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Testimony: 

Before the Subcommittee on the Legislative Branch, Committee on 
Appropriations, U.S. Senate: 

United States Government Accountability Office: 

GAO: 

For Release on Delivery Expected at 10:30 a.m. EDT: 

Thursday, September 21, 2006: 

Capitol Visitor Center: 

Update on Status of Project's Schedule and Cost As of September 21, 
2006: 

Statement of Terrell Dorn, Director: 

Bernard L. Ungar, Director Physical Infrastructure Issues: 

GAO-06-1058T: 

Mr. Chairman and Members of the Subcommittee: 

We are pleased to be here today to assist the Subcommittee in 
monitoring progress on the Capitol Visitor Center (CVC) project. Our 
remarks will focus on (1) the Architect of the Capitol's (AOC) progress 
in achieving selected project milestones and in managing the project's 
schedule since the Subcommittee's August 2, 2006, hearing on the 
project; (2) our assessment of the project's currently scheduled 
completion date; and (3) an update on the project's expected cost at 
completion and funding situation.[Footnote 1] As part of this 
discussion, we will address a number of key challenges and risks that 
continue to face the project, as well as actions we believe that AOC 
will need to take to meet its currently scheduled completion date. 

Our remarks today are based on our review of schedules and financial 
reports for the CVC project and related records maintained by AOC and 
its construction management contractor, Gilbane Building Company; our 
observations on the progress of work at the CVC construction site; and 
our discussions with the CVC team (AOC and its major CVC contractors), 
AOC's Chief Fire Marshal, and representatives from the U.S. Capitol 
Police. We also reviewed AOC's construction management contractor's 
periodic schedule assessments, potential change order log, and daily 
reports on the progress of interior wall and floor stonework. We 
retained a mechanical consulting engineering firm (Kincaid/Bryant) to 
help us assess the CVC team's progress in completing the project's 
heating, ventilation, and air-conditioning (HVAC) system. In addition, 
we reviewed the contract modifications made to date and the estimates 
of cost increases provided by AOC and its construction management 
contractor, including their estimates of the costs related to 
delays,[Footnote 2] and their preliminary cost estimates for recent 
changes to the CVC's fire protection and security systems. Our 
assessment was somewhat constrained because the CVC team is still 
analyzing the impact on the project's schedule and cost of the recently 
identified changes required for certain components of the fire 
protection and security systems. The team expects to have firmer 
schedule and cost information around mid-October, at which time we may 
have to revise our estimates if this later information differs 
significantly from the current information. 

In summary: 

* Since the Subcommittee's August 2 CVC hearing, the CVC team has 
continued to move the project's construction forward, but the project's 
overall targeted completion date has slipped significantly. The 
schedule for the project's most critical activity--the fire protection 
system--has slipped about 4 months, bringing the new targeted overall 
completion date to mid-September 2007, and other important activities 
have also been significantly delayed. Unlike the previous CVC schedule, 
the new schedule (1) does not allow any time to address problems that 
may arise or to prepare for operations after a certificate of occupancy 
has been issued; (2) assumes that AOC will be able to bring exhibits 
into the CVC before a certificate of occupancy has been issued; and (3) 
provides for opening the CVC and the House and Senate expansion spaces 
at the same time. It is not yet clear to us whether the need for time 
to prepare for operations or for a certificate of occupancy to receive 
the exhibits will affect the facility's opening date, but these factors 
should not delay the completion of construction. 

* During the past month, work on the project has progressed in a number 
of areas. For example, the sequence 2 contractor expects to have 
dehumidified air in the exhibit gallery by around mid-October. In 
addition, critical interior floor stone installation has continued, 
together with other interior and exterior construction work. Almost all 
of the interior wall stone for the CVC itself (excluding the East Front 
and the tunnels) is now installed. 

* A number of problems have developed in connection with the CVC's fire 
protection system, which is the principal cause of the completion 
date's slippage and continues to be the single greatest source of risk 
to meeting the project's new scheduled completion dates. Although the 
CVC team has worked closely with AOC's Chief Fire Marshal and has made 
substantial progress in resolving issues, the resolution, along with 
necessary changes to certain security system-related components, has 
resulted in a need for significant additional work. The CVC team based 
its mid-September 2007 project completion date on its preliminary 
estimate of the time needed to do this additional work. Although the 
team believes that the time it added to the schedule should be 
sufficient, it will not make a definitive determination until it 
completes its analysis of the required changes, which it expects to do 
by mid-October. 

* Several other activities important to the CVC's completion, such as 
the HVAC system's installation and East Front work, have been delayed 
since the Subcommittee's last CVC hearing--an outcome anticipated by 
our assessment of the CVC team's performance against the indicators of 
progress that we and the Subcommittee have been tracking. For example, 
during the last 7 weeks, the sequence 2 contractor did not meet its 
overall target for interior floor stone installation and continued to 
experience delays in installing wall stone in the East Front. In 
addition, the sequence 2 contractor met only 2 of the 17 milestones 
that we have been tracking for this hearing. The project continues to 
face risks and uncertainties, such as getting its complex building 
systems to function together as well as separately and trade 
stacking.[Footnote 3] 

According to our assessment of the project's new schedule, the revised 
completion date is achievable if the CVC team confirms that it has 
added enough time to the schedule to make the necessary changes to the 
fire protection and security system components and if, and only if, the 
team promptly makes significant improvements in its execution of the 
project and its schedule. To facilitate such changes, we are 
recommending that AOC develop and submit to Congress an action plan as 
soon as possible, but no later than mid-October 2006, setting forth the 
specific steps it will take to meet its scheduled completion dates. We 
are identifying specific actions that we believe AOC should consider in 
developing this plan, including, for example, (1) making more 
aggressive, visible, and focused efforts to keep the work on schedule, 
with particular emphasis on critical and key near-critical activities; 
(2) making sure sufficient work is performed to meet the scheduled 
dates and quickly identifying and addressing problems that arise; and 
(3) promptly responding to design questions and concerns and requests 
for design instructions and clarifications. AOC generally agreed with 
our recommendation. AOC's prompt development and effective 
implementation of this action plan is critical because the construction 
work that has to be done in the next 3 to 4 months is a prerequisite to 
other work that is essential to the CVC's completion, including the CVC 
team's pretesting of the fire protection system and the Chief Fire 
Marshal final acceptance testing of the CVC. In addition, Congress can 
use this plan as a mechanism for holding AOC accountable for managing 
the project and as a vehicle for working closely with AOC to ensure 
that the schedule implications of all proposed scope or design changes 
are quickly determined and considered by all appropriate stakeholders 
before final decisions on the proposed changes are made. 

We previously estimated that the total cost to complete the entire CVC 
project would be about $556 million without an allowance for risks and 
uncertainties and $584 million with such an allowance. Our updated 
assessment indicates that the estimated cost of the entire CVC project 
at completion is likely to be about $584 million without an allowance 
for risks and uncertainties and about $596 million with such an 
allowance--increases of $28 million and $12 million, respectively. 
Delay-related costs (which AOC and its construction management 
contractor have estimated for budgetary purposes only) are the largest 
component of the increase, followed by the additional costs estimated 
by the CVC team for changes to the fire protection and security systems 
and additional contingency funds for future changes. Our estimate could 
change if the additional costs turn out to be significantly different 
from the preliminary estimates. To date, about $531 million[Footnote 4] 
has been provided for CVC construction. For fiscal year 2007, AOC has 
requested $26 million in CVC construction appropriations, plus $950,000 
in AOC general administration appropriations for contractual support to 
complete acceptance testing of the CVC's fire protection system on 
schedule. During fiscal year 2007, AOC is also likely to need, but has 
not yet requested, some additional funds to pay for changes. Although 
AOC agrees that it will likely need additional funds, it does not 
believe that it will need as much as we have estimated. We believe our 
estimate is reasonable. In addition, AOC notes that it may be able to 
cover at least part of the increased costs from funding sources other 
than new appropriations after obtaining the necessary congressional 
approvals. 

Construction Has Progressed, but the Scheduled Completion Date Has 
Slipped Further, and Several Actions Are Needed to Meet the Current 
Schedule: 

Work on the CVC project has continued, but the scheduled completion 
date has slipped about 4 months beyond the date discussed at the 
Subcommittee's August 2 CVC hearing. At that hearing, we said that 
despite some improvement in the indicators of progress we have been 
tracking, we were losing confidence in the ability of the CVC team to 
meet its scheduled completion dates, given the delays experienced thus 
far and the risks and uncertainties facing the project. Unfortunately, 
our concerns materialized. For example, certain important work related 
to the CVC's fire protection and HVAC systems and the East Front was 
not completed on time, and further delays occurred in the schedules for 
these areas--all of which are important to the project's timely 
completion. Although AOC significantly enhanced its management control 
over the design of the CVC's fire protection system, as we had 
recommended, the team determined that it will take more time than 
previously expected to install certain components of the fire 
protection and security systems to meet life safety and security 
requirements. The CVC team is still determining the precise impact of 
this additional work on the schedule, but has developed preliminary 
time estimates that it believes it can achieve and may even be able to 
shorten after its analysis is done. Recognizing these uncertainties, 
the team has established a mid-September 2007 date for completion and 
possible occupancy for both the CVC and the House and Senate expansion 
spaces.[Footnote 5] Our discussions with CVC team managers and staff, 
analysis of the project's current schedule, and observations, together 
with the results of our mechanical consultant's work, indicate that 
this September 2007 time frame is reasonable and achievable, pending 
the completion of the team's analysis, if and only if meaningful and 
significant changes occur in the project's execution from this point 
forward. We will discuss the necessary actions shortly. 

AOC's Scheduled Completion Dates Have Slipped: 

According to the June 2006 project schedule--the schedule in effect at 
the Subcommittee's last CVC hearing--the base CVC project was to be 
completed in May 2007 (except for the exhibit gallery), and the House 
and Senate expansion spaces were to be completed in August 2007, 
although their physical construction work was to be substantially 
completed in January 2007. The project's current schedule (August 2006) 
shows both the base CVC project and the expansion spaces completed on 
September 17, 2007, although the physical construction work in the 
expansion spaces is now scheduled to be substantially completed in 
March 2007. However, this schedule is based on a preliminary estimate 
and provides no time for additional delays. Specifically, the sequence 
2 subcontractor responsible for the installation of certain fire 
protection and security system components is still analyzing the impact 
on the schedule of changes needed to meet life safety and security 
requirements. This subcontractor has made a preliminary estimate that 
it believes is reasonable and achievable pending the completion of its 
analysis, but it will not commit to a date until its analysis is 
completed, which it believes will be around mid-October. In addition, 
unlike the June and July schedules, the current schedule for completing 
the base project allows no time for additional delays, for starting up 
operations, and for delivering exhibits to the exhibit gallery after a 
certificate of occupancy is issued. Although the sequence 2 contractor 
believes it may be able to shorten the time in the current schedule for 
making changes to the fire protection and security system components, 
this possibility has not been confirmed, and it is uncertain whether 
the elimination of schedule time for the three items discussed above 
will be problematic. 

As we have previously testified, most of the physical construction work 
in the CVC, the East Front, and the expansion spaces is scheduled to be 
completed by December 31, 2006; however, some work extends into 2007-- 
as far as May 2007 for the exhibit gallery and certain East Front work, 
April 2007 for the gift shops, and March 2007 for the installation of 
wayfinding signage and turnover of audio-visual equipment in the 
orientation theaters. Certain other construction work, such as the 
completion of space for the Capitol guide service and the installation 
of seats in the auditorium, also extends into 2007. Neither the CVC nor 
the expansion spaces can be opened until the Chief Fire Marshal has 
completed acceptance testing for the fire protection and life safety 
systems, now scheduled for September 2007 for the CVC and the expansion 
spaces. However, unlike the previous project schedules, the current 
schedule shows that AOC's Chief Fire Marshal plans to begin testing the 
expansion spaces before he completes his testing of the base CVC 
building so that some of the testing will be done concurrently. 
Previous project schedules showed that the expansion space testing 
would not start until the base building testing was complete. According 
to the CVC team and the Chief Fire Marshal, this change should 
eliminate the need for temporary construction measures and a temporary 
certificate of occupancy for the base building and for limited 
retesting of the base building after the expansion spaces have been 
tested. Also, according to AOC's Chief Fire Marshal, AOC may be able to 
open certain parts of the expansion spaces earlier than mid-September 
2007. As we have discussed in previous CVC testimonies, AOC is 
continuing to explore this possibility. 

Construction Work Is Progressing: 

According to information provided by AOC and its construction 
management contractor and our observations, work on the project has 
advanced, in terms of both the dollar value of the work in place and 
individual project elements. In dollar terms, AOC's construction 
management contractor reported that, as of August 31, the overall CVC 
project was about 86 percent complete and the sequence 2 work was about 
77 percent complete--up from about 84 percent and 74 percent, 
respectively, as of the Subcommittee's last CVC hearing. Progress on 
individual project elements includes the following: 

* Interior CVC work has moved forward, according to AOC's construction 
management and sequence 2 contractors. For example, 9 of the CVC's 21 
air-handling units were reportedly capable of providing cool air to 
certain parts of the building. In addition, the sequence 2 contractor 
is expecting to charge the CVC's entire HVAC system with chilled water 
this week and to start providing dehumidified air to the CVC soon. The 
sequence 2 contractor has also installed all of the floor stone in the 
exhibit gallery and inside the great hall. The installation of wood 
ceiling panels is essentially complete in one of the two orientation 
theaters; the installation of ceiling drywall is complete in the food 
service area; and ceiling framing has been ongoing in the assembly 
rooms, auditorium, and great hall lobby. 

* Surface work continued, including the installation of stone pavers 
above the CVC and seat wall stone around the great hall skylights. Work 
on the House connector tunnel and on linking the Library of Congress 
tunnel with the Jefferson Building has also continued. 

* Wall stone has now been fully installed in the food service area, 
upper level west lobby, East Front basement and ground levels, and 
atrium areas. As of last week, only about 130 pieces of wall stone had 
not been installed in the CVC itself, excluding the upper two levels of 
the East Front and the tunnels. 

* In the House and Senate expansion spaces, preparations for wall and 
ceiling close-in inspections have continued. 

Schedule Slippages in Critical and Key Near-Critical Paths Have 
Worsened, Significantly Extending the Project's Completion Dates and 
Complicating Project Management: 

During the Subcommittee's last CVC hearing, we expressed considerable 
concern about the risk of delay in work on the CVC's fire protection 
system, as well as on other important areas, such as the CVC's HVAC 
system, the East Front, and ceiling close-ins in the upper level 
security lobby. Together, delays in these areas, according to AOC's 
construction management contractor, have extended the CVC's completion 
date by 95 workdays, from May 2007, as projected for the Subcommittee's 
last CVC hearing, to September 2007, as shown in the project's August 
2006 schedule. This delay was primarily driven by slippages in the 
schedule for completing the CVC's fire protection system, which 
constitutes the CVC project's critical path--the single longest path 
through the project's schedule, meaning that each day the system's 
completion is delayed, the CVC's completion could also be delayed. AOC 
has significantly improved its control over the design of the 
facility's fire protection system, and the CVC team has been working 
closely with AOC's Chief Fire Marshal and U.S. Capitol Police 
representatives. We believe that these steps have resulted in improved 
coordination and communication and facilitated quicker resolution of 
problems and issues than previously occurred. However, the changes that 
have to be made to certain fire protection and security system 
components to address life safety and security issues have added 
considerable time to the schedule. These include (1) changes to the 
fire alarm system's programming; (2) architectural changes in a number 
of locations to enhance their fire protection capability; (3) wiring 
changes associated with having to add a major new fire alarm system 
control panel, enhance the fire damper monitoring system, use a 
different testing method, and link a security system component with a 
fire protection system component; and (4) changes associated with 
adding fire alarm system control panels to meet security requirements. 
According to the CVC team, the amount of time added to the August 
schedule to make these changes reflects the team's best thinking but is 
preliminary pending the team's receipt of all the detailed information 
it needs to estimate the impact of these changes on the schedule. The 
team has received much of this information and expects to receive the 
rest within the next several days. The needed information consists 
largely of shop drawings being prepared by the sequence 2 fire alarm 
subcontractor, which reflect the changes required for life safety and 
security. The team believes that it will be able to make a firm 
estimate by around mid-October. 

As we have pointed out in our previous CVC testimonies, this project 
has many near-critical paths that can also affect its completion date, 
some with relatively small slippages. Such a situation greatly 
complicates project management because problems arising in multiple 
areas can adversely affect the completion date, and the team must focus 
on a number of important areas simultaneously to avoid delaying the 
project's overall completion. AOC's construction management contractor 
identified 21 near-critical paths in the August schedule, 5 of which 
the CVC team considers particularly important because of their 
potential impact on the project's completion. These are the CVC's HVAC 
system, ceiling close-ins in the upper level security lobby, and three 
East Front paths. According to the CVC team, further delays in these 
areas could postpone testing of the CVC's fire alarm system, which, in 
turn, could delay the project's completion. According to AOC's 
construction management contractor, these areas have slipped by 74, 68, 
and over 100 workdays, respectively, compared with the schedule in 
effect at the Subcommittee's last CVC hearing. According to this 
contractor, these slippages occurred because of an electrical problem 
and problems with steam condensate that affected the HVAC system; 
problematic sequence 1 and preceding work that complicated the ceiling 
close-ins; and multiple issues that limited progress on the 3 East 
Front near-critical paths, including lead abatement requirements; 
electrical, ductwork, and structural conflicts; competition for space 
for workers; and a need to redesign and order new stone for the archway 
above the stair and escalators on the East Front. 

Because the CVC's HVAC system affects many activities, has had a number 
of problems, and poses significant risks to the project's successful 
completion, we asked our mechanical engineering consultant to assess 
the status of the CVC's 21 air-handling units. He observed the status 
of the units on August 11, and September 6, 2006, and compared their 
actual and scheduled mechanical readiness to provide conditioned air to 
the CVC. On the basis of his observations at the CVC site on those 2 
days, he reported the following: 

* The units' actual and scheduled stage of completion did not always 
match; some units were ahead of and some were behind schedule. 

* The scheduled completion dates for the units did not always match 
those for work in the spaces where the units have to be balanced or 
where the space has to be clean for the units to operate safely, 
suggesting a possible misalignment of priorities for finishing the 
spaces and finishing the units. 

* Only limited progress was made between his visits to the site. 
Remaining work included insulating pipe, wiring control units, and 
cleaning the units and ducts. 

* On both visits, he saw relatively few workers near the units, and 
little work was being performed on them. 

We discussed these observations with AOC's sequence 2 and construction 
management contractors, as well as the sequence 2 subcontractor 
responsible for the work. The construction management contractor 
confirmed that efforts to finish the units had been limited, and the 
sequence 2 contractor and the subcontractor committed to completing all 
the work necessary for all 21 units be operational by December 31, 
2006, except for the final commissioning of some units. The sequence 2 
contractor said that it would ensure the alignment of the schedules and 
priorities for finishing the units and the spaces they are to serve. 
Last Friday, AOC's construction management contractor said that 
finishing the scheduled work for the CVC's air-handling units in a 
timely manner is important, and completing the work necessary to get 
steam and chilled water to all the units over the next 3 weeks is 
critical to meeting the project's revised completion schedule. 
Accordingly, we have arranged for our mechanical engineering consultant 
to reassess the status of this work in October. 

The construction management contractor reported slippages in all of the 
remaining near-critical paths since the Subcommittee's last CVC 
hearing. In the 2-month period covered by the schedules between this 
hearing and the last one, 5 near-critical paths lost at least 100 
workdays and 11 lost at least 40 workdays. For example, the exhibit 
gallery path slipped 105 workdays; the bronze door path slipped 43 
workdays; the auditorium path slipped 98 workdays; and the orientation 
theater path slipped 85 workdays, as reported by AOC's construction 
management contractor. Slippages occurred for various reasons. For 
instance, according to the construction management contractor, the 
orientation theater path slipped because of slow progress in installing 
wood ceiling panels and in the sequence 2 contractor's resequencing of 
work; the exhibit gallery path slipped because of problems in finishing 
the ceiling and schedule logic changes; and the bronze door path 
slipped because of production problems at the fabricator's plant. 

Several activities important to completing the House and Senate 
expansion spaces have also been delayed since the Subcommittee's last 
CVC hearing. For example, AOC's construction management contractor 
reported a 23-workday delay in completing the circular stairs in the 
atrium areas. This delay occurred because the spaces housing the stairs 
were not available while sequence 2-related work was being done in 
those areas. Also delayed were ceiling close-ins that had to wait for 
approval of the fire alarm system, a special fire suppression system 
that was not installed because it had not been approved, and millwork 
that was not installed in the Senate lower level because of delays in 
getting approved shop drawings. Furthermore, the sequence 2 
subcontractor doing the expansion work identified a number of concerns 
that could affect the project's completion. For example, the 
subcontractor reported that ceiling close-in delays could postpone 
testing and balancing of the HVAC system; a lack of conditioned air 
could adversely affect certain casework and ceiling tile work; and 
changes being considered in the design of the expansion spaces could 
delay their completion, including work that could affect the testing 
and balancing of the HVAC system. 

Finally, although not critical to the CVC's opening, work being done to 
connect the Library of Congress's Jefferson building to the tunnel 
linking it with the CVC has fallen about a month behind because of an 
asbestos problem. This delay was shorter than initially estimated. 
Overall, the project's schedule today, compared with the schedule in 
effect at the Subcommittee's September 15, 2005, CVC hearing, reflects 
an average loss of about 3 out of every 4 weeks due to schedule 
slippages. 

Indicators of Construction Progress Do Not Instill Confidence in the 
CVC Team's Ability to Meet Scheduled Completion Dates: 

The four indicators of construction progress that we have been tracking 
for the Subcommittee support extension of the project's schedule and 
suggest that changes in the project's execution will be necessary to 
achieve the scheduled dates. An update on these indicators follows: 

Sequence 2 contractor has continued to miss most milestones. Starting 
with the Subcommittee's June 2005 CVC hearing, at the Subcommittee's 
request, we and AOC have been selecting and tracking sequence 2 
milestones to help the Subcommittee monitor construction progress. 
These milestones include activities that were either on the project's 
critical path or that we and AOC believe are critical to the project's 
timely completion. As figure 1 shows, the sequence 2 contractor has 
generally missed these milestones. For today's hearing, the contractor 
met 2 of the 17 milestones that were due to be completed, according to 
the project's June 2006 schedule, and for both, the work was completed 
ahead of schedule. However, the contractor was late in completing work 
for 2 other milestones and had not completed the work for the remaining 
13 milestones as of September 15, 2006. (See app. I.) The sequence 2 
contractor attributed the slippages to a number of factors, including 
the need to replace water-damaged insulation, necessary preceding work 
taking longer than expected, and a resequencing of work by the 
contractor. 

Figure 1: Sequence 2 Contractor's Progress in Meeting Selected 
Milestones as of CVC Hearing Dates: 

[See PDF for image] 

Source: Sequence 2 contractor, AOC and its construction management 
contractor, and GAO. 

[End of figure] 

Value of completed work has increased since the last hearing, but trend 
reflects the sequence 2 contractor's difficulties in meeting scheduled 
completion dates. Another indicator of construction progress that we 
and AOC's construction management contractor have been tracking is the 
value of the completed construction work billed to the government each 
month. Overall, the sequence 2 contractor's monthly billings, including 
the bills for March through August 2006, indicate that AOC is more 
likely to finish closer to its new scheduled completion dates than its 
previously scheduled completion dates. While this indicator has some 
limitations (for example, billings lag behind construction), it is 
generally regarded in the construction industry as a useful measure of 
how likely a project is to be completed on time. Figure 2 compares the 
sequence 2 contractor's billings since May 2003 with the billings 
needed to complete construction work on schedule and indicates that a 
late summer 2007 completion date is reasonable. 

Figure 2: Total Billings by the Sequence 2 Contractor for the Entire 
CVC Project Compared with the Billings Needed to Finish Construction 
Work on Schedule: 

[See PDF for image] 

Source: AOC's construction management contractor. 

Notes: 

1. The early and late lines on this figure reflect the cumulative 
billings that would be required to complete the project through 
contract modification number 126 ($232.5 million total contact value) 
by the early and late finish dates shown in the sequence 2 contractor's 
schedule, which is based on the September 2006 contractual completion 
date. 

2. The actual line reflects the sequence 2 contractor's actual monthly 
billings. 

3. Although bills are typically submitted for payment after work is 
completed, it is often likely that construction work will be completed 
on schedule when the actual billing line falls between the early and 
the late lines in the figure. With respect to the CVC, the actual 
billing line has been trending below, and in March 2006 went below, the 
late finish line, where it remained through August 2006. Even with the 
lag in billings, this trend indicates that the amount of work being 
completed each month is not sufficient to keep the project on schedule. 

[End of figure] 

Installation of interior wall and floor stone is taking longer than 
expected. Overall, about 86 percent of the CVC's interior wall stone 
has been installed (in the CVC, East Front, atrium areas, and tunnels), 
according to AOC's construction management contractor, and the sequence 
2 contractor installed 1,325 pieces of interior wall stone during the 
last 7 weeks. Although the sequence 2 contractor has installed almost 
all of the wall stone in the CVC itself and all of the wall stone in 
the atrium areas, wall stone installation in the East Front is 
significantly behind schedule. According to the sequence 2 contractor's 
January 2006 wall stone installation schedule, the East Front wall 
stone was to be completely installed by July 10, 2006. As of September 
15, about 4,700 pieces of wall stone remained to be installed in the 
East Front. During the same 7-week period, the sequence 2 contractor 
installed about 24,040 square feet of interior floor stone, or about 73 
percent of the 33,000 square feet specified in the floor stone 
installation plan that the contractor provided to AOC. According to the 
construction management contractor, the sequence 2 contractor installed 
the floor stone inside the great hall sooner than planned, but work has 
been impeded in other areas by the lack of available space. 

Figure 3 shows the sequence 2 contractor's progress in installing 
interior floor stone since February 13, 2006.[Footnote 6] 

Figure 3: Progress of CVC Interior Floor Stone Installation Compared 
with Preliminary Targets Set by the Sequence 2 Contractor: 

[See PDF for image] 

Source: AOC's construction management contractor. 

[End of figure] 

Project's Schedule Remains Vulnerable to Challenges, Risks, and 
Uncertainties: 

As we have indicated during the Subcommittee's previous CVC hearings, 
we believe that the CVC team continues to face challenges, risks, and 
uncertainties in completing the project. Given the project's history of 
delays, the difficulties the CVC team has encountered in resolving 
problems that arise quickly, and the large number of near-critical 
activities that can affect the project's overall completion, the CVC's 
efforts to identify potential problems early and resolve issues quickly 
will be even more important from this point forward, since AOC has left 
no "slack" in the schedule for contingencies. In our view, the 
remaining work associated with the fire protection system poses the 
greatest single risk to meeting AOC's mid-September 2007 completion 
date. The steps AOC has taken to mitigate this risk have been helpful, 
but much work remains to be done on the CVC's fire protection system 
and its linkages with other building systems. In addition, the project 
continues to face risks and uncertainties associated with other work 
important to its completion, such as the CVC's HVAC system, the East 
Front, and ceiling close-ins. AOC's current project schedule does not 
provide the 2 to 3 months that its previous schedule allowed for 
addressing the ongoing challenges, risks, and uncertainties. 
Accordingly, we plan to continue to monitor the CVC team's efforts to 
meet its schedule for the fire protection system and other key near- 
critical activities as well as the timeliness of the actions taken by 
the CVC team to address problems, concerns, and questions that arise. A 
brief update follows on the challenges, risks, and uncertainties the 
CVC team continues to face and the team's plans for addressing them: 

* Complex building systems remain a significant risk. The CVC will 
house complex building systems, including HVAC, fire protection, and 
security systems. These systems not only have to perform well 
individually, but their operation also has to be integrated. If the CVC 
team encounters any significant problems with them, either separately 
or together, during the resolution of design issues, installation, 
commissioning, or testing, the project could be seriously delayed. The 
unanticipated problems that emerged in reviewing the design of the fire 
alarm system and in programming it illustrate the impact such problems 
can have on the project's schedule. Additional delays could occur if 
the team takes longer than expected to get approved shop drawings, if 
the proposed system does not meet the project's design specifications 
or the life safety code, or if the fire protection system does not work 
effectively with the security or other building systems.[Footnote 7] 
Additionally, the Chief Fire Marshal noted that delays could occur if 
the CVC team does not adequately pretest the system and correct any 
problems found during the pretesting. On March 23, AOC's commissioning 
contractor submitted its plan to the CVC team for testing the 
performance of the CVC's smoke control system, which is a critical 
component of the CVC's fire protection system and must work properly 
before the CVC can be opened to the public. As of September 13, this 
plan had not yet been submitted to or approved by the Fire Marshal 
Division. Moreover, as we have previously noted, the Chief Fire 
Marshal's timely completion of the fire protection system's acceptance 
testing depends on his ability to obtain sufficient funding for a 
contractor to help perform the tests. 

* Trade stacking could delay completion. As we discussed during the 
Subcommittee's previous CVC hearings, trade stacking could hold up 
finish work, such as drywall or ceiling installation, electrical and 
plumbing work, plastering, or floor stone installation. This work could 
be stacked because of delays in wall stone installation. Trade stacking 
could also increase the risk of accidents and injuries. Hence, it 
remains important, as we said at previous CVC hearings, for the CVC 
team to closely monitor construction to identify potential trade 
stacking and promptly take steps to address it. The CVC team has also 
identified trade stacking as a high risk. The sequence 2 contractor has 
developed plans that show when various subcontractors will be working 
in each area of the CVC except the East Front. According to the 
sequence 2 contractor, it intends to continue meeting regularly with 
its subcontractors to review and update the area plans. The CVC team 
identified one recent instance of trade stacking that occurred in an 
effort to expedite certain East Front work. In transmitting the team's 
monthly progress report for August, AOC noted that the compressed time 
frame for bringing all of the air-handling units on line will require 
bringing more technicians and mechanics to complete the work and may 
result in trade stacking. 

* Building design and work scope continue to evolve. The CVC has 
undergone a number of design and work scope changes. Since the 
Subcommittee's August 2 CVC hearing, AOC's architectural contractor has 
issued nine design changes or clarifications. As of September 14, 2006, 
this contractor reported, another six were in process. In addition, 
since the project began, AOC has executed over 100 sequence 2 contract 
modifications for work that was not anticipated.[Footnote 8] Some of 
these changes, such as changes in the exhibit gallery and in the East 
Front, have resulted in delays. Furthermore, although shop drawings 
have been approved for almost all project elements except the fire 
protection system, according to AOC, further design or scope changes in 
various project elements are likely, given the project's experience to 
date. In fact, in reporting on the August schedule, AOC's construction 
management contractor noted that anticipated changes to the House 
expansion space could affect ceiling close-ins. Project design and 
scope changes are typically reflected in the development of potential 
change orders (PCO), many of which result in contract modifications. 
Figure 4 shows the PCOs submitted for consideration for sequences 1 and 
2 since September 2003. Although PCOs are not always approved, they are 
often regarded as a reasonably good indicator of likely future design 
or scope changes that can affect a project's cost and schedule. Even 
more important, the adverse impact of scope and design changes on a 
project's schedule is likely to increase as the project moves toward 
completion. 

Figure 4: Cumulative Number of Potential Change Orders Submitted for 
CVC Sequences 1 and 2 between September 2003 and August 2006: 

[See PDF for image] 

Source: AOC's construction management contractor. 

[End of figure] 

As the figure indicates, new PCOs for sequence 1 were submitted until 
shortly before, and even for several months after, November 2004, when 
AOC determined that the sequence 1 contract work was substantially 
complete. Similarly, PCOs for sequence 2 are still being submitted, and 
we have seen no indication that their submission is likely to stop 
soon. It therefore appears likely to us that some of the design or 
scope changes indicated in PCOs could lead to contract modifications 
that will affect the project's schedule. AOC agrees that it is 
important to minimize the impact of proposed design and scope changes. 

Additional delays associated with the CVC's new utility tunnel have 
resulted, or could result, in additional work or slippages. As we have 
previously testified, the delay in starting up the utility tunnel's 
operations has necessitated the use of temporary humidity control 
equipment for the orientation theaters to avoid damage to finish work 
and ceiling tile. Moreover, delays in getting conditioned air inside 
the CVC have resulted in the sequence 2 contractor's bringing 
additional temporary equipment into the auditorium area. Such delays 
may subject certain work to the risk of damage or delay finish or 
ceiling work in areas not suitable for the use of temporary humidity 
and temperature control equipment. For example, the CVC team installed 
ceiling tile in portions of the great hall to take advantage of the 
scaffolding in place, even though neither the temperature nor the 
humidity was controlled in that area. According to the CVC team, the 
installed tile could be damaged if the temperature or humidity is not 
within the specified levels. The CVC team has been providing cool air 
to the food service area and on the service level, but planned to turn 
off the chilled water supply to the CVC this week so that it can charge 
the entire CVC system with chilled water. At the Subcommittee's last 
CVC hearing, we reported that the CVC team had expected to have steam 
running to the CVC and to be providing dehumidified air to the exhibit 
gallery by mid-August. However, as we discussed earlier, the team 
experienced problems. The CVC began receiving steam earlier this week 
and now expects to be able to provide dehumidified air to the CVC by 
mid-October. Remaining risks involve having sufficient manpower to meet 
the scheduled dates for getting the HVAC system fully operational and 
being able to quickly overcome any problems that may arise in getting 
the system properly balanced, controlled, and commissioned. 

* Late identification or slow resolution of problems or issues could 
delay completion. Historically, the project has experienced or been at 
risk of experiencing some delays resulting from slow decision-making. 
In addition, some CVC team members believe that some of the problems 
that have resulted in delays, such as certain problems associated with 
the East Front or with problematic sequence 1 concrete work could have 
been identified and addressed earlier than they were. In responding to 
these comments, the sequence 2 contractor said that although earlier 
identification of these types of problems is conceptually possible, it 
is difficult in practice. Looking forward, we do not believe that the 
team will be able to meet its scheduled completion date if it does not 
quickly decide on issues; respond to concerns, questions, and 
submittals; or resolve problems. Last week, AOC told the CVC team that 
starting October 1, the architectural contractor will be decreasing its 
staffing support to the project. In our opinion, this increases the 
risk of slow responses to design questions or requests for design 
instructions at a very critical time, particularly since we have not 
seen evidence of a decrease in potential change orders. AOC believes 
that it will be able to provide its CVC construction contractors with 
sufficient architectural support to respond to appropriate questions or 
requests in time to avoid delays. We believe that this situation needs 
close monitoring, as well as corrective action if problems arise. 

* Risks from insufficient stone deliveries appear to be diminishing. 
Although wall stone shortages have caused delays in the past, they have 
not recently been a problem. All of the wall stone for the base project 
and atrium areas has been delivered, and AOC does not anticipate a 
problem with the remaining wall stone deliveries. According to the 
construction management contractor, about 2,400 pieces of wall stone 
for the East Front and all of the wall stone for the tunnels still have 
to be delivered. For a time, the sequence 2 contractor did have a 
problem with the delivery of floor stone for the exhibit gallery, but 
that problem has been resolved, and the contractor does not anticipate 
problems with floor stone deliveries for other areas. The sequence 2 
subcontractor doing the House and Senate expansion space work said that 
some wall stone for the expansion spaces has been delivered and at this 
time he does not anticipate a delivery problem with the remaining wall 
stone. 

Finally, as we have said in previous discussions with AOC, its 
construction management contractor, and the Subcommittee, it will be 
important for AOC to have adequate analysis and documentation of the 
reasons and responsibilities for delays.[Footnote 9] On April 11, 2006, 
AOC executed a contract modification authorizing its construction 
management contractor to have one of its managers who has not been 
involved in the CVC project assess the adequacy of this type of 
information. The manager submitted his report to AOC in early June. He 
reported generally positive findings but also identified desired 
improvements. He made several recommendations to AOC, which AOC has 
generally agreed with and plans to implement consistent with the 
availability of resources. As we have previously stated, we believe it 
is important for AOC to complete its analysis of delays expeditiously 
given the September 15, 2006, sequence 2 contract completion date and 
the impact this analysis is likely to have on delay-related costs. AOC 
has been working with the sequence 2 contractor to address this issue. 

New Project Schedule Appears Achievable Only under Certain Conditions: 

Last week, the CVC team completed the development of a new project 
schedule--the August 2006 schedule--that reflects the results of its 
preliminary analysis of the impact on the schedule of recent changes to 
certain components of the fire protection and security systems. While 
the team believes that its preliminary estimate is likely to provide 
sufficient time to accomplish the needed work, it does not believe it 
can make a definitive determination until after it has had a chance to 
fully analyze the changes to these systems. Although the team was 
striving to have all the necessary submittals approved by October 1, 
this is not likely. However, the sequence 2 contractor and its 
subcontractor responsible for most of the related work believe that 
they expect to have enough of the needed information in the next 
several days and will be able to make a definitive determination on the 
amount of time needed by around mid-October. The team plans to reflect 
any changes necessary in the September project schedule, which it 
expects to issue at about that same time. 

The August project schedule shows that all physical construction work 
on the CVC, the East Front, and the expansion spaces will be completed 
by spring 2007 and that the pretesting and final testing of all of fire 
protection, life safety, and related systems for these areas will be 
carried out between then and mid-September 2007. The schedule reflects 
the amount of time that AOC's Chief Fire Marshal said he would need to 
perform his acceptance testing, although the team is working with him 
to see if certain aspects of the testing can be done differently to 
achieve some time savings. Unlike the previous project schedule, the 
new schedule does not allow any time for addressing problems, risks, or 
uncertainties or for preparing for operations; it also assumes that the 
exhibits can be delivered and set up before the final acceptance 
testing of the facility has been completed. The team assumes that it 
will be able to arrange for the delivery and set up of the exhibits and 
to prepare adequately for operations before it receives a certificate 
of occupancy, but had not confirmed this assumption as of September 15, 
2006. 

Accordingly, we are focusing the results of our schedule assessment on 
the completion of the CVC's construction, including the facility's 
acceptance testing but excluding preparations for operations and the 
delivery and setup of the exhibits. Although we would feel more 
comfortable if the schedule did contain some time for addressing 
problems, risks, and uncertainties, our analysis of the schedule; 
observations of the team's progress; discussions with CVC team managers 
and members, U.S. Capitol Police representatives, and AOC's Chief Fire 
Marshal; and the results of our mechanical engineering consultant's 
work indicate that the mid-September time frame for completing the 
project is achievable subject to two conditions: 

* The team's remaining analysis of the impact of the fire protection 
and security system changes shows that the team can finish the 
necessary work within the scheduled time. 

* The team promptly makes significant changes in its execution of the 
schedule and project. 

Recommendation: 

Given the magnitude of the recent schedule slippages and the 
consequences of the risks that have materialized, the time it has taken 
the team to identify and resolve problems, the team's performance 
relative to the indicators of progress that we and the Subcommittee 
have been tracking, and the risks and uncertainties that continue to 
face the project, we are convinced that the team will not be able to 
meet the new schedule or any schedule with completion dates close to 
mid-September 2007 unless it quickly and substantively changes its 
execution of the project and schedule. We are recommending that the 
Architect of the Capitol promptly develop an action plan setting forth 
specific steps that AOC and the CVC team will take to enhance AOC's 
execution of the schedule and project. Types of actions the team should 
consider are as follows: 

* Make more visible, aggressive, and focused efforts to manage 
activities in the project's critical and key near-critical paths 
according to the schedule, making sure that priority activities receive 
priority attention. 

* See that sufficient effort is applied to meet important dates. The 
CVC team may wish to consider including the use of targeted 
acceleration when it is justified and will save time without adversely 
affecting worker safety, work quality, or facility functionality or 
causing trade stacking. In addition, any consideration of acceleration 
should balance its impact on the schedule against its potential impact 
on cost. 

* Ensure that mechanisms are in place to identify and quickly resolve 
problems, issues, risks, questions, and concerns raised by construction 
contractors or others; provide needed design guidance and instructions; 
and respond to submittals effectively and quickly, including closely 
monitoring the turnaround time for architectural support from this 
point forward. 

* Continuously ensure the effective operation of mechanisms put in 
place to coordinate work among the many contractors and subcontractors 
constructing the building and to coordinate with AOC's Chief Fire 
Marshal, U.S. Capitol Police, and the Capitol Power Plant. 

* Continue to see that requests for discretionary changes to the 
project's scope or design are promptly brought to the attention of the 
Capitol Preservation Commission, along with the impact of such 
requested changes on the project's schedule. 

AOC agreed that additional actions are needed to improve the extent to 
which the CVC team meets its scheduled dates and said that it would 
identify and take such actions. To help put the CVC team in a better 
position to meet the project's scheduled completion date, after 
considering the actions we have identified, the Architect of the 
Capitol should promptly provide the Capitol Preservation Commission, 
the House and Senate Committees on Appropriations, and the Senate 
Committee on Rules and Administration and the Committee on House 
Administration with a plan setting forth the actions it and the CVC 
team will take to enhance their execution of the project and its 
schedule --particularly to accomplish all of the critical work that 
needs to get done in the next 3 to 4 months. AOC should submit the plan 
as soon as possible, but no later than mid-October 2006. Congress can 
then use this plan to hold AOC accountable for managing the project and 
to work closely with AOC to ensure that the schedule implications of 
all proposed scope or design changes are quickly determined and 
considered by all appropriate stakeholders before final decisions on 
the proposed changes are made. 

Project's Estimated Cost and Funding: 

Relying on cost estimates provided by AOC and its construction 
management contractor, we now estimate that the total cost to complete 
the entire CVC project will be about $584 million without an allowance 
for risks and uncertainties and could be as much as about $596 million 
with such an allowance. This updated $584 million estimate is about $28 
million greater than our previous estimate of $556 million, which did 
not include an allowance for risks and uncertainties, and matches our 
previous estimate of $584 million, which did include an allowance for 
risks and uncertainties. The $28 million increase consists of estimated 
costs related primarily to additional delays and, to a lesser extent, 
the recently identified changes to the CVC's fire protection and 
security systems and provision for future changes. (AOC estimated the 
additional delay-related costs for budgetary purposes only and did not 
provide for possible concurrent delays.)Moreover, with additional risks 
and uncertainties, we believe the entire project could cost another $12 
million at completion ($596 million minus $584 million). The mounting 
costs of delays are a major reason for our emphasis on the need for AOC 
and its other CVC team members to make significant changes in their 
project management. 

To date, about $531 million has been provided for CVC construction. 
This amount includes about $3.9 million that was made available for 
either CVC construction or operations[Footnote 10] and has been 
approved for CVC construction by the House and Senate Committees on 
Appropriations. Our previous cost-to-complete estimate showed that 
another $26 million in construction funds would be necessary without an 
allowance for risks and uncertainties to reach the previous cost 
estimate of $556 million. AOC has requested this additional $26 million 
in its fiscal year 2007 budget for CVC construction. AOC has also 
requested $950,000 in fiscal year 2007 general administration 
appropriation funds to provide contractual support for the Chief Fire 
Marshal's final acceptance testing of the CVC. Given the new cost-to- 
complete estimate, AOC will likely need some additional funding for 
changes during fiscal year 2007. 

AOC agreed that it would likely need additional funds but did not 
believe it would need quite as much as we had estimated for future 
changes and contingencies. Given the project's experience with cost 
growth and the trends in the number of potential change orders 
submitted, we believe our estimate is reasonable. In addition, AOC 
noted that it could possibly use some funds that have been slated for 
covering sequence 2 delay-related costs for other CVC-related costs 
during fiscal year 2007, assuming that some of this delay-related 
funding may not be needed for some time. AOC recognized, however, that 
it may need additional funding for potential delay-related costs if it 
were to do this. AOC also noted that it may be able to cover some 
portion of the increased costs by reprogramming funds from other 
sources after obtaining the necessary congressional approvals. 

Mr. Chairman, this completes our prepared statement. We would be 
pleased to answer any questions that you or Members of the Subcommittee 
may have. 

Contacts and Acknowledgments: 

For further information about this testimony, please contact Bernard 
Ungar at (202) 512-4232 or Terrell Dorn at (202) 512-6923. Other key 
contributors to this testimony include Shirley Abel, John Craig, Maria 
Edelstein, Elizabeth Eisenstadt, Jeanette Franzel, Jackie Hamilton, 
Bradley James, Joshua Ormond, and Scott Riback. 

[End of section] 

Appendix I: Capitol Visitor Center Critical Construction Milestones, 
July-September 2006: 

Table 1: : 

Activity: Lower level - Hang VP drywall ceiling; 
Location: Congressional auditorium; 
Scheduled completion: 7/20/2006; 
Actual completion: 9/9/2006a. 

Activity: Wall stone Area #6; 
Location: Congressional auditorium; 
Scheduled completion: 7/20/2006; 
Actual completion: 9/11/2006a. 

Activity: Install AHU-EF-1/AHU-EF-2; 
Location: Mechanical system; 
Scheduled completion: 8/1/2006; 
Actual completion: [B]. 

Activity: Install bronze doors; 
Location: Food service; 
Scheduled completion: 8/3/2006; 
Actual completion: [C]. 

Activity: Grid for wood ceiling; 
Location: Orientation theater; 
Scheduled completion: 8/8/2006; 
Actual completion: [D]. 

Activity: Pre FPT controls test; 
Location: SF fans; 
Scheduled completion: 8/15/2006; 
Actual completion: [E]. 

Activity: Wood doors and frames; 
Location: Food service; 
Scheduled completion: 8/21/2006; 
Actual completion: [F]. 

Activity: Finish paint; 
Location: West lobby assembly; 
Scheduled completion: 8/21/2006; 
Actual completion: . 

Activity: Install wood ceiling panels; 
Location: Orientation theater; 
Scheduled completion: 8/22/2006; 
Actual completion: [D]. 

Activity: Wall stone Area #1; 
Location: East Front principal; 
Scheduled completion: 8/28/2006; 
Actual completion: [G]. 

Activity: Ceiling fabric; 
Location: Congressional auditorium; 
Scheduled completion: 8/28/2006; 
Actual completion: . 

Activity: Install stone; 
Location: Exhibit gallery; 
Scheduled completion: 8/31/2006; 
Actual completion: [H]. 

Activity: Plaster ceiling; 
Location: East Front Basement; 
Scheduled completion: 9/5/2006; 
Actual completion: . 

Activity: Controls Pt. to PT. check; 
Location: AHU-01; 
Scheduled completion: 9/8/2006; 
Actual completion: 8/5/2006. 

Activity: Wall stone Area #2; 
Location: East Front principal; 
Scheduled completion: 9/12/2006; 
Actual completion: [G]. 

Activity: Ceiling panels; 
Location: Orientation lobby; 
Scheduled completion: 9/12/2006; 
Actual completion: . 

Activity: Floor stone; 
Location: Food service; 
Scheduled completion: 9/ 19/2006; 
Actual completion: 9/4/2006. 

Source: AOC's June 2006 CVC sequence 2 construction schedule for the 
scheduled completion dates, AOC and its construction management and 
sequence 2 contractors for the actual completion dates, and the 
sequence 2 contractor or subcontractors for reasons for delay: 

[A] Work is substantially complete. 

[B] Assembly of the upper level air-handling units has been slowed 
during replacement of water-damaged insulation. 

[C] Bronze door installation has been resequenced to make upper level 
security doors the highest priority. 

[D] Installation has been slowed while coordinating with the audio- 
visual contractor on the installation of above-ceiling equipment. 

[E] Test could not be done because preceding work had not been 
completed. 

[F] Installation of wood doors has been resequenced; a template was 
developed to prevent delays of follow-on work. 

[G] Installation of principal level wall stone has been affected by 
ductwork revisions and metal stud design issues. 

[H] Aspiration wall-stone installation has been delayed because 
preceding work took longer than expected. 

[End of table] 

[End of Section] 

FOOTNOTES 

[1] GAO, Capitol Visitor Center: Update on Status of Project's Schedule 
and Cost as of August 2, 2006, GA0-06-828T (Washington, D.C.: Aug. 2, 
2006). 

[2] The estimates for most of the delay-related costs were provided by 
AOC and its construction management contractor for budgetary purposes 
only and do not reflect any judgments by GAO of the validity of any 
potential contractor claims. 

[3] Trade stacking can occur when workers from different trades, such 
as stone masons, electricians, plumbers, or plasterers, have to work in 
the same area at the same time to meet a schedule, sometimes making it 
difficult to ensure sufficient space and resources for concurrent work. 

[4] Since we last updated information on the amount of funding provided 
for CVC construction, the House and Senate Committees on Appropriations 
approved an AOC request to reprogram about $1 million from CVC 
operations funding to CVC construction. 

[5] AOC's June and July schedules provided time between the base 
project's completion and the CVC facility's opening to prepare for 
operations and to install the exhibits in the exhibit gallery because 
the CVC team believed that a certificate of occupancy was required 
before the exhibits could be brought into the building. The team now 
believes that it may be able to fully prepare for opening and install 
the exhibits before it has a certificate of occupancy. As of September 
15, it was not clear to us that these assumptions had been validated. 

[6] We have discontinued presenting the figure we previously included 
in our testimonies comparing actual to targeted wall stone installation 
because all targeted quantities were to have been installed by August 
7, 2006, according to the sequence 2 contractor's January 2006 
installation plan. 

[7] According to the sequence 2 subcontractor that is fitting out the 
House and Senate expansion spaces, the delays in getting approved shop 
drawings for the fire protection system have already postponed ceiling 
close-ins in the expansion spaces, and AOC believes that further such 
delays, along with possible requests for design changes, pose the 
greatest risks to the completion schedule for the expansion spaces. 

[8] These data exclude sequence 2 contract modifications for work that 
was planned but not included in the sequence 2 base contract. Examples 
include the fit-out of the House and Senate expansion spaces, the 
construction of the utility tunnel, and the purchase and installation 
of food service equipment. 

[9] See, for example, GAO, Capitol Visitor Center: Effective Schedule 
Management and Updated Cost Information Are Important, GAO-05-811T 
(Washington, D.C.: June 14, 2005). 

[10] Public Law 108-447, enacted on December 8, 2004, provided that up 
to $10.6 million (reduced to $10.5 million by a subsequent budget 
recission of $84,000) could be transferred from AOC's Capitol Building 
appropriation account for the use of the CVC project. The use of the 
amount transferred is subject to the approval of the House and Senate 
Committees on Appropriations. AOC has now received approval to obligate 
the entire $10.5 million. 

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