by Brianna Crandall — February 8, 2015—The U.S. General Services Administration (GSA) announced plans this week for major construction and repair projects outlined in President Obama’s 2016 budget request. For the first time, the president has included a provision for advanced funding of the Federal Buildings Fund program for Fiscal Year 2017 while also calling for targeted, commonsense investments to modernize America’s public buildings, says GSA.
GSA Administrator Dan Tangherlini said the president’s budget supports GSA’s long-term plan to dramatically improve America’s real estate infrastructure: “President Obama’s budget proposal is a testament to our commitment to rebuild our nation’s infrastructure for the 21st century. Advanced funding for the Federal Buildings program will give GSA the ability to plan long term, providing certainty to communities across the country with pending investment needs. With Congress’ support, Americans will benefit from energy- and cost-efficient public buildings, modern and secure ports that keep our country safe and promote economic growth, savings from a significantly reduced federal footprint, and historic properties that are properly maintained for generations to come.”
The president has made several additional investments in supporting U.S. infrastructure. This budget includes:
- $200 million to further GSA’s efforts to consolidate agencies within existing government-owned and leased space across the country to improve space utilization, decrease reliance on leased space, increase energy and water conservation, and reduce the federal government’s footprint;
- $191 million to improve land ports of entry facilities in New Mexico and New York, supporting increased security and trade throughout the country; and
- $60 million to improve safety systems, meet security requirements, cut energy costs, and reduce water consumption in buildings across the country.
The proposal also includes more than $250 million in much-needed funds for GSA’s appropriated accounts. This includes $62 million for the Office of Government-wide Policy to develop policies and tools to drive savings and effectiveness in a number of areas, including procurement and travel. It also contains $58 million for the Office of Citizen Services and Innovative Technologies to deliver technology services to help federal agencies serve the American people as effectively and efficiently as possible.
GSA has made available the FY 2016 Congressional Justification document on its Web site, as well as a map of GSA’s FY2016 Budget Requests, available on Pinterest.
