Congressman Earl L. “Buddy” Carter (GA-01) today continued his effort to block a controversial effort by the State Department to build a duplicative new training facility at a cost of as much as $1 billion.
Carter provided a statement for the record in a hearing of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee convened by Senator David Perdue (GA) in his role as Chairman of the panel’s subcommittee charged with management oversight.
“I thank Senator Perdue for allowing me to participate in this hearing as part of our ongoing effort to demand answers,” said Carter. “This is an example of bureaucracy run amok in which the State Department is trying an end run around Congress to waste taxpayer resources. In contrast to the State Department’s history of management failures, FLETC has a sterling record of providing high quality training to 91 federal agencies. We know they can get the job done more efficiently and effectively. The bureaucrats at the State Department need to end their blockade and begin working in earnest to get this training up and running at FLETC.”
The State Department is attempting to push forward with a plan to construct a new Foreign Affairs Security Training Center (FAST-C) at Fort Pickett in Blackstone, Virginia to conduct foreign affairs security training instead of expanding and utilizing the Department of Homeland Security's Federal Law Enforcement Training Center (FLETC) in Brunswick, Georgia, at half the price.
In a Statement for the Record, Carter highlighted new information obtained by the House Committee on Foreign Affairs revealing State Department officials failed to provide complete information to the Federal Law Enforcement Training Center and interfered with a Government Accountability Office report on the issue. A copy of Carter’s Statement for the Record is available here.
Background:
In 2013, the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) submitted a proposal to the Office of Management and Budget (OMB) to service State’s training needs by augmenting the Federal Law Enforcement Training Center (FLETC), in Brunswick, Ga., which provides security training for DHS and 91 federal partner organizations, including the State Department, as well as state and local law enforcement agencies.
FLETC supports approximately 2,300 jobs in Glynn County, Georgia and more than 5,000 jobs throughout the state. Around the country, FLETC supports nearly 19,000 jobs with personal income totaling more than $975 million.
In its 2013 proposal to OMB, DHS included the construction of new buildings, weapons ranges, and transportation costs to meet the requirements of State’s original FAST-C master plan. FLETC estimated that this new construction would cost $287 million. By leveraging its existing facilities to meet State’s training needs, FLETC estimates its proposal could also achieve significant cost savings over the long term.
The State Department proposed to construct the FAST-C facility in Virginia at a cost of $461 million. However, the State Department’s initial estimate of $950 million suggests there is an almost certain likelihood of cost escalation beyond the current $461 million proposal during construction.
In late 2013, OMB examined the FLETC and Fort Pickett plans. At this time, Chairman Royce and the House Committee on Foreign Affairs encouraged OMB to determine which proposal addresses the State Department’s training needs in the most fiscally responsible way. The Committee also requested that the Government Accountability Office perform an independent analysis of the proposals in September 2014.
The Committee was then made aware that OMB analysts had completed a written analysis recommending that the State Department pursue its diplomatic security training at FLETC. However, in April 2014, the Administration confirmed that it planned to adopt the State Department’s proposal to build FAST-C at Fort Pickett in Virginia instead of FLETC.
On May 19, 2014, Chairman Royce requested a copy of OMB’s analysis. After OMB failed to provide the information to Congress, Chairman Royce issued a subpoena to OMB for the documents.
After many official requests through relevant Committees, letters and phone calls, Carter viewed the OMB report on July, 30, 2015. Carter sent a letter to the OMB on August 11, 2015 requesting that the report be made public.
Last month, a Government Accountability Office report on the issue was released.
On October 7, 2015, Chairman Royce and the House Committee on Foreign Affairs sent a letter to Secretary Kerry questioning the State Department’s involvement in the report.
On October 8, 2015, the Senate Committee on Foreign Relations, Subcommittee on State Department and USAID Management, International Operations, and Bilateral International Development held a hearing on the issue.
Carter represents the First District of Georgia where FLETC is located. Carter is a member of the House Homeland Security Committee with direct oversight over the Department of Homeland Security and the FLETC.
