	Background

Budget-scorekeeping rules were developed by the executive and legislative branches in connection with the Budget Enforcement Act of 1990. These rules are to be used by the scorekeepers to assure compliance with budget laws. Their purpose is to ensure that the scorekeepers measure the effects of legislation consistent with scorekeeping conventions and specific legal requirements. The rules are reviewed annually and revised as necessary to achieve that purpose. Table 1 lists the leases or lease projects that we or GSA identified as being affected by scoring. According to GSA officials, GSA does not generally seek comparisons of short- and long-term lease costs in the solicitation process. Factors Other Than Scoring That Influence Lease Term Selection

According GSA officials, while scoring does affect the term of some leases, the term of most leases is determined by various factors other than budget scoring, such as the type of space—existing or build-to-suit—lease term desired by the agency, rental market condition, and location of the structure. Further, while a shorter term lease can be more costly than a longer term lease, we could not determine the actual overall monetary impact of shorter lease terms because GSA does not generally seek comparisons of short- and long-term lease costs in the solicitation process. Appendix I: Comments From the General Services Administration
What GAO Found

This report responds to a concern that budget-scoring restrictions were forcing the General Services Administration (GSA) to rely on shorter term leases that increase the costs to the Federal Buildings Fund because their per-square-foot costs are greater than longer term leases. Budget-scorekeeping rules are to be used by the scorekeepers to ensure compliance with budget laws and that legislation are consistent with scorekeeping conventions and that specific legal requirements. The rules are reviewed annually and revised as necessary to achieve those purposes. The way in which budget-scoring rules were implemented affected the lease or lease project term of at least 13 of the 39 federal agency leases GAO reviewed. Since GSA officials do not generally seek comparisons of long-term versus short-term leases in the solicitation process, GAO could not determine the overall monetary impact of budget scoring in the lease term. However, GAO identified three isolated cases that had comparisons of long term versus short-term leases in the solicitation process, and, in each case, the price per net useable square foot was lower with the longer term lease. GSA officials said that while budget scoring affects the term of some leases, the term of most leases is determined by various factors, either individually or in combination, such as rental market conditions, location, and the term desired by the agency.