Competitive Sourcing |
| Today, as Federal employees, we live in a work climate most of us have never experienced. We have an unfriendly Administration and Congress enacting policy adverse to Federal employee interests and adverse to the general public. Federal employee jobs are under constant threat of being taken away and outsourced to the private sector. The President has vowed he will subject the Federal workforce to competition; the Administration has made contracting out of Federal jobs to the private sector a top five management priority. Specifically, their goal remains one out of every two Federal jobs, a total of 450,000 positions, to be contracted out before the end of this Administration. |
| NTEU is utilizing a tremendous amount of its resources to fight this threat. We, as Federal employees, who value our jobs and believe in our government, must also participate in this fight and accept the challenge to voice our opinions and beliefs. As Federal employees, we want to continue to excel and demonstrate to Congress and the public we are the individuals possessing the integrity necessary to perform our work without undue influence of profits. The selling of private information to third parties who do not have the best interest of the American people foremost in their actions has no place within the Federal government. The private sector is not the Federal government. |
Why are profits necessary to perform the work of the Federal government? |
| How will profits, in lieu of the Federal government, accommodate all of the people in this country without an increase in cost to the people of this country? |
| “Efficiency”, by definition, should mean an increase in “output” associated with a decrease in total cost; in this case that cost is the cost to the people of this country, whether that cost be measured in terms of taxes or fees paid the for-profits, to accommodate the needs of the people. |
| The Administration has acknowledged Competitive Sourcing will cost more and increase the efficiency of the Federal Government. How is an increase in cost an increase in efficiency, as proposed by this administration and the for-profits? |
The Fair Act of 1998 |
| In 1998, Congress developed a process for identifying work performed by the Federal government commercial in nature. This process is governed by the FAIR Act of 1998, Public Law 105-270. |
| The Federal Activities Inventory Reform Act of 1998 is a process of identifying “commercial activities” performed by the Federal government. It applies to us, the Internal Revenue Service, and directly effects IRS employees and the American Public. The FAIR Act requires the head of each Executive Federal Agency to compile a list of services and activities they currently perform; each Agency must then further classify each service and activity performed as either an inherently governmental service and activity or non-inherently governmental service and activity. The list of inherently governmental services and activities, per the Bush Administration, cannot exceed 50% of the work performed by the Federal Government. The services and activities performed by the Federal Government in total shall be reduced and the services and activities classified by the head of each affected agency as non-inherently governmental shall be contracted out to the private sector to allow the private sector to generate a profit performing work the Federal government currently performs. The resulting FAIR List of non-inherently governmental services and activities, as determined by each Agency’s leadership, are governmental services and activities to be performed by for-profit organizations for a fee. We, the general public, will as a result pay for governmental services twice…through the payment of taxes and through the payment of fees for services and activities no longer performed by the government. |
| A non-inherently governmental service or activity, also known as a “Commercial Service or Activity”, is defined by the FAIR Act as any Federal governmental service or activity not meeting the definition of an inherently governmental service or activity. An inherently governmental service is defined by the FAIR Act as a function so intimately related to the public interest to require performance by Federal Government Employees. Inherently governmental services and activities require the exercise of discretion in applying Federal Government Authority and may require the making of a value judgment when making Federal Government decisions. These Federal Government decisions can be quite broad; they address financial transactions and address the interpretation and execution of laws. |
Why is the FAIR Act not in the best interest of this Country? |
| The FAIR Act definition of an “inherently governmental service and activity” allows for the enforcement of our laws to be performed by for-profits. The FAIR Act definition of “non-inherently” governmental service and activity allows for the compensation provided for-profits to perform “non-inherently” governmental services and activities to come from Federal tax revenues and additional charges accessed recipients of “non-inherently” governmental services and activities. This means the Federal deficit will continue to grow and for-profits will benefit as a direct result. It will mean fewer employment opportunities for the people of this country and it will not contribute to a growing economy and decreasing Federal deficit. |
What can be done to stop Competitive Sourcing? |
| To combat this developing threat Federal employees and the American people can contact their Senators and Congressman. Inform your Senators and Congressman what you believe in…the Federal government or for-profits. |
| No one in this country is immune to Competitive Sourcing and the Contracting Out of Federal government services and activities. The Administration will not stop the dismantling of the Federal workforce unless we all tell our Senators and Congressman to please stop this process. |
| Remember, |
| “The only thing necessary for evil to prevail, is for good men to do nothing.” -- Edmund Burke |
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