[LINK] government transparency

[stephen at melbpc.org.au]

Posting all (US) fed contracts online alarms contractors

By TOM SPOTH | Last Updated: May 30, 2010 (snip) 
<http://www.federaltimes.com/article/20100530/ACQUISITION03/5300308/-1/>


The Obama administration said it expects to begin posting online the full 
texts of federal contracts, task orders and delivery orders as a way to 
advance government transparency, kicking off a public debate on how and 
whether that should be done.

Procurement experts say there are critical questions to work out — 
namely, how federal staffs will handle the additional workload and how 
proprietary, classified and other sensitive types of information will be 
protected.

"Right now, if the government makes a mistake about releasing 
confidential information under a FOIA [Freedom of Information Act 
request], the damage that does is fairly limited," said Larry Allen, 
president of the Coalition for Government Procurement industry group. 

"If you make a mistake and put proprietary information on a database for 
everyone to see, you're really putting a company at a significant risk of 
harm." 

Information that shouldn't be released includes pricing policies and 
executive compensation, Allen said.

In its May 13 Federal Register notice announcing the proposal, the 
administration said the government would post contracts "without 
compromising contractors' proprietary and confidential commercial or 
financial information." 

It also cited the need for "uniform, consistent processing methods that 
are fair and equitable as well as cost effective and efficient."

The notice suggests that the government may rely on contractors 
themselves to review and redact texts of contracts, task orders and 
delivery orders. Agencies already notify contractors if their documents 
will be released under FOIA and work with companies to decide what should 
be redacted.

Hugo Teufel, director of forensic services at PricewaterhouseCoopers and 
former chief privacy officer at the Homeland Security Department, said 
federal officials will need guidance on how to structure contracts to 
make them easier to redact and more clarity on what information should be 
redacted. Although posting contracts online will be complicated, Teufel 
said, he supports the effort.

"The public has a right to know how its tax dollars are being spent," he 
said. 

"One of the great things about living in an information society is that 
it becomes much more cost effective to make available … public records, 
to include contracts."

Teufel predicted that FOIA requests would decrease if contracts are 
posted online, because in some cases that information would meet 
interested parties' needs.

Tom Lee of the Sunlight Foundation, a nonprofit that promotes government 
transparency, also praised the initiative. 

He said current databases on government spending are inadequate, and 
posting contracts online would help the foundation do its work by giving 
taxpayers a clearer window into the business of government.

Lee also suggested that if vendors had better access to information on 
government contractors, it would encourage competition and result in 
better deals for government. 

Markets run more efficiently when those operating in them have better 
information, he said.

Lee said he formerly worked for a Navy subcontractor and the "amount of 
waste that was present … was staggering."

"I don't think there's anything wrong with exposing the inefficiencies in 
this black box of contracting," he said.

The Federal Register notice is an "advance notice of proposed 
rulemaking," which means that top acquisition officials have not yet 
formulated a plan on how to proceed. Public comments on the idea are due 
by July 12.

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Cheers,
Stephen