Press Releases
House Facilities in Dire Need of Renovations
May 5, 2009
WASHINGTON – Today, The Committee on House Administration held a hearing to review the Capitol Facility Condition Assessments conducted by the Architect of the Capitol (AOC), and validated by the Government Accountability Office (GAO), which demonstrate the need to address the House's deteriorating facilities within the next five to seven years.
At the oversight hearing, led by Chairman Robert Brady, D-Pa., and Ranking Republican Dan Lungren, R-Calif., Members heard about renovations necessary to preserve the historic Cannon House Office Building along with two underground parking facilities.
According to testimony provided by Stephen T. Ayers, Acting Architect of the Capitol, renovating the deteriorating facilities, "are high urgency projects that are required in the near-term to avoid building system failures." The AOC's budget request for 2010 includes $5 million for a program of requirements to design renovation plans for Cannon, and $37.6 million for the interior renovation of the East House Underground Garage. The AOC estimates that it will require another $30 million in the near-future to renovate the West Underground Garage.
While the GAO validated the need for the House facility renovations, Terrell Dorn, the GAO's Director of Physical Infrastructure Issues, noted that there are currently too many uncertainties to accurately estimate the cost of renovating the Cannon House Office Building.