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Latest Policy Publications
POGO’s experts push policymakers to enact commonsense reforms that tackle waste, corruption, and abuse of power; hold those who’ve violated the public trust accountable; protect our constitutional rights; and make the government work for all people.
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Testimony
Testimony of POGO’s Scott Amey on “Homeland Security Contracting: Does the Department Effectively Leverage Emerging Technologies?”
Many acquisition reforms were imposed prior to the large increase in federal contract spending (which exceeded $537 billion in fiscal year 2010), consolidation in the contractor community, the large-scale hiring of contractors to perform government services, and increased dema...
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Testimony
Testimony of POGO’s Angela Canterbury on “FOIA: Crowd-Sourcing Government Oversight”
It is particularly a pleasure to be here during the 6th Annual “Sunshine Week” when we promote open government and celebrate the Freedom of Information Act (FOIA), which for nearly 45 years has been a cornerstone of open government and a hallmark of our democracy. Even as we e...
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Testimony
Testimony of POGO’s Scott Amey on Deficient Contractor Accountability Leaves Agencies and Taxpayers at Risk
POGO's testimony about the issue of contractor accountability, and about how past performance information and the suspension and debarment process can be used to improve contingency operations in reconstruction efforts in Iraq and Afghanistan.
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Testimony
Testimony of POGO’s Nick Schwellenbach on “Improving Federal Contract Auditing”
We believe that there should be an independent Federal Contract Audit Agency (FCAA), as long as it is done right. Auditing of federal contracts is an important step in protecting taxpayers' interests and fighting government waste, fraud and abuse.
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Testimony
Testimony of POGO’s Scott Amey before the Congressional Oversight Hearing on Treasury’s Use of Emergency Contracting Authority
POGO's Scott Amey testifies about the Treasury Department's use of Emergency Contracting Authority and its potential problems including, risky contract vehicles, inadequate competition, and a lack of transparency and accountability.
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Testimony
Testimony of POGO’s Angela Canterbury Before the House Committee on Financial Services regarding Legislative Proposals to Address Concerns Over the SEC’s New Confidentiality Provision
POGO has a keen interest in ensuring that the public has a way of holding our nation’s financial regulatory agencies accountable for protecting the interests of taxpayers, investors, and consumers. We are deeply concerned about Section 929I of the Dodd-Frank Act, which would p...
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Testimony
Testimony of POGO’s Danielle Brian on Examination of The Department of the Interior’s Oversight of Offshore Oil Drilling
Since 1995, POGO has issued five reports about the Minerals Management Service’s inadequate oversight of the major oil and gas companies, primarily with a focus on the loss of royalty revenue.The Deepwater Horizon disaster in the Gulf is another direct result of MMS’s failure ...
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Testimony
Testimony of Danielle Brian before the Commission on Wartime Contracting in Iraq and Afghanistan Regarding Private Security Contractors
I want to thank the Commission for asking POGO to testify about the question of whether private security contractors in Iraq and Afghanistan are performing inherently governmental functions. We have studied inherently governmental functions for years, and we have examined this...
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Testimony
Testimony of Danielle Brian before the Subcommittee on Energy and Mineral Resources
The Deepwater Horizon disaster is a direct result of Mineral Management Service’s failure to do its job. It is important that the Department of the Interior and Congress do what they can to learn from this catastrophe and make sure it never happens again.
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Testimony
Testimony of POGO’s Scott Amey on “Acquisition Deficiencies at the U.S. Dept. of Veterans Affairs”
POGO is concerned with the government's acceptance of limited competition in contracting as well as its over-reliance on cost-reimbursement, time and material contracts, and commercial item contracts.
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Testimony
Testimony of POGO’s Danielle Brian before the House Committee on Natural Resources regarding “The Consolidated Land, Energy, and Aquatic Resources Act of 2009”
POGO applauds the House Natural Resources Committee for your vigilant oversight of royalty collections, and for writing the Consolidated Land, Energy, and Aquatic Resources (CLEAR) Act of 2009. This legislation will benefit taxpayers by implementing several key reforms that wi...
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Testimony
Testimony of Danielle Brian before the Commission on Wartime Contracting in Iraq and Afghanistan
Practically from Day One, ArmorGroup North America knowingly underperformed in its mission in order to maximize its profits, endangering the diplomats and its own employees in the process—and the Department of State knew about it.