Purchasing Made Easy

In the last issue, we described shortcuts designed to lighten the load of a procurement official in the event of an emergency (See Government Security, Dec. 2006, page 18). But what if there is no emergency? Are there still ways an agency can buy goods or services with little or no hassle?

Procurement

Enter GSA Schedules — the government’s equivalent of a mail order catalog. They provide agencies with a quick, efficient and simple method of procuring commercially available supplies and services. Technically speaking, a GSA Schedule is an “indefinite delivery, indefinite quantity” contract awarded by the General Services Administration (GSA), which acts as the government’s central point of contact and managing agent.

GSA negotiates each GSA Schedule to obtain a discount from the contractor’s commercial list price, thus doing most of the hard work for user agencies. The agencies can then place purchase orders for goods or services listed in a contractor’s GSA Schedule without the need to follow some of the more complex and time-consuming procurement regulations that would otherwise apply.

There is now a GSA Schedule for almost every type of commercial good or service imaginable, including CCTV cameras, lenses, video recorders, DVD players, computers and disk drives, and services including the design and installation of command centers, film production, guard services and landscaping. If a product is commercially available, it is almost certainly made available on Schedule. Flugelhorns, whistles and sky-writing services are all available for agencies in need.

GSA Schedules are relatively easy to use. For example, agencies and other authorized users may place orders against a GSA Schedule without first publicizing the procurement at www.fedbizopps.gov, no matter what the purchase order price. To be clear, an agency can award a multi-million dollar order without prior publication.

The requirements for placing a GSA Schedule order are set forth in Federal Acquisition Regulations (FAR) 8.404. These requirements apply

• depending on the Maximum Order threshold of the contract; and

• whether the procurement is for hourly services, requiring a Statement of Work (SOW), or is for goods and/or fixed price services not requiring a SOW, such as installation or maintenance services.

Every GSA Schedule has a Maximum Order threshold established for each Special Item Number (SIN), under which the items are sold. This Maximum Order threshold represents the dollar point where the ordering agency is required to seek additional competition and price reductions. The Maximum Order varies from SIN to SIN, so the contracting official must first determine the applicable Maximum Order before deciding which ordering procedures apply.

In addition to FAR Part 8.4, users can also go to GSA’s website at www.gsa.gov and search for “how to order from GSA Schedules.” The accompanying chart provides a quick breakdown.

Other agency-specific requirements may also apply. For example, the rules are a little different for defense agencies when ordering services exceeding $100,000. At that point additional ordering procedures and documentation requirements apply.

Because of their ease of use, GSA Schedule contracts have become the procurement vehicle of choice. With the government’s downsizing having reduced the number of procurement specialists, agencies, now more than ever, should consider GSA Schedules as a cost-efficient and time-saving alternative to complex procurement processes they have dealt with in the past.

Andrew Mohr is a partner in the law firm of Cohen Mohr LLP. E-mail him at [email protected].