Political Quotes

“I am pleased to introduce, with Senators Abraham, Robb, Helms, and Feingold, the Federal Prison Industries Competition in Contracting Act. This bill, if enacted, would eliminate the requirement for Federal agencies to purchase products made by Federal Prison Industries and require FPI to compete commercially for Federal contracts. It would implement a key recommendation of the Vice President's National Performance Review, which concluded that we should ``Take away the Federal Prison Industries' status as a mandatory source of federal supplies and require it to compete commercially for Federal agencies' business.'' Most importantly, it would ensure that the taxpayers get the best possible value for their federal procurement dollars. Mr. President, Federal Prison Industries has repeatedly claimed that it provides a quality product at a price that is competitive with current market prices. Indeed, the Federal Prison Industries statute requires them to do so. That statute states, and I quote, that FPI may provide to Federal agencies products that ``meet their requirements'' at prices that do not ``exceed current market prices.'' Indeed, FPI would appear to have a significant advantage in any head-to-head competition, since FPI pays inmates less than $2 an hour, far below the minimum wage and a small fraction of the wage paid to most private sector workers in competing industries.”