Investigators with the General Services Administration's Office of Inspector General found Jacob in New York City in January 2023, two months after a maintenance contractor marked a work order completed to repair a leaking pipe valve. K. Javits visited the control room of the Federal Building. Room above main electrical panel.
But instead, investigators found a blue recycling bin in the room meant to collect water from a leaking valve. This could potentially create a situation that could lead to “corrosion of electrical components, failure of mechanical components, short circuits, potential fires, and possible electric shock to anyone who touches the cabinet.” ” an agency equipment expert told investigators.
This is one example GSA OIG highlighted in a report issued Friday, which found that some building maintenance contractors consistently failed to comply with their contracts due to poor performance and ineffective oversight. It turned out not to be.
In fiscal year 2023, GSA's Office of Public Buildings spent approximately $1.15 billion on 340 operations and maintenance contracts across the country.
However, based on an evaluation of 49 work orders across six federal buildings, OIG reported that contractors did not complete 34 of the 49 work orders sampled, or 69%. Similarly, the office found that contractors did not complete 21 of 49 work orders (43%) on time.
“We discovered that [operations and maintenance] The contractor had not completed all service requests and preventive maintenance work orders. In some cases, O&M contractors marked work orders as complete when the work was actually not completed,” the report states. “O&M contractors also did not complete work orders in a timely manner.”
OIG held both the contractor and PBS responsible.
Agency officials told investigators that maintenance contractor staff numbers at five of the six buildings analyzed by OIG were not sufficient to cover contract requirements. Similarly, the department found that officials assigned to monitor contract performance were not always aware of contractors' compliance plans.
The report also states that for contractors, completing routine service requests within 24 hours means completing them over three eight-hour workdays, rather than the required 24 consecutive hours after notification. I also highlighted the examples I was thinking of.
In response to the report, PBS Commissioner Elliott Dooms said the agency is committed to improving its oversight of maintenance contracts and agrees with each of the OIG's five recommendations. These include ensuring more certainty that contract terms are fully met before entering into a contract, and establishing requirements for contingency plans in the event a contractor loses on-site personnel. It is included.
Similarly, the OIG accused PBS of failing to adequately oversee maintenance contracts in three separate reports from 2021 to 2022.
In March, the Government Accountability Office reported that GSA was not conducting asbestos inspections in 66% of required federal buildings.