[Congressional Record (Bound Edition), Volume 153 (2007), Part 13]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Pages 18979-18980]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office, www.gpo.gov]




REINTRODUCTION OF THE ``CONTRACTORS AND FEDERAL SPENDING ACCOUNTABILITY 
                                 ACT''

                                 ______
                                 

                        HON. CAROLYN B. MALONEY

                              of new york

                    in the house of representatives

                        Thursday, July 12, 2007

  Mrs. MALONEY of New York. Madam Speaker, today, along with 
Representative Towns (D-NY), I reintroduce legislation, the 
``Contractors and Federal Spending Accountability Act,'' that will 
fortify the current federal suspension and debarment system.
  The United States is the largest purchaser of goods and services in 
the world spending more than $419 billion on procurement awards in 
FY2006 and $440,000,000,000 on grants in FY2005.
  Yet the federal government's watchdogs, the federal suspension and 
debarment officials, currently lack the information that they

[[Page 18980]]

need to protect our business interests and taxpayers' dollars. We have 
no centralized and comprehensive government-wide method to account for 
the performance of our contractors and assistance participants, and 
those who repeatedly violate federal law may still receive millions of 
dollars from the federal government.
  According to data from the Project on Government Oversight (POGO), 
since 1995, of the top fifty federal contractors based on total 
contract dollars received, nine have a total of twelve resolved cases 
totaling $161 million in penalties paid. Additionally, those fifty 
contractors have paid approximately $12 billion in fines and penalties.
  ``The Contractors and Federal Spending Accountability Act'' 
establishes a centralized and comprehensive database on actions taken 
against federal contractors and assistance participants, requiring a 
description of each of these actions. This will provide debarring 
officials with the information that they need to protect the business 
interests of the United States. It places the burden of proving 
responsibility and subsequent eligibility for contracts or assistance 
on the person seeking contracts or assistance should they have been 
previously convicted of two exact or similar violations that 
constitutes a charge for debarment. Additionally, it improves and 
clarifies the role of the Interagency Committee on Debarments and 
Suspension, and requires the Administrator of General Services to 
report to Congress within 180 days with recommendations for creating 
the centralized and comprehensive federal contracting and assistance 
database.

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