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Thursday, May 10, 2007
House to Bar Tax Delinquent Companies from Contracts
In one of the more common-sense moves of the 110th Congress, the House Oversight and Government Reform Committee, Subcommittee on Government Management, Organization, and Procurement unanimously approved a bill yesterday to prevent companies who owe federal taxes from being considered for government contracts. The bill (H.R. 1870) would target companies that owe at least $2,500 and have not paid the IRS or started a payment plan within 180 days of getting an assessment.
During the mark-up, the bill's sponsor and subcommittee chairman Rep. Edolphus Towns (D-NY) offered an amendment that would help assuage concerns expressed by the Bush administration during hearings on the bill. The amendment would change the bill to incorporate the tax deliquency provisions into the regular contracting process. This change would still bar companies who owed taxes from receiving new contracts from the government, but would grant those companies due-process rights and opportunities to contest the government decision to bar them. Seems fair enough.
The bill moves now to the full House Oversight and Government Reform committee, where it may encounter opposition ($) from ranking member Rep. Tom Davis (R-VA), who apparently thinks it's alright for companies not to pay taxes.
Posted by Adam Hughes
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