Office of Governmentwide Policy U.S. General Services Administration Stewardship of Federal Property Bob Holcombe Program Director Asset Management Policy (MTA) Office of Travel, Transportation and Asset Management Federal Environmental Symposia

2 Our Responsibility “The President believes that we all have a responsibility to our children to leave this Earth better than we found it. All Americans must have a vested interest in the protection and proper maintenance of our irreplaceable national treasures.” Dana Arnold, the Acting Federal Environmental Executive in announcing the winners of the 2009 White House Closing the Circle (CTC) Awards for outstanding Federal environmental stewardship.

3 Definitions Reuse: Using a product or component (in its original form) more than once; e.g., refilling a glass bottle that has been returned or using a coffee can to hold nuts and bolts. Recycle: A material is “recycled” if it is used, reused, or reclaimed. From EPA website sources

4 Definitions REUSE IS RECYCLING

5 Why Reuse Matters Reuse is accomplished through many different methods: Purchasing durable goods, buying and selling in the used marketplace, borrowing, renting, subscribing to business waste exchanges and making or receiving charitable transfers. It is also achieved by attending to maintenance and repair, as well as by designing in relation to reuse. This may mean developing products that are reusable, long-lived, capable of being remanufactured or creatively refashioning used items. From Adapted from Choose to Reuse, by Nikki & David Goldbeck.

6 Why Reuse Matters Reuse keeps goods and materials out of the waste stream Reuse advances source reduction Reuse preserves the “embodied energy” that was originally used to manufacture an item Reuse reduces the strain on valuable resources, such as fuel, forests and water supplies, and helps safeguard wildlife habitats Reuse creates less air and water pollution than making a new item or recycling Reuse results in less hazardous waste Reuse saves money in purchases and disposal costs Reuse generates new business and employment opportunities for both small entrepreneurs and large enterprises Reuse creates an affordable supply of goods that are often of excellent quality. From Adapted from Choose to Reuse, by Nikki & David Goldbeck.

7 How We Reuse Property  Utilization is Reuse…  Donation is Reuse…  Computers for Learning is Reuse…  Sales offers property for Reuse…

8 Personal Property  Personal Property covers all property, except land and buildings (real property), Federal records, and large naval vessels.  Policies encourage use within the acquiring agency, other federal agencies and public bodies before being sold.  Some agencies have unique laws.

9 GSA and the Federal Asset Management Environment  The Federal Government owns personal property assets valued over $1.3 Trillion.  Policies and Best Practices – GSA OGP.  Operations – GSA FAS.

10 Policy Hierarchy Guidance, Standards, and Best Practices Agency Policy GSA Regulations and Policy Federal Law (40 USC) U.S. Constitution

11 The “Normal” Use and Disposal Cycle

12 General Property Regulations TopicWhere it can be found GeneralFMR – Good place to start Utilization FMR Donation FMR SaleFMR Exchange/saleFMR Special HandlingFPMR (FMR Pending) Abandoned/forfeitedFMR Foreign Gifts FMR Supply/ProcurementSubchapter E (FPMR) (FMR to 28 Pending)

13 General Property Bulletins TopicWhere it can be found Use of Voluntary Consensus Bulletin B-18 Standards Stewardship of Property Bulletin B-17 Use of Photographs in Disposal Bulletin B-14 Use of Exchange/Sale Bulletin B-13 Use of RFID Technology Bulletin B-7 Annual Reports Bulletin B-5 Disposal of Electronic Equipment Bulletin B-4

14 Special Disposal Considerations  Firearms – Policy in coordination with Department of Justice and other agencies.  Hazardous materials and waste – Policy in collaboration with the Environmental Protection Agency and the White House.  Demilitarized assets – Property no longer needed for military purposes must be rendered safe.  Foreign gifts – Policies address appropriate acceptance and retention of gifts from foreign governments.

15 Personal Property Acquisition Priorities (FAR) Priorities for use of Government supply sources. (i) Agency inventories; (ii) Excess from other agencies (see Subpart 8.1); (iii) Federal Prison Industries, Inc. (see Subpart 8.6); (iv) Supplies which are on the Procurement List maintained by the Committee for Purchase From People Who Are Blind or Severely Disabled (see Subpart 8.7); (v) Wholesale supply sources, such as stock programs of the General Services Administration (GSA) (see 41 CFR ), the Defense Logistics Agency (see 41 CFR ), the Department of Veterans Affairs (see 41 CFR ), and military inventory control points; (vi) Mandatory Federal Supply Schedules (see Subpart 8.4); (vii) Optional use Federal Supply Schedules (see Subpart 8.4); and (viii) Commercial sources (including educational and nonprofit institutions).

16 Agency Use and Stewardship of Property (40 USC)  Issue policies and guidance implementing the law and governmentwide regulations  Maintain accountability and control over assets  Reassign property within agency as much as practicable  Obtain excess property from other agencies whenever practicable  Identify and report excess property to GSA promptly  Perform care and handling of assets  Transfer/donate property promptly

17 Exchange/Sale (FMR )  Exchange/sale is a good option for agencies when replacing personal property because the proceeds provide a supplemental source of funding when acquiring new property.  For FY 2007, 26 agencies used exchange/sale, and the exchange allowances/sales proceeds totaled approximately $295 million.  Aircraft and vehicles are prime examples of asset types frequently acquired via this authority.

18 The “Normal” Disposal Process

19 Personal Property Utilization (FMR )  Utilization policies encourage use within the acquiring agency, other Federal agencies and public bodies before being sold.  Federal agencies are encouraged to transfer property to other agencies and public bodies before selling to the public in order to maximize the return and minimize the costs to the taxpayers.  Re-utilization is the practice of transferring functioning used property to others within the same agency.

20 Personal Property Utilization (FMR ) (continued)  If the property is no longer useful for any function within a particular agency, it is declared excess and reported to the General Services Administration (GSA) for possible transfer to eligible recipients.  Other Federal executive agencies are considered eligible recipients.  Transferred excess property is then used by the recipient Federal executive agency.

21 The “Normal” Disposal Process

22 Personal Property Donation (FMR )  If the General Services Administration (GSA) determines that there are no Federal requirements for excess personal property, the property is designated as surplus.  Surplus personal property is available for donation to State and local public agencies and other eligible non- Federal activities.  Donations are made through State Agencies for Surplus Property within each state.  Surplus personal property not selected for donation is offered for sale to the public.

23 Personal Property Donation (FMR ) (continued) For donation success stories, see and search for “donation success stories”.

24 The “Normal” Disposal Process

25 Federal Asset Sales

26 Federal Asset Sales

27 Federal Asset Sales

28 Abandonment/Destruction (FMR et seq ) § —May we abandon or destroy excess personal property without reporting it to GSA? Yes, you may abandon or destroy excess personal property when you have made a written determination that the property has no commercial value or the estimated cost of its continued care and handling would exceed the estimated proceeds from its sale. An item has no commercial value when it has neither utility nor monetary value (either as an item or as scrap).

29 Abandonment/Destruction (FMR et seq ) § —Who makes the determination to abandon or destroy excess personal property? To abandon or destroy excess personal property, an authorized official of your agency makes a written finding that must be approved by a reviewing official who is not directly accountable for the property.

30 Abandonment/Destruction (FMR et seq ) § —Are there any restrictions to the use of the abandonment/ destruction authority? Yes, the following restrictions apply: (a) You must not abandon or destroy property in a manner which is detrimental or dangerous to public health or safety. Additional guidelines for the abandonment/destruction of hazardous materials are prescribed in part of this title. (b) If you become aware of an interest from an entity in purchasing the property, you must implement sales procedures in lieu of abandonment/destruction.

31 Policy Hierarchy Guidance, Standards, and Best Practices Agency Policy GSA Regulations and Policy Federal Law (40 USC) U.S. Constitution

32 Policy Hierarchy – The Constitution Article 4, Section 3 The Congress shall have Power to dispose of and make all needful Rules and Regulations respecting the Territory or other Property belonging to the United States…;

33 Policy Hierarchy – Federal Law (Recodified under Public Law ) Sec Administrative … c) REGULATIONS BY ADMINISTRATOR- (1) GENERAL AUTHORITY- The Administrator may prescribe regulations to carry out this subtitle.

34 Policy Hierarchy – Federal Law (Recodified under Public Law ) Sec Administrative … c) (2) REQUIRED REGULATIONS AND ORDERS- The Administrator shall prescribe regulations that the Administrator considers necessary to carry out the Administrator's functions under this subtitle and the head of each executive agency shall issue orders and directives that the agency head considers necessary to carry out the regulations.

35 Policy Hierarchy – Federal Law (Recodified under Public Law ) Sec Duties of executive agencies (a) REQUIRED- Each executive agency shall-- (1) maintain adequate inventory controls and accountability systems for property under its control; (2) continuously survey property under its control to identify excess property; (3) promptly report excess property to the Administrator of General Services; (4) perform the care and handling of excess property; and (5) transfer or dispose of excess property as promptly as possible in accordance with authority delegated and regulations prescribed by the Administrator.

36 Policy Hierarchy – Federal Law (Recodified under Public Law ) Sec Duties of executive agencies … (b) REQUIRED AS FAR AS PRACTICABLE- Each executive agency, as far as practicable, shall-- (1) reassign property to another activity within the agency when the property is no longer required for the purposes of the appropriation used to make the purchase; (2) transfer excess property under its control to other federal agencies and to organizations specified in section 321(c)(2) of this title; and (3) obtain excess property from other federal agencies.

37 Policy Hierarchy – Agency Policy Sec Administrative … c) (2) REQUIRED REGULATIONS AND ORDERS- The Administrator shall prescribe regulations that the Administrator considers necessary to carry out the Administrator's functions under this subtitle and the head of each executive agency shall issue orders and directives that the agency head considers necessary to carry out the regulations.

38 Policy Hierarchy – Guidance, Standards, and Best Practices  GSA Publishes Guidance in Several Areas Bulletins Management Review Guides Flashes  Voluntary Consensus Standards are Published by ASTM and cover many property management areas.  Best Practices can be obtained through collaboration with GSA and other Federal Agencies and Benchmarking.

39 Other Policies  Stevenson-Wydler (15 USC 3710 et seq)  Allows transfers of research equipment directly to certain institutions.  Executive Order – Computers for Learning  Allows transfers of computers and related equipment to schools and educational institutions, as well as encourages agencies to assist schools in setting up their IT infrastructure.

40 Other Policies  Sales of Scrap under Public Law Allows retention of proceeds related to recycling programs  OMB Circulars and Executive Orders For example; OMB Circular A-126 – Management and Use of Government Aircraft Executive Orders covering Green programs, Real Property Management, Internal Controls, and Grants.

41 New Directions  OMB Circular A-123, Appendix B – Receipt and management of property acquired by purchase card.  GSA requested to review guidance governing vessels.  Closer alignment with Federal Acquisition Regulation.  Proposed GSA legislation.  New policies in regulations Exchange/sale Items requiring special handling Utilization

42 Contact Information Bob Holcombe (202)