There are about 30 firing ranges in courthouses and other federal buildings, used by law enforcement agencies for training and other purposes. Image: Robert Przybysz/Shutterstock.com
By: FEDweek StaffThe inspector general’s office at GSA has found that the agency’s GSA’s Public Buildings Service “did not provide effective oversight of the operations and maintenance” of indoor firing ranges in government-owned buildings, leading in at least one case to a safety risk.
The report said there are about 30 firing ranges in courthouses and other federal buildings, used by law enforcement agencies for training, firearms qualifications, proficiency testing and certification on small arms ammunition weapons and non-lethal weapons such as tasers or rubber bullets. “Although PBS does not directly operate or use the ranges, it is responsible for facilitating cyclical maintenance and repairs to prevent environmental, health, and safety risks to the buildings and the people around them,” it said.
Auditors said that in visits to five, “we identified instances of noncompliance with the Range Criteria at all five ranges, such as a lack of documentation that inspections and cleanings were performed by qualified personnel experienced in range design and operations.”
At one, a target retrieval system—which “creates a controlled environment to prevent range users from injuring one another due to gunfire”—that has been broken since 2017 “affects the range’s safety and operational efficiency, and PBS has so far failed to address the unsafe conditions.”
“We also observed inconsistencies with the interpretation of the range program requirements and confusion as to who has the ultimate responsibility to carry out the required biennial range inspections,” it said. For example, building operations personnel at one building said that the GSA delegated the range operations and maintenance to the tenant agency, but building personnel were unable to provide documents to support that claim.
GSA management agreed with recommendations to: set new policies on responsibilities for the operation and maintenance of the indoor firing ranges; document retention requirements; and comprehensive inspection and cleaning procedures; and to fix the broken target retrieval system.
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