Political Quotes

“at a time when the national security budget is under immense pressure, it is vitally important that we spend our defense dollars more wisely. The Boxer-Grassley amendment will contain runaway spending in contractor salary reimbursements. Notice that I said ``salary reimbursements,'' not salaries. Someone not familiar with government contracting might ask why it's any of our business what government contractors get paid, and I would agree if we're talking about what their company pays them out of its own pocket. When most people hire a contractor to renovate their bathroom or re- shingle their roof, they find the one that does the best work for the least cost. Having done that, you are not likely to ask or care what their cut is or what they pay their crew. To the extent that government contracts work the same way, the same principle applies. Unfortunately, not all government contracts do work that way. A large proportion of government contracts actually reimburse the contractor directly for the costs they incur, including for the salaries of their employees. These types of contracts are risky because contractors lose the incentive to control costs. They are only supposed to be used when a fixed price contract is not possible for instance, if the scope or duration of the work is not possible to determine at the outset. Nevertheless, cost-reimbursement type contracts are used extensively by Federal departments and agencies.…”