[Congressional Record Volume 155, Number 192 (Thursday, December 17, 2009)]
[Senate]
[Pages S13387-S13388]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]

      By Ms. COLLINS (for herself, Mrs. McCaskill, and Mr. Bennett):
  S. 2901. A bill to improve the acquisition workforce through the 
establishment of an acquisition workforce fellows program, and for 
other purposes; to the Committee on Homeland Security and Governmental 
Affairs.
  Ms. COLLINS. Mr. President, along with Senators McCaskill and 
Bennett, I rise to introduce two bills that would lay a strong 
foundation to improve the Federal acquisition system.
  The first bill, the Acquisition Workforce Improvement Act of 2009, 
would create a federal acquisition management fellows program to 
develop a new generation of acquisition leaders with government-wide 
perspective, skills, and experience.
  The second bill, the Federal Acquisition Institute Improvement Act of 
2009, would institute much-needed organizational clarity to enable the 
Federal Acquisition Institute, FAI, to fulfill its mission of 
facilitating career development and strategic human capital management 
for the federal acquisition workforce.
  The federal acquisition system is under tremendous stress. Between 
fiscal years 2000 and 2008, acquisition spending by the Federal 
Government expanded by 163 percent, from $205 billion to $539 billion. 
The rising costs of military operations, natural disasters, homeland 
security precautions, and other vital programs will drive those 
expenditures to even higher levels in the years ahead.
  This prodigious level of purchasing creates abundant opportunities 
for fraud, waste, and abuse. We have seen far too many outrageous 
failures in government contracting, such as unusable trailers for 
hurricane victims, shoddy construction of schools and clinics in 
Afghanistan, or the installation of showers in Iraq for our troops that 
pose electric-shock hazards. These and other failures demand strong 
steps to protect taxpayer dollars and deliver better acquisition 
outcomes.
  As a long-time advocate for stronger competition, accountability, and 
transparency in government contracting, I recognize and appreciate the 
steps the administration has taken recently to improve Federal 
contracting. Many of these initiatives originated from legislation I 
co-authored with Senator Lieberman during the last Congress.
  But no matter how many laws we pass or OMB guidance documents are 
issued, the effectiveness of our Federal acquisition system depends on 
a vital human component--the acquisition workforce.

  While contract spending has risen dramatically, the number of 
acquisition professionals who help plan, award, and oversee these 
contracts has been stagnant. With roughly half of the current 
acquisition workforce eligible to retire over the next decade, the 
difficulties of strengthening that workforce will become increasingly 
acute. A well-trained and well-resourced acquisition workforce is 
critical to keeping pace with increased Federal spending and much more 
complex procurements of services and goods.
  The two pieces of legislation I am introducing today would help to 
address these important long-term problems that we must solve to make 
our acquisition system healthy again.
  First, the Acquisition Workforce Improvement Act of 2009 would create 
a centrally-managed Government-wide Acquisition Management Fellows 
Program that combines both a Master's degree-level academic curriculum 
and on-the-job training in multiple federal agencies. By partnering 
with leading universities that have specialized government acquisition 
programs, the government can attract top-caliber students who are 
interested in pursuing both academic advancement and public service.
  Compared to the several existing agency-specific intern programs, 
this government-wide program would provide a unique and much-needed 
skill set that we currently do not have in sufficient number, that is, 
acquisition professionals with multi-agency and multi-disciplinary 
training who can understand and manage government-wide acquisition 
needs and perspectives.
  Considering that interagency acquisition now accounts for 
approximately 40 percent of the entire contract spending and that GAO 
has designated the management of interagency contracting a high-risk 
area since 2005, it is without question that we need to develop future 
acquisition leaders who can understand government-wide needs and 
perspectives.
  Specifically, the program would include the following: one academic 
year of full-time, on-campus training followed by 2 years of on-the-job 
and part-time training toward a Masters or equivalent graduate degree 
in related fields; and a curriculum that would include rotational 
assignments at three or more executive agencies covering, among other 
issues, acquisition planning, cost-estimating, formation and

[[Page S13388]]

post-award administration of ``high risk'' contract types, and 
interagency contracts.
  Upon graduation, participants will have completed all required non-
agency-specific training courses necessary for a basic contracting 
officer warrant.
  In addition, participants would be required to enter into a service 
commitment appropriate in length to ensure the Federal Government 
receives a proper return on its investment. The service commitment 
would be no less than one year for each year in the program, and would 
require reimbursement of funds for those who do not successfully 
complete the program or do not fulfill the minimum service 
requirements.

  It is also important to note that this program would be less 
expensive than its current alternative. Typically, existing agency 
career intern programs like those run by DHS or GSA hire interns at GS-
5, -7, or -9 level, which pays between $33,000 and $66,000, for 
Washington, DC area. These interns also receive benefits and free 
training during this internship period.
  The proposed program would not pay salaries during the training, but 
unlike the other programs, would award a graduate degree. Based on 
market research, this alternative money-saving arrangement would be 
able to attract top-notch candidates with both public and academic 
interests.
  Second, the Federal Acquisition Institute Improvement Act of 2009 
would strengthen the Federal Acquisition Institute, FAI, whose key 
responsibilities are to promote career development and strategic human 
capital management for the entire civilian acquisition workforce.
  In part due to the lack of organizational clarity and the 
disproportionate funding compared to its counterpart in the Department 
of Defense, the FAI has remained largely underutilized.
  The proposed legislation would establish a clear line of 
responsibility and accountability for the Institute by requiring that 
the Federal Acquisition Institute, through its Board of Directors, 
directly reports to the Office of Federal Procurement Policy; the 
director of FAI be appointed by the OFPP Administrator and report 
directly to the Associate Administrator for Acquisition Workforce at 
OFPP.
  All existing civilian agency training programs fall under the purview 
of FAI. This would ensure consistent training standards necessary to 
develop uniform core competencies; and the OFPP Administrator would be 
required to report annually to Congressional committees of jurisdiction 
projected budget needs and expense plans of FAI to fulfill its 
statutory mandate.
  With respect to its core government-wide functions, FAI would be 
required to provide and keep current government-wide training standards 
and certification requirements including--ensuring effective agency 
implementation of government-wide training and certification standards; 
analyzing the curriculum to ascertain if all certification competencies 
are covered or if adjustments are necessary; developing career path 
information for certified professionals to encourage retention in 
government positions; and coordinating with the Office of Personnel 
Management for human capital efforts.
  The administration has identified acquisition workforce development 
as a pillar for improving acquisition practices and contract 
performance. While I fully agree with this goal, we need specific and 
concrete action to solve this problem. It is also important to remember 
that it took the better part of two decades for the acquisition 
workforce to reach its current state and that it will likely take a 
similar amount of time to rebuild.
  My legislation would prompt the sustained effort necessary to rebuild 
the acquisition workforce. While this will take time and investment, I 
am confident this is a wise investment that will yield substantial 
returns. Just think about it, if our better-trained acquisition 
professionals can prevent one failed procurement, it can save the 
taxpayer hundreds of millions of dollars. If they can avoid overpaying 
one percent of our contract spending, it will save the taxpayer more 
than 5 billion each year. The numbers speak for themselves.
  The Acquisition Workforce Improvement Act and the Federal Acquisition 
Institute Improvement Act are critically needed and both enjoy 
bipartisan support. I encourage my colleagues to support them.
                                 ______