Any day now President Bush could sign legislation directing GSA to reorganize its massive procurement engine. It is thought – and hoped – to be the medicine needed to transform a problem agency into an effective operating entity.
Many articles have been written about this in govexec.com as well as an article in The Washington Post by Stephen Barr.
For a host of reasons, many federal agencies decided to shop elsewhere rather than through GSA to acquire needed supplies, computers, etc. This was bad news for GSA, as it funds its operations through fees assessed agencies for acquisition services.
In theory, GSA, through consolidated buying power, economies of scale, and expertise in the field, could procure needed goods and services for fellow federal agencies more effectively and cheaply than those agencies could on their own. This seemed reasonable. If I’m heading a large government organization, I’d prefer to use an existing inexpensive option rather than develop and train a staff of my own to do the same work. In practice, however, GSA apparently couldn’t deliver these goods and services in a way that satisfied agencies.
There’s much to read in the above referenced articles. Once you’ve digested them, tell us what you think. Will this reorganization fix the existing problem? Have the Executive and Legislative branches gone about addressing this issue properly? Billions of dollars are at stake. Can billions be saved and can federal agencies get the goods and services they need promptly, correctly, and cost effectively?