Controls Over Consulting Service Contracts at Federal Agencies Need Tightening

• NCJ Number: 71064
• Date Published: 1980
• Length: 52 pages
• Corporate Author: US Comptroller General; US Government Accountability Office
• Sale Source: Azimuth Inc.
• Language: English
• Country: United States of America
• Note: There is a charge for more than one copy. Report to the House Subcommittee on Human Resources, Committee on Post Office and Civil Service

Annotation

This report focuses on the misuse of consulting services contracts at Federal agencies; it concludes that Federal agencies must tighten contracting practices related to these consulting services.

Abstract

Responding to Presidential and congressional concern, the Office of Management and Budget, in May 1978, issued a bulletin to all executive agencies to tighten controls over use of consulting services. However, subsequent to the publication of the bulletin, the General Accounting Office (GAO) identified several problems in its review of 111 contracts valued at $19.9 million. Agency requirements for consulting services were questionable; they gave little or no consideration to in-house capability prior to the award of contracts, and several contracts were awarded without soliciting proposals. Extensive sole-source awards which precluded effective price competition were made, several to former agency employees. Contract modifications that resulted in increased costs and delays, the questionable use of end products, and inaccurate reporting of consulting service contracts were additional problems. GAO recommends more rigorous procedures for the approval of consulting service contracts. One approach might be to establish an independent board within each agency or expand the functions of sole-source boards. These boards would assure that in-house capability is adequately considered prior to the award of contracts. Also, they would establish priorities, assure that previous, similar efforts have been adequately considered, evaluate the necessity of using previous agency employees in contract tasks, and determine the reasonableness of using cost-plus-fixed-fee contracts in view of the nature of the proposed work. GAO also recommends that the Director of the Office of Management and Budget work to achieve a better understanding and an intensified oversight of agencies' use of consulting services. Bulletins, guidelines, and contract reviews are appended. (Author abstract modified)