A shadow economy created by inter-agency contracting for goods and services, locking out private sector businesses, was halted Thursday by an amendment authored by U.S. Senator Craig Thomas. The Thomas amendment to the Treasury-Postal Service Appropriations bill states that one federal agency can provide goods or services to another agency only when a private commercial enterprise cannot provide them as conveniently or as cheaply. The amendment would not apply to situations involving emergencies or national security.
Government has zero risk, no taxes, and little incentive to do the job cheaper.
Unleashing the expertise of private business creates jobs, saves money and helps shrink the size of the federal government. For example, Thomas said, federal agencies are currently providing numerous commercial services to other agencies such as computer management, mapping, and custodial services, despite the fact that these services are easily provided by private sector employers. FAA awarded the contract, Thomas said, despite the fact that the Department of Agriculture has been criticized by the General Accounting Office for inadequate management of their own technology investments resulting in millions of taxpayer dollars being wasted. If we want to put teeth into the claim that the era of big government is over then we need to instruct federal agencies that their commercial activities are unacceptable. The Thomas amendment passed as part of the overall spending measure.