13 Organizations Sign
Letter to President Obama Urging Narrow 'Inherently Governmental' Redefinition
Forthcoming
Expansion of In-sourcing Private Sector Jobs, Activities and Functions Threatens Nation's
Economy
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE Washington, DC, March 27, 2010 - A coalition of
thirteen national business, taxpayer and free market organizations has sent
President Obama a letter warning that the impending Administration redefinition
of the term 'inherently governmental' functions will "have a serious and
negative impact on taxpayers and private sector jobs, including those in small
business". The organizations also
noted their alarm "by a movement toward 'in-sourcing' that is expanding the
size and cost of government at the expense of America's taxpayers and entrepreneurs".
The Office of Management
and Budget (OMB) is redefining the term "inherently governmental"
related to activities and functions to be appropriately performed by private
contractors and government employees.
The letter points out that only Congress,
not the Administration, can change the definition, as it is in statute (112
STAT 2382, Public Law 105-270).
The groups urge the President to
propose a definition that avoids in-sourcing, or cancelling existing government
contracts and moving work to federal employees, prevents unfair government
competition with the private sector, including small business, and breaks up
monopolies inside the government that denies taxpayers fair and equitable
assessments of savings through established rules for comparing public and
private sector performance.
John Palatiello,
President of the Business Coalition for Fair Competition (BCFC) said,
"Over a year has passed since the White House published its March 4, 2009
memo on government contracting that set a September 30, 2009 deadline to
'clarify when governmental outsourcing for services is and is not appropriate.'
However, continuous delays regarding this clarification has led to a belief
that the redefinition of 'inherently governmental' activities and functions will
be tilted heavily on the side of in-sourcing more employees, activities, and
functions out of the private sector and into the public sector."
"Over the last twelve
months, numerous defense and civilian agencies have been in-sourcing thousands
of positions once satisfied by private contractors. This shift to government
performance of commercial activities not only hinders the private sector, but
places additional costs to taxpayers during a lengthened period of steep
decline in the Nation's economy," Palatiello said.
The letter noted that based
on Bureau of Labor Statistics, the economy shed over 4 million private sector
jobs while adding over 109,000 Federal jobs during President Obama's first year
in office. In addition,
Senator Bayh of Indiana recently commented on the failure of the
government to create jobs in the private sector within the previous six months. The letter
said, "uncertainty as to which sector of the economy is next subject to a
government takeover or threatened by unfair government competition from a
government entity is casting a pall over private investment" and "having a
detrimental effect on capital investment and jobs creation."
Signing the letter was
Alliance for Worker Freedom, Americans for Limited Government, Americans for
Tax Reform, BCFC, Construction Industry Round Table, Design Professionals
Coalition, Hispanic Leadership Fund, MAPPS, National Society of Professional
Surveyors, National Taxpayers Union, Public Service Research Foundation, Reason
Foundation, and Tea Party WDC.
About BCFC
The Business Coalition
for Fair Competition (BCFC) (www.governmentcompetition.org) is comprised of trade
associations, businesses, and organizations dedicated to free enterprise,
relief from unfair government sponsored competition, and smaller, more
efficient government. BCFC is working to elevate attention to concern for
unfair government competition, promoting legislation and policies to eliminate
unfair competition, and opposing efforts to mandate government monopoly
performance of commercially available goods and services.
