Category: US GSA

Source: United States General Services Administration

May 26, 2023

GSA Does That!? is an agency-wide podcast produced by the U.S. General Services Administration. Created to give listeners the inside scoop on how GSA delivers effective and efficient government services, the podcast will feature content that appeals to federal partners, industry, potential employees and everyone in between.

GSA Does That!? features interviews with senior federal officials, subject matter experts, and others who will provide fresh perspectives on GSA’s work. Whether you’re a policy wonk or just looking to learn more about how government works, the podcast promises to have content you’ll enjoy.

New episodes will be released every two weeks and are available across all major podcasting platforms.

Source: United States General Services Administration

May 26, 2023

BOSTON – Each May, the U.S. General Services Administration (GSA), offers lighthouses to the public and other entities as part of its mission to deliver value and savings in federal real estate for taxpayers. This year, GSA is offering a record number of lighthouses, including at least six to nonprofits and government entities and at least four to the public through auctions.

Lighthouses have long served as beacons for those at sea or on inland waters, marking dangerous coastlines and underwater hazards such as rocks and reefs as well as marking safe entries to harbors. As technology advanced, and lighthouses became less essential to navigation, lighthouses often fell into neglect or were demolished.

While the U. S. Coast Guard (USCG) may continue to maintain active aids to navigation at or near specific lighthouses, the structures themselves are often no longer critical to the USCG’s mission needs. To protect the history and heritage of lighthouses, Congress passed the National Historic Lighthouse Preservation Act in 2000.

The NHLPA recognizes the significance of historic lighthouses for maritime traffic, coastal communities, nonprofits and lighthouse enthusiasts. The NHLPA program – a partnership among the USCG, Department of Homeland Security, Department of Interior, National Park Service (NPS), and GSA – transfers these historic landmarks from the USCG to new owners.

Initially, under the NHLPA, lighthouses may be transferred at no cost to federal agencies, state and local governments, nonprofits, educational agencies, and community development organizations. These entities must be financially able to maintain the historic light station, and make the station available for education, park, recreation, cultural, or historic preservation purposes for the public at reasonable times and under reasonable conditions. This process starts with GSA issuing a Notice of Availability (NOA) and is followed by an application review by the NPS.

If a new owner is not found through the NOA process, the lighthouse is offered for competitive sale to the public by GSA through an online auction.

This year, GSA has issued NOAs for six historic lighthouses in five states.

• Lynde Point Lighthouse, Old Saybrook, Connecticut.
• Nobska Lighthouse, Falmouth (Woods Hole), Massachusetts.
• Plymouth/Gurnet Lighthouse, Plymouth, Massachusetts.
• Warwick Neck Light, Warwick, Rhode Island.
• Little Mark Island and Monument, Harpswell, Maine.
• Erie Harbor North Pier Lighthouse, Erie, Pennsylvania. (NOA period recently closed.)

Additionally, GSA is offering four historic lighthouses for sale by auction.

• Penfield Reef Lighthouse, Fairfield, Connecticut.
• Stratford Shoal Light, East Setauket, New York.
• Cleveland Harbor West Pierhead Light, Cleveland, Ohio.
• Keweenaw Waterway Lower Entrance Light, Chassell, Michigan.

Since the NHLPA program’s inception in 2000, over 150 lighthouses have been conveyed to new owners, including 81 lights to local governments and nonprofit entities through no-cost transfers and about 70 sold via public auction, which raised over $10 million dollars for the USCG to reinvest in its Aids to Navigation mission. (Auction sales have ranged from $10,000 to $933,888.)

Costs for upkeep of lighthouses are relative to what the new owner plans to do. A total restoration could be thousands of dollars while a simple cleaning is much less. New owners should expect to have to paint, clean, and possibly restore broken or missing items. Most lighthouses do not have any utilities, so there would be a cost associated with making the lighthouse livable.

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About GSA: GSA provides centralized procurement and shared services for the Federal Government, managing a nationwide real estate portfolio of nearly 370 million rentable square feet, overseeing approximately $75 billion in annual contracts, and delivering technology services that serve millions of people across dozens of Federal agencies. GSA’s mission is to deliver the best customer experience and value in real estate, acquisition, and technology services to the government and the American people. For more information, visit GSA.gov and follow us at @USGSA.

Source: United States General Services Administration

Episode 1 of “GSA Does That!?” features an interview between GSA Administrator Robin Carnahan and Presidential Innovation Fellow (PIF) Executive Director Rebeca Lamadrid. The episode showcases the behind-the-scenes, forward-thinking nature of technology and innovation in government work, especially within GSA and among our agency partners.

Administrator Carnahan conveys her strong interest in helping tech and innovation experts choose public service to help enrich the lives of Americans and enhance government operations. Director Lamadrid explains why the PIF program is a great example of how to do just that and how PIF participants are making an impact by working on big challenges across many federal agencies.

With GSA now focusing on areas like improved customer experience across government, now is the perfect time for you or those you know to engage with the PIF program whether as a participant or as a partner agency.

This year’s window for interested individuals to apply for the PIF program is open until June 23, 2023. More information, including how to apply, can be found at www.pif.gov.

Stay tuned for episode 2, where we’ll hear from current PIFs about their innovative projects and diverse experiences within the program.

Want to know more?

For a deeper dive into technology at GSA and across the government, look at these resources to learn more.

Source: United States General Services Administration

May 24, 2023

Contact:

Press@gsa.gov or FSISPress@usda.gov

NORMANDY, Missouri — USDA Under Secretary for Food Safety Dr. J. Emilio Esteban, GSA Administrator Robin Carnahan, USDA Food Safety and Inspection Service Administrator Paul Kiecker, and City of Normandy Mayor Mark Beckmann today celebrated the groundbreaking for the new home of the USDA’s Food Safety and Inspection Service Midwestern Laboratory in Normandy, Missouri.

The state-of-the-art facility will both incorporate and support science and technology to address present and future public health challenges. This facility will also support a deeper commitment to sustainability to help minimize environmental impact from construction to operation while ensuring efficiencies that save taxpayer dollars.

Consistent with GSA’s mission to acquire space on behalf of other government agencies, GSA signed a lease with US Federal Properties for a term of 20 years and a total contract value of $115,540,000. US Federal Properties has hired McCarthy Building Companies based in Des Peres, Missouri, to serve as the General Contractor.

“Our labs are crucial to the work we do in protecting the U.S. food supply and exports touching every corner of the world,” said Dr. J. Emilio Esteban, USDA Under Secretary for Food Safety. “This new facility will allow the FSIS Midwestern Lab to incorporate advancements in science and technology to meet present and future challenges in food safety and public health.”

“At GSA, we want all federal spaces to empower employees to do their best work, bolster the missions of agencies like USDA, and support the local community,” said GSA Administrator Robin Carnahan. “This partnership with USDA’s Food Safety and Inspection Service and the community of Normandy is going to help ensure that federal employees have a safe, state-of-the-art, and sustainable facility where they can continue to provide great service to the American people.”

“This is the first FSIS laboratory construction in recent years where we have been able to participate in the top-to-bottom design process to specifically meet our needs,” said Paul Kiecker, Administrator of the USDA Food Safety and Inspection Service. “This new facility will advance FSIS’ operational excellence, increase our overall efficiency because of our close proximity to a major airport, and enable us to recruit the next generation of talented employees from St. Louis colleges and universities.”

The building is currently under design. Construction site preparation work will start this summer with site and civil work completed in the fall and building construction in 2024 and 2025.

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About GSA: GSA provides centralized procurement and shared services for the federal government, managing a nationwide real estate portfolio of nearly 370 million rentable square feet, overseeing approximately $75 billion in annual contracts, and delivering technology services that serve millions of people across dozens of federal agencies. GSA’s mission is to deliver the best customer experience and value in real estate, acquisition, and technology services to the government and the American people.

About USDA – FSIS: The Food Safety and Inspection Service is the public health regulatory agency within the United States Department of Agriculture (USDA) responsible for ensuring that domestic and imported meat, poultry, and egg products are safe, wholesome, and properly labeled.

Source: United States General Services Administration

May 30, 2023

WASHINGTON – Today, GSA launched the first episode of its first agency-wide podcast. GSA Does That!? provides a platform to share the latest news and insights, and discuss the impactful – and sometimes surprising – efforts that help GSA and government deliver for the American people.

The podcast will feature guests including GSA leaders and experts in federal real estate, acquisitions, and technology, as well as an array of GSA partners, customers, and others who work with the agency to help government work better.

“Through this podcast we’re amplifying the most interesting, timely and important discussions about how we and our federal customers are providing real value to taxpayers and delivering for the American public,” said GSA Administrator Robin Carnahan. “Whether you’re a policy wonk or just someone who likes to know more about how government delivers, you’ll fit right in as part of this listener community.”

In the first episode, the podcast’s host (Rob Trubia) talks with Administrator Carnahan and the executive director of the Presidential Innovation Fellows program, Rebeca Lamadrid. The three highlight how the “PIF” program is bringing dozens of experienced tech leaders into government each year to help agencies harness technology and meet their ambitious goals.

“Our fellows are helping agencies leapfrog into the future, and most of them are sticking around after their fellowships to eventually serve in key roles like U.S. Chief Data Scientist and Chief Technology Officer at the U.S. Department of Veteran Affairs,” Lamadrid says. “With the application season open now for applicants for a new cohort, there couldn’t be a better time to have this conversation.”

Future episodes (about every two weeks) will feature topics like the importance of making it easier for small businesses to work with government, the transition of the federal fleet to zero-emissions vehicles, the importance of community engagement for agencies like GSA that have a big nationwide footprint, and more.

Episodes are available across podcasting platforms as well as GSA.gov/podcast, where bonus content will be posted.

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About GSA: GSA provides centralized procurement and shared services for the Federal Government, managing a nationwide real estate portfolio of nearly 370 million rentable square feet, overseeing approximately $75 billion in annual contracts, and delivering technology services that serve millions of people across dozens of Federal agencies. GSA’s mission is to deliver the best customer experience and value in real estate, acquisition, and technology services to the government and the American people. For more information, visit GSA.gov and follow us at @USGSA.