GSA FOCUSED ON STRETCHING TAX DOLLARS

Bargains from Washington must seem rare. When was the last time you read a positive story about the federal bureaucracy? Or an agency that saved taxpayer dollars by improving programs or making tough business decisions?

Such agencies exist, and the U.S. General Services Administration (GSA) is among them. GSA was created in 1949 to handle the business of government. That is, GSA provides goods, services and workspace to all the other agencies at best value so they can concentrate on their core missions.

Maybe you’ve heard of GSA. If so, it’s doubtful you know that GSA practically supports itself. Less than 2 percent of GSA funding comes from Congress. Instead, GSA runs off the fees it charges for supplying all those goods and services to the other agencies. They don’t have to use GSA, but many choose to because buying in bulk enables us to offer steep discounts. Sound familiar?

The notion of a self-funding federal agency may not take the entire sting out of this April 15 th, but it might help a little. So will this:

• GSA offers discount commercial airfares to feds on official business at an average savings of 67 percent below full commercial fares;
• GSA Fleet saves customers about 42 percent off of commercially available vehicle leasing options;
• GSA’s E-Travel initiative saved the Treasury Department $402,000 in travel management fees last year;
• The Federal Acquisition Institute saves taxpayers about 40 percent off commercial training prices by strategically sourcing training;
• Projects with GSA Public Buildings Service brokers are more than 13 percent below the real estate market. And thanks to increased efficiency, leasing fees to customer agencies last year declined from 8 to 7 percent;
• GSA’s automotive services obtain volume discounts for customers by consolidating motor vehicle acquisitions across the federal government, generating a 28 percent savings for customer agencies;
• And GSA-managed USA.gov and GobiernoUSA.gov, which provide easy access to official government information and services, were featured on TIME Magazine’s “sites we can’t live without.”

GSA has also been working steadily to: improve its emergency response capabilities, speed construction at badly congested U.S. land ports of entry; promote telework throughout the government; help “green” the government by highlighting environmentally-friendly products and services; and to expand federal contracting opportunities for small businesses.

This is not the proverbial tree in the forest, by the way. When agencies become more efficient and effective, taxpayers benefit, whether or not there’s a story in the press. That’s news worth knowing the month we all pay our taxes.

Lurita Doan is Administrator of the U.S. General Services Administration