Government Oversight

A bipartisan group of four senators called on the General Services Administration (GSA) this week to quickly dispose of unused federal properties that are unnecessarily costing U.S. taxpayers more than $1.6 billion each year.

Sens. Tom Carper (D-Del.), Tom Coburn (R-Okla.), Rob Portman (R-Ohio) and Mark Pryor (D-Ark.) wrote to GSA Acting Director Dan Tangherlini Monday to urge him to consider new processes to dispose of unused properties as he conducts a review of spending practices at the agency. That review is the product of the $800,000 Las Vegas conference that drew harsh criticism from both parties, which the senators called out in their letter.

Judges from the 9th Circuit defended their plans to hold a judicial conference in Hawaii in August, but said they are nonetheless reviewing a letter from two Senate Republicans that said the conference should be scrapped to conserve scarce federal resources.

"As part of the third branch of government, the 9th Circuit is fully aware of its responsibilities as a steward of public funds," 9th Circuit Executive Cathy Catterson said Monday. "The conference is authorized by law 'for the purpose of considering the business of the courts and advising means of improving the administration of justice within the circuit.' "

The conference schedule for the event includes sport fishing, yoga, surfing lessons and Zumba dancing lessons.

Republicans are outraged over a February 2011 letter from Justice that denied any involvement in the gun-walking program.

House Minority Whip Steny Hoyer (D-Md.) on Tuesday evening called for the elimination of language in a House spending bill that would prevent the government from spending money to enforce an Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) requirement that public swimming pools add permanent infrastructure so they are handicap-accessible.

"Contained in the bill before us is an unprecedented measure that would significantly erode the Justice Department's authority to protect access for those with disabilities to swimming pools,"
Hoyer said on the House floor Tuesday night.

The four senators who sponsored a bipartisan postal reform bill on Monday called on House Speaker John Boehner (R-Ohio) and Minority Leader Nancy Pelosi (D-Calif.) to pass a postal reform bill as soon as possible to avoid post office closures.

They urged the House to pass legislation quickly so it can be conferenced with the Senate's bill by May 15, when the U.S. Postal Service is expected to start closing down facilities around the country.

"We are writing to urge that the House of Representatives act promptly, so that the two chambers can reconcile their bills to turn around the Postal Service's daily loss of $25 million, prevent the unnecessary wholesale closing of regional mail facilities and local post offices, and save this iconic institution that delivers over 500 million pieces of mail a day and sustains over 8 million jobs," Sens. Susan Collins (R-Maine), Tom Carper (D-Del.), Scott Brown (R-Mass.) and Joe Lieberman (I-Conn.) wrote in their Monday letter.

Del. Eleanor Holmes Norton (D-D.C.) called on Secret Service Director Mark Sullivan last week to more aggressively hire and promote women in the wake of the recent scandal in which Secret Service agents are believed to have brought prostitutes back to a hotel in Colombia where President Obama was going for a state visit.

Norton said it is "significant" that a woman, Paula Reid, took the first steps to address the scandal at the Secret Service. Norton said Reid "lost no time" sending home a Secret Service unit over their alleged involvement with prostitutes in Colombia.

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Sen. Marco Rubio (R-Fla.), seen as a possible vice presidential candidate for GOP presidential front-runner Mitt Romney, proposed legislation on Thursday that would amend rules issued by the National Labor Relations Board (NLRB) that put limits on merit pay for union members.

"It is a sad day in America when no matter how hard an employee works, he or she is blocked from higher earning potential," Rubio said. "This bill fixes this arbitrary ceiling placed on these workers and allows the free market to function as it is supposed to.

Rep. Shelley Berkley (D-Nev.) on Wednesday afternoon said she would soon introduce a bill that would ensure that Las Vegas and Reno, Nev., remain an option for government conferences, by preventing the government from blacklisting these cities.

Berkley noted that the Bush administration had blacklisted Las Vegas and Reno as destinations for government conferences, but that President Obama had reversed that policy. She said some Republicans today, like Sen. Rand Paul (R-Ky.), are looking to reinstate that blacklist in the wake of the lavish 2010 General Services Administration (GSA) conference in Las Vegas, which led to the resignation of GSA's top official and an ongoing investigation.

Seven House Republicans on Tuesday introduced legislation that would prohibit a lame-duck president from issuing significant regulations.