In FY 2007, fed. agencies worked with over 160,000 contractors, obligating over $456 billion, to help accomplish fed. missions. This reliance on contractors makes it critical that agencies have the info. necessary to properly evaluate a contractor's prior history of performance and better inform agencies' contract award decisions. While actions have been taken to improve the sharing of past performance info. and its use -- including the development of the Past Performance Info. Retrieval System (PPIRS) -- concerns remain about this info. This report assesses agencies' use of past performance info. in awarding contracts; identifies challenges that hinder sharing of past performance info.; and describes efforts to improve contractor performance info. Illus.

The dramatic growth of government over the course of the twentieth century since the New Deal prompts concern among libertarians and conservatives and also among those who worry about government’s costs, efficiency, and quality of service. These concerns, combined with rising confidence in private markets, motivate the widespread shift of federal and state government work to private organizations. This shift typically alters only who performs the work, not who pays or is ultimately responsible for it. “Government by contract” now includes military intelligence, environmental monitoring, prison management, and interrogation of terrorism suspects. Outsourcing government work raises questions of accountability. What role should costs, quality, and democratic oversight play in contracting out government work? What tools do citizens and consumers need to evaluate the effectiveness of government contracts? How can the work be structured for optimal performance as well as compliance with public values? Government by Contract explains the phenomenon and scope of government outsourcing and sets an agenda for future research attentive to workforce capacities as well as legal, economic, and political concerns.

Federal Government Construction Contracts, Third Edition provides an invaluable guide through the myriad of federal government contract regulations, clauses, and case law can present problems and pitfalls for nongovernment contract practitioners.