GSA Chief Reins in Bonuses and Freezes New Hiring - the Federal Eye
The acting chief of the General Services Administration will announce Tuesday that he is canceling almost all bonuses for executives this year and freezing hiring after a spending scandal that prompted a major shake-up at the agency.
“We are examining all aspects of GSA’s enterprise including the agency’s long-term hiring needs and compensation process,” acting Administrator Dan Tangherlini said in a statement to be sent to 12,600 employees. GSA gave out $660,000 in executive bonuses in fiscal 2011, officials said.
The curbs on hiring and bonuses are Tangherlini’s latest effort to reform the agency that manages federal real estate and oversees most government purchasing. Since he stepped in as administrator in April after revelations by the GSA inspector general of lavish spending at a training conference in Las Vegas two years ago, Tangherlini has brought in a new management team and begun an aggressive review of the agency’s day-to-day operations.
He has canceled numerous planned conferences and begun slashing travel budgets throughout the government by 30 percent. Among the biggest casualties is a major trade show for federal employees and contractors involved in government energy projects. Tangherlini pulled the plug on GovEnergy last week. Officials said the planned August conference failed to meet the agency’s new standards for conferences