Federal Housing and Urban Development (HUD) integrates into General Services Administration's (GSA) centralized procurement services experiment

Federal Housing and Urban Development (HUD) integrates into General Services Administration's (GSA) centralized procurement services experiment

The United States General Services Administration (GSA) is spearheading a significant initiative to implement the GO.gov platform across all civilian agencies by the spring of 2027, well before the expiration of the current E-Gov Travel Service 2 contract in December 2027.

The initiative, which began in earnest in July when the platform was renamed GO.gov, is part of a broader effort to consolidate the buying of common goods and services. This consolidation was prompted by President Donald Trump's executive order from March.

One of the key moves in this direction was the transfer of the Common Procurement Management for civil agencies to the GSA. However, the exact responsible party for this duty remains unspecified in the search results.

The Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) has already moved its contracting for common goods and services to the GSA. Similarly, the Office of Personnel Management (OPM) and the Small Business Administration (SBA) are using GSA's Office of Centralized Acquisition Services (OCAS) under the category management initiative. Since March, GSA is managing over 908 contracts worth $1.5 billion from OPM and SBA.

Each agency is working through a project plan with some flexibility to customize their own critical milestones. The transition path for all agencies will include preparation, testing, closeout of the old system, and ensuring smooth integration. The first agencies, including GSA and the Department of Homeland Security's Federal Law Enforcement Training Center (FLETC), are expected to go live with GO.gov in November.

The future design of OCAS includes six functional offices to focus on operations, acquisition delivery, acquisition talent, compliance, customer engagement, and program performance. GSA's efforts to buy common goods and services for OPM and SBA are 37% more efficient than what the agencies did on their own, resulting in $6.5 million in savings through increased visibility and reduced software license and support services spent.

Moreover, GSA has achieved significant savings with GO.gov. The platform is expected to save up to $131 million in related travel savings annually. The technical configuration work with IBM, who manages the back end for GO.gov, starts six months before the deployment.

The initial pilots with OPM and SBA are showing promise, with approximately $2 billion in administrative efficiencies expected over the life of the contract. GSA is waiting for OMB's approval to finalize the standup of OCAS. Engagement with agencies about the transition begins one year before their scheduled deployment date.

The GSA awarded a 15-year, $930.5 million contract to IBM for its new travel management system, GO.gov, in November. The goal is to implement GO.gov across all civilian agencies by the spring of 2027, well ahead of when the current E-Gov Travel Service 2 contract expires in December 2027.

Read also:

• Strategizing the Integration of Digital Menus as a Core Element in Business Operations
• Financial Actions of BlockDAG Following Inter and Borussia Agreements: Anticipating Future Steps
• International powers, including France, Germany, and the UK, advocate for the reinstatement of sanctions against Iran.
• Companies urged to combat employee resignation crisis, as per findings from the Addeco Group