As a former DOE lab employee, I can't even begin to imagine the hassle of changing operating contracts, although LANL has really been putting forth extraordinary effort to get the DOE to try.

What's most irritating is that the DOE use a broad brush and go overboard where it's easy and clearly don't do enough where it's hard. I had to attend ladder training before I was allowed to climb down under the 4' floor in my computer room and the rule was made that we had to use ladders all the time. You can't even fit the ladders in the tile holes, but the rule was on the books because it was "safe!". There were so many of those boneheaded rules, but these boneheads are allowed near plutonium to photograph it for no scientific purpose? Grrrrr

The current political talking point is that the private sector can do it cheaper. Which is exactly what you get with contractors: A mandate to pick the lowest bidder, and to not let it languish in RFP (by lobbying, typically).

France has the right model with nuclear power creation and generation through a vertically-integrated state owned company, Areva. Our stockpile has to be an effective deterrent. We shouldn't trust contractors with our stockpiles, that process should be vertical too, damn the costs involved.

Charge more.