Over The Top

The 2010 Western Regional Conference held by the GSA just outside Las Vegas was certainly over the top.  It cost us $822,751 for that conference attended by about 300. That's about $2,700 each and I don't think those costs include employee's time. What was the purpose of this conference? "Training in job skills; an exchange of ideas between the “higher-ups” in the four regions; and a combination of those things."  Even if you accept the purpose of the conference as being worthwhile, a review by the GSA Inspector General "found that many of the expenditures on this conference were excessive and wasteful and that in many instances GSA followed neither federal procurement laws nor its own policy on conference spending". 

This was certainly a planned conference; about 16% of the total cost was in planning, including a number of trips to Vegas (one of which was a 'dry run' of the conference in which 31 employees participated).

Here are the IG's summary conclusions:

•
GSA failed to follow contracting regulations in many of the procurements associated with the WRC and wasted taxpayer dollars. GSA actions included:
o Disclosing a competitor’s proposal price to a favored contractor;
o Awarding a $58,000 contract to a large business in violation of small-business set-asides;
o Promising the hotel an additional $41,480 in catering charges in exchange for the “concession” of the hotel honoring the government’s lodging cost limit;
o Providing free rooms to a contractor’s employees even though the contract cost included lodging; and

o Disclosing to the team-building contractor the agency’s maximum budget for one day of training, then agreeing to pay the contractor that amount ($75,000).
•
GSA incurred excessive and impermissible costs for food at the WRC. GSA spent $146,527.05 on catered food and beverages during the WRC. That spending included $5,600 for three semi-private catered in-room parties and $44 per person daily breakfasts. GSA also paid $30,207.60 – or roughly $95 per person – for the closing reception and dinner; attendees at that dinner included 27 guests of GSA employees and seven contractor employees. GSA obtained repayment for guests’ meals, but only for 23 of the guests and not for the entire cost of the meal.
•
GSA incurred impermissible and questionable miscellaneous expenses. These expenses included mementos for attendees, purchases of clothing for GSA employees, and tuxedo rentals.
•
GSA’s approach to the conference indicates that minimizing expenses was not a goal. The PBS Region 9 Commissioner/Acting Regional Administrator instructed those planning the conference to make it “over the top” and to make it bigger and better than previous conferences. Several suggestions to minimize expenses were ignored.

The head of the GSA resigned; two of her aides were fired and others active in the conference have been placed on leave.