OMB procurement nominee may rethink controversial policies

A former lobbyist nominated to be the next federal procurement administrator signaled at his Senate confirmation hearing Thursday that he is willing to revisit several of the more controversial aspects of the White House's competitive sourcing policy.

David Safavian, selected by President Bush nearly five months ago to succeed Angela Styles as the head of the Office of Federal Procurement Policy, told lawmakers he favors expansion of federal employees' legal rights to challenge job competition decisions. In written responses to senators' questions, he indicated that he would also consider eliminating a rule requiring in-house teams winning contests to re-compete for work at regular intervals.

If confirmed, Safavian would oversee traditional acquisition policy as well as the Bush administration's competitive sourcing initiative, a hotly debated effort to let contractors bid on tens of thousands of federal jobs. Safavian pledged to advance the initiative. "I really do believe that competition improves the way operations are run in the government," he told members of the Senate Governmental Affairs Committee.

At the same time, Safavian said he is open to modifying policies in OMB's May 2003 revision of Circular A-76, the job competition rule book. "I think the system we have in place is a good, solid foundational system," Safavian said. "I think we need to make tweaks along the way."

These "tweaks" could include the extension of appeal rights to in-house employees directly affected by competitions. Under existing policies, federal employee teams can appeal most job competition decisions at the agency level, but in-house workers cannot file protests at the General Accounting Office.

"I think we need to have parallel mechanisms for appeals," Safavian said. "If the private sector has the ability to protest at GAO, so should the affected employees."

Safavian said he would support congressional efforts to amend the 1984 Competition in Contracting Act to provide these rights, depending on the details of proposed legislation. In written responses to questions, he signaled that he would go beyond extending GAO appeal rights to "agency tender officials," the formal representatives of in-house employees. "I don't necessarily think the ATO is the only person who could adequately represent in-house employees in GAO appeals," he stated.

Safavian also said he "would not object to removing the five-year re-competition provision from the circular and relying on agencies to determine appropriate performance periods based on the nature and risk associated with the services to be provided." The re-competition provision has stirred controversy. Opponents worry that the requirement will damage the morale of federal employees who win contests, while proponents argue that regular competitions promote efficiency.

Safavian also stated his general support for allowing in-house teams a 10 percent or $10-million cost advantage in contests with between 10 and 65 jobs at stake. Fiscal 2004 appropriation measures require some agencies to grant cost advantages in such contests.

The advantage makes "good sense as a general proposition," as long as agencies are allowed to apply "best value" criteria as well, Safavian said in his written responses. While saying he would tweak some policies, Safavian also pledged to carry forward some existing projects. For instance, he said he is looking forward to launching a database with job competition statistics, so that OMB can get out of the business of trading anecdotes with initiative opponents.

Safavian offered an upbeat view of reforms such as share-in-savings contracting, where contractors are paid from the savings their work generates. While Styles has been critical of the share-in-savings approach, Safavian termed it an "intriguing concept," and lauded GSA for forming an office to help agencies use the method. In response to a question from Sen. Daniel Akaka, D-Hawaii, Safavian downplayed the need for comprehensive reform of how the government buys services. "I'm not sure we can craft a one-size-fits-all solution that doesn't sacrifice some of the efficiencies that have been put into place," he said. Safavian also questioned the need for an inventory of the government's contractor workforce. "I guess I'm very sensitive to overloading agency managers with those types of activities." Safavian is currently acting as counselor to OMB Deputy Director Clay Johnson. At the time of his nomination, he served as chief of staff at the General Services Administration. Prior to that, he worked as chief of staff to Rep. Chris Cannon, R-Utah. He also has worked for former Michigan House members William Schuette and Robert Davis, both Republicans.

Supporters say Safavian's lobbying experience, connections on Capitol Hill and procurement expertise gained at GSA would assist him as head of OFPP. The Governmental Affairs Committee has not yet set a date to vote on his nomination, according to spokeswoman Andrea Hofelich.

Jason Peckenpaugh contributed to this report.