U.S. GOVERNMENT PRINTING OFFICE

WASHINGTON : 

1 

69–010 

" ! SENATE 110TH CONGRESS

2d Session 

REPORT

2008

110–455 

Calendar No. 953 

FEDERAL PROTECTIVE SERVICE GUARD 

CONTRACTING REFORM ACT OF 2008 

R E P O R T 

OF THE

COMMITTEE ON HOMELAND SECURITY AND 

GOVERNMENTAL AFFAIRS 

UNITED STATES SENATE 

TO ACCOMPANY

H.R. 3068 

TO PROHIBIT THE AWARD OF CONTRACTS TO PROVIDE GUARD 

SERVICES UNDER THE CONTRACT SECURITY GUARD PROGRAM 

OF THE FEDERAL PROTECTIVE SERVICE TO A BUSINESS CONCERN THAT IS OWNED, CONTROLLED, OR OPERATED BY AN INDIVIDUAL WHO HAS BEEN CONVICTED OF A FELONY 

SEPTEMBER 11, 2008.—Ordered to be printed 


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(II) 

COMMITTEE ON HOMELAND SECURITY AND GOVERNMENTAL AFFAIRS 

JOSEPH I. LIEBERMAN, Connecticut, Chairman 

CARL LEVIN, Michigan 

DANIEL K. AKAKA, Hawaii 

THOMAS R. CARPER, Delaware 

MARK L. PRYOR, Arkansas 

MARY L. LANDRIEU, Louisiana 

BARACK OBAMA, Illinois 

CLAIRE MCCASKILL, Missouri 

JON TESTER, Montana 

SUSAN M. COLLINS, Maine 

TED STEVENS, Alaska 

GEORGE V. VOINOVICH, Ohio 

NORM COLEMAN, Minnesota 

TOM COBURN, Oklahoma 

PETE V. DOMENICI, New Mexico 

JOHN WARNER, Virginia 

JOHN E. SUNUNU, New Hampshire 

MICHAEL L. ALEXANDER, Staff Director 

KEVIN J. LANDY, Chief Counsel 

JASON M. YANUSSI, Professional Staff Member 

BRANDON L. MILHORN, Minority Staff Director and Chief Counsel 

AMANDA WOOD, Minority Director of Governmental Affairs 

TRINA DRIESSNACK TYRER, Chief Clerk 


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C O N T E N T S 

Page 

I. Purpose and Summary .................................................................................. 1 

II. Background and Need for the Legislation ................................................... 1 

III. Legislative History ......................................................................................... 2 

IV. Section by Section Analysis .......................................................................... 3 

V. Evaluation of Regulatory Impact .................................................................. 3 

VI. Congressional Budget Office Cost Estimate ................................................ 3 

VII. Changes in Existing Law Made by the Bill, as Reported ........................... 4 


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69–010 

Calendar No. 953 

110TH CONGRESS SENATE REPORT " ! 2d Session 110–455 

FEDERAL PROTECTIVE SERVICE GUARD CONTRACTING 

REFORM ACT OF 2008 

SEPTEMBER 11, 2008.—Ordered to be printed 

Mr. LIEBERMAN, from the Committee on Homeland Security and 

Governmental Affairs, submitted the following 

R E P O R T 

[To accompany H.R. 3068] 

The Committee on Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs, 

having considered H.R. 3068, a bill to prohibit the award of contracts to provide guard services under the contract security guard 

program of the Federal Protective Service to a business concern 

that is owned, controlled, or operated by an individual who has 

been convicted of a felony, reports favorably thereon with an 

amendment and recommends that the bill, as amended, do pass. 

I. PURPOSE AND SUMMARY

The purpose of this legislation is to prevent the Federal Protective Service from awarding contracts for guard services to companies owned, controlled or operated by individuals convicted of serious felonies who may present a risk to the security of federal employees and federal property. 

II. BACKGROUND AND NEED FOR THE LEGISLATION

This legislation was developed in response to two oversight hearings of the Federal Protective Service conducted by the House Committee on Transportation and Infrastructure on April 17, 2007, and 

June 21, 2007. While examining the role that contract security 

guards have in protecting federal personnel and property, the 

House Committee on Transportation and Infrastructure learned 

that one contract guard services company was operated by an individual who had been convicted of fraud and had failed to pay its 

security guard employees. As a result, this may have created a security risk for federal employees and federal buildings. Legislation 

subsequently introduced by Representative Eleanor Holmes Norton 


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to address this vulnerability, H.R. 3068, was passed by the House 

of Representatives on October 2, 2007. 

The bill reported by the Senate Committee on Homeland Security 

and Governmental Affairs directs the Secretary of the Department 

of Homeland Security (DHS), acting through the Assistant Secretary of the U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement, to promulgate regulations prohibiting the award of contracts for guard 

services by the Federal Protective Service to any business owned, 

controlled or operated by an individual convicted of serious felonies. 

The regulations shall identify which serious felonies may prohibit 

a contractor from being awarded a contract, on either a permanent 

or interim basis, and shall require contractors to provide the relevant information when submitting bids or proposals. 

The bill also requires that the regulations provide guidelines for 

a contracting officer to assess the present responsibility of the contractor, any mitigating factors and the risk associated with the previous conviction, so that the contracting officer may award a contract to an affected business under certain circumstances. The bill 

also requires a report on establishing similar guidelines government-wide. 

The Committee is concerned that the Federal Protective Service’s 

existing processes for overseeing its contracts for security guard 

services, and for evaluating the present responsibility of a contractor, may have created a security risk for federal employees and 

buildings. However, the Committee was also concerned that the 

legislation as passed by the House of Representatives may have instituted an overly broad prohibition. As a result, the Committee 

amended the legislation to direct DHS to develop regulations identifying which serious felonies may prohibit a business from being 

awarded a contract for security guard services. The legislation 

gives the Secretary flexibility to consider permanent or interim prohibitions, or both, as necessary. The Committee recognizes that 

such a prohibition may disproportionately affect small businesses, 

which may have a more difficult time changing principals in the 

event one or more individuals has previously been convicted of a 

felony. The Committee has therefore required the regulations include guidance for contracting officers to assess mitigating factors 

and other evidence of present responsibility, thereby allowing the 

contracting officer to award a contract under certain circumstances. 

III. LEGISLATIVE HISTORY

H.R. 3068 was introduced by Representative Eleanor Holmes 

Norton on July 17, 2007, and was referred to the House Committee 

on Transportation and Infrastructure. On July 18, 2007, the bill 

was referred to the Subcommittee on Economic Development, Public Buildings and Emergency Management. The subcommittee held 

a markup to consider H.R. 3068 on August 1, 2007, and favorably 

recommended the bill to the Committee by voice vote. On August 

2, 2007, the Committee on Transportation and Infrastructure ordered the bill, as amended, reported favorably to the House by 

voice vote. The House passed H.R. 3068 by voice vote on October 

2, 2007. 

On October 3, 2007, H.R. 3068 was referred to the Senate Committee on Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs. On July 

30, 2008, the Committee considered H.R. 3068. Senator Lieberman 


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offered an amendment in the nature of a substitute which was 

adopted by voice vote. The bill, as amended, was adopted by the 

Committee by voice vote, and favorably reported to the Senate. 

Members present for the vote on the substitute amendment and 

the vote on the bill, as amended, were Senators Lieberman, Akaka, 

Carper, Pryor, Landrieu, Tester, Collins, Stevens, and Voinovich. 

IV. SECTION-BY-SECTION ANALYSIS

Section 1. Short title 

The short title of the bill is the Federal Protective Service Guard 

Contracting Reform Act of 2008. 

Section 2. Federal Protective Service contracts 

Subsection (a) requires the Secretary of Homeland Security, acting through the Assistant Secretary of U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement, to promulgate regulations establishing guidelines for the prohibition of contract awards for guard services by 

the Federal Protective Service to any businesses owned, controlled 

or operated by an individual convicted of a felony. The Secretary 

may consider permanent or interim prohibitions. The regulations 

shall identify which serious felonies may prohibit a contractor from 

being awarded a contract, require contractors to provide the necessary information, and will provide guidelines for contracting officers considering mitigating factors and evidence of present responsibility. 

Subsection (b) requires the regulations be issued not later than 

6 months after the date of enactment of the legislation. 

Section 3. Report on government-wide applicability 

This section requires the Administrator for Federal Procurement 

Policy to submit a report to the Senate Committee on Homeland 

Security and Governmental Affairs and the House Committee on 

Oversight and Government Reform on establishing similar guidelines government-wide, no later than 180 days after the date of enactment. 

V. EVALUATION OF REGULATORY IMPACT

Pursuant to the requirement of paragraph 11(b)(1) of rule XXVI 

of the Standing Rules of the Senate the Committee has considered 

the regulatory impact of this bill. CBO states that the bill contains 

no intergovernmental or private-sector mandates as defined in the 

Unfunded Mandates Reform Act and would impose no costs on 

state, local, or tribal governments. 

VI. ESTIMATED COST OF LEGISLATION

AUGUST 12, 2008. 

Hon. JOSEPH I. LIEBERMAN, 

Chairman, Committee on Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs, U.S. Senate, Washington, DC. 

DEAR MR. CHAIRMAN: The Congressional Budget Office has prepared the enclosed cost estimate for H.R. 3068, the Federal Protective Service Guard Contracting Reform Act of 2008. 


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If you wish further details on this estimate, we will be pleased 

to provide them. The CBO staff contact is Matthew Pickford. 

Sincerely, 

PETER R. ORSZAG. 

Enclosure. 

H.R. 3068—Federal Protective Service Guard Contracting Reform 

Act of 2008 

H.R. 3068 would direct the Department of Homeland Security 

(DHS) to issue regulations prohibiting firms owned, operated, or 

controlled by certain convicted felons from receiving contracts to 

provide guard services through the Federal Protective Service. The 

bill would allow DHS to determine which felonies would affect eligibility for such contracts and the terms and conditions under 

which exceptions could be granted. Finally, the legislation would 

require the Office of Federal Procurement Policy (OFPP) to report 

to the Congress on the merits of establishing similar guidelines 

governmentwide. 

Based on information from DHS and OFPP, CBO estimates that 

implementing H.R. 3068 would cost less than $500,000 over the 

2009–2010 period, subject to the availability of appropriated funds. 

Enacting the legislation would not affect direct spending or revenues. 

H.R. 3068 contains no intergovernmental or private-sector mandates as defined in the Unfunded Mandates Reform Act and would 

impose no costs on state, local, or tribal governments. 

On August 27, 2007, CBO provided a cost estimate for H.R. 3068 

as ordered reported by the House Committee on Transportation 

and Infrastructure on August 2, 2007. The two bills are similar in 

that they both deal with the awarding of guard services but have 

different provisions regarding the regulations and reporting requirements. The cost estimates reflect those differences. 

The CBO staff contact for this estimate is Matthew Pickford. 

This estimate was approved by Peter H. Fontaine, Assistant Director for Budget Analysis. 

VIII. CHANGES IN EXISTING LAW MADE BY THE BILL, AS REPORTED

Because this legislation would not repeal or amend any provision 

of current law, it would make no changes in existing law within the 

meaning of clauses (a) and (b) of paragraph 12 of rule XXVI of the 

Standing Rules of the Senate. 

Æ 


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