Outsourcing: The Long Arm of the Law

When Mitch Daniels left the Office of Management and Budget to successfully run for governor of Indiana, he might have thought that his days of having Congress meddle in efforts to outsource government functions were behind him. If so, he would have been wrong.

In December, USA Today reports, Daniels made a deal to turn over administration of his state's food stamp program to a consortium led by IBM, arguing that it would save money and improve service.

The American Federation of State, County and Municipal Employees wasn't fond of the idea, and turned to some old friends for help -- the Democrats who had recently won control of Congress. And in June, Democrats on the House Agriculture Committee inserted a provision into a comprehensive farm bill prohibiting states from outsourcing food stamp administration. The bill passed the House in July and is pending in the Senate.