GSA Administator Lurita Doan ’79 to face allegations of misconduct

Amanda Melillo Editor in Chief

Vassar College trustee Lurita Alexis Doan ’79 made her first appearance before the House of Representatives Oversight and Government Reform Committee on Wednesday, March 28 at a hearing regarding allegations of misconduct in her role as administrator of the U.S. General Services Administration (GSA). The GSA is a federal agency that handles $66 billion worth of government contracts annually and also manages assets valued around $500 billion, including federal buildings, vehicles and technology systems.

Doan was nominated by President George W. Bush to the position of GSA Administrator on April 6, 2006, and following confirmation by the Senate on May 26, 2006, she became the first woman to ever hold the position. After graduating with honors in English from Vassar College, Doan went on to receive her Master’s degree in Renaissance literature from the University of Tennessee and taught at several colleges. In 1990, she began New Technology Management, Inc., a surveillance technology company that went on to become one of the fastest growing companies of the past decade and handled millions of dollars in government defense and surveillance contracts.

In a March 6 letter to Doan, Rep. Harry A. Waxman (D-Cal.), Chairman of the House Committee on Oversight and Government Reform, raised concerns over evidence that Doan had awarded a no-bid contract to Edie Fraser of the Public Affairs Group after a long-standing professional and personal relationship that she had previously failed to disclose. Fraser reportedly drummed up support among U.S. Senators for Doan’s promotion to GSA Administrator, and arranged a congressional internship for her high-school aged daughter. In exchange for these favors and special projects for the GSA that she had undertaken on Doan’s behalf, Fraser made it clear in an e-mail included in the letter that she expected to receive payment from the government in return.

Doan then awarded Fraser a $20,000 contract to write a 24-page report concerning GSA promotion of minority and woman-owned businesses. Waxman stated in his letter that contracting officers were required to obtain at least three quotes for contracts valued between $2,500 and $100,000, and that there was no documented evidence that the GSA tried to find out competitive quotes. In a Message from the Administrator on www.gsa.gov, Doan outlined her goals for the GSA as “two-fold: first, a stronger GSA able to offer faster contracting services at a lower cost, yet fully compliant with existing procurement regulations, and second, to move beyond saving agencies’ money and provide them with innovative solutions and the right services—at the right time and the right price—so that they are free to concentrate on their core missions.”

Independent contractors have played a growing role in government spending in the past several years, which was cited in a Feb. 4, 2007 New York Times article as rising from $207 billion in 2000 to $400 billion last year. Analysis done by the Times shows that less than half of all contracts are now open to competition, down to 48 percent in 2005 from 79 percent in 2001. When Waxman became the new chairman of the House Committee, one of his goals was to provide greater oversight of private contracts for greater integrity in decision-making after the squandering of tax dollars in Iraq by independent contractors.

Further allegations include Doan’s misuse of her position to promote a Republican Party agenda. Sources said that in a teleconference call on Jan. 27, Doan asked GSA officials, including her senior staff and political appointees, how they could help “our candidates” in the next election. The request came after a White House aid gave a presentation about polling data from the November 2006 elections. Plans included inviting Republican political figures to the opening of a courthouse in Florida that former President Bill Clinton might attend, and excluding House Speaker Nancy Pelosi (D-Cal.) from the opening of a green courthouse in San Francisco, in Pelosi’s own district.

Doan has been a steady contributor to the Republican Party; she donated $25,000 to the Republican National Committee in 2004, and was a speaker at the 2004 Republican National Convention in New York. Her recent activities as GSA Administrator could be found in violation of the Hatch Act, which “prohibits partisan campaign activities on federal property.”

Doan has also played a significant role at the College aside from her position as a trustee. She is on the Development Office’s list of donors for last year’s reconstruction of Kenyon Hall, and also served on the Presidential Search Committee that selected Catharine Bond Hill as Vassar’s 10th president.

Vice President for College Relations Susan DeKrey said in an e-mailed statement, “In addition to her service on the Board of Trustees, Lurita has been an active presence on campus. She was honored as the College’s Executive-in-Residence...and was invited back shortly after that by the Poughkeepsie Chamber of Commerce to address its membership. She’s also been very supportive of technology on campus, from organizing the Board of Trustee’s first technology committee to providing funds to acquire a server for the VSA.”

Vice President for Development Catherine Baer added in an e-mailed statement, “I’ve known and worked with Lurita for many years, first as a highly valued alumna volunteer and now as a member of the Board of Trustees. She’s given tirelessly of her time and generously of her resources to support her alma mater, and has been an articulate and effective partner in advancing the College’s priorities over the past decade.”