The General Services Administration’s request for $1.4 billion to fully implement the FBI headquarters consolidation has congressional leaders asking whether the agency can handle a project of such magnitude.
During a hearing Monday on the GSA fiscal 2017 budget, Rep. Ander Crenshaw, R-Florida, chairman of the House Appropriations Committee’s subcommittee on financial services and general government, openly questioned whether the GSA “has the expertise” to lead the FBI’s move from the J. Edgar Hoover building on Pennsylvania Avenue to one of three sites in Maryland or Virginia.
Crenshaw’s frustration was apparent as he pressed GSA Administrator Denise Turner Roth to divulge what the Hoover building is roughly worth. Roth repeatedly declined, citing the ongoing procurement and the fact that the agency is working off an old appraisal. Giving away the number “will really undermine our efforts,” Roth said.
The GSA originally envisioned swapping Hoover with a developer in exchange for a new 2.1 million-square-foot FBI headquarters — a one-for-one swap. Then, in fiscal 2016, it sought and received nearly $400 million. And in 2017, it is seeking $1.4 billion.