United States Government Accountability Office

GAO Testimony 

Before the Subcommittee on the 

Legislative Branch, Committee on 

Appropriations, U.S. Senate 

CAPITOL VISITOR 

CENTER 

Update on Status of 

Projects’s Schedule and 

Cost As of May 24, 2006 

Statement of Terrell Dorn, Director 

Bernard L. Ungar, Director 

Physical Infrastructure Issues 

For Release on Delivery

Expected at 10:00 a.m. EDT 

Wednesday, May 24, 2006

 

GAO-06-803T 
Mr. Chairman and Members of the Subcommittee: 

We are pleased to be here today to assist the Subcommittee in monitoring 

progress on the Capitol Visitor Center (CVC) project. Our remarks will 

focus on the Architect of the Capitol’s (AOC) progress in achieving 

selected project milestones and in managing the project’s schedule since

the Subcommittee’s April 27, 2006, hearing on the project.1

 As part of this 

discussion, we will address a number of key challenges and risks that 

continue to face the project, as well as actions AOC has taken or plans to 

take to address these risks. In addition, we will discuss the status of the 

project’s costs and funding. 

Our remarks today are based on our review of schedules and financial 

reports for the CVC project and related records maintained by AOC and its 

construction management contractor, Gilbane Building Company; our 

observations on the progress of work at the CVC construction site; and our 

discussions with the CVC team (AOC and its major CVC contractors), 

AOC’s Chief Fire Marshal, and representatives from the U.S. Capitol 

Police. We also reviewed AOC’s construction management contractor’s 

periodic schedule assessments and daily reports on the progress of 

interior wall and floor stonework. 

In summary: 

Since the Subcommittee’s April 27 CVC hearing, the CVC team has 

continued to move the project’s construction forward, and AOC is still 

proposing the same opening dates—April 2007 for the base CVC project 

and May 2007 for the House and Senate expansion spaces—but we 

continue to believe, as we said at the March and April hearings, that the 

proposed opening dates do not allow enough time to complete several 

critical activities and to address problems, challenges, risks, and 

uncertainties. Since the April 27 hearing, the installation of critical interior

wall and floor stone has continued, together with other interior and 

exterior construction work, and the sequence 2 contractor has further 

developed plans to prevent trade stacking2

 during finish work. Although 

 1

GAO, Capitol Visitor Center: Update on Status of Project’s Schedule and Cost as of April 

27, 2006, GA0-06-665T (Washington, D.C.: Apr. 27, 2006). 

2

Trade stacking can occur when workers from different trades, such as stone masons, 

electricians, plumbers, or plasterers, have to work in the same area at the same time to 

meet a schedule, sometimes making it difficult to ensure sufficient space and resources for 

concurrent work. 

Page 1 GAO-06-803T 
the sequence 2 contractor exceeded its installation target for interior wall 

stone during the last 4 weeks, the pace of floor stone installation remained 

far below the targeted pace; the dates for completing the construction of 

the overall base project and expansion spaces were extended; and several

activities fell behind schedule—not enough to affect the overall 

completion dates based on the project schedule, but increasing the 

potential for future delays. In addition, the sequence 2 contractor met only 

one of the nine milestones being tracked for this hearing, and this 

contractor’s monthly billings continue to indicate that construction work 

is not likely to be completed on schedule as AOC anticipated. The CVC’s 

fire protection system has not yet been approved; critical building systems 

still have to be commissioned and tested; and although the project’s 

overall design is essentially complete, certain design or work scope 

elements are still incomplete or are being clarified or refined. If the CVC 

team is successful in addressing these issues, we believe that the base CVC 

project can still possibly be opened to the public with a temporary cap on 

visitor occupancy in May 2007 and that the expansion spaces can likely be 

opened for occupancy beginning in mid-August to early September 2007. 

AOC may be able to reduce some of the time scheduled for the expansion 

spaces if it implements a phased opening plan and is able to perform 

acceptance testing of the CVC and the expansion spaces concurrently 

rather than sequentially—possibilities AOC is continuing to explore. 

However, the delays that have occurred since the Subcommittee’s last 

CVC hearing compound the concern we previously expressed that AOC 

will be challenged to meet even the later dates we are projecting because 

of the problems, challenges, risks, and uncertainties facing the project. 

Accordingly, as we indicated during the Subcommittee’s April 27 CVC 

hearing, we plan to reassess the project’s schedule again this summer. 

As we reported at the Subcommittee’s March 15 and April 27 CVC 

hearings, we estimate that the total cost to complete the entire CVC 

project is about $556 million without an allowance for risks and 

uncertainties and $584 million with such an allowance. To date, about $530 

million has been provided for CVC construction. We continue to estimate 

that AOC will need about $25.6 million more in CVC construction funds to

complete the entire CVC project. This estimate does not allow for risks 

and uncertainties and takes into account funding that AOC plans to use 

from existing appropriations. In addition, as we indicated during the 

March 15 hearing, AOC preliminarily expects to need about $950,000 in 

fiscal year 2007 AOC general administration appropriations that Congress 

has not yet provided. These funds are needed to pay for contractual 

support necessary to complete acceptance testing of the facility’s fire 

protection system in time to meet the project’s schedule. AOC plans to 

Page 2 GAO-06-803T 
determine if it can reduce the amount needed for this contractual support; 

we will keep the Subcommittee apprised of this situation. Furthermore, 

the CVC is likely to incur additional costs because of recent scope and 

design changes related to its security and fire protection systems and 

problems associated with the utility tunnel; however, our $556 million 

cost-to-complete estimate may include sufficient contingency funds to 

cover these costs. We plan to reassess our cost-to-complete estimate this 

summer and will keep the Subcommittee apprised of our results. 

AOC and it contractors have continued to make progress in a number of 

areas since the Subcommittee’s last CVC hearing, particularly in installing 

wall stone in the auditorium, the orientation and security lobby, and the 

south atrium. However, some milestones were pushed back in April. For 

example, according to AOC’s April 2006 schedule, the base CVC project 

will have a temporary certificate of occupancy on February 23, 2007, 2 

workdays later than indicated in the March 2006 schedule, and the House 

and Senate expansion spaces will be substantially complete on January 10, 

2007, 15 workdays later than indicated in the March 2006 schedule. In 

addition, since the Subcommittee’s last CVC hearing, AOC revised the 

schedule logic to remove a link between penthouse mechanical work and 

work associated with pretesting the East Front’s fire alarm system. AOC 

removed this link—pending approval by AOC’s Chief Fire Marshal—

because the penthouse mechanical work is being done as an improvement 

to the Capitol Building and is not within the scope of the CVC project, 

although the work does affect the CVC. According to AOC’s construction 

management contractor, if AOC had not removed this link, it would have 

had to extend the CVC’s substantial completion date by 5 workdays 

because the penthouse mechanical work was delayed during April.3

 AOC is

still proposing an April 2007 opening date for the base project and a May 

2007 occupancy date for the expansion spaces—dates that it believes will

accommodate possible delays and allow start-up time for operations. AOC 

expects all construction work in the CVC, East Front, and expansion 

spaces to be completed by the April opening date for the base project, but 

AOC Has Moved 

Construction 

Forward, but Delays 

Continue and Risks 

and Uncertainties 

Remain 

 3

Although the penthouse mechanical work, which includes the replacement of air handling

units on the Capitol roof and related work, has been a separate project, it is related to the

CVC because it will serve the East Front space that visitors will travel through to get from

the CVC to the Capitol Building. AOC’s removal of the linkage will require the Chief Fire

Marshal’s approval because certain elements of the East Front’s fire protection system are 

not expected to be ready for testing until after the testing of the CVC’s fire protection 

system begins. 

Page 3 GAO-06-803T 
the CVC’s occupancy at any one time will be temporarily limited to 3,500,

compared with about 4,200, the normal anticipated occupancy level.4

 The 

delays that have occurred since the Subcommittee’s March 15 CVC 

hearing, coupled with the challenges, risks, and uncertainties that 

continue to face the project, have heightened our concerns about AOC’s 

ability to open the CVC to the public in April 2007. Consequently, as we 

indicated during our April 27 testimony, we plan to reassess the project’s 

schedule again this summer. 

Our Analysis Indicates 

Later Opening Dates Than 

AOC Is Proposing 

We continue to believe, as we testified in April, that the CVC is not likely 

to be ready for opening with a temporary certificate of occupancy before 

May 2007, about a month later than AOC is proposing. Our projected 

opening date is somewhat later than AOC’s because (1) delays in 

completing interior stonework have delayed follow-on work for the base 

project and East Front, (2) delays have been continuing in other critical 

work, such as the utility tunnel, the fire protection system, and certain 

work in the expansion spaces; and (3) CVC team managers and members 

and AOC’s Chief Fire Marshal believe that certain other work, such as 

finish work and acceptance testing of the CVC’s fire protection system, 

will take more time than is scheduled to complete. Our projection also 

assumes that AOC will be able to address the challenges it faces and takes 

into account the time AOC believes is necessary to prepare for operations 

after construction work is completed. However, the delays in March and 

April raise concerns about AOC’s ability to fully overcome these 

challenges. Similarly, we continue to believe that the House and Senate

expansion spaces are more likely to be ready in mid-August or early 

September 2007 than in April or May 2007, as AOC is proposing. We 

consider the later time frames for the expansion spaces more likely for 

three reasons. First, AOC has scheduled the acceptance testing of the 

expansion spaces after the acceptance testing of the base project and,

according to our analysis, the base project’s testing will take longer than 

scheduled. Second, AOC’s Chief Fire Marshal believes the acceptance 

testing of the expansion spaces will take longer than scheduled. Third, 

 4

This temporary limit will be necessary because the “horizontal exits,” or passages, through 

the expansion spaces, which the life safety code requires for exiting the base CVC project,

will not be available until later. These horizontal exits cannot be used until the fire alarm

system in the expansion spaces has been fully tested and accepted—work that is not slated 

to be completed until after the base CVC is scheduled to open. Some additional work will 

likely be required to provide temporary emergency exit routes from the CVC, but the CVC 

team does not believe that this work or its costs should be substantial. 

Page 4 GAO-06-803T 
several activities important to the on-time completion of expansion space 

work slipped in March and April; and at this time, the sequence 2 

subcontractor responsible for this work believes that additional slippages 

in some of these activities are likely or possible. However, AOC has begun 

to address the problems affecting the progress of the expansion spaces 

and plans to reassess this situation as the construction work proceeds. 

The expansion spaces could be ready sooner than late summer 2007 if 

AOC succeeds in addressing the problems and starts acceptance testing 

sooner or opens the expansion spaces in phases—possibilities that AOC is 

continuing to explore. 

According to AOC’s construction management contractor, work on the 

project has advanced, in terms of both the dollar value of the work in 

place and individual project elements. In dollar terms, the overall CVC 

project was about 81 percent complete and the sequence 2 work was 

about 70 percent complete as of April 30–up from about 79 percent and 67 

percent, respectively, as of March 31. Additionally, wall stone installation 

progressed substantially in the orientation and security lobby and in the 

south atrium and auditorium and continued in other areas, such as the 

great hall and the East Front’s basement level. AOC’s construction 

management contractor reported additional progress in the CVC’s interior, 

including drywall installation in the great hall, the utility and House 

connector tunnels, and the House and Senate expansion spaces. AOC’s 

construction management contractor also reported progress in the 

installation of stone pavers on the plaza over the auditorium. Finally, 

according to the construction management contractor, the CVC’s electrical 

work continues to be ahead of schedule. 

Construction Work Is 

Progressing

Despite the progress in these areas, problems and delays occurred in other 

areas, and several indicators of construction progress that we have been

tracking for the Subcommittee continue to indicate that construction work 

is likely to be completed later than AOC currently anticipates. An update 

on these indicators follows. 

Indicators Raise Questions 

about Proposed Opening Dates 

Sequence 2 contractor continues to miss milestones, and completion 

dates are extended. Starting with the Subcommittee’s June 2005 CVC 

hearing, at the Subcommittee’s request, we and AOC have been selecting 

and tracking sequence 2 milestones to help the Subcommittee monitor 

construction progress. These milestones include activities that are either 

on the project’s critical path or that we and AOC believe are critical to the 

project’s timely completion. As figure 1 shows, the sequence 2 contractor 

has generally missed these milestones. For today’s hearing, nine of these 

milestones were due to be completed, according to the project’s January 

Page 5 GAO-06-803T 
2006 schedule. One was completed ahead of schedule; one was late; and 

none of the remaining seven had been completed as of May 22. (See app.

I.) AOC’s construction management contractor said that the sequence 2 

contractor missed the milestones for reasons such as a need to do 

remedial or preparatory work in the East Front and the upper orientation 

and security lobby before installing wall stone, utility tunnel delays, and a 

lack of wall stone due to a change in the type of stone to be used. 

Figure 1: Sequence 2 Contractor’s Progress in Meeting Selected Milestones as of

CVC Hearing Dates 

Number

Hearing date

Number of milestones completed on time

Number of milestones completed late

Number of milestones not completed

Source: Sequence 2 contractor, AOC and its construction management contractor, and GAO.

0

5

10

15

20

May, 2006

April, 2006

March, 2006

February, 2006

November, 2005

October, 2005

September, 2005

July, 2005

June, 2005

According to AOC’s construction management contractor, the base 

project’s overall completion date fell another 2 workdays behind in April, 

from February 21 to February 23, 2007. February 13, 2007, was the 

completion date set in the project’s January 2006 schedule, and that 

completion date was changed to February 21, 2007, in March. The 2-

Page 6 GAO-06-803T 
workday delay in April is the net result of delays in activities on multiple 

activity paths. In addition, delays occurred on 16 of 21 critical and nearcritical paths that AOC’s construction management contractor identified 

as important to meeting the base project’s overall completion date.5

 These 

delays occurred in, but were not limited to, work on the utility tunnel, the 

fire protection system, the East Front, the upper level of the orientation 

and security lobby, the auditorium, the assembly room, and the orientation 

theaters, and AOC’s construction management contractor reported that 

they ranged from 1 to 33 workdays. According to the CVC team, these 

project delays occurred for a variety of reasons, such as design changes, 

problematic sequence 1 work, late submissions of shop drawings, changes 

in the sequence of work activities by the sequence 2 contractor, and 

inaccessible work areas. Even more important than the individual delays 

themselves, however, is their likely impact on the CVC team’s ability to 

complete construction work on schedule. So many activities have now 

fallen behind schedule that even relatively short additional delays could

push back the CVC’s overall completion date. According to the 

construction management contractor, there are eight critical and nearcritical activity paths in the project’s April schedule that have so little 

slack time that an additional delay of 1 to 30 workdays could delay the 

base project’s overall completion date. There were nine such paths in the 

project’s March schedule, according to AOC’s construction management 

contractor. 

Work on the House and Senate expansion spaces fell 15 workdays behind

schedule in March, AOC’s construction management contractor reported.6

Additionally, and of even greater concern to us, are delays in a number of 

 5

Construction projects typically have one critical path, which is the sequence of activities 

having the longest duration through the schedule. There is no slack time associated with 

these activities, meaning that a delay in a critical path activity will delay the entire project 

unless a way is found to reduce the time required for other activities along the critical path. 

Some projects have multiple critical paths simultaneously; in March, the CVC essentially 

had two concurrent critical paths—(1) East Front mechanical and (2) East Front fire 

acceptance testing. According to AOC’s construction management contractor, after AOC

removed the link with the penthouse mechanical path, as discussed, the base project had 

one critical path for April—the utility tunnel and air handling units being mechanically 

ready —and 20 near-critical activity paths, which have little slack time. Generally, the more

critical and near-critical activities a project has, the greater is the risk of late completion 

because there are more opportunities for slight delays that can adversely affect the 

project’s completion. 

6

According to the project’s March and April schedules, the date for completing the House 

and Senate expansion spaces was extended from May 2, 2007, in March to May 25, 2007, in

April. The contract completion date for this work is March 12, 2007. 

Page 7 GAO-06-803T 
near-critical paths, particularly those paths that will affect the CVC’s 

opening date. Some of the near-critical paths slipped as much as 23 

workdays in April, according to the construction management contractor.

Among the activities that were delayed in April were the installation of 

ceiling tile and the commissioning of certain air-handling units needed for 

the CVC’s opening; electrical and audio-visual related work in the Senate

lower level; plumbing work in space intended for use by the U.S. Capitol 

Police; and drywall installation in the House lower and service levels. 

According to the CVC team, these activities fell behind schedule because 

of delays in getting design decisions (which were provided at the end of 

April), problems with site conditions due to sequence 1 or 2 work, and the 

need to shift crews to do other work. 

In early April 2006, we told AOC we were concerned about the increasing 

number of delays in expansion space activities and the potential impact of

these delays on the completion of the expansion space work. As further 

cause for concern, we noted that the sequence 2 subcontractor doing the 

expansion space work was expecting additional delays in some of these 

activities and that, in our view, additional design or scope changes were 

possible. Although AOC is not planning to open the expansion spaces until 

May 2007, timely completion of the expansion space work is important 

because certain expansion space work must be completed before the CVC 

can be opened to the public. AOC agreed that continued delays in the 

expansion space work are of concern and recognized that risks and 

uncertainties associated with the work could cause the work to fall farther

behind. AOC has begun to work with the rest of the CVC team to identify 

and address problems that have arisen and risks that threaten the work’s 

on-time completion. 

Value of completed work indicates completion later than scheduled. 

Another indicator of construction progress that we and AOC’s 

construction management contractor have been tracking is the value of 

the completed construction work billed to the government each month. 

Both we and the construction management contractor believe that the 

sequence 2 contractor’s monthly billings, including the bills for March and 

April 2006, indicate that AOC is not likely to meet its currently scheduled 

completion date. While this indicator has some limitations (for example, 

billings lag behind construction and the contract’s total value does not 

include the value of modifications that are beyond modification number 

85), it is generally regarded in the construction industry as a useful 

measure of how likely a project is to be completed on time. Figure 2 

compares the sequence 2 contractor’s billings since May 2003 with the 

project’s scheduled completion date and indicates that the sequence 2 

Page 8 GAO-06-803T 
contractor is not likely to finish construction work by December 2006, as 

AOC expects, unless the value of completed work increases significantly.

We believe that a significant increase will be difficult, given the limited 

number of areas that will be ready for finish work at any given time. 

Figure 2: Total Billings by the Sequence 2 Contractor for the Entire CVC Project Compared with the Billings Needed to Finish 

Construction Work on Schedule

Dollars (in millions)

Month

Range of billings needed to finish on schedule

Target billings (range average)

Actual billings

Source: AOC’s construction management contractor.

Billings based on early finish dates in schedule 

Billings based on late finish dates in schedule 

0

500

100

150

200

250

December 2006

January 2007

February 2007

March 2007

April 2007

November 2006

October 2006

September 2006

August 2006

July 2006

April 2006

May 2006

June 2006

March 2006

February 2006

January 2006

December 2005

November 2005

October 2005

September 2005

August 2005

July 2005

April 2005

May 2005

June 2005

March 2005

February 2005

January 2005

November 2004

December 2004

October 2004

September 2004

August 2004

July 2004

June 2004

April 2004

May 2004

March 2004

February 2004

January 2004

November 2003

December 2003

October 2003

September 2003

August 2003

July 2003

May 2003

June 2003

Notes: 

The early and late lines on this figure reflect the cumulative billings that would be required to 

complete the project through contract modification 85 ($222.8 million total contact value) by the early

and late finish dates shown in the sequence 2 contractor’s schedule. 

The actual line reflects the sequence 2 contractor’s actual monthly billings. 

Page 9 GAO-06-803T 
Although bills are typically submitted for payment after work is completed, it is often likely that 

construction work will be completed on schedule when the actual billing line falls between the early 

and late lines in the figure. With respect to the CVC, the actual billing line has been trending below, 

and in March 2006 went below, the late finish line, where it remained in April 2006. Even with the lag 

in billings, this trend indicates that the amount of work being completed each month is not sufficient to 

finish the project on schedule. 

Interior stone installation is progressing, but taking longer than 

expected. Overall, about 72 percent of the CVC’s interior wall stone has 

been installed, according to AOC’s construction management contractor,

and the sequence 2 contractor installed 4,082 pieces of interior wall stone 

during the last 4 weeks, exceeding its 3,817-piece production target. In 

contrast, during the same period, the sequence 2 contractor installed 

about 1,885 square feet of floor stone, or about 24 percent of the 7,870 

square feet specified in a preliminary floor stone installation plan that the

contractor provided to AOC shortly after the February 15 CVC hearing. In

addition, 5 of the 9 schedule milestones that AOC and we have been 

tracking for the Subcommittee for today’s hearing are related to interior 

wall stone installation, and the sequence 2 contractor did not meet any of 

these 5 milestones. According to the CVC team, the sequence 2 contractor

has missed its stone installation targets for a variety of reasons, including 

the need to correct problematic sequence 1 work or properly prepare 

certain spaces for the installation of wall or floor stone, a change in wall 

stone design, late delivery of floor stone for the exhibit gallery, or delays in

some spaces in finishing certain work, such as ceiling work, that usually 

precedes floor stone installation. As we have discussed in the 

Subcommittee’s previous CVC hearings, delays in wall stone installation 

can lead to additional delays in completing follow-on work, such as floor 

stone installation and finish work. Although the CVC team has identified

unforeseen conditions and problematic sequence 1 work as risks that 

could affect the pace of wall stone installation, the team’s efforts to 

address the risks have not fully prevented these types of problems from 

recurring or adversely affecting the project’s schedule. Figures 3 and 4 

show the sequence 2 contractor’s progress in installing interior wall and 

floor stone since January 23 and February 13, 2006, respectively. Although 

the sequence 2 contractor has exceeded its aggregate numerical target for 

wall stone installation since the last CVC hearing, it did not meet the 

milestones for wall stone installation that we are tracking for the 

Subcommittee because it had its masons doing noncritical wall stone 

installation in other areas. The masons were doing this noncritical work 

while remedial or preparatory work was being performed in the East Front 

and atrium areas so that wall stone installation could start or continue in 

those areas, according to AOC’s construction management contractor. In

addition, wall stone for the remaining work in the upper level orientation

Page 10 GAO-06-803T 
lobby was not yet on site because of a change in the type of stone to be 

used. 

The sequence 2 contractor missed its target for floor stone installation in 

the exhibit gallery because it ran out of floor stone for that area from May 

9 to May 16, just as it did during the week of April 10. According to the 

sequence 2 contractor, the supplier of floor stone for the exhibit gallery is 

a small company that has not been able to fabricate the floor stone as 

quickly as needed. The sequence 2 contractor received an additional 

shipment on May 16 and was expecting another truckload of exhibit 

gallery floor stone this week. The final shipment is expected around June 

12. The sequence 2 contractor did not expect this delay to adversely affect

the overall completion of the exhibit gallery. 

To finish installing floor stone in other areas of the CVC, the sequence 2 

contractor said that it (1) plans to move many of the masons installing wall 

stone to floor stone installation soon and (2) is preparing a new set of 

targets for floor stone installation. We plan to review the contractor’s 

revised targets when they are completed and will track the contractor’s 

performance against its revised targets for the Subcommittee’s subsequent 

CVC hearings. Finally, AOC’s construction management contractor reports 

that over 60 percent of the CVC’s interior floor stone has been fabricated,

and the sequence 2 contractor does not anticipate future problems with 

floor stone supply. 

Page 11 GAO-06-803T 
Figure 3: Progress of CVC Interior Wall Stone Installation Compared with Targets Set by the Sequence 2 Contractor

0

200

400

600

800

1000

1200

1400

Week of 

May 15, 2006

Week of 

May 8, 2006

Week of 

May 1, 2006

Week of 

April 24, 2006

Week of 

April 17, 2006

Week of 

April 10, 2006

Week of 

April 3, 2006

Week of 

March 27, 2006

Week of 

March 20, 2006

Week of 

March 13, 2006

Week of 

March 6, 2006

Week of 

February 27, 2006

Week of 

February 20, 2006

Week of 

 February 13, 2006

Week of 

Februar

Week of 

y 6, 2006

January 30, 2006

Week of 

January 23, 2006

Number of wall stones

Source: AOC’s construction management contractor.

Week Target for number of wall stones installed

Actual number of wall stones installed

Page 12 GAO-06-803T 
Figure 4: Progress of CVC Interior Floor Stone Installation Compared with Preliminary Targets Set by the Sequence 2 

Contractor

Source: AOC’s construction management contractor.

Week

Target for square footage of floor stones installed

Actual square footage of floor stones installed

Square footage installed

0

500

1000

1500

2000

2500

Week of 

April 17, 2006

Week of 

April 10, 2006

Week of 

April 3, 2006

Week of 

March 27, 2006

Week of 

May 15, 2006

Week of 

May

Week

 8, 2006

 of 

May

Week

 1, 2006

 of 

April 24, 2006

Week of 

March 20, 2006

Week of 

March 13, 2006

Week of 

Marc

Week

h 6, 2006

 of 

February 27, 2006

Week of 

February 20, 2006

Week of 

February 13, 2006

Week of 

Februar

Week

y 6, 2006

 of 

January 30, 2006

Week of 

January 23, 2006

0 0

Project’s Schedule 

Remains Vulnerable to 

Problems, Challenges, 

Risks, and Uncertainties, 

despite Actions AOC Has 

Taken and Plans to Take 

As we have indicated since the Subcommittee’s February 15 CVC hearing, 

we continue to believe that AOC will be challenged to meet even the later

opening dates we have identified, given the problems, challenges, risks, 

and uncertainties facing the project. A brief update on these and AOC’s 

plans for addressing them follows: 

• Trade stacking could delay completion. As we discussed during the 

Subcommittee’s previous CVC hearings, trade stacking could hold up 

finish work, such as drywall or ceiling installation, electrical and plumbing 

work, plastering, or floor stone installation. This work could be stacked 

because of delays in wall stone installation. According to AOC’s 

construction management contractor, the pace of wall stone installation 

has not been sufficient to eliminate the risk of trade stacking and delays in

finish work. Such a situation could also increase the risk of accidents and 

Page 13 GAO-06-803T 
injuries. Hence, it remains important, as we said at previous CVC hearings, 

for the CVC team to closely monitor construction to identify potential 

trade stacking and promptly take steps to address it. The CVC team has 

also identified trade stacking as a high risk, and in its April progress 

report, AOC’s construction management contractor expressed concern 

about having enough workers to do ceiling work because much of the wall 

stone work is to be finished at the same time, making several areas 

available for ceiling work at the same time. The sequence 2 contractor has 

developed plans that show when various subcontractors will be working 

in each area of the CVC except the East Front, which the sequence 2 

contractor does not expect to be ready for finish work for several weeks. 

The sequence 2 contractor has also had its drywall and plaster 

subcontractor working overtime in the great hall to expedite the work so 

the scaffolding can be removed and the floor stone installation can begin. 

According to the sequence 2 contractor, it intends to continue meeting 

regularly with its subcontractors to review and update the area plans and

to have the area plan for the East Front done before finish work begins 

there. The sequence 2 contractor pointed out that these plans add more 

detail to the project’s schedule and will serve as a tool for addressing the 

trade-stacking issue. Although we and AOC agree that these area-by-area 

plans are important and should be helpful, we are still concerned about 

the potential for trade stacking because of the delays that have already 

occurred and future delays that could occur in such work as testing, 

balancing, and commissioning the CVC’s air handling units or making 

changes to the CVC’s fire protection system resulting from the Chief Fire 

Marshal’s review of the shop drawings for the system. 

• Complex building systems remain a significant risk. The CVC will house 

complex building systems, including systems for heating, air conditioning, 

and ventilation; fire protection; and security. These systems not only have

to perform well individually, but their operation also has to be integrated. 

If the CVC team encounters any significant problems with their 

functioning, either individually or together, during commissioning or 

acceptance testing, the project could be seriously delayed. During the 

Subcommittee’s March 15 CVC hearing, we noted that the sequence 2 

contractor planned to submit the shop drawings for the CVC’s fire 

protection system for review by March 17. However, the contractor did not 

submit the drawings for the base project until the end of April, in part 

because more time was needed to incorporate changes, AOC’s 

construction management contractor said. The drawings were given to

AOC’s Chief Fire Marshal on May 1. Delays could arise if the proposed 

system does not meet the project’s design specifications or the fire 

Page 14 GAO-06-803T 
protection code’s requirements.7

 AOC’s Chief Fire Marshal plans to 

complete his review of the drawings by June 1. In addition, the Chief Fire 

Marshal notes that delays could occur if the CVC team does not adequately 

pretest the system and correct any problems found during the pretesting.

On March 23, AOC’s commissioning contractor submitted its plan for 

testing the performance of the CVC’s smoke control system, which is a 

critical component of the CVC’s fire protection system and must work 

properly before the CVC can be opened to the public. This plan has not yet 

been approved. In addition, as we have previously noted, the Chief Fire 

Marshal’s timely completion of the fire protection system’s acceptance

testing depends on his ability to obtain sufficient funding for a contractor

to help perform the tests. Furthermore, the CVC team recently resolved 

outstanding issues with the U.S. Capitol Police on the numbers, types, and

locations of security equipment to be installed and on the design of the 

CVC’s fire alarm system. According to AOC’s construction management 

contractor, certain changes to the scope of the security work and to the

fire alarm system’s design resulting from the resolution are likely to set the

schedule back to some extent. 

• Building design and work scope continue to evolve. The CVC has 

undergone a number of design and work scope changes. Since the 

Subcommittee’s April 27 CVC hearing, AOC’s architectural contractor has 

issued five design changes or clarifications. As of May 19, 2006, this 

contractor reported, another 11 were in process and requests for 3 more 

were awaiting AOC’s approval to proceed. In addition, since the project 

began, AOC has executed more than 80 sequence 2 contract modifications 

for work that was not anticipated.8

 Some of these changes, such as 

changes in the exhibit gallery and in the East Front, have resulted in 

delays. In addition, shop drawings for a number of project elements, such 

as the facility’s fire protection system, millwork in the food service area, 

and certain portions of the exhibit gallery, have not yet been fully 

approved and are subject to change, and additional design or scope 

changes are likely given the project’s experience to date. Project design 

 7

According to the sequence 2 subcontractor that is fitting out the House and Senate 

expansion spaces, the delays in getting approved shop drawings for the fire protection

system have already postponed ceiling close ins in the expansion spaces, and AOC believes 

that such further delays, along with possible requests for design changes, pose the greatest 

risks to the completion schedule for the expansion spaces. 

8

These data exclude sequence 2 contract modifications for work that was planned but not 

included in the sequence 2 base contract. Examples include the fit-out of the House and 

Senate expansion spaces, the construction of the utility tunnel, and the purchase and 

installation of food service equipment. 

Page 15 GAO-06-803T 
and scope changes are typically reflected in the development of potential

change orders (PCO), many of which result in contract modifications. 

Figure 5 shows the PCOs submitted for consideration for sequences 1 and 

2 since September 2003. Although PCOs are not always approved, they are 

often regarded as a reasonably good indicator of likely future design or 

scope changes that can affect a project’s cost and schedule. Even more 

important, the adverse impact of scope and design changes on a project’s

schedule is likely to increase as the project moves toward completion. For 

example, certain changes to the fire protection system currently being

discussed are likely, if made, to adversely affect the project’s schedule, 

according to AOC. 

Page 16 GAO-06-803T 
Figure 5: Cumulative Number of Potential Change Orders Submitted for CVC Sequences 1 and 2 between September 2003

and April 2006 

Number

Source: AOC’s construction management contractor.

Date

Sequence 1 potential change orders

Sequence 2 potential change orders

0

100

200

300

400

500

600

700

800

March 31, 2006

April 30, 2006

February 28, 2006

January 31, 2006

December 31, 2005

November 30, 2005

October 31, 2005

September 30, 2005

August 31, 2005

July 31, 2005

June 30, 2005

May 31, 2005

April 30, 2005

March 31, 2005

February 28, 2005

January 31, 2005

November 30, 2004

December 31, 2004

October 31, 2004

September 30, 2004

August 31, 2004

July 31, 2004

June 30, 2004

April 30, 2004

May 31, 2004

March 31, 2004

February 29, 2004

January 31, 2004

November 30, 2003

December 31, 2003

October 31, 2003

September 30, 2003

As the figure indicates, new PCOs for sequence 1 were submitted until 

shortly before, and even for several months after, November 2004, when 

AOC determined that the sequence 1 contract work was substantially 

complete. Similarly, PCOs for sequence 2 are still being submitted, and we 

have seen no indication that their submission is likely to stop soon. It 

therefore appears likely to us that some of the design or scope changes 

indicated in PCOs could lead to contract modifications that will affect the 

project’s schedule. AOC agrees that it is important to minimize the impact

of proposed design and scope changes. 

Two new issues associated with the CVC’s new utility tunnel are likely to 

result in additional work. First, AOC has requested design work to begin 

extending the CVC’s sprinkler system into the new utility tunnel to 

Page 17 GAO-06-803T 
enhance worker safety. Although the design work for this change has not

yet been completed, AOC does not believe the extension will delay the 

project. Second, AOC recently identified a complication that is affecting 

work on the new CVC utility tunnel. Specifically, AOC found that potential

asbestos and other safety-related problems in an older tunnel that 

intersects the new utility tunnel will have to be addressed before other 

work needed for the utility tunnel’s operation can proceed in the older 

tunnel. This additional safety-related work is contributing to the slippage 

in the utility tunnel’s completion discussed earlier in our testimony. 

• Opening the CVC and expansion spaces at different times is likely to 

result in a temporary cap on CVC occupancy and increase costs. As we 

reported during previous Subcommittee CVC hearings, AOC’s current plan 

to open the CVC in April 2007 before the expansion spaces are scheduled

for completion is likely to result in a temporary cap on CVC visitor 

occupancy and a need to construct temporary emergency exits for fire and 

life safety protection.9

 AOC is proposing this sequential approach because 

it believes that conducting acceptance testing for the fire protection 

system for the CVC and the expansion spaces concurrently would delay 

opening the CVC to the public. AOC’s proposed April 2007 opening date

for the CVC depends on the timely completion of work not only on the 

base project but also on the expansion spaces, since certain expansion 

space work must be completed before the CVC’s opening. Inasmuch as 

work on both the base project and the expansion spaces was delayed in 

March and April, we believe that it will be especially important to monitor 

the progress of construction to determine what additional work (and 

funding) may be needed to meet AOC’s planned date for opening the CVC, 

including what temporary work may be required in the expansion spaces 

for the CVC to open before the expansion space work is complete. AOC’s 

construction management contractor is monitoring this situation and said 

in its April 2006 schedule report that concurrent acceptance testing of the

CVC’s and the expansion spaces’ fire protection systems may be difficult 

because of the 15-workday delay in the expansion space schedule that 

occurred in April. 

• Risks from insufficient stone deliveries remain, but may be

diminishing. According to AOC’s construction management contractor,

 9

According to AOC, the CVC’s occupancy at any one time would be temporarily limited to 

3,500, compared with about 4,200, the normal anticipated occupancy level, until acceptance

testing of the fire protection system for the expansion spaces has been completed. 

Although AOC anticipates the need for some temporary work, it does not believe that the

associated costs will be substantial. 

Page 18 GAO-06-803T 
the sequence 2 contractor has, since the week of April 24, received 2 of the 

10 truckloads of interior wall stone it was expecting from the wall stone 

fabricator. The sequence 2 contractor said that the lack of wall stone 

deliveries has not adversely affected wall stone installation recently. 

AOC’s construction management contractor reported that as of last week, 

almost all—over 99 percent—of the wall stone needed for the core CVC 

itself was on site (either installed or awaiting installation); nearly 80 

percent of the wall stone needed for the atriums and about 35 percent of 

the wall stone needed for the East Front were on site; and none of the wall 

stone for the House connector, Library of Congress, and Cannon tunnels 

had been delivered. The sequence 2 contractor said that truck scheduling 

issues, not fabrication delays, had caused the lapse in wall stone deliveries 

over the last 4 weeks and that the delays in installing East Front wall stone 

have been related more to site conditions than to stone supply. 

Furthermore, the sequence 2 contractor said that given the East Front wall 

stone supply on site, the shipments expected, and the pace of installation, 

it does not foresee any further delays in the CVC work due to a lack of 

wall stone. The sequence 2 contractor received two wall stone truckloads

on May 22 and expects to receive all of the remaining wall stone needed 

for the base project by June 30, 2006. According to AOC and its 

construction management contractor, although the supply of interior wall 

stone was insufficient in late 2005 and early 2006, it is adequate for the 

CVC at this time, given the amount of space available for wall stone 

installation and the quantity of stone on hand—about 4,500 pieces as of 

May 19—and expected. Also, although none of the wall stone for the 

House and Senate expansion spaces was on site yet, the subcontractor 

responsible for this work is not anticipating delivery problems at this time. 

On the other hand, AOC’s construction management contractor reported 

that no floor stone was installed in the exhibit gallery during the week of

April 10 or between May 9 and May17 because the installers ran out of 

floor stone for that area. As indicated earlier in our testimony, the 

sequence 2 contractor received a shipment of floor stone for the exhibit 

gallery on May 16 and expects another shipment this week and the final 

shipment by mid-June. 

Finally, as we have said in previous discussions with AOC, its construction 

management contractor, and the Subcommittee, it will be important for 

AOC to have adequate analysis and documentation of the reasons and 

responsibilities for delays.10 On April 11, 2006, AOC executed a contract 

 10See for example: GAO, Capitol Visitor Center: Effective Schedule Management and 

Updated Cost Information Are Important, GAO-05-811T (Washington, D.C.: June 14, 2005).

Page 19 GAO-06-803T 
modification authorizing its construction management contractor to have 

one of its managers who has not been involved in the CVC project assess 

the adequacy of this type of information. The manager expects to complete 

his work by the end of this week. 

As we testified during the Subcommittee’s last three CVC hearings, we 

estimate that the total cost to complete the entire CVC project will be 

about $556 million without an allowance for risks and uncertainties and 

could be as much as about $584 million with such an allowance. To date, 

about $530 million has been provided for CVC construction. This amount 

includes about $3.6 million that was made available for either CVC 

construction or operations and has been approved for CVC construction 

by the House and Senate Committees on Appropriations.11 To obtain the 

additional funding that it expected to need to complete the project’s 

construction, AOC, in December 2005, requested $20.6 million as part of its 

budget request for fiscal year 2007. This request was based, in part, on 

discussions with us and took into account our November 16, 2005, 

estimate of the cost to complete the project’s construction without an 

allowance for risks and uncertainties and funding from existing 

appropriations. Our subsequent work—completed in preparation for the 

Subcommittee’s February 15 and March 15 CVC hearings—indicated that 

AOC would need about $5 million more, or about $25.6 million in 

additional CVC construction funds, to complete construction without an 

allowance for risks and uncertainties. AOC plans to request the additional 

$5 million as a supplement to its fiscal year 2007 budget for CVC 

construction. This would bring its total request for fiscal year 2007 CVC 

construction funds to $25.6 million. In addition, AOC has indicated that it

plans to use about $950,000 of the fiscal year 2007 general administration 

appropriations it has requested for contractual support for its Fire Marshal 

Division. 

Estimated Project 

Cost and Funding 

 11Public Law 108-447, enacted on December 8, 2004, provided that up to $10.6 million could 

be transferred from AOC’s Capitol Building appropriation account for the use of the CVC 

project. The use of the amount transferred is subject to the approval of the House and 

Senate Committees on Appropriations. In June 2005, AOC received approval to use about 

$2.8 million (including about $1.6 million for CVC construction) of this $10.6 million,

leaving a balance of about $7.7 million that could be used in the future after a rescission 

amounting to $84,800. AOC recently received approval to use about an additional $2 million 

of these funds for CVC construction, including, for example, the fabrication and installation

of wayfinding signage and the fit-out of the gift shops, and about $2.3 million for CVC 

operations. Thus, about $3.4 million of the $10.6 million remains available for approval for 

use for CVC construction or operations. 

Page 20 GAO-06-803T 
As we stated in our March 15 and April 27 testimonies, AOC believes that it

may be able to reduce the amount of funds it will need in fiscal year 2007 

for contractual support in testing the CVC’s fire protection system and 

plans to explore ways to do so. AOC’s Chief Fire Marshal received the 

shop drawings for the CVC’s fire protection system on May 1 and believes

that his office will complete its review by June 1. His office then plans to 

determine how much contractual support it will need to test the system 

and to explore cost savings possibilities. We plan to monitor these costs 

and report on them to the Subcommittee as soon as AOC has a firmer 

estimate. In addition, AOC is likely to incur additional costs from recent 

scope and design changes related to the CVC’s security and fire protection 

systems and from problems associated with the utility tunnel. Sufficient 

contingency funding may be available for these items within our $556 

million estimate of the cost to complete the project. We plan to reassess 

our cost-to-complete estimate this summer and will keep the 

Subcommittee apprised of our results. 

Mr. Chairman, this completes our prepared statement. We would be 

pleased to answer any questions that you or Members of the 

Subcommittee may have. 

For further information about this testimony, please contact Bernard 

Ungar at (202) 512-4232 or Terrell Dorn at (202) 512-6923. Other key 

contributors to this testimony include Shirley Abel, John Craig, Maria 

Edelstein, Elizabeth Eisenstadt, Jeanette Franzel, Jackie Hamilton, 

Bradley James, Joshua Ormond, and Scott Riback. 

Contacts and 

Acknowledgments 

Page 21 GAO-06-803T 
Page 22 GAO-06-803T 

Appendix I: Capitol Visitor Center 

Critical Construction Milestones 

April 28, 2006-May 24, 2006 

Source: AOC’s January 2006 CVC sequence 2 construction schedule for the scheduled completion dates and AOC and its construction 

management contractor for the actual completion dates as of May 22, 2006. 

a

While noting that the sequence 2 contractor had completed this work ahead of schedule, AOC’s

construction management contractor said that the sequence 2 contractor would have to perform the 

hydrostatic test again because of an oversight by the exhibit contractor that resulted in its design 

being too tall and interfering with the fire protection system. 

Activity Location

Scheduled

completion 

Actual 

completion

Plaster Ceiling East Front Basement 5/01/06

Wall Stone Area 3 East Front Ground 5/01/06

Wall Stone Area 1 Atrium South Lower Level 5/01/06

Controls Pt. to Pt. Check AHU-01 5/05/06

OH Fire Protection Rough 

In and Hydrostatic Test 

Exhibit Gallery 5/09/06 3/21/06a

Wall Stone Area 5 Orientation Lobby Upper Level 5/12/06 5/22/06

Wall Stone Area 2 Atrium South Lower Level 5/15/06

Plaster Ceiling West Lobby Assembly 5/22/06

Wall Stone Area 1 East Front Principal 5/22/06

(543170) 
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