PSC Applauds Provisions in, and Offers Recommendations to, Senate FY18 Defense Authorization Bill |
August 9, 2017
Arlington, V.A. (Aug. 9, 2017)—The Professional Services Council (PSC) sent a
letter to Senate Armed Services Committee (SASC) leaders on Aug. 3 applauding provisions included in the Committee’s reported version of the Fiscal Year 2018 National Defense Authorization Act (
S. 1519) and offered recommendations to further improve the legislation.
“PSC applauds the Committee for including targeted reforms designed to improve acquisition outcomes, facilitate better communication between government and industry, and enhance competition in the federal contracting process," said PSC Executive Vice President and Counsel Alan Chvotkin. “While many of the provisions will have a positive impact on the contractor community and services market, there are a number of areas where PSC believes this bill can be improved, and we look forward to working with the Senate as this legislation moves forward.”
PSC’s
letter highlights support for provisions that will increase competition, reduce burdensome requirements on contractors, enhance debriefings, accelerate Government Accountability Office (GAO) protest timelines, and encourage innovation. However, the letter also addresses PSC’s opposition to select provisions, including transferring the security clearance investigation process for the Department of Defense (DoD) from the National Background Investigations Bureau (NBIB) to the Defense Security Services (DSS), requiring losing bid protesters to pay the processing costs incurred by GAO associated with the protest, and requiring contracting officers to include workplace safety and health violations in contracting decisions.
Additionally, PSC requests that the Committee work to include two proposals included in DoD’s legislative package for FY18 submitted to Congress on July 3, 2017: raising the threshold for the Service Contract Inventory reporting requirement and revising executive compensation reporting requirements to apply only to contracts or subcontracts that are subject to the Cost Accounting Standards. While both proposals were submitted after the SASC’s markup of the FY18 NDAA, PSC believes there is ample time to include these provisions in the final legislation.
“The Committee’s provisions are a step in the right direction. For those provisions that PSC opposes and newly recommends, we hope that the full Senate will act favorably on our suggestions,” said Chvotkin.
The Senate Armed Serviced Committee completed their markup of the FY18 NDAA on June 28. The full Senate is expected to consider the bill in September.
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Media Contact:
Ashlei Stevens
Director, Media Relations
703.875.8974
stevens@pscouncil.org
About PSC: PSC is the voice of the government technology and professional services industry. PSC’s more than 400 member companies represent small, medium and large businesses that provide federal agencies with services of all kinds, including information technology, engineering, logistics, facilities management, operations and maintenance, consulting, international development, scientific, social, environmental services, and more. Together, the trade association’s members employ hundreds of thousands of Americans in all 50 states. Follow PSC on Twitter
@PSCSpeaks. To learn more, visit
www.pscouncil.org.