United States Government Publishing Office publisher pbl distributor dst United States Government Accountability Office author aut Government Organization text government publication eng GAOREPORTS Legislative Agency Publications gao legislative 2010-08-12 U.S. Government Printing Office 2003-04-30 monographic deposited born digital 164 p. GA 1.13:GAO-03-443 https://www.govinfo.gov/app/details/GAOREPORTS-GAO-03-443 P0b002ee18037bb86 f:d03443 DGPO 2010-08-12 2011-03-28 GAOREPORTS-GAO-03-443 machine generated eng fdlp REPORT GAOREPORTS-GAO-03-443 GAO-03-443 Federal procurement Procurement policy Procurement practices Labor force Human resources utilization Other Written Product A06735 The federal government, comprised of more than 60 agencies and nearly 1.7 million civilian workers, acquires most of its goods and services through contracts. Recent changes in what the government buys, its contracting approaches and methods, and its acquisition workforce have combined to create a dynamic acquisition environment. Many of these recent changes enhance contracting efficiency and offer a number of benefits, such as reduced administrative burdens. However, GAO's past work has found that if these changes are not accompanied by proper training, guidance, and internal controls, agency procurements may be at greater risk. While effectively managing contracts is always a key management responsibility, this responsibility is more acute in those agencies that rely heavily on acquisitions to accomplish their missions. The goal of this report is to identify for Congress, the administration, and accountability organizations those procurement-related trends and challenges that may affect federal agencies. Specifically, GAO analyzed recent federal procurement patterns, the use of various procurement methods, and changes in the acquisition workforce. https://www.govinfo.gov/content/pkg/GAOREPORTS-GAO-03-443/html/GAOREPORTS-GAO-03-443.htm https://www.govinfo.gov/content/pkg/GAOREPORTS-GAO-03-443/pdf/GAOREPORTS-GAO-03-443.pdf GAO-03-443 https://www.govinfo.gov/app/details/GAOREPORTS-GAO-03-443 Other Written Product GAO-03-443; Federal Procurement: Spending and Workforce Trends; Federal procurement Procurement policy Procurement practices Labor force Human resources utilization Public Law 103-355 Public Law 104-106 Public Law 105-178 Public Law 107-107