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The Price of Government Contracting
In the rush to protect the nation, the federal government has handed out billions of dollars worth of contracts for security systems to prevent another terrorist attack. An ongoing examination of those and other contracts by The Washington Post have found that the Department of Homeland Security amd other federal agencies have failed to properly supervise those projects, the costs are climbing far above the original estimates and some of the systems are not performing as promised. Federal spending on procurement has more than doubled over the past seven years to more than $400 billion annually, and more than half of all contracts have been awarded without full and open competition.

Millions in Earmarks Purchase Little of Use
The National Defense Center for Environmental Excellence opened its doors in 1991 with a $5 million earmark from a powerful lawmaker. Operating in Johnstown, Pa., the privately run center has received at least $671 million worth of federal contracts and earmarks since then to research and develop...
 

Honors and Awards

On March 29, 2006, Washington Post reporters Scott Higham and Robert O'Harrow Jr. received the top prize for newspapers of circulation greater than 500,000 in the Investigative Reporters and Editors investigative reporting competition. The award recognizes their reporting on problems in the Department of Homeland Security.

Government Inc.

Government Inc. The Post's Robert O'Harrow Jr. shines a light on the good, bad and sometimes unsettling world of federal contracting.
• Gone Fishing (July 23)
• Tardy Bennies (July 22)
• Spook News (July 21)
• Into Thin Air (July 18)
• Radioactive (July 17)

• Government Inc. Archive
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Documents and Information

Graphic

Lucrative Contracts, Legal Problems
Unisys Corp. has been at the center of several procurement-fraud cases over the years, two of which included allegations that the company submitted inflated labor costs on federal contracts. The following are some of those cases.

Transcript

High Cost of Homeland Security
Staff Writers Robert O'Harrow and Scott Higham will be online on Oct. 24 to answer reader questions about their ongoing coverage of the Dept. of Homeland Security.
A Contractor, Charity And Magnet for Federal Earmarks (Post, November 2, 2007, Page A01)
 
Building Blackwater: Founder Seeks 'Better, Smarter, Faster' Security As History, Iraq Shape the Firm's Fortunes (Post, October 13, 2007, Page A01)
 
Air Force Told to Detail No-Work Contract Deal (Post, October 6, 2007, Page D13)
 
Air Force Arranged No-Work Contract: Experts Question Official's Deal With Nonprofit (Post, October 1, 2007, Page A01)
 
Sun Cancels GSA Contract After Price Abuse Probe (Post, September 15, 2007, Page D01)
 
House Committee Probes No-Bid Contract at DHS (Post, September 8, 2007, Page D01)
 
Federal No-Bid Contracts On Rise: Use of Favored Firms A Common Shortcut (Post, August 22, 2007, Page A01)
 
Review of Radiation Detectors Questioned (Post, August 16, 2007, Page D03)
 
Costs Skyrocket As DHS Runs Up No-Bid Contracts: $2 Million Security Project Balloons to $124 Million (Post, June 28, 2007, Page A01)
 
Navy, GSA Say Contract Led to Waste, Maybe Fraud (Post, June 7, 2007, Page D01)
 
Rules Skirted, Millions Wasted on Navy Boat Barriers (Post, May 24, 2007, Page A01)
 
Changes Spurred Buying, Abuses: Taxpayers Overcharged Millions in Sun Deal, Auditor Says (Post, May 23, 2007, Page A01)
 
GSA Briefing Now Part Of Wider Investigation (Post, April 24, 2007, Page A03)
 
Waxman Seeks GSA Chief's Testimony: Letter Discloses New Allegations on No-Bid Job and Efforts to Help GOP (Post, March 7, 2007, Page A04)
 
GSA Chief Grilled on GOP Political Presentation: Doan Tells Panel She Attended but Can't Recall Details (Post, March 29, 2007, Page A03)
 
GSA Chief Is Accused of Playing Politics: Doan Denies 'Improper' Use of Agency for GOP (Post, March 26, 2007, Page A01)
 
GSA Defends Administrator in Hill Inquiry: Agency Says Chief Takes Responsibility For No-Bid Order (Post, February 17, 2007, Page A04)
 
House Panel Opens Investigation of GSA Chief's Deal With Friend (Post, January 20, 2007, Page A03)
 
GSA Chief Scrutinized For Deal With Friend: No-Bid Contract A Mistake, She Says (Post, January 19, 2007, Page A01)
 
Interior, Pentagon Faulted In Audits: Effort to Speed Defense Contracts Wasted Millions (Post, December 25, 2006, Page A01)
 
Trio From Hill Ask GSA Head Not to Shift Audit Burden (Post, December 6, 2006, Page A09)
 
GSA Chief Seeks to Cut Budget For Audits: Contract Oversight Would Be Reduced (Post, December 2, 2006, Page A01)
 
Careless Contracting (November 25, 2006, Page A20)
 
Report Finds DHS Lax on Contracting Procedures (Post, November 22, 2006, Page A01)
 
More in This Series
Key DHS Documents

DHS Inspector General Memo to Sec. RidgeIn this March 18, 2003, memo, then Department of Homeland Security Inspector General Clark Kent Ervin said he tried to alert then DHS secretary Tom Ridge that changes needed to be made to the department's procurement processes. (PDF)

2004 Memo by GAO's DavisIn this 2004 Memo, Glen Davis, on loan from the General Accountibility Office to the Senate Select Committee on Homeland Security, details management problems at DHS. (PDF)

Entries from Sec. Ridge's CalendarThese entries from former DHS secretary Tom Ridge's calendar show meetings where Ridge reportedly complained to then Inspector General Ervin that his reports were too negative. (PDF)
Key Government Reports on Homeland Security Contracting

Homeland Security: Successes and Challenges in DHS's Efforts to Create an Effective AcquisitionGovernment Accountability Office, March 2005 (PDF - 46 pages, 2.7 MB)

Transportation Security Administration: High-Level Attention Needed to Strengthen Acquisition FunctionGovernment Accountability Office, May 2004 (PDF - 40 pages, 448 KB )

Aviation Security: Systematic Planning Needed to Optimize the Deployment of Checked Baggage ScreeningGovernment Accountability Office, March 2005 (PDF - 78 pages, 3.6MB)

Homeland Security: Agency Plans, Implementation, and Challenges Regarding the National Strategy for Homeland SecurityGovernment Accountability Office, Jan. 2005 (PDF - 198 pages, 3.1 MB)

Department of Homeland Security: A Comprehensive and Sustained Approach Needed to Achieve Management IntegrationGovernment Accountability Office, March 2005 (PDF - 39 pages, 522KB)

Homeland Security: Some Progress Made, but Many Challenges Remain on U.S. Visitor and Immigrant Status Indicator Technology ProgramGovernment Accountability Office, February 2005 (PDF - 142 pages, 1.9 MB)

Program Assessment Rating for Department of Homeland SecurityOffice of Management and Budget

Follow-Up Audit of Passenger and Baggage Screening Procedures at Domestic Airports (Unclassified Summary)DHS Inspector General, March 2005 (PDF, 8 pages - 1.9 KB)

Implementation of the United States Visitor and Immigrant Status Indicator Technology Program at Land Border Ports of EntryDHS Inspector General, February 2005 (PDF, 42 pages - 1.3 KB)

Major Managment Challenges Facing the Department of Homeland SecurityDHS Inspector General, Dec. 2004 (PDF - 25 pages, 303 KB)

An Evaluation of the Transportation Security Administration's Screener Training and Methods of TestingDHS Inspector General, Sept. 2004 (PDF, 122 pages - 8.3 MB)

Evaluation of TSA's Contract for the Installation and Maintenance of Explosive Detection Equipment at United States AirportsDHS Inspector General, September 2004 (PDF, 30 pages - 2.5 MB)

Effectiveness of Customs and Border Protection's Procedures to Detect Uranium In Two Smuggling IncidentsDHS Inspector General, September 2004 (PDF, 10 pages - 318 kB)

DHS Challenges in Consolidating Terrorist Watch List InformationDHS Inspector General, August 2004 (PDF, 54 pages - 577 KB)

An Evaluation of the Security Implications of the Visa Waiver ProgramDHS Inspector General, April 2004 (PDF, 52 pages - 1.4 MB)

IDENT/IAFIS: The Batres Case and the Status of the Integration ProjectJustice Department Inspector General, March 2004 (PDF - 44 pages, 33KB)

Challenges Exist in Stabilizing and Enhancing Passenger and Baggage Screening OperationsGovernment Accountability Office, February 2004 (PDF - 41 page, 339 KB)

Key Issues Concerning Implementation of the Aviation and Transportation Security ActDepartment of Transportation, Feb. 2002 (PDF - 22 pages, 302 KB)
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