General Services Administration


The General Services Administration is an independent agency of the United States government established in 1949 to help manage and support the basic functioning of federal agencies. The GSA supplies products and communications for U.S. government offices, provides transportation, office space, building services, and property management to federal employees, agencies, and develops government-wide cost-minimizing policies and other management tasks.
The GSA employs about 12,000 federal workers. It has an annual operating budget of roughly $33 billion and oversees $66 billion of procurement annually. It contributes to the management of about $500 billion in U.S. federal property, divided chiefly among 8,397 owned and leased buildings as well as a 215,000-vehicle motor pool. Among the real estate assets it manages are the Ronald Reagan Building and International Trade Center in Washington, D.C., which is the largest U.S. federal building after the Pentagon.
The GSA's business lines include the Federal Acquisition Service and the Public Buildings Service, as well as several Staff Offices including the Office of Government-wide Policy, the Office of Small Business Utilization, and the Office of Mission Assurance. As part of FAS, GSA's Technology Transformation Services helps federal agencies improve the delivery of information and services to the public. Initiatives include the Presidential Innovation Fellows program, 18F, Login.gov, Cloud.gov, FedRAMP, the USAGov platform, Data.gov, Challenge.gov, the U.S. Web Design System, and I.T. Modernization Centers of Excellence.
The GSA is a member of the Procurement G6, an informal group leading the use of framework agreements and e-procurement instruments in public procurement.

History

In 1947, President Harry Truman asked former president Herbert Hoover to lead what became known as the Hoover Commission to make recommendations to reorganize the operations of the federal government. One of the commission's recommendations was the establishment of an "Office of the General Services", to combine the responsibilities of the following organizations:
  • United States Department of the Treasury's Bureau of Federal Supply
  • U.S. Treasury Department's Office of Contract Settlement
  • National Archives Establishment
  • All functions of the Federal Works Agency, including the Public Buildings Administration and the Public Roads Administration
  • War Assets Administration
GSA became an independent agency on July 1, 1949, after the passage of the Federal Property and Administrative Services Act. General Jess Larson, administrator of the War Assets Administration, was named GSA's first administrator.
The first job awaiting Administrator Larson and the newly formed GSA was a complete renovation of the White House. The structure had fallen into such a state of disrepair by 1949 that one inspector said it was standing "purely from habit". Larson later explained the total renovation in depth by saying, "In order to make the White House structurally sound, it was necessary to completely dismantle, and I mean completely dismantle, everything from the White House except the four walls, which were constructed of stone. Everything, except the four walls without a roof, was finally stripped down, and that's where the work started." GSA worked closely with President Truman and First Lady Bess Truman to ensure that the new agency's first major project would be a success. GSA completed the renovation in 1952.
In 1960, GSA created the Federal Telecommunications System, a government-wide intercity telephone system. In 1962 the Ad Hoc Committee on Federal Office Space created a new building program to address obsolete office buildings in Washington, D.C., resulting in the construction of many of the offices that now line Independence Avenue.
In 1970, the Nixon administration created the Consumer Product Information Coordinating Center, now part of USAGov. In 1974 the Federal Buildings Fund was initiated, allowing GSA to issue rent bills to federal agencies. In 1972 GSA established the Automated Data and Telecommunications Service, which later became the Office of Information Resources Management. In 1973 GSA created the Office of Federal Management Policy. GSA's Office of Acquisition Policy centralized procurement policy in 1978. GSA was initially responsible for emergency preparedness and stockpiling strategic materials to be used in wartime until those functions were transferred to the newly created Federal Emergency Management Agency in 1979.
In 1984, GSA introduced the federal government to the use of charge cards, known as the GSA SmartPay system. The National Archives and Records Administration was spun off into an independent agency in 1985. The same year, GSA began providing government-wide policy oversight and guidance for federal real property management as a result of an executive order signed by President Ronald Reagan.
In 1986, GSA headquarters, U.S. General Services Administration Building, located at Eighteenth and F Streets, NW, was listed on the National Register of Historic Places, at the time serving as Interior Department offices.
In 2003, the Federal Protective Service, which secures GSA-managed buildings, was moved to the United States Department of Homeland Security. In 2005, GSA reorganized to merge the Federal Supply Service and Federal Technology Service business lines into the Federal Acquisition Service.
On April 3, 2009, President Barack Obama nominated Martha N. Johnson to serve as GSA Administrator. After a nine-month delay, the United States Senate confirmed her nomination on February 4, 2010. On April 2, 2012, Johnson resigned in the wake of a management-deficiency report that detailed improper payments for a 2010 "Western Regions" training conference held by the Public Buildings Service in Las Vegas.
In 2013, a result of the Open Government Initiative's instruction for federal agencies to open their activities to the public, GSA developed Data.gov to foster transparency and information sharing. In the same year, GSA also launched the Total Workplace initiative to modernize the workplace of federal agencies and increase efficiency, alongside the Presidential Innovation Fellows and the 18F programs. In 2016, the and Making It Easier programs were launched to assist buyers from federal agencies in acquisitions, and to assist new companies in doing business with the government. Improvements were also made in the deliverance of digital government services with the creation of the Technology Transformation Services.
After the election of President Donald Trump in January 2025, GSA became one of the US federal entities targeted by Elon Musk. Members of the Department of Government Efficiency accessed GSA laptops and internal GSA infrastructure. An employee of Elon Musk's company Tesla, Thomas Shedd, was appointed to lead "Technology Transformation Services" within the GSA.

Controversies

Ted Weiss Federal Building controversy

In July 1991, GSA contractors began the excavation of what is now the Ted Weiss Federal Building in New York City. The planning for that building did not take into account the possibility of encountering the historic cemetery for colonial-era African New Yorkers located beneath the footprint of the $276 million office building. When initial excavation disturbed burials, destroying skeletons and artifacts, GSA sent archaeologists to excavate—but hid their findings from the public. Revelation of the discoveries led to 18 months of activism by African-descendant community members, public officials, academics, and concerned citizens. Ultimately, GSA made public amends by funding extensive scientific research under the auspices of Michael Blakey; creating a new subagency, the Office of Public Education and Interpretation; truncating the building plan; and funding public reports on the story of the African Burial Ground. The efforts led to the creation of a new unit of the National Park Service, the African Burial Ground National Monument, at the facility. GSA fully funded that portion of the National Park Service until 2010, when GSA's formal involvement with the African Burial Ground ceased.

Lurita Doan controversy

During President George W. Bush's Administration GSA Administrator, Lurita Doan, was forced to resign after GSA had awarded a sole source contract for $20,000 to her friend. Doan appeared to have violated the Hatch Act and was criticized for political activity while on the job. The investigating team recommended she be punished to the fullest extent, and she resigned soon after.

Western Regions Training Conference controversy

In 2012, U.S. representative John Mica, chairman of the House Transportation and Infrastructure Committee, called for a congressional investigation into the misuse of federal money by GSA. Lawmakers accused GSA of "lavish spending" following the 2010 Western Regions Training Conference at the M Resort in Las Vegas.
GSA spent $823,000 in taxpayer money toward the October 2010 convention, including $100,405.37 spent on employee travel costs for a total of eight pre-planning meetings, scouting trips, and a "dry run". The report also found excessive spending for event planners, gifts for participants, and lavish meals.
The conference had been the most recent in a series of similar lavish conferences organized by regions of GSA's Public Buildings Service. In May 2010 GSA treated 120 interns to a five-day conference at a Palm Springs, California, resort. An additional investigation led by Inspector General Brian D. Miller found 115 missing Apple iPods meant for an employee rewards program.
GSA administrator Martha N. Johnson resigned in the wake of the controversy, after firing Public Buildings Service head Robert Peck and senior advisor Stephen Leeds. Four regional commissioners of the Service, who had been responsible for planning the conference, were placed on administrative leave.