FederalDaily.com > GAO Forum Explores Ways to Improve Federal Acquisition

FederalDaily - October 11, 2006

GAO Forum Explores Ways to Improve Federal Acquisition

The government could improve the federal acquisition process by replicating acquisition best practices across the government, and by creating a knowledge-sharing culture between the government and suppliers. Those were two of many suggestions offered by stakeholders at a recent Government Accountability Office (GAO) forum on the federal acquisition stream. The GAO forum highlights, published Oct. 6, noted that the acquisition of products and services from contractors consumes about a quarter of discretionary spending—more than $388 billion in FY 2005 alone. Among the forum’s key concerns were whether the government was prepared to ensure that the federal workforce has the capacity to manage contractor operations effectively, and whether federal agents could untangle the frequent acquisition mismatch among wants, needs, affordability and sustainability. Forum participants noted the acquisition issue was really a two-way street: in some worst-case scenarios, contractors promise more than they can deliver, while in other cases, the government is at least partially at fault for not setting a clear direction. To see an abstract of the report, go to: www.gao.gov/docsearch/abstract.php?rptno=GAO-07-45SP

OPM Offers Approach to Bolster Federal Talent

The Office of Personnel Management (OPM) laid out a three-pronged approach in attracting and retaining talented federal employees. Central to the OPM plan is making agencies more competitive when recruiting talent to the federal government, said OPM Deputy Director Dan Blair. He laid out the approach at the opening of the Federal Agency Recruiting Summit sponsored by the Partnership for Public Service, OPM said Oct. 6. The plan includes: 1) an OPM advertising campaign aimed at people entering the workforce and those who are mid-career; 2) an initiative that identifies segments of the labor market and the preferred work environment of each segment; and 3) improving the hiring process—which includes streamlined vacancy notices for USAJOBS.gov. “Converging trends—the coming retirement wave, a traditional employment model that is not attractive to a new generation of job seekers and an unwieldy hiring process—make savvy recruitment an imperative," Blair said. "OPM is taking aggressive steps in each area." To see more, go to: www.opm.gov/news/public-and-private-sector-share-strategies-at-recruitment-summit,1100.aspx

ICE Agents Nab 27 in International Drug Ring

Federal authorities took down a major arm of an alleged international drug-smuggling and money-laundering ring—arresting 27 suspects for their alleged roles with drug cartels. The arrests were part of "Operation Watusi," run by Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) and the Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA), along with the FBI's "Operation Green Traketon." The investigations focused on drug cartels that operated in Puerto Rico, Colombia, St. Martin in the Netherlands Antilles, the U.S. Virgin Islands, the British Virgin Islands and the Dominican Republic, ICE said Oct. 6. The suspects are also believed responsible for briefly taking as hostage an undercover federal agent. All face drug-trafficking and money-laundering charges. To date the investigation has resulted in the seizure of a number of foreign and domestic bank accounts, along with $3.1 million cash, about 4,000 pounds of cocaine and six boats. The federal indictments allege the ring was responsible for the transportation of multimillion-dollar shipments of cocaine from South America to Puerto Rico via motor vessels. Proceeds of the drug sales were then processed through a complex money-laundering operation. To see more, go to: www.ice.gov/pi/news/newsreleases/articles/061006sanjuan.htm