United States Government Accountability Office Testimony Before the Committee on Veterans’ Affairs, House of Representatives For Release on Delivery Expected at 10:30 a.m. ET Wednesday, January 21, 2015 VA CONSTRUCTION VA’s Actions to Address Cost Increases and Schedule Delays at Major Medical-Facility Projects Statement of David Wise, Director Physical Infrastructure Team GAO-15-332T January 2015 VA CONSTRUCTION VA Actions to Address Cost Increases and Schedule Delays at Major Medical-Facility Projects Highlights of GAO-15-332T, a testimony before the Committee on Veteran’s Affairs, House of Representatives Why GAO Did This Study What GAO Found The VA operates one of the nation’s largest health care delivery systems. In April 2013, GAO reported that VA was managing the construction of 50 major medical-facility projects at a cost of more than $12 billion. This statement discusses VA construction management issues, specifically, (1) the extent to which the cost, schedule, and scope for four selected major medical-facility projects has changed and the reasons for these changes, (2) actions GAO reported that VA had taken since 2012 to improve its construction management practices, and (3) VA’s response to GAO’s recommendations for further improvements in its management of these construction projects. In April 2013, GAO found that costs substantially increased and schedules were delayed for Department of Veterans Affairs’ (VA) largest medical-facility construction projects, located in Denver, Colorado; Las Vegas, Nevada; New Orleans, Louisiana; and Orlando, Florida. As of January 2015, in comparison with initial estimates, the cost increases for these projects ranged from 66 percent to 144 percent and delays ranged from 14 to 86 months. Since the 2013 report, some of the projects have experienced further cost increases and delays. For example, the cost for the New Orleans project increased by nearly $40 million, and delays at the Orlando project has extended from 39 months to 57 months. Several factors, including changes to veterans’ health care needs, site-acquisition issues, and a decision in Denver to change plans from a medical center shared with a local medical university to a standalone VA medical center, contributed to increased costs and schedule delays. This statement is based on GAO’s April 2013 report (GAO-13-302) and May 2013 (GAO-13-556T) and April 2014 (GAO-14548T) testimonies. GAO included selected updates on VA projects— located in Denver, Colorado; Las Vegas, Nevada; New Orleans, Louisiana; and Orlando, Florida—and documentation obtained from VA in April 2014 and January 2015. What GAO Recommends In its April 2013 report, GAO recommended that VA (1) develop and implement agency guidance for assignment of medical equipment planners; (2) develop and disseminate procedures for communicating to contractors clearly defined roles and responsibilities of VA officials; (3) issue and take steps to implement guidance on streamlining the change-order process. VA implemented GAO’s recommendations. View GAO-15-332T . For more information, contact David Wise at (202) 512-2834 or WiseD@gao.gov. In its April 2013 report, GAO found that VA had taken some actions since 2012 to address problems managing major construction projects. Specifically, VA established a Construction Review Council in April 2012 to oversee the department’s development and execution of its real property programs. VA also took steps to implement a new project delivery method, called Integrated Design and Construction, which involves the construction contractor early in the design process to identify any potential problems early and speed the construction process. However, in Denver, VA did not implement this method early enough to garner the full benefits of having a contractor early in the design phase. VA stated it has taken actions to implement the recommendations in GAO’s April 2013 report. In that report, GAO identified systemic reasons that contributed to overall schedule delays and cost increases at one or more of four reviewed projects and recommended ways VA could improve its management of the construction of major medical facilities. In response, VA has • issued guidance on assigning medical equipment planners to major medical facility projects who will be responsible for matching the equipment needed for the facility in order to avoid late design changes leading to cost increases and delays; • developed and disseminated procedures for communicating to contractors clearly defined roles and responsibilities of the VA officials who manage major medical-facility projects to avoid confusion that can affect the relationship between VA and the contractor; and • issued a handbook for construction contract modification (change-order) processing which includes milestones for completing processing of modifications based on their dollar value and took other actions to streamline the change order process to avoid project delays. VA has implemented GAO’s recommendations; however, the impact of these actions may take time to show improvements, especially for ongoing construction projects, depending on several issues, including the relationship between VA and the contractor. United States Government Accountability Office Chairman Miller, Ranking Member Brown, and Members of the Committee: I am pleased to be here today to discuss information from our April 2013 report regarding the construction of new major Department of Veterans Affairs’ (VA) medical facilities. That report examined VA’s actions to address cost increases and schedule delays at four of its largest and most expensive major medical-facility construction projects—located in Denver, Colorado; Orlando, Florida; New Orleans, Louisiana; and Las Vegas, Nevada. 1 At the time of our review, VA had 50 major medicalfacility projects 2 under way, including new construction and renovation of existing medical facilities, at a cost of more than $12 billion. My statement today discusses VA construction management issues, specifically (1) the extent to which the cost, schedule, and scope for the four selected medical-facility projects changed since this information was first submitted to VA’s authorizing committees 3 and the reasons for these changes, (2) actions VA has taken to improve its construction management practices, and (3) VA’s response to recommendations we made in our report for it to further improve its management of the costs, schedule, and scope of these construction projects. This testimony is based on our April 2013 report and May 2013, and April 2014 testimonies on this topic, 4 as well as selected updates. These selected updates 1 GAO, VA Construction: Additional Actions Needed to Decrease Delays and Lower Costs of Major Medical-Facility Projects, GAO-13-302 (Washington, D.C.: April 4, 2013). 2 The term―major medical-facility project―means a project for the construction, alteration, or acquisition of a medical facility involving the total expenditure of more than $10 million. See 38 U.S.C. §§ 8101, 8104. While these projects cost at least $10 million, some cost in the hundreds of millions of dollars. The project types include new construction, renovation of existing structures, expansion, or a combination of types. The total number of major VA medical-facility projects is based on agency data from November 2012. 3 No funds may be used for any major medical facility construction project over $10 million unless funds have been specifically authorized by law, and VA is required to submit a prospectus to the House and Senate Committees on Veterans’ Affairs that contains information about each planned medical facility project. See 38 U.S.C. §§ 8101, 8104. 4 GAO-13-302; GAO, VA Construction: Additional Actions Needed to Decrease Delays and Lower Costs of Major Medical-Facility Projects, GAO-13-556T (Washington, D.C.: May 7, 2013); and GAO, VA Construction: VA’s Actions to Address Cost Increases and Schedule Delays at Denver and Other Major Medical-Facility Projects, GAO-14-548T (Washington, D.C.: April 22, 2014). Page 1 GAO-15-332T include information on the status of VA’s major medical center projects in Las Vegas, Orlando, New Orleans and Denver. To conduct these updates, we obtained documentation and other information from VA officials on the current status of its major medicalfacility projects and actions it took to address our recommendations in April 2014 and again in January 2015. Detailed information on the scope and methodology used for our April 2013 report and April 2013 and May 2014 testimonies can be found in those products. We conducted the work for this statement in accordance with generally accepted government auditing standards. Those standards require that we plan and perform the audit to obtain sufficient, appropriate evidence to provide a reasonable basis for our findings and conclusions based on our audit objectives. We believe that the evidence obtained provides a reasonable basis for our findings and conclusions based on our audit objectives. Cost Increases and Schedule Delays at the Four Largest Projects Occurred for a Variety of Reasons Cost Increases and Schedule Delays In our April 2013 report, we found that costs increased and schedules were delayed for all four of VA’s largest medical-facility construction projects, when comparing November 2012 construction project data with the cost and schedule estimates first submitted to Congress. Since our 2013 report, these projects have experienced further increases and delays. When we compared the most recent construction project data, 5 as of December 2014, with the cost and schedule estimates first submitted 5 VA provided an update in January 2015 for the total estimated cost and estimated completion date for some of its projects. The data was as of December 2014. Page 2 GAO-15-332T to Congress, cost increases ranged from 66 percent to 144 percent, 6 representing a total cost increase of over $1.5 billion and an average increase of approximately $376 million per project. For example, the cost for the New Orleans project increased by nearly $40 million. Schedule delays have also increased since our April 2013 report. Specifically, in April 2013 we reported that the schedule delays ranged from 14 to 74 months with an average delay of 35 months per project. The delays now range from 14 to 86 months. For instance, the delays in Orlando have extended from 39 months to 57 months. Table 1 presents updated information on cost increases and schedule delays for these four projects compared with original estimates. Table 1: Veterans Affairs Major Medical-Facility Projects Cost Increases and Schedule Delays, as of December 2014 Project location Las Vegas Orlando Estimated completion date Number of months extended Total estimated years to a complete b 86 11.25 April 2010 January 2015 57 10 d 14 February 2016 14 Initial total estimated costs Total estimated costs $325 million $585 million 80 April 2009 $254 million c 143 $616 million d Initial estimated Percent completion increase date Denver $328 million $800 million 144 February 2014 New Orleans $625 million $1.035 billion 66 December 2014 Summer 2015 April 2015 d 10.5 8.5 Source: GAO Analysis of VA data. GAO-15 332T a The column titled “total estimated years to complete” is reported to the nearest quarter year and is calculated from the time VA approved the architecture and engineering firm to the current estimated completion date. We calculated the “number of months extended” column by counting the months from the initial estimated completion date to the current estimated completion date, as reported by VA. According to VA, the dates in the initial estimated completion dates are from the initial budget prospectus, which assumed receipt of full construction funding within 1 to 2 years after the budget submission. In some cases, construction funding was phased over several years and the final funding was received several years later. Naval Facilities Engineering Command officials we spoke with told us that historically, medical facility projects take approximately 4 years from design to completion. We calculated the percentage change in cost by using the initial total estimated costs and total estimated costs, as reported by VA. b The main medical center was completed in April 2012 and patients began utilizing the facility in August of 2012. However, in an update provided by VA in January 2015, the final phase of the Las Vegas project to expand the emergency department is projected to be completed in the summer of 2015. For the purpose of our analysis above, we calculated the number of months extended and the 6 According to the Office of Management and Budget (OMB), federal agencies should keep a contingency fund of 10 to 30 percent above total estimated costs to address increased costs on construction projects. OMB Circular No. A–11, Appendix 8 (2012). However, this guidance applies after construction has begun, and many of the cost increases we observed occurred before that time. The construction contractor is generally responsible for cost increases and schedule overruns under the terms of the fixed-price contract. Page 3 GAO-15-332T total years to complete using the date of June 2015. However, schedule delays would increase if the project was completed later in the summer of 2015. c In the January 2015 update, VA did not provide the total estimated cost for the Orlando project. d In the update, VA stated that the final project cost and schedule will be determined pursuant to execution of interim cost plus fixed fee contract with VA and issuance of a long term contract by U.S. Army Corps of Engineers (USACE). As such, VA was unable to provide total cost and schedule information for the Denver project. We found in April 2013 that of the four largest medical-facility construction projects VA had underway, Denver had the highest cost increase. We reported that the estimated cost increased from $328 million in June 2004 to $800 million, as of November 2012. Further, VA’s initial estimated completion date was February 2014; subsequently VA estimated the project would be completed in May 2015. However, in April 2014, VA’s primary contractor on the project had expressed concerns that the project would ultimately cost more to complete. In a January 2015 update, VA stated that the final project cost and schedule will be determined pursuant to execution of interim cost plus fixed fee contract and issuance of a long term contract by the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers. In commenting on a draft of our April 2013 report, VA stated that using the initial completion date from the construction contract would be more accurate than using the initial completion date provided to Congress; however, using the initial completion date from the construction contract would not account for how VA managed these projects before it awarded the construction contract. Cost estimates at this earlier stage should be as accurate and credible as possible because Congress uses these initial estimates to consider authorizations and make appropriations decisions. We used a similar methodology to estimate changes to cost and schedule of construction projects in a previous report issued in 2009 on VA construction projects. 7 We believe that the methodology we used in our April 2013 and December 2009 report on VA construction provides an accurate depiction of how cost and schedules for construction projects can change from the time they are first submitted to Congress. It is at this time that expectations are set among stakeholders, including the veterans’ community, for when projects will be completed and at what cost. In our April 2013 report, we made recommendations to VA, 7 GAO, VA Construction: VA is Working to Improve Initial Project Cost Estimates, but Should Analyze Cost and Schedule Risks, GAO-10-189 (Washington, D.C: Dec. 14, 2009). Page 4 GAO-15-332T discussed later in this statement, to help address these cost and schedule delays. Reasons for Cost Increases and Schedule Delays and Related Scope Changes In our April 2013 report, we found that different factors contributed to cost increases and schedule delays at each of the four locations we reviewed: • Changing health care needs of the local veteran population changed the scope of the Las Vegas project. VA officials told us that the Las Vegas Medical Center was initially planned as an expanded clinic co-located with Nellis Air Force Base. However, VA later determined that a much larger medical center was needed in Las Vegas after it became clear that an inpatient medical center shared with the Air Force would be inadequate to serve the medical needs of local veterans. • Decisions to change plans from a shared university/VA medical center to a stand-alone VA medical center affected plans in Denver and New Orleans. For Denver and New Orleans, VA revised its original plans for shared facilities with local universities to stand-alone facilities after proposals for a shared facility could not be finalized. For example, in Denver, plans went through numerous changes after the prospectus was first submitted to Congress in 2004. In 1999, VA officials and the University of Colorado Hospital began discussing the possibility of a shared facility on the former Fitzsimons Army base in Aurora, Colorado. 8 Negotiations continued until late 2004, at which time VA decided against a shared facility with the University of Colorado Hospital because of concerns over the governance of a shared facility. In 2005, VA selected an architectural and engineering firm for a stand-alone project, but VA officials told us that the firm’s efforts were suspended in 2006 until VA acquired another site at the former Army base adjacent to the new university medical center. Design restarted in 2007 before suspending again in January 2009, when VA reduced the project’s scope because of lack of funding. By this time, the project’s costs had increased by approximately $470 million, and the project’s completion was delayed by 14 months. The cost increases and delays occurred because the costs to construct operating rooms and other 8 Fitzsimons Army base was closed in 1999 as part of the Department of Defense’s base realignment and closure process. Page 5 GAO-15-332T specialized sections of the facility were now borne solely by VA, and the change to a stand-alone facility also required extensive redesign. • Changes to the site location by VA delayed efforts in Orlando. In Orlando, VA’s site location changed three times from 2004 to 2010. It first changed because VA, in renovating the existing VA hospital in Orlando, realized the facility site was too small to include needed services. However, before VA could finalize the purchase of a new larger site, the land owner sold half of the land to another buyer, and the remaining site was again too small. • Unanticipated events in Las Vegas, New Orleans, and Denver also led to delays. For example, VA officials at the Denver project site discovered they needed to eradicate asbestos and replace faulty electrical systems from pre-existing buildings. They also discovered and removed a buried swimming pool and found a mineral-laden underground spring that forced them to continually treat and pump the water from the site, which impacted plans to build an underground parking structure. Page 6 GAO-15-332T VA Took Steps to Improve Its Construction Management Practices, But Did Not Implement Changes Early Enough to Impact Denver Project In our April 2013 report, we found that VA had taken steps to improve its management of major medical-facility construction projects, including creating a construction-management review council. In April 2012, the Secretary of Veterans Affairs established the Construction Review Council to serve as the single point of oversight and performance accountability for the planning, budgeting, executing, and delivering of VA’s real property capital-asset program. 9 The council issued an internal report in November 2012 that contained findings and recommendations that resulted from meetings it held from April to July 2012. 10 The report stated that the challenges identified on a project-by-project basis were not isolated incidents but were indicative of systemic problems facing VA. In our 2013 report we also found that VA had taken steps to implement a new project delivery method—called the Integrated Design and Construction (IDC) method. 11 In response to the construction industry’s concerns that VA and other federal agencies did not involve the construction contractor early in the design process, VA and the Army Corps of Engineers began working to establish a project delivery model that would allow for earlier contractor involvement in a construction project, as is often done in the private sector. We found in 2013 that VA did not implement IDC early enough in Denver to garner the full benefits. VA officials explained that Denver was initiated as a design-bid-build project and later switched to IDC after the project had already begun. According to VA officials, the IDC method was very popular with industry, and VA wanted to see if this approach would effectively deliver a timely medical facility project. Thus, while the intent of the IDC method is to involve both the project contractor and architectural and engineering firm early in the process to ensure a well coordinated 9 The Construction Review Council was comprised of officials from the VA, including the secretary, deputy secretary, chief of staff, under secretaries, and assistant secretaries, as well as key leaders across the department. The Secretary of VA chaired nine meetings from April 18 through June 15, 2012, to review the VA construction program and identify challenges that led to changes in scope, cost over-runs, and scheduling delays of major projects. 10 VA, The Construction Review Council Activity Report (Washington, D.C.: November 2012). 11 The IDC method allows the construction contractor to be involved in the project from design to completion. VA believes this can help identify any potential issues early and speed the construction process. IDC is similar to a private sector approach called Construction Management At-Risk. Page 7 GAO-15-332T effort in designing and planning a project, VA did not hire the contractor for Denver until after the initial designs were completed. According to VA, because the contractor was not involved in the design of the projects and formulated its bids based on a design which had not been finalized, these projects required changes that increased costs and led to schedule delays. VA staff responsible for managing the project said it would have been better to maintain the design-bid-build model throughout the entire process rather than changing mid-project because VA did not receive the value of having contractor input at the design phase, as the IDC method is supposed to provide. For example, according to Denver VA officials, the architectural design called for curved walls rather than less expensive straight walls along the hospital’s main corridor. The officials said that had the contractor been involved in the design process, the contractor could have helped VA weigh the aesthetic advantages of curved walls against the lower cost of straight walls. VA Reports Taking Actions to Implement GAO Recommendations In our April 2013 report we identified systemic reasons that contributed to overall schedule delays and cost increases, and recommended that VA take actions to improve its construction management of major medical facilities: including (1) developing guidance on the use of medical equipment planners; 12 (2) sharing information on the roles and responsibilities of VA construction project management staff; and (3) streamlining the change order process. 13 Our recommendations were aimed at addressing issues we identified at one or more of the four sites we visited during our review. VA has implemented our recommendations; however, the impact of these actions may take time to show improvements, especially for ongoing construction projects, depending on several issues, including the relationship between VA and the contractor. Since completing our April 2013 report, we have not reviewed the extent to which these actions have affected the four projects, or the extent to 12 Given the complexity and sometimes rapidly evolving nature of medical technology, many health care organizations employ medical equipment planners to help match the medical equipment needed in the facility to the construction of the facility. 13 Most construction projects require some degree of change to the facility design as the project progresses, and typically, organizations have a process to initiate and implement these changes through change orders. VA requires multiple levels of review for many of VA’s change orders, which can be another factor that can increase the time it takes to finalize them. According to VA, these reviews are necessary to ensure that VA is in accordance with its regulations and reduce the risk that changes will result in unwarranted costs to the government. Page 8 GAO-15-332T which these actions may have helped to avoid the cost overruns and delays that occurred on that specific project. Using Medical Equipment Planners On August 30, 2013, VA issued a policy memorandum providing guidance on the assignment of medical equipment planners to major medical construction projects. The memorandum states that all VA major construction projects involving the procurement of medical equipment to be installed in the construction will retain the services of a Medical Equipment Specialist to be procured through the project’s architectural engineering firm. Prior to issuance of this memorandum, VA officials had emphasized that they needed the flexibility to change their heath care processes in response to new technologies, equipment, and advances in medicine. 14 Given the complexity and sometimes rapidly evolving nature of medical technology, many health care organizations employ medical equipment planners to help match the medical equipment needed in the facility to the construction of the facility. Federal and private sector stakeholders reported that medical equipment planners have helped avoid schedule delays. VA officials told us that they sometimes hire a medical equipment planner as part of the architectural and engineering firm services to address medical equipment planning. However, in our April 2013 report we found that for costly and complex facilities, VA did not have guidance for how to involve medical equipment planners during each construction stage of a major hospital and has sometimes relied on local Veterans Health Administration (VHA) staff with limited experience in procuring medical equipment to make medical equipment planning decisions. Thus, we recommended that the Secretary of VA develop and implement agency guidance to assign medical equipment planners to major medical construction projects. As mentioned earlier, in August 2013, VA issued such guidance. Sharing Information on the Roles and Responsibilities of VA’s ConstructionManagement Staff In September 2013, in response to our recommendation, VA put procedures in place to communicate to contractors the roles and responsibilities of VA officials that manage major medical facility construction projects, including the change order process. Among these procedures is a Project Management Plan that requires the creation of a 14 VA, Strategic Plan Refresh: FY2011–FY2015, (Washington, D.C). Page 9 GAO-15-332T communications plan and matrix to assure clear and consistent communications with all parties. Construction of large medical facilities involves numerous staff from multiple VA organizations. Officials from the Office of Construction and Facilities Management (CFM) stated that during the construction process, effective communication is essential and must be continuous and involve an open exchange of information among VA staff and other key stakeholders. 15 However, in our April 2013 report, we found that the roles and responsibilities of CFM and VHA staff were not always well communicated and that it was not always clear to general contracting firms which VA officials hold the authority for making construction decisions. This can cause confusion for contractors and architectural and engineering firms, ultimately affecting the relationship between VA and the general contractor. Participants from VA’s 2011 industry forum also reported that VA roles and responsibilities for contracting officials were not always clear and made several recommendations to VA to address this issue. Therefore, in our 2013 report, we recommended that VA develop and disseminate procedures for communicating—to contractors—clearly defined roles and responsibilities of the VA officials who manage major medical-facility projects, particularly those in the change-order process. As discussed earlier in this statement, VA disseminated such procedures in September 2013. Streamlining the ChangeOrder Process On August 29, 2013, VA issued a handbook for construction contract modification (change-order) processing which includes milestones for completing processing of modifications based on their dollar value. In addition, as of September 2013, VA had also hired four additional attorneys and assigned on-site contracting officers to the New Orleans, Denver, Orlando, Manhattan and Palo Alto major construction projects to expedite the processing and review of construction contract modifications. By taking steps to streamline the change order process, VA can better ensure that change orders are approved in a prompt manner to avoid project delays. Most construction projects require, to varying degrees, changes to the facility design as the project progresses, and organizations typically have a process to initiate and implement these changes through change 15 VA, Construction Primer (Washington, D.C.: January 2013). Page 10 GAO-15-332T orders. Federal regulations 16 and agency guidance 17 state that change orders must be made promptly, and agency guidance states in addition that there be sufficient time allotted for the government and contractor to agree on an equitable contract adjustment. VA officials at the sites we visited as part of our April 2013 review, including Denver, stated that change orders that take more than a month from when they are initiated to when they are approved can result in schedule delays, and officials at two federal agencies that also construct large medical projects told us that it should not take more than a few weeks to a month to issue most change orders. 18 Processing delays may be caused by the difficulty involved in VA and contractors’ coming to agreement on the costs of changes and the multiple levels of review required for many of VA’s change orders. As discussed earlier, VA has taken steps to streamline the change order process to ensure that change orders are approved in a prompt manner to avoid project delays. Chairman Miller and Ranking Member Brown, and Members of the Committee, this completes my prepared statement. I would be pleased to respond to any questions that you may have at this time. Contacts and Acknowledgements If you have any questions about this testimony, please contact David Wise at (202) 512-2834 or WiseD@gao.gov. Other key contributors to this testimony include are Ed Laughlin (Assistant Director), Nelsie Alcoser, George Depaoli, Raymond Griffith, Hannah Laufe, Amy Rosewarne, Nancy Santucci, and Crystal Wesco. 16 48 C.F.R. § 43.201 17 VA, VA Resident Engineer Handbook, “Chapter 3: Major Construction: Contract Changes‖ (3.24) (Washington, D.C.) 18 Specifically, we interviewed the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers and Naval Facilities Engineering Command. We recognize that the Department of Veterans Affairs serve different populations in the defense community—active duty military personnel and veterans, respectively. However, these organizations construct similar medical facilities, in addition to abiding by federal government regulations for construction projects. 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