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U.S. NEWS Wednesday 19 February 2020

Homeland Security waives contracting laws for border wall

By ELLIOT SPAGAT miles (133 kilometers) cov-
SAN DIEGO (AP) — The ered by the waivers may
Trump administration said get built this year.
Tuesday that it is waiving "Under the president's lead-
federal contracting laws ership, we are building
to speed construction of a more wall, faster than ever
wall at the U.S.-Mexico bor- before," the department
der, moving the president said in a statement.
closer to fulfilling a signa- Critics say the waivers do
ture campaign promise in away with key taxpayer
an election year but spark- safeguards. U.S. Rep. Ben-
ing criticism about poten- nie Thompson, a Mississippi
tial for fraud, waste and Democrat who chairs the
abuse. House Homeland Security
The Department of Home- Committee, said the presi-
land Security said waiving dent's "cronies are likely to
procurement regulations be the beneficiaries."
will allow 177 miles (283 ki- Charles Tiefer a professor
lometers) of wall to be built at University of Baltimore
more quickly in California, School of Law who special-
Arizona, New Mexico and izes in government con-
Texas. The 10 waived laws tracts, said the government
include a requirement for "can just pick the contrac-
open competition and giv- tor you want and and you In this Nov. 7, 2019 file photo, the first panels of levee border wall are seen at a construction site
ing losing bidders a chance just ram it through ... The along the U.S.-Mexico border, in Donna, Texas.
to protest decisions. sky's the limit on what they Associated Press
The acting Homeland Se- bill."
curity secretary, Chad Scott Amey, general coun- bipartisan support; then- provide additional funding. a portion of what he want-
Wolf, is exercising authority sel at the Project on Gov- Rep. Bernie Sanders voted The Pentagon's decision ed. The administration has
under a 2005 law that gives ernment Oversight, said against it. stripped money from major been able to spend Pen-
him sweeping powers to waiving a law for contrac- The waiver authority has aircraft and procurement tagon money during legal
waive laws for building bor- tors to provide the govern- survived legal challenges. programs that touch Re- challenges.
der barriers. ment with certified cost In 2018, a federal judge in publican and Democratic The administration said the
"We hope that will acceler- data — such as how much San Diego rejected argu- districts and states. waivers will apply to con-
ate some of the construc- they pay for labor or parts ments by California and The Defense Department tractors that have already
tion that's going along the — could lead to grossly in- environmental advocacy transferred $6.1 billion to been vetted. In May, the
southwest border," Wolf flated prices. groups that the secretary's wall construction from its Army Corps named 12
told Fox News Channel's "It's equivalent to buying broad powers should have counter-narcotics and companies to compete
"Fox & Friends." a car without seeing a an expiration date. An ap- construction budgets after for Pentagon-funded con-
Secretaries under President sticker price," Amey said. peals court upheld the rul- Congress gave Trump only tracts. q
Donald Trump have issued "This could be a recipe for ing last year.
16 waivers, and President shoddy work and paying The waivers, to be pub-
George W. Bush issued five, a much higher price than lished in the Federal Regis-
but Tuesday's announce- they should." ter, apply to projects that
ment marks the first time Administration officials say the U.S. Army Corps of Engi-
that waivers have applied providing cost data can be neers will award in six Border
to federal procurement onerous and difficult. Patrol sectors: San Diego
rules. Previously they were Congress gave the secre- and El Centro in California;
used to waive environmen- tary power to waive laws in Yuma and Tucson in Ari-
tal impact reviews. areas of high illegal activity zona; El Paso, which spans
The Trump administration in 2005 in legislation that in- New Mexico and west Tex-
said the waivers will allow cluded emergency spend- as, and Del Rio, Texas.
at least 94 miles (150 kilo- ing for wars in Iraq and The move came five days
meters) of wall to be built Afghanistan and minimum after Defense Secretary
this year, bringing the Re- standards for state-issued Mark Esper approved a
publican leader closer to identification cards. The $3.8 billion request from
his goal of about 450 miles Senate approved it unani- Homeland Security to pay
(720 kilometers) since he mously, with support from for walls in those same ar-
took office and made it Joe Biden, Barack Obama eas, and the Pentagon
one of his top domestic pri- and Hillary Clinton. The acknowledged that more
orities. It said the other 83 House passed it with strong cuts could be coming to