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Federal Acquisition Improvement Act of 1993 : hearing before the Legislation and National Security Subcommittee of the Committee on Government Operations, House of Representatives, One Hundred Third Congress, first session, on H.R. 2238, to amend laws rel PDF

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Preview Federal Acquisition Improvement Act of 1993 : hearing before the Legislation and National Security Subcommittee of the Committee on Government Operations, House of Representatives, One Hundred Third Congress, first session, on H.R. 2238, to amend laws rel

^ AQ FEDERAL IMPROVEMENT OF ACQUISITION j£»£^____ Y 4. G 74/7: AC 7/6 ^ Federal Acquisition Inprovenent Act... HEARING BEFORE THE LEGISLATION AND NATIONAL SECURITY SUBCOMMITTEE OF THE COMMITTEE ON GOVERNMENT OPERATIONS HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES ONE HUNDRED THIRD CONGRESS FIRST SESSION ON 2238 xx.rv* TO AMEND LAWS RELATING TO FEDERAL PROCUREMENT, TO AUTHOR- IZE FUNCTIONS AND ACTIVITIES UNDER THE FEDERAL PROPERTY AND ADMINISTRATIVE SERVICES ACT OF 1949, AND FOR OTHER PUR- POSES MAY 25, 1993 IVinted for the use of the Committee on Government Operations 26 -^U U.S. GOVERNMENT PRINTING OFFICE 72-174 CC WASHINGTON : 1993 ForsalebytheU.S.GovernmentPrintingOffice SuperintendentofDocuments,CongressionalSalesOffice,Washington,DC 20402 ISBN 0-16-0A152A-1 ^— AQ ^ FEDERAL IMPROVEMENT OF ACQUISITION 4. e 74/7: AC 7/6 deral Acquisition Inprovenent Act... HEARING BEFORE THE LEGISLATION AND NATIONAL SECURITY SUBCOMMITTEE OF THE COMMITTEE ON GOVERNMENT OPERATIONS HOUSE OP REPRESENTATIVES ONE HUNDRED THIRD CONGRESS FIRST SESSION ON H.R. 2238 TO AMEND LAWS RELATING TO FEDERAL PROCUREMENT, TO AUTHOR- IZE FUNCTIONS AND ACTIVITIES UNDER THE FEDERAL PROPERTY AND ADMC^ISTRATIVE SERVICES ACT OF AND FOR OTHER PUR- 1949, POSES MAY 25, 1993 Printed for the use of the Committee on Government Operations U.S. GOVERNMENT PRINTING OFFICE 72-174 CC WASHINGTON : 1993 ForsalebytheU.S.GovernmentPrintingOffice SuperintendentofDocuments,CongressionalSalesOffice,Washington,DC 20402 ISBN 0-16-0A1524-1 COMMITTEE ON GOVERNfMENT OPERATIONS JOHNCONYERS, Jr.. Michigan, Chairman CARDISS COLLINS. Hlinois WILLIAM F. CLINGER, Jr., Pennsylvania GLENN ENGLISH, Oklahoma AL MCCANDLESS, California HENRY A. WAXMAN, California J. DENNIS HASTERT, Illinois MIKE SYNAR, Oklahoma JON L. KYL, Arizona STEPHEN L. NEAL, North Carolina CHRISTOPHERSHAYS, Connecticut TOM LANTOS. California STEVEN SCHIFF, New Mexico MAJOR R. OWENS, New York C. CHRISTOPHER COX. California EDOLPHUS TOWNS, New York CRAIG THOMAS, Wyoming JOHN M. SPRATT, JR. South Carolina ILEANA ROS-LEHTINEN, Florida GARY A. CONDIT. California RONALD K. MACHTLEY, Rhode Island COLLIN C. PETERSON, Minnesota DICK ZIMMER, New Jersey KAREN L. THURMAN, Florida WILLIAM H. ZELIFF, JR, New Hampshire BOBBY L. RUSH, niinois JOHN M. McHUGH. New York CAROLYN B. MALONEY, New York STEPHEN HORN. California THOMAS M. BARRETT, Wisconsin DEBORAH PRYCE. Ohio DONALD M. PAYNE, New Jersey JOHN L. MICA. Florida FLOYD H. FLAKE. New York JAMES A. HAYES, Louisiana BERNARD SANDERS. Vermont CRAIG A. WASHINGTON, Texas (Independent) BARBARA-ROSE COLLINS, Michigan CORRINE BROWN. Florida MARJORIE MARGOLIES-MEZVINSKY, Pennsylvania LYNN C. WOOLSEY. California Julian Epstein. StaffDirector CharlesC. Wheeler III. Chiefinvestigator Robin Y. Jackson. AasociaU Counsel MattFhreawncResFlC.etTcehreRrE,IX,M.inSotraiftfyAsstsaifsftaDnitrector ELL£N B. Brown, Minority Procurement Counsel Legislation and National Security Subcommittee JCffiNCONYERS, jR, Michigan, Chairman CARDISS COLLINS, Hlinois AL McCANDLESS. California GLENN ENGLISH. Oklahoma WILLIAM F. CLINGER, Jr. Pennsylvania STEPHEN L. NEAL, North Carolina JON L. KYL. Arizona CAROLYN B. MALONEY, New York DICK ZIMMER. New Jersey TOM LANTOS. California CORRINE BROWN. Florida RobertJ. KURZ, Deputy StaffDirector Ellen B. Brown, Minority Procurement Counsel (») CONTENTS Page Hearingheldon May 25, 1993 1 Text ofH.R. 2238 7 Statementof: Biddle, Stephanie, president. Computer & Communications Industry As- sociation, accompaniedby David Cohen, counsel, Cohen & White 119 Burman, Allan V., Administrator, Office of Federal Procurement Policy, Office ofManagement and Budget 87 Early, William B., Jr., Acting Chief Financial Officer, General Services Administration 81 English, Hon. Glenn, a Representative in Congress from the State of Oklahoma, and acting chairman, Legislation and National Security Subcommittee: Opening statement 1 Heinemeier, Dan C., vice president, government division, Electronic In- dustries Association 135 Hunter, Robert, associate general counsel. General AccountingOflice 69 James, Luanne, president, Information Technology Association ofAmer- ica Ill Moflitt, Robert J., Associate Administrator for Procurement Assistance, U.S. Small Business Administration 98 Nelson, Colette, chairman, procurementcommittee. Small Business Legis- lative Council 161 Letters, statements, etc., submitted forthe record: Biddle, Stephanie, president, Computer & Communications Industry As- sociation: Prepared statement 121 Burman, Allan V., Administrator, OfTice of Federal Procurement Policy, Office ofManagement and Budget: Prepared statement 89 Clinger, Hon. William F., Jr., a Representative in Congress from the State ofPennsylvania: Prepared statement 67 Coiwers, Hon. John, Jr., a Representative in Congress from the State of Michigan, and chairman, Legislation and National Security Sub- committee: Prepared statement 2 Earlv, William B., Jr., Acting Chief Financial Officer, General Services Administration: Prepared statement 83 English, Hon. Glenn, a Representative in Congress from the State of Oklahoma, and acting chairman. Legislation and National Security Subcommittee: Prepared statement 64 Heinemeier, Dan C, vice president, government division. Electronic In- dustries Association: Prepared statement 137 Hunter, Robert, associate general counsel. General Accounting Office: Prepared statement 71 James, Luanne, president. Information Technology Association ofAmer- ica: Prepared statement 114 Moffitt, Robert J., Associate Administrator for Procurement Assistance, U.S. Small Business Administration: Prepared statement 100 Nelson, Colette, chairman, procurementcommittee, Small Business Legis- lative Council: Prepared statement 163 (III) FEDERAL IMPROVEMENT ACT ACQUISITION OF 1993 MAY TUESDAY, 25, 1993 House of Representatives, Legislation and National Security Subcommittee OF the Committee on Government Operations, Washington, DC. The subcommittee met, pursuant to notice, at 10 a.m., in room 2154, Raybum House Office Building, Hon. Glenn English (acting chairman ofthe subcommittee) presiding. Present: Representatives Glenn English, Al McCandless, and William F. dinger, Jr. Also present: Robert J. Kurz, deputy staff director; Charles C. Wheeler HI, chiefinvestigator; Robin Y. Jackson, associate counsel; Frances C. Terrell, staff assistant; Matthew R. Fletcher, minority staff director; and Ellen B. Brown, minority procurement counsel. OPENING STATEMENT OF ACTING CHAIRMAN ENGLISH Mr. English. The hearing will come to order. I want to welcome everyone to the subcommittee hearing on H.R. 2238, the Federal Acquisition Improvement Act of 1993, which was introduced yesterday hy Chairman Conyers and cosponsored by the Armed Services Committee Chairman, Chairman Dellums. This bill is based on H.R. 3161, the Federal Property and Admin- istrative Services Authorization Act of 1992, which was passed by the House late in the 102d Congress. Its provisions reflect long months of debate and compromise by the Government Operations and Armed Services Committees, together with industry, the execu- tive branch, and other participants of the Federal procurement process. Timely enactment of this legislation would provide real and im- mediate improvements by encouraging commercial product acquisi- tion; enhancing competition and reducing paperwork; strengthen- ing the bid protest process; streamlining and simplifying thousands of small purchases; and reserving almost $3 billion of additional government business for small firms. I want to say also that Chairman Conyers has a statement, and I would ask unanimous consent at this time to enter his entire written statement and make it a part ofthe record. [The prepared statement of Mr. Conyers, and the bill H.R. 2238 follow:] (1) OPEMIlia STATBKBMT OP TKB HOHOKABLB JOHH COHYERS, Jit. CHAIRMIUI COMMITTBE OH OOVERlOfEMT 0PERATI0H8 SDBCOmaTTBB OH LBGISLATIOH AHD HATZOHAL SBCURZTY OH THB •*PBDBUa. ACQUI8ITI0H UCPROVBMEHT ACT OP 1993** MAT 25, 1993 Good norning ladies and gentleman, and welcone to the Subconunittee hearing on the "Federal Acquisition Improvement Act of 1993", which I eun sponsoring with Chairman Dellums of the Committee on Armed Services. This bill is based on H.R. 3161 (the "Federal Property and Administrative Services Authorization Act of 1992") which was passed by the House late in the 102nd Congress. Its provisions reflect long months of debate and compromise by the Government Operations and Armed Services Committees together with industry, the Executive Branch, and other participants in the Federal procurement process. Timely enactment of this legislation would provide real and immediate improvements by (1) encouraging commercial product acquisition; (2) enhancing competition and reducing paperwork; (3) strengthening the bid protest process; (4) streamlining and simplifying thousands of small purchases; and (5) reserving almost $3 billion of additional government business for small firms. Consideration of this bill is an important first step in a comprehensive procurement reform program that Chairman Dellums 2 and I plan to undertake this Congress. Clearly, additional work will be needed to address issues raised by the Defense Department's Section 800 panel, the Administration's National Performance Review, and the wealth of oversight work performed by committees in both chambers of Congress. I am confident that a thorough and balanced approach to reform will allow us to make improvements without neglecting principles which have served the taxpayers well. The challenge, in my view, is to simplify the process without abandoning provisions that ensure fairness, competition, and integrity. As the Chair of this Committee, I have become all too familiar with the many problems that plague the Federal procurement process. For example, the Federal Government has a common practice of buying expensive, specially-designed products when off-the-shelf, commercial products would do the job just as well. In this era of fiscal restraint, the Federal Government must stop "reinventing the wheel" and learn to depend on the wide array of products and services sold to the general public on a routine basis by thousands of innovative companies. In addition to encouraging Federal agencies to buy commercial products, the bill will ensure that offerors have a clear understanding of the factors used by the Government to select awardees, and will make certain that price is always a factor as the government determines which company offers the 3 "best value." The bill also will significantly reduce the paperwork burden on industry by raising the threshold for obtaining cost or pricing data from $100,000 to $500,000, and by prohibiting the collection of such data when adequate price competition exists. The legislation also proposes to increase the small purchase threshold from $25,000 to $50,000. This is a controversial change, but I believe, if implemented effectively, it will greatly simplify and streamline the procurement process for thousands of small purchases, and will substantially increase the number and dollar value of Federal procurements that are reserved for small businesses. I intend to work closely with the small business community to ensure that the final bill, in fact, accomplishes this important goal. The bill further provides for a small purchase threshold increase to $100,000 once an agency establishes and implements a system by which solicitations can be made through the use of an electronic data interchange system (EDI) . EDI is intended to provide prospective offerors, especially small businesses and small businesses owned and controlled by socially and economically disadvantaged persons, with improved access to information regarding small purchase procurement opportunities.

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