DOD Pressed to Stop Job Competitions Two leaders of the House Armed Services Committee are urging the Defense Department to shut down all public-private job competitions. Committee chairman Ike Skelton, D-MO, and the chairman of the Readiness Subcommittee, Rep. Solomon Ortiz, D-TX, said the pause will give the Obama administration time to review the department’s strategy. Competitive sourcing under OMB Circular A-76 was a key management initiative pushed by the Bush administration, but President Obama has promised to issue new guidelines on what jobs are suitable for outsourcing. In a letter to Defense Secretary Robert Gates, the congressmen wrote, “Originally, the A-76 process was intended to be used as a tool to determine the most competitive and efficient source for performing ‘commercial’ work — either in the public or private sector. However, it became almost a mandate in recent years for pushing more and more work into the private sector, even work that is closely associated with inherently governmental functions, in order to meet arbitrary competition goals.” The 2009 omnibus appropriation act signed by the president in March blocks new outsourcing studies, but does not affect those already in progress. Federal employee unions constantly fought the Bush administration’s competitive sourcing initiative, even though federal workers won up to 90% of the jobs that were competed. Because of the long odds against winning, many competitions attracted only a single private-sector bidder.