Lawmakers to watch A-76 closely

Lawmakers are leery about the Bush administration's proposal to compete 15 percent of the federal jobs considered commercially viable by the end of fiscal 2003.

"We're going to be doing a lot of oversight on this issue," Rep. Saxby Chambliss (R-Ga.), a member of the House Armed Services Committee's Military Readiness Subcommittee, told Bush administration officials during a March 13 hearing.

In some cases, the Clinton administration needlessly forced competition for jobs, Chambliss said. "We're going to be looking over your shoulder on this," he warned the officials. The Office of Management and Budget has been pushing agencies to open more programs to public/private competition in accordance with OMB Circular A-76.

Despite having significant reservations about the A-76 process — particularly the length of time it takes — officials from the armed services told lawmakers they would meet the 15 percent target.

In December, Pentagon officials requested an exemption from A-76 and said that the Defense Department could meet the target using other processes. But Angela Styles, administrator of the Office of Federal Procurement Policy, stressed that DOD will use A-76 for this initial round of competitions.

Although DOD is still pursuing a number of A-76 competitions, "we believe that the department's future interests are best served by employing a wide range of business tools, of which A-76 competition is one," said Michael Wynne, principal deputy undersecretary of Defense for acquisition and technology.