Plans to trim the federal real estate inventory have advanced, with House passage of a bill to set up a panel to recommend properties to be designated as surplus. Construction industry officials say such a plan would provide opportunities to upgrade federal buildings or spark private developments on former federal sites. But the House measure faces an uncertain future in the Senate, where a similar bill has been introduced but has yet to move.
The House bill, which the chamber approved Feb. 7 by a 259-164 vote, establishes an asset-disposal process modeled on the Dept. of Defense Base Realignment and Closure (BRAC) program. The bill, introduced by Rep. Jeff Denham (R-Calif.), would create a nine-member commission to review the federal nonmilitary real estate inventory and make recommendations to Congress about selling or redeveloping high-value properties, consolidating federal space and streamlining disposal of assets deemed unneeded.