Vern Edwards Posted November 22, 2022 Report Share Posted November 22, 2022 As of this morning, November, 22, 2022, President Biden still has no nominee for the position of Administrator of Federal Procurement Policy, even as we get ever-closer to $1 trillion/year in contract obligations. Anyone offered the job now should feel insulted. Anyone who accepts the nomination now is either a credential-bagger or a fool. Actually, that might have been the case even if the job had been offered two years ago. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bob7947 Posted November 22, 2022 Report Share Posted November 22, 2022 Vern: Picture a ranch and someone dressed in a clown's outfit monitoring the animal pens. The clown is wearing a placard that says "OFPP Administrator" and walks over to a very large pen filled with nasty, old pigs. The pigs have left a disgusting odor in the pen because they are bunched closely together and no one has cleaned the pen in decades. The clown, newly hired, prepares to open the pen and let the pigs out. From a distance, another person with a "Director, OMB" placard, shouts to the clown, "don't let the pigs out." "There's more coming in." An 18-wheeler shows up next to a wooden runway leading to the large pen. The driver, happy to get rid of the load, opens the door to the 18-wheeler and the new pigs, grunting and snorting, head for the overcrowded pen. The clown shouts to the Director, OMB in the distance: "Why did you let a new load of pigs into the disgusting, smelly, crowded pen." The Director, OMB says: "the new NDAA just passed and those are the new Title VIII pigs ready to join the earlier Title VIII pigs already in the pen." The clown looked in another direction and saw a cloud of dust rising from the feet of a group of people running in another direction. The clown looked at the Director, OMB and shouted: "Who are they?" The Director shouted back: "That's the FAR council members." "Round them up and put them in the pen with the pigs." "They'll know what to do." The Director walked over to his waiting car muttering to himself, "stupid clown, there's always a sucker to take that job." Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Vern Edwards Posted November 22, 2022 Author Report Share Posted November 22, 2022 😁 Allow me to suggest that you not give up your day job to write metaphorical fiction à la George Orwell. I think it's clear that the office of OFPP Administrator is debased to the point that no one takes them seriously. The larger fact is that all three branches of our government, and the government as a whole, are coming apart at the seems. Dysfunction is everywhere. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
here_2_help Posted November 22, 2022 Report Share Posted November 22, 2022 Well, gentlemen, aren't we chipper today? I'm over here, applauding the folks who manage to get the job done within a system that would make Kafka weep. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bob7947 Posted November 22, 2022 Report Share Posted November 22, 2022 Chipper? It's gallows humor. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Vern Edwards Posted November 22, 2022 Author Report Share Posted November 22, 2022 26 minutes ago, here_2_help said: I'm over here, applauding the folks who manage to get the job done within a system that would make Kafka weep. Kafka would laugh. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Vern Edwards Posted November 22, 2022 Author Report Share Posted November 22, 2022 If you want to see a truly weird website, visit "OFPP Innovates". https://ofpp.ideascalegov.com/c/landing Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
here_2_help Posted November 22, 2022 Report Share Posted November 22, 2022 1 hour ago, bob7947 said: Chipper? It's gallows humor. My comment? Sarcasm. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Contracting_in_Wonderland Posted November 22, 2022 Report Share Posted November 22, 2022 3 hours ago, Vern Edwards said: If you want to see a truly weird website, visit "OFPP Innovates". https://ofpp.ideascalegov.com/c/landing I was just reading my [This Week at OFPP Innovates] email. I find it to be quite entertaining. How to improve federal procurement, you ask? Well, allow the sales of hemp oil products at base exchanges, of course! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
formerfed Posted November 22, 2022 Report Share Posted November 22, 2022 I’m sure Biden hasn’t nominated anybody because he’s satisfied with the status quo. Two campaign priorities are assisting small and disadvantaged businesses and promoting labor initiatives. So far he’s delivering. https://www.whitehouse.gov/briefing-room/statements-releases/2022/07/26/fact-sheet-biden-harris-administration-advances-equity-and-economic-opportunity-through-federal-procurement-and-state-and-local-infrastructure-contracting/ https://www.whitehouse.gov/briefing-room/statements-releases/2021/11/18/fact-sheet-president-biden-signs-executive-order-to-ensure-quality-jobs-for-service-workers-on-federal-contracts/ Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
joel hoffman Posted November 22, 2022 Report Share Posted November 22, 2022 Clarification - “…promoting union labor initiatives.” Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
formerfed Posted November 23, 2022 Report Share Posted November 23, 2022 2 hours ago, joel hoffman said: Clarification - “…promoting union labor initiatives.” 👍🏻 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
WifWaf Posted November 23, 2022 Report Share Posted November 23, 2022 @joel hoffman and @formerfed do either of you understand how the Proposed Rule implementing President Biden’s 14 Feb 2022 E.O. 14063, “Use of Project Labor Agreements for Federal Construction Projects” (FAR Case 2022-003) is supposed to improve the economy and efficiency of construction acquisition? Or does the juxtaposition of my bold emphases below say it all about this administration's understanding of our acquisition workforce? Per the Proposed Rule at “I. Background”: “The current FAR is based on the final rule in FAR Case 2009-005, Use of Project Labor Agreements for Federal Construction Projects, published April 13, 2010 (75 FR 19168). The final rule implemented E.O. 13502, which encouraged the use of PLAs for large-scale Federal construction projects valued at $25 million or more in order to promote economy and efficiency in Federal procurement. E.O. 13502 is revoked by E.O. 14063 upon the effective date of the final rule in FAR Case 2022-003.” And here is the current state of things (per its “IV. Expected Impact of the Rule”): “Currently, the regulations at FAR 22.5 encourage the use of PLAs for “large-scale federal construction projects,” which is defined as projects with a total cost of $25 million or more. According to the data collected by OMB, between the years of 2009 and 2021, there were a total of approximately 2,000 eligible contracts and the requirement for a PLA was used 12 times. Based on the information, on average there are approximately 167 eligible awards annually and approximately one award that includes the PLA requirement.” Therefore, here is the Proposed Rule’s future expectation of things? To mandate something that was once a discretionary decision between buyer and seller??? Per its “II. Discussion and Analysis”): “DoD, GSA, and NASA are proposing to revise FAR subpart 22.5, Use of Project Labor Agreements for Federal Construction Projects, to reflect the change in policy pertaining to the use of PLAs. While the reasons for using PLAs remain largely unchanged from the previous policy, use of a PLA is no longer discretionary for large-scale Federal construction projects. Agencies will be required to use a PLA for large-scale Federal construction projects unless an exception applies.” This Executive Order screams, “I don’t pay you to think,” to me. 😤 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
WifWaf Posted November 23, 2022 Report Share Posted November 23, 2022 Oh hey, I just realized there were 8,328 comments about the rule on regulations.gov since I commented in August. Feels like that scene in Tolkien’s LOTR Return of the King, when Aragorn arrives with his Army of the Dead. 🤓🧟♂️ Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Vern Edwards Posted November 23, 2022 Author Report Share Posted November 23, 2022 15 hours ago, formerfed said: Two campaign priorities are assisting small and disadvantaged businesses and promoting labor initiatives. The priorities are the same for this President as for all presidents. Do things that get votes. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
joel hoffman Posted November 23, 2022 Report Share Posted November 23, 2022 Biden has surpassed Obama’s preference for unionized construction projects. Trump left Obama’s EO alone. Before then, Clinton and Bush went back and forth on the issue. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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