The Professional Services Council asked the 2013 National Defense Authorization Act conference committee to drop a Senate provision that would impose arbitrary reductions on the civilian and contractor workforces at the Defense Department, in a December 14 letter.
The provision, Section 341, directs the Defense Department to implement a plan to reduce funding for both DoD civilian and contractor personnel by at least the same percentage as the planned reduction in funding for military personnel between 2012 and 2017.
“PSC opposes the imposition of arbitrary reductions in the civilian and contractor workforces in Section 341 and believes that requiring DoD to make equal cuts across its blended workforce deprives the department of the ability to make strategic decisions about how to best meet its mission needs,” PSC President and CEO Stan Soloway said in the letter.
Under the current law, DoD is required to determine the most appropriate and cost-efficient mix of military, civilian and contractor personnel needed to perform its mission. While not perfect, the policy does allow DoD to access the skills they need, which the arbitrary cuts required by Section 341 would deny.
“In a budget constrained environment Congress should be reinforcing DoD’s ability to make strategic decisions about its workforce needs and how best to balance its reliance on military personnel, DoD civilians, and contractors,” Soloway said. “Such flexibility is necessary as the mission needs of the department change.”
