President Donald Trump signed an executive order Thursday greatly expanding the General Services Administration’s role as a buying agent for federal agencies.
The order attempts to bring the enormous swath of purchases that routinely need to be made by federal agencies under one roof to drive down overall costs.
In a fact sheet, the White House notes that GSA can purchase common necessities across the federal bureaucracy at lower prices than market rate. A band saw blade bought by GSA cost on average 22 percent less than from a commercial store, and a 50-inch flat screen television bought through GSA is on average 30 percent cheaper than those found on the commercial market, the fact sheet said.
The consolidation will “eliminate waste, inefficiencies, and duplication and enable agencies to focus on their core mission of delivering excellent services to the American people,” according to the fact sheet.
