There are few things that strike more fear into the hearts of government employees than the thought of falling under an efficiency study conducted under the guidance of OMB Circular A-76. “A-76” is government parlance for what the private sector loosely refers to as “outsourcing.” In essence, the private sector is given the opportunity to bid on work that is traditionally performed directly by government employees. In a fair and open competitive environment, both government personnel and the private sector are given an opportunity to create a more efficient performance model. On average, each competition generates a cost savings in real dollar value of between 25-40%.

The point is to save taxpayer money and minimize the cost of government overall by making operations more efficient. Yet government employees and unions are abjectly horrified by the though of these competitions. It seems that the competition of the open market is good enough to form the basis for the global economy, but not good enough for the government that sustains that market.

I cannot argue that some individuals are economically hurt by these competitions. I myself may be one of those displaced, and yet I can’t help but believe in the fundamental nature of the free market to create a better product or service than a closed system. The great achievements of the last century have been driven by the market economy. Why are we afraid to turn this mighty effort towards embracing more efficient governance as well?