The National Nuclear Security Administration's Management of Support Service Contracts
July 10, 2015
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July 10, 2015
The National Nuclear Security Administration's Management of Support Service Contracts
The National Nuclear Security Administration (NNSA) is responsible for enhancing national security through the military application of nuclear energy. To help fulfill its responsibilities, NNSA makes use of Support Service Contracts (SSCs). In March 2013, NNSA's Office of Defense Programs (Defense Programs) initiated a self-assessment on the use of non-Federal personnel. The Defense Programs self-assessment identified potential issues with the management of its SSCs related to the performance of personal services and inherently governmental functions, as well as potential issues with funding sources. Management generally concurred with the self-assessment's recommendations, including nine recommendations related to SSCs. According to NNSA procurement officials, the recommendations are being addressed and implemented on an NNSA-wide basis.
On September 11, 2014, the Chairman of the House Subcommittee on Strategic Forces expressed concern to the Inspector General that NNSA may be utilizing SSCs in ways that are contrary to policy, regulation, and statute. The Chairman's letter cited the agency self-assessment and requested an investigation of the matter. Therefore, we conducted a special review to determine whether NNSA was effectively managing its SSCs.
We discovered activities that could lead observers to question NNSA's management of SSCs. Specifically, we confirmed issues similar to those identified in NNSA's self-assessment. We found SSCs that exhibited characteristics of a personal services contract, contracted services that approached being inherently governmental functions, and NNSA's use of program funds for some SSCs was questionable.
Topic: Management & Administration