On the recordSeptember 24, 2010
as chairman of the Senate subcommittee that oversees the Federal workforce, I strongly oppose the proposal by my colleagues on the other side of the aisle to impose a hiring freeze for all nonsecurity positions in the Federal Government. If adopted, this proposal would sacrifice our Nation's long-term investments in the employees needed to efficiently and effectively run government programs for a short-sighted approach that does nothing to address our current fiscal challenges. Far from being fiscally responsible, these policies would end up costing the government more over the long run, by increasing our reliance on contractors whose work would not be capped. Arbitrary restrictions on hiring Federal employees open up opportunities for waste, fraud, and abuse as contracting expands without investment in oversight. Over the past decade, Federal contracts have nearly doubled in size, to over $500 billion, but the size of the workforce overseeing contractors has stayed constant. We must reverse, not reinforce, that trend. Over the past two years, we have made efforts to rebalance the work performed by Federal employees and contractors. Many times, replacing contractors with Federal employees allows agencies to more efficiently meet their missions and provide vital services.
