Norton Criticizes Newest DHS Contractors on D.C. Resident Hiring and GSA Reports

WASHINGTON, DC –Congresswoman Eleanor Holmes Norton (D-DC) today warned the General Services Administration (GSA), the federal agency with jurisdiction over the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) headquarters construction project at the St. Elizabeths West Campus in Ward, about inconsistent reporting on the hiring of D.C. residents at the site. At the same time, she said that reporting failures have increased as more general contractors have come onto the site, and said that the contractors directly responsible for failing to report to GSA monthly and accurately concerning D.C. hiring. Norton said that, of the five general contracts underway, including the Coast Guard headquarters building contract with Clark Construction, the security perimeter security fence contract with Balfour Beatty Construction, the site utilities contract with Balfour Beatty Construction, the electrical vault contract with Washington Gas/Honeywell, and the adaptive reuse contract with Grunley Construction, the only consistent reporting received by GSA has come from Clark Construction, the largest contractor on the site.

Federal law does not permit hiring set-asides, even from the jurisdiction where the construction is taking place, but it does encourage vigorous outreach. Norton, who has worked from the beginning of the DHS construction project to encourage the hiring of D.C. residents, said she is pleased that more than 20 percent of the workers at the Coast Guard headquarters building are D.C. residents, considering that D.C. residents are only 10 percent of the region's population. However, Norton expressed dismay that only 15 of the 397 workers employed to date by Balfour Beatty Construction at the site have been D.C. residents, that the most recent report from Washington Gas/Honeywell indicates that only eight of its 162 workers at the site have been D.C. residents, and that GSA has not submitted a recent report for Grunley Construction. Norton said that it is not clear why D.C. residents are not being hired by some contractors, considering that other contractors are using D.C. residents with similar skill sets.

Norton, who requires monthly hiring reports on the project, also holds regular congressional hearings, roundtables, community meetings, and meetings with GSA, and goes on unannounced visits to the site. She continues to work for funds to carry the project forward. The President's fiscal year 2013 budget includes $89 million for infrastructure, transportation and pedestrian access to the West Campus and $9.8 million for the District's redevelopment of the East Campus, where Norton says a DHS building will be constructed. Norton already has gotten $1.2 billion for the project. Funding for the project has slowed, but there are already enough funds to carry the project forward for several more years. Norton is the ranking member of the Subcommittee on Economic Development, Public Buildings and Emergency Management, which has jurisdiction over GSA.

Published: March 30, 2012