JanSan draft RFQ

The General Services Administration published a draft Request for Quotes for its upcoming strategic sourcing initiative for purchase of janitorial and sanitation commodities.

The “JanSan” governmentwide blanket purchase agreements will be solicited through GSA multiple-award schedule holders on schedules 51V, 73 and 75.

The draft was released on May 13 and comments were due May 24.

More information: http://goo.gl/u3QMC

GSA pushes schedules

The General Services Administration wants to dramatically increase the percentage of federal procurement spending that goes through GSA schedules and programs, Dan Tangherlini, acting administrator, said in a recent interview with Federal Times.

Last year, only about 12% of federal procurement spending that could have gone through GSA actually did, according to the agency. Tangherlini said he hopes to increase that to 90% within 10 years.

GSA’s market share has increased to 15% this year, and Tangherlini hopes to hit 17% by year’s end.

“We’ve really been after this for, I would say, the last six months,” Tangherlini told Federal Times, adding that some employees “are a little afraid that if it’s all about market share, then we may not be pushing the best price or the best value.”

But, he said, he believes market share will rise only if customer agencies believe they are getting the best price and value from GSA.

Currently, the Defense Department spends about 5.6% of its eligible procurement budget through GSA, whereas civilian agencies spend about 27%, the article said.

More information: Federal Times article http://goo.gl/h2cNz

Conference restrictions

The federal Office of Government Ethics outlined new restrictions for federal conferences, as a result of provisions contained in the fiscal 2013 continuing budget resolution signed into law in March.

Under the new rules, federal agencies must report each year to their inspector general or senior ethics official with details about any conferences that cost more than $100,000.

The report must describe the purpose of the event; number of attendees; costs of food, beverages, audio-visual services and travel; and the contracting procedures involved.

Also, the agencies must also notify their inspector general or senior ethics official of any conference that cost $20,000 within 15 days of the conference.

The new rules apply to conferences that agencies hold in fiscal 2013.

More information: Fierce Government article http://goo.gl/m8GDJ

VA verification update

The Veterans Affairs Department’s Office of Small and Disadvantaged Business Utilization is planning an update to the rules on the VA’s verification program for veteran-owned small busiensses.

The OSDBU said changes are intended to “provide greater clarity, to streamline the program, and to encourage more veteran-owned small businesses to apply for verification,” according to a Federal Register notice.

Comments are due by July 12.

Despite efforts, the current regulations still need improvement, the agency said.

“Despite VA’s Verification Program, fraud still exists in the Veterans First Contracting Program. Some stakeholder feedback has been that the current regulations (at 38 CFR part 74) are too open to interpretation and are unnecessarily more rigorous than similar certification programs run by SBA,” the notice stated.

More information: Federal Register notice http://goo.gl/1P1sT

Too much duplication?

The Government Accountability Office identified 31 new areas that federal agencies ought to target for efficiency improvements, including 17 areas of duplication or fragmentation.

For example, the GAO suggested the Defense Department could save up to $82 million by reducing multiple buys of combat uniforms.

Another area ripe for consolidation is in procurement of geospatial information, GAO said.

More information: GAO report http://www.gao.gov/products/GAO-13-631T

Court budget crisis

The federal courts system has asked for an additional $72.9 million this year to prevent serious impacts on its operations from the sequester.

The Judicial Conference of the United States requested the funds from Congress, according to a report by Fierce Government.

“The judiciary is confronting an unprecedented fiscal crisis that could seriously compromise the constitutional mission of the United States courts,” the May 14 letter from the conference said.

More information: Fierce Government article http://goo.gl/oeRgc