The prevalence of privatization

News articles and official reports have revealed the surprising scope of contracting out:

Disciplining other contractors. The General Services Administration hired CACI Inc. to assist the government in suspending and disbarring contractors, the Project on Government Oversight revealed. CACI itself was nearly banned from government contracting in 2004 for problems with its contract for interrogators in Iraq.

Performing spy work in key areas. Contractors have outnumbered CIA staffers in agency stations in Islamabad, Pakistan, and Baghdad, the Los Angeles Times reported.

Screening smut for prosecutors. The Justice Department’s official Web site directs citizens who want to report an obscene Web site to a private site run by Morality in Media, an “interfaith organization” that seeks to “rid the world of pornography.” The group reviews the allegations and sends a report to federal prosecutors, The Washington Post reported in July.

Storing millions of pounds of unused ice. The Federal Emergency Management Agency only used about half of the more than 200 million pounds of ice bought after Hurricane Katrina, FEMA officials told The Boston Globe. FEMA then hired a contractor for $12.5 million to store the ice. When it went unused, FEMA finally decided to melt it down this year.