees, can't.

Questions? Please contact John Threlkeld in AFGE’s Legislative Department at (202) 639-6413 / e-mail.

Targets? Here are the lawmakers who serve on the

HOUSE ARMED SERVICES COMMITTEE

Republicans

Democrats

Additional Fact Sheets are attached.
File: Competition Fact Sheet.DOC; File: New Work and Contractor Work Fact Sheet.DOC; File: Appeal Rights Fact Sheet.DOC; File: Appeal Rights Chart.DOC; File: Appeal Quotes Sheet.DOC