Public-Private Competitions

Recent legislation provides that certain depot-level maintenance and repair workloads now being done at the closing San Antonio, Texas, and Sacramento, California, Air Force maintenance depots may be combined in a solicitation for a single contract. However, Defense Department (DOD) data do not support the conclusion that it makes greater sense or creates economic efficiencies to combine the disparate workloads at these maintenance depots in a single contract that private companies and a designated military depot would compete for. Specifically, no analysis has been done of the logic and economies associated with having the workload performed individually by potentially qualified offerors.

GAO noted that: (1) it may be that the individual workloads at the closing San Antonio, Texas, and Sacramento, California, Air Force maintenance depots cannot as logically and economically be performed without combination by sources that are potentially qualified to submit an offer and be awarded a contract to perform those individual workloads; (2) however, Department of Defense (DOD) reports and supporting data do not provide adequate information supporting the determinations; (3) there is no analysis of the logic and economies associated with having the workload performed individually by potentially qualified offerors; (4) there is no support for determining that the individual workloads cannot as logically and economically be performed without combination by sources that would do them individually; (5) Air Force officials stated that they were uncertain as to how an analysis of performing the workloads on an individual basis would be done; (6) however, Air Force studies indicate that the information to make such an analysis is available; (7) in 1996 the Air Force performed analyses for six depot-level workloads performed by the Sacramento depot to identify industry capabilities and capacity; (8) as a part of these analyses, the Air Force identified sufficient numbers of qualified contractors interested in various segments of the Sacramento workload to support a conclusion that it could rely on the private sector to support these workloads; (9) the reports and available supporting data did not adequately support DOD's determination that the individual workloads cannot as logically and economically be performed without combination by sources that are potentially qualified to submit an offer and to be awarded a contract to perform those individual workloads; (10) DOD's determination report relating to the Sacramento Air Logistics Center states that all competitors indicated throughout their Sacramento workload studies that consolidating workloads offered the most logical and economical performance possibilities; (11) this statement was based on studies performed by the offerors as part of the competition process; (12) one offeror's study states that the present competition format is not in the best interest of the government and recommended that the workload be separated into two competitive packages; and (13) GAO was unable to determine whether the other two contractor studies support the statement in the DOD report that all competitors favored consolidating the workloads because the Air Force did not provide it adequate or timely access to the studies cited in the report.