By John Stang Herald staff writer Hanford routinely draws criticism for its overhead costs. But the Department of Energy believes it's a bum rap. And DOE is voicing concerns about Rep. Adam Smith's recent budget amendment in the House of Representatives that would cap Hanford's overhead costs at 33 percent of its cleanup budget. Smith, D-Wash., recently won House approval for the amendment, but the Senate has not addressed the issue so far in Congress' budget deliberations for fiscal 1999.
Big money is at stake.
DOE contends overhead costs have been dropping steadily. The amendment's language extends the 33 percent overhead cap down to the lowest tiers of Hanford subcontractors - small firms that bid for subcontracts from subcontractors of subcontractors. That could lead to problems because different small companies use a variety of ways to calculate overhead, and this may scare off qualified potential bidders, said Kevin Ensign, DOE finance director at Hanford. Smith staffers say the congressman would be willing to discuss changing the amendment to address DOE concerns about the small lower-tier Hanford subcontractors. But Smith staff members Ali Weise and Joe Hardy said heavy equipment is a justifiable overhead cost, and they said overall costs remain above acceptable levels.