The bipartisan leaders of the Senate committee overseeing federal workforce matters have asked GSA to explain what it is doing to improve federal real property management in the wake of a series of reports and hearings critical of how the government accounts for its property and its difficulties in disposing of its excess.
Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs Committee leaders said that federal real property management “is not a new problem” and that there is a longstanding issue of “lack of accurate and consistent data regarding the occupancy, value, and maintenance” in the Federal Real Property Profile of GSA controlled buildings.
It said that while OMB, GSA and individual agencies have taken steps to improve, the data remain inconsistent.
The letter asked for information on current validation checks; what they might be missing; whether GSA intends to resume the practice of conducting independent inspections of federal buildings; what guidance it provides to agencies to ensure consistent reporting; and how the database can be better used to identify opportunities to better use or dispose of unneeded or underused space.