['BusNative]

A little stale - but an update on the use of contractors in Iraq (I don't have much to do today).

Report finds Iraq contracts have cost US billions - International Herald Tribune

Report finds Iraq contracts have cost US billions

WASHINGTON: Military contracts in the Iraq theater have cost taxpayers at least $85 billion, and when it comes to providing security, they might not be any cheaper than using military personnel, according to a review released Tuesday.

Release of the report by the Congressional Budget Office reflects increased scrutiny in the last year of contractors, some of which have been investigated in connection to the shooting deaths of Iraqis and in the accidental deaths of U.S. troops by electrocution.

The United States has relied more heavily on contractors in Iraq than in any other war to provide services ranging from food service to guarding diplomats. About 20 percent of money spent for operations in Iraq has gone to contractors, the report said.

Currently, there are at least 190,000 contractors in Iraq and neighboring countries, a ratio of about one contractor per U.S. service member, the report says.

The study did not include monetary figures for 2008, so the total paid to contractors for work in the Iraq theater since the invasion of Iraq in 2003 probably is much higher. If spending for contractors continues at about the same rate, by the end of the year, an estimated $100 billion will have been paid to military contractors for operations in Iraq...