March 2019
The GSA SmartPay® Program is the world’s largest government charge-card and commercial payment-solutions program, providing services to more than 560 federal agencies, organizations, and Native American tribal governments. GSA SmartPay’s payment solutions enable authorized government employees to make purchases on behalf of the federal government in support of their organization’s mission.
The program provides agencies and other organizations with a comprehensive portfolio of purchase, travel, fleet, and integrated payment solutions. A master contract with multiple banks enables agencies and organizations across the federal government to obtain payment solutions to support mission needs.
Learn more at https://smartpay.gsa.gov/.
GSA City Pair Program Saves Travel Dollars
The City Pair Program (CPP) offers fares considerably lower than comparable commercial fares, saving the federal government billions of dollars annually. In addition to offering considerable discounts, the City Pair Program allows the federal government maximum flexibility in how it books air travel, with benefits including no cancellation or change fees. The benefits of this service include:
- Fares priced on one-way routes, permitting agencies to plan multiple destinations
- No advance purchase required
- No minimum or maximum length of stay required
- Fully refundable tickets
- Last-seat availability
- No blackout periods
- Stable prices enabling travel budgeting
- Dual fares availability
When booking travel, the traveler should use their authorized travel management system: the E-Gov Travel Service for civilian-agency travelers or the Defense Travel System for Department of Defense travelers.. To learn more, visit our website.
Use FedRooms to Get Hotel Rooms at or Below Per Diem
FedRooms® provides government travelers on official business with hotel rooms that meet Federal Travel Regulation (FTR) requirements. The Office of Management and Budget (OMB) designated FedRooms as a Best-in-Class (BIC) contract solution! It complies with the tenets of category management and helps federal agencies manage their travel budgets and support their missions.
The FedRooms contract solution leverages government buying power, offering FEMA- and ADA-compliant hotel rooms at or below per diem around the globe. Between 2015 and 2018, annual cost avoidance to the government while using FedRooms properties and rates increased from $7.7 million to $30 million.
Nearly 6,700 properties offer the FedRooms rate with no hidden costs, same-day cancellation, and no early-checkout fees. By using GSA’s BIC FedRooms temporary-duty (TDY) lodging solution, agencies can save money and achieve OMB’s goal of increasing spend under management.
Visit the FedRooms website to learn more.
Get Comprehensive Furniture Management Services through GSA MAS 71 II K
GSA provides a wide variety of management services related to furniture and furnishings under Multiple Award Schedule (MAS) 71 II K, Comprehensive Furniture Management Services. This Schedule covers services to help federal agencies plan and manage major office upgrades, relocations, and reconfigurations by providing access to professional project managers, designers, asset-management systems, and furniture-maintenance services, such as refinishing and re-upholstering.
For more information, visit www.gsa.gov/cfms.
GSA can Provide Your Agency with Personal Property Solutions
Taxpayers count on federal employees to manage tax dollars effectively. Federal agencies are entrusted with $1.3 trillion in personal property assets owned by the government. GSA offers solutions that enable agencies to:
- Dispose of unneeded property through transfer, donation, and sale
- Obtain excess property from other federal agencies
- Obtain funds to acquire replacement property
Check out this publication on how GSA can help your agency.
Make Procurements Easier with FAR Venn Diagrams
Have you ever struggled with what language and which part of the FAR to use for your procurement? Worried about protests for not using the appropriate terms in your solicitation? Fear no more because Document Library now has two guides to help you better conduct your acquisitions!
Check out our original Acquisition Gateway FAR Venn diagrams on 8.4 vs 15 and 15.3 vs 16.5 to get started building better procurements.
Keep an Eye Out for Gateway U’s Spring Session
Acquisition Gateway University – a.k.a. Gateway U – is our two-week series of virtual demos on the Acquisition Gateway and category management. We offer ten one-hour training sessions, and you can earn a Continuous Learning Point (CLP) for each session you fully attend. Gateway U is exclusively for federal employees.
Join us to:
- Become an expert on the tools and digital services available on the Acquisition Gateway and how they can help improve your acquisitions
- Gain skills to improve the government’s buying power and reduce contract duplication
- Earn CLPs to maintain your certifications
Gateway U will take place from April 22 to May 3, from 1 to 2 p.m. (ET).
For more information, check out Gateway Central – and be on the lookout for the registration link, which will go live soon.
Take Advantage of GSA Training Opportunities
GSA offers a wide variety of training opportunities to help you achieve your agency’s mission goals. Visit GSA’s Upcoming Events and Training page for dates and locations of GSA-sponsored seminars, workshops, meetings, and other events.
For other training opportunities, visit the GSA Training Programs page for descriptions, by topic, of webinars and other online training offered to federal employees and vendors.
For More Information and Customer Service
If you have questions or want more information about any of GSA’s solutions or programs, contact the National Customer Service Center (NCSC) at (800) 488-3111 or NCSCcustomer.service@gsa.gov.
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