GSA's closed financial books... and an appology

Unfortunately we can say the same thing today. We do not make the request of all agencies. But not all agencies are in the financial situation that GSA is in these days. By most accounts, earlier this year, the agency was teetering. Yes, the agency has made great strides, but it still faces some real issues. The public and the community -- both government and industry -- are not able to participate in discussion about GSA because the agency will not provide data to assess its health.It seems remarkable that a government agency -- an agency that is spending taxpayer dollars -- would refuse to make its financial records available to the public.All of that being said, I owe Kathleen Turco an appology. During appearance on Federal News Radio, I was inappropriate in particular toward her. It was wrong. Turco and I have had -- how do they say it over at the State Department? -- frank and honest discussions about whether financial data should be made public. We simply disagree. I stand by most of my comments -- this data should be made public. But during my radio bit, I said something to the effect that she will eventually be gone from GSA. That could obviously be seen as a personal shot against her. It was not meant to be. To the contrary, I have great respect for her efforts to put GSA on the right financial track and getting a clean bill from auditors is a significant step. For that, she deserves major kudos.But GSA should make its financial records public. It is good for the agency and it is good for government.