Pentagon shells out for work undone

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The government now is going through the painful process of paying contractors for the work it won’t get.

The administration is following through on its campaign pledge to cut wasteful spending at the Pentagon. But the price is high.

After putting numerous programs on the chopping block, the government now is going through the painful process of paying contractors for the work it won’t get — what the Pentagon calls “termination costs.”

“When you cancel a program before the operational term of the contract is up, the government’s required to pay much of the costs of shutting down that are not recoverable,” said J. David Patterson, who was a Pentagon official under President George W. Bush.

He cited laying off workers, closing facilities, the cost of tools and materials that can’t be resold for use elsewhere and the cost of ending contracts with suppliers.

But breakups are never easy; contractors and their supporters pull out all the stops to fight back.

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